Skipping the Terminal Master's?

tuba269
Thu, 09 Jun 2011 12:07:57 +0000

I think (but I’m not sure) that for Ph.D. degrees it would be pretty common to skip the Master’s, which I think would be pretty standard in musicology and possible in composition, but less likely in conducting. Someone can correct me if I’m wrong, but I think conducting programs tend to be DMA programs, which usually necessitate a Master’s (and the same would go for a DMA in composition).

From what I’ve seen, it looks like musicology programs tend to function a lot like non-music humanities Ph.D. programs, with fellowships and professors-of-interest and the like (and are offered at non-applied-focused schools like UChicago, the Ivies, Berkeley, etc.). Composition seems to go pretty equally by the music school and music department route.

Oh, and if you’re talking about the “professional field of music” in terms of everything other than teaching, then advanced degrees won’t get you a thing.