Any student at the University of Minnesota may pursue the BA in music with academic emphasis or World Music Minor; no application or audition is required.

The following programs require an application and audition. Additionally, music education and music therapy programs require an entrance interview. 

• BMus (performance, music education, music therapy) 
• BA in music with applied emphasis
• Music minor (applied)

Equivalency and PSEO applicants, please see specialized instructions. Transfer applicants, please find additional information below.

STEP 1: Apply to the School of Music

The 2021 application will be posted here by the first week of September 2020. Some programs and studios will continue to consider late applications for Fall 2020. Contact music@umn.edu to inquire if your intended degree program and instrument area are still accepting applications.

The School of Music Application includes:

• Online Application
  Includes proposed degree plan, audition/interview date, studio instructor preferences, musical and educational history, and space to list musical accomplishments and goals.
• Prescreening videos
  Required only for voice, saxophone, piano, violin, viola, cello, or double bass. 
• Two letters of recommendation (suggested)
  Letters of recommendation are suggested, but not required. The application will gather the email addresses of references you wish to include and collect the letters on your behalf. 
• Vocal accompanist sheet music
  Vocalists who pass the prescreening round and submit their sheet music with their application will be provided an accompanist at no charge for the live audition round. Accompanists are neither required nor provided for other instruments.
• Recorded audition
  If you choose to submit a recorded audition, your video is due with your application. Please review recorded audition eligibility and guidelines.
• $45 Non-refundable application fee
  Applicants who meet specific financial circumstances as indicated on their application will qualify for a fee waiver.

STEP 2: Apply to the University of Minnesota

• Incoming Freshman and Transfer applicants must apply for admission to the University of Minnesota. For further clarification of the dual application decision process for the School of Music and the University, see the "Admissions Decisions" section below.
• Equivalency applicants and currently enrolled students at the U of M - Twin Cities do not need to apply to the University.
• PSEO must apply to the U of M PSEO program when applications open in February.

STEP 3: Audition and Interview

Provided you pass any prescreening round required of your instrument, the date you select on your School of Music application is considered confirmed. Due to the high volume of applications, the School of Music cannot consider requests for specific times of the day or reschedule. Please plan accordingly.

Auditions will take place at the School of Music in Ferguson Hall with a formal time sent to auditionees two weeks prior to their selected audition date. 

Recorded Auditions: Recorded auditions are available for students located 200+ miles from the University of Minnesota and due with your application. Review the recorded audition guidelines.

Music Education & Music Therapy Interviews: music education and music therapy applicants must complete a 15-minute interview with the faculty on a formal audition and interview day. You will be asked to submit a printed copy of your responses to the Music Education/Music Therapy Interview Profile at the time of your interview. 

Admission Decisions

For School of Music consideration, students must submit applications for both University admission as well as School of Music admission. Each applicant will be reviewed based on the information presented in the application. The School of Music will also utilize the audition and interview to make a final determination. 

Scholarships

Students who complete their applications for fall admission to the BMus and BA with applied emphasis programs by the application deadlines and who gain admission to the University of Minnesota are automatically considered for music scholarships. Learn more about scholarships. 

Instructor Preference

Students have the opportunity to indicate their primary and secondary choices of private lesson instructor. Every effort will be made to honor these requests based on studio availability and balance. However, we cannot guarantee placement in your preferred instructor's studio. 

Housing

Most incoming music, art, theatre, dance and honors majors choose to live in Middlebrook Hall, the dormitory located next to Ferguson Hall (the School of Music) on the West Bank of campus overlooking the Mississippi River. In order to secure a spot in Middlebrook, apply for housing as soon as the application is posted in November and list Middlebrook Hall as your first choice of a dormitory. You do not need to wait to be admitted to or confirmed to enroll at the University of Minnesota before you apply for housing; the earlier you submit your housing application, the more likely you are to be placed in your first choice of a dormitory.  

Transfer Students 

The University of Minnesota School of Music is an accredited, institutional member school of the National Association for Schools of Music.

To transfer to the School of Music, you must apply to both the University of Minnesota and the School of Music. If you are supported by a music scholarship at the time of your application to the School of Music, the director of your current music school must submit a signed transfer release form in on your behalf in order for you to be considered for music scholarships at the University of Minnesota.

If you have taken music coursework for credit at another institution, you may be able to apply those credits toward, and be exempt from, the equivalent coursework at the School of Music. This will require you to undergo a transfer course review process that includes: placement exams for theory and ear training, syllabus review for academic and specialized music courses, and a transfer jury at the end of your first semester at the University for applied lessons and ensembles. Students transferring must take placement exams and have syllabi reviewed at the beginning of their first semester after admission. 

Transfer specialists in the Office of Admissions will provide applicants with information on the transfer of liberal education/general credits to the University of Minnesota.