Master of Music with Concentrations in Music Education and Music Performance, M.M.

Program Requirements

Total Program: 30 Hours

MM Music Students Policies
The Master of Music program offers advanced training in music for those who seek teaching positions in higher education and wish to pursue doctoral study. The program of study includes advanced studies in music history, theory, and research as general music competencies, concentration-related coursework, and electives that support the graduate music concentration(s).

Elective courses
MM Music students take approved elective courses at or above the 5000 level, which must be selected in consultation with the student’s advisor and/or the Head of Graduate Studies. Students may elect to take courses related to their major area of study or other approved supportive courses. Music Performance concentration students normally take electives with a MUSC prefix. Music Education concentration students may also take courses supportive of their work in education.

Repeating courses
Applied study and ensemble courses may be repeated for credit to fulfill degree plan requirements and required coursework and/or program electives. MUSC 6210 - Music History and Literature and MUSC 6184 - Seminar in Music Education may be repeated as an elective if the course has a different topic. For courses that are repeated for the purposes of improving GPA, see the policies of The Graduate School.

Application for Graduation and The Faculty Committee
The graduate music student must apply for graduation one semester prior to the proposed graduation semester. This is done through the Student Services tab within the student’s MyUWG account. The Faculty Committee consists of graduate music faculty evaluating the student’s Comprehensive Final Exam (CFE). Music Education concentration students should talk to the Head of Graduate Studies (HGS) about the CFE at least 3 months before the beginning of their final term: their faculty committee consists of graduate music faculty evaluating their written CFE. In the case of the Music Performance concentration student, the Faculty Committee evaluates both the student’s Graduate Recital and their oral CFE: the student should consult with their principal applied instructor and HGS to form their Faculty Committee 6 months before the beginning of their final term.

Comprehensive Final Examination
A comprehensive final examination (CFE) is administered during the final semester of study to all candidates seeking a Master of Music degree. The examination is designed to help determine the student’s ability to synthesize a broad body of knowledge gained through graduate study. Students may be asked questions of a practical, theoretical, or historical nature as well as specific and general questions relating to the plan of study. Details about the CFE for the music education and music performance concentration follow.

Music Education Concentration CFE
The CFE for MM in Music Education candidates consists of questions about student coursework. It is administered as a proctored, three-hour written essay examination of approximately 2000 words. If a student has chosen the thesis-track, their thesis-defense counts as their CFE and they do not need to take the proctored essay exam.


The CFE is scheduled near the beginning of each term. Approximately three months before the exam, students who have talked to the HGS will receive prompts for CFE topics. No later than two months before the exam date students should make arrangements to take the exam at UWG or at a testing center near their residence, copying in the HGS.


In preparation for the exam, students are invited to contact their instructors of record to ask any questions that might aid their preparation for the exam; they may also consult with the HGS. On the date of the exam, students will write their responses (approximately 2000 words total) and electronically submit them via the testing center: students may use books and notes during the exam and should appropriately cite any information or prose borrowed from another source.


Upon receiving the candidate’s exam, three graduate faculty from the Music Program will review it and provide feedback to the candidate. Provided that the feedback is positive, a 30-minute review of the student’s exam will be scheduled with a designated music faculty member. If the exam does not meet passing criteria, the student should arrange for a rescheduled exam to be taken at least a month before the end of the term if they still wish to graduate that term. Students in the MM Music Education program may take the CFE a total of three times.

Music Performance CFE
One semester prior to the examination, the student must request examination questions from each member of his or her faculty committee. In addition, the student must coordinate the scheduling of the oral examination with the faculty chair and members of the committee.

Selections performed on the graduate recital by candidates for the MM in Music Performance serve as the basis for answering general and specific questions at the final comprehensive oral examination. Candidates should be prepared to demonstrate extensive knowledge-historical, theoretical, stylistic, and pedagogical-of all works and styles performed on the graduate recital. Students are required to provide scores, and per committee request, may be required to submit analyses prior to their comprehensive final oral examination.

Thesis Option
Students in the Master of Music program who plan to pursue additional graduate study may wish to consider selecting the Thesis Option as part of their degree requirements. The completion of a Master’s Thesis is documentation of one’s scholarship and is generally considered to indicate expertise in a given area of study. Students pursuing the thesis option may register for 3, 6, or 9 hours of credit in MUSC 6999 - Thesis in Music, which may serve as program electives.

Prior to selecting the Thesis Option, the student must establish his or her graduate faculty committee, including a committee chairperson. The student will complete the thesis document under the direct guidance of the chair after having developed a formal proposal, which is approved by the candidate’s committee. It is expected that the manuscript will demonstrate high standards of scholarship. During the research and writing of the thesis document, the candidate is advised to consult regularly with the major professor and the other members of the committee. Following approval of the committee, the document must be defended orally.

Graduate Recital
The recital, for which 3 credits are earned, is required in the performance-major concentration and may be considered for one of the approved electives in the music education concentration. The recital must consist of 40-60 minutes of music based on studies in Principal Applied. Each recital must be approved in a hearing at least two weeks prior to the performance. The student and accompanist are expected to demonstrate a concert-ready level of performance on all selections, as determined by a majority vote of three or more music faculty members. The performance of the recital is evaluated by the student’s graduate faculty committee. A principal-applied voice recital must include works sung in English, French, German, and Italian. A graduate applied evaluation may be required for the music education concentration student wishing to perform a graduate recital.

Ensemble Requirements
Each Performance concentration student must participate in a conducted or coached ensemble for a total of 2 credit hours, usually for one credit per semester. The ensemble requirement may be satisfied by participation in any approved graduate instrumental and/or vocal ensemble. The ensemble must meet a minimum of one hour per week with a faculty member and culminate in public performance. The ensemble experience must be in the principal-applied area.

Graduate Assistantships
Graduate Assistantships in Music are available on a competitive basis to qualified residential graduate students. In-state tuition and out-of-state tuition may be waived for qualified Graduate Teaching and Research Assistants in some circumstances.