Admission will be granted to applicants who hold a Bachelor's degree in music (BM, BA or BS with a music major) from an accredited college or university, whose undergraduate GPA is no less than 3.0, and who give promise of meeting the standards set by the Department of Music and the University. Students seeking Music Education Emphasis must possess the B.M.Ed. or equivalent with certification, and submit a teaching portfolio to include a formal writing sample, lesson plan samples including assessment tools, program sample, teaching video, and three letters of reference from professionals who are familiar with the applicant's teaching. Furthermore, Music Education applicants who do not meet the minimum undergraduate GPA and/or do not show promise of meeting the standards set by the Department of Music, may be admitted on probation, with the following stipulation: applicants must maintain at last a B average (3.0) for their first 15 credits, 6 of which must carry a grade of B or better in courses to be determined by the Graduate Music Education Committee. Failure to maintain the stipulated GPA will result in applicants being withdrawn from the program. Successful maintenance of the stipulated GPA for the first 15 credits and completion of other entrance requirements will result in applicants being transferred to Regular Status.

Students seeking admission to the Performance or Pedagogy Emphases must perform a satisfactory audition, in person, before the performance faculty of his/her major performance area (keyboard, winds, strings, etc.). Audition repertory details are available from the Department of Music, and generally follow the level requirements for the undergraduate music majors, i.e., auditions for the pedagogy emphasis should include 300-level repertoire or above, and auditions for the performance emphasis should include 400-level repertoire. Boise State University music majors seeking to use their senior recitals as an entrance audition to the Masters program in Performance or Pedagogy must follow this procedure: The student must notify the applied teacher prior to the pre-recital jury that he/she wishes to use the senior recital as an entrance audition, so that the teacher may notify the appropriate area faculty members, who must agree to attend. The audition repertoire requirements for that area must be met, regardless of what the recital requires. The audition outcome is regarded as a decision separate from the recital grade, i.e., a passing recital grade does not necessarily mean that the entrance audition is successful. Any entrance audition is only valid for one year (12 months) from its performance for acceptance into the program. Students who do not pursue graduate applied study within that time frame must re-audition.

Students meeting entrance requirements are admitted on Provisional Status until completion of the Predictive Examinations.

Before a graduate student can be admitted to Regular Status, predictive examinations in music history and music theory must be completed. The purpose of predictive examinations is to determine the student's strengths and weaknesses so that an individual academic program can be formulated that will best serve the student's needs. Any course used to remove deficiencies does not count toward the degree. A student who has deficiencies will remain on Provisional Status. When deficiencies have been removed, the student may then seek Regular Status. A description of material covered on these examinations is available from the Graduate Program Coordinator. PLEASE NOTE: Regular Status must be attained before registering for the Culminating Activity (including the Graduate Solo Performance Recital), and before submission of the Application for Admission to Candidacy Form.

The Music Education Emphasis student must take an informal audition with his/her applied instructor, before beginning lessons on any instrument, in order to determine his/her basic level of ability on the instrument chosen. The instructor will determine the undergraduate "level" reflected in the student's audition, and keep a record of that, although the student should register for the 2-credit 500-level course. In order to satisfy the applied music requirement in the Music Education Emphasis, the student must either a) raise ability by one level from his/her starting point, or b) attain 100 level, if the audition was below 100 level, before graduation. If the student already performs at the graduate level, successful completion of two semesters of applied lessons is all that is required.

It is the policy of the Dept. of Music to Provide private lesson fee waivers for the required lessons in the student’s official Emphasis, in semesters during which the student carries full-time enrollment. In the case of the Music Education Emphasis and the Pedagogy Emphasis, no more than two 2-credit fee waivers will be provided. In the case of the Performance Emphasis, a maximum of three 4-credit fee waivers will be provided. Please remember that the Performance and Pedagogy Emphases require a minimum two consecutive semesters’ “residency” of private lessons.

The graduate student's faculty committee, together with the graduate advisor, bear responsibility for guiding the student's curriculum and culminating project. The Music Ed. student's committee consists of a chairperson who is closest in expertise to the candidate's area of music education specialization, and two additional faculty members who have background relevant to the candidate's work.

The Performance or Pedagogy candidate's committee consists of the candidate's applied teacher (chairperson), an official faculty member from within the same performance area, or, if there is none in the same area, in the most closely related performance area, and an appropriate official faculty member from either the history or theory area. If the applied teacher is adjunct, then two official faculty from the most closely related area must also serve on the committee (one of these chairing the committee), making the total number four. The Performance or Pedagogy candidate must schedule and perform a pre-recital jury at least four weeks and no more than six weeks before the actual recital. This pre-recital jury must be judged by the three official committee members.

A written comprehensive examination in music must be completed prior to completion of the student's Culminating Activity. This exam is tailored to each student's graduate course work. It may be taken after the completion of 27 hours of required course work, to include 6 credits of core courses and the 3 hours each in music history and music theory. The music education specialist creates and administers this exam, or oversees its delegation. Six questions, submitted by a variety of instructors from whom the student has taken course work, are answered in writing over a period of three hours. Instructors who have written the questions are responsible for grading the exam under the supervision of the music education specialist. An oral examination relating to the written comprehensive examination or to the culminating activity may be requested at the discretion of the candidate's committee.

Before registering for the culminating project/activity of thesis, project, recital or lecture recital, the student must:

1) be admitted to Regular Status. Completion of the Predictive Exams is a prerequisite to “Regular Status.”

2a) for Music Education Emphasis, have completed 6 credits of the core courses, including MUS 503 and the 6 credits in the area of emphasis
OR
2b) for Performance or Pedagogy Emphasis, have completed a minimum of 9 credit hours of course-work toward the degree, not including applied lessons, and, in the case of Performance or Pedagogy Emphasis students, at least 4 credit hours of applied lessons

3) have formed the required three-person committee. This committee is responsible for signing off on the student's proposal for thesis, recital, or lecture-recital, and will also be the sole committee designated to pass/fail the culminating project.

Please note that all Culminating Project activities (Full Solo Recital, Lecture-Recital, Thesis, Music Education Project) will be graded pass/fail, i.e., not by letter grade, by order of the Dean.

Graduate recitals, lecture-recitals and theses are passed or failed by a majority written vote by the official three-member committee. Upon successful completion of the graduate recital, lecture-recital, or thesis, a written examination is administered by the chair of the student's committee, consisting of three broad questions, each dealing with some area of that student's recital or culminating project and the particular course work. Each committee member is responsible for submitting, in writing, one question, as well as a short paragraph directing the student’s preparation for the question, to the committee chair, prior to the execution of the culminating project. The examination should be completed between two and six weeks after the successful completion of the culminating project. Not more than three weeks upon satisfactory completion of the written examination, an oral examination (including thesis defense in the case of thesis) must follow, administered by the same committee.

A student carrying the “IP” or “I” for any culminating project, including its comprehensive examination component, must register for at least one credit of research each Fall, Spring, and Summer semester in which he or she expects faculty or infrastructure service until the degree is completed. See p. 26, Graduate Catalogue.

Please also read this clarification from the Dean of the Graduate College:

If a student is working on his/her thesis or project during a semester (fall, spring, or summer) and is using University resources in connection with that work (e.g., faculty consultation, a laboratory, a practice room, etc.), then that student should be registered for at least 1 credit of thesis or project for that semester. By ‘working on his/her thesis or project,’ I mean ALL work, from the preliminary work through the defense.

1) "Application for Admission" (transcripts also)

2) " Program Recommendation Form" (comes from Grad. Admissions Office to Grad Program Coordinator)

3) "Application for Graduate Assistantship" (optional!)

4) Audition (Performance or Pedagogy only)

5) Admitted to Provisional Status

6) Predictive Examinations:

A) Theory (guidelines available)
B) History (guidelines available)

7) Course Work (as per catalogue). Please note: MUS 465G and MUS 466G Diction for Singers is required of all voice performance majors.

8) "Application for Independent Study" (if you arrange for a course beyond what is offered in the Registration Book) (obtained from Grad Program Coordinator)

*9) "Application for Admission to Candidacy" form is used after 18 credits are completed, and when you have achieved Regular Status, to alert the Graduate College of your intent to finish. Includes letter grades for courses completed, and any remaining projected course work. Must meet deadline of filing by particular (early) dates before the semester prior to the semester of graduation. Check BroncoWeb for applicable semester deadlines. Use your catalogue to include ONLY courses applicable to your degree program. (obtained online.)

10) "Culminating Project/Recital Committee Formation" form must be signed by all members of your committee and filed before or in tandem with the following form. (obtained from Grad Program Coordinator)

11a) "Thesis, Project or Lecture Recital Form" (Music Ed Emphasis or Pedagogy Emphasis only) (obtained from Grad Program Coordinator and attached to full prospectus)
(or)
11b) "Masters Recital Program Proposal and Record of Approval" form (Performance Emphasis only). (obtained from Grad Program Coordinator)

Either of these forms must be signed by all members of your committee, and on file prior to completion of the Culminating Project/Activity.

*12) "Application for Graduate Degree" form (with $30 diploma fee) has a deadline of the first week of semester in which you expect to graduate. (obtained online)

13) "Report of Culminating Activity" form is signed by your committee and advisor following your successful completion of your Comprehensive Examination/Review, written and, if required, oral. It is the last step notifying the Graduate College of your readiness to graduate. (initiated by Grad Program Coordinator)

14) Grade Change forms for any “I”s or “IP”s while carrying culminating activity (remind Grad Program Coordinator!)

*Actual deadlines for forms needed for graduation are specified in the Fall and Spring Registration Books and on BroncoWeb for each semester. Check these carefully at least two semesters before you plan to graduate. Meeting deadlines for your graduation forms is your responsibility, not mine.