Music Graduate Office

Minor Field Information

Minor Requirements

All students pursuing a Doctor of Music, Doctor of Music Education, or Doctor of Philosophy degree are required to declare two minor fields (except for students in the Doctor of Philosophy degree in Musicology, who must declare one). Each minor consists of at least 12 credit hours.

Each course must have a grade of C or better to fulfill degree requirements. In addition, the courses counting toward the minor must have an average grade of B or better. Departments offering the minor may require a higher grade for their minor fields. Courses with S/F grades will not be accepted as part of a minor. Guided Electives taken in place of a second formal minor have the same grade requirements as a minor.

To declare each doctoral minor, students must complete a Doctoral Minor Field or Guided Electives Form, have it signed by the appropriate department chair or faculty member, and submit it to the Music Graduate Office.  Students should declare each minor before taking coursework towards that minor to confirm whether the classes they are taking will count.

To declare each minor field representative (students need one minor field representative for each minor, though not for Guided Electives), students will need to submit an Advisory Committee form, a Minor Field representative in Music History & Literature form, or a Minor Field representative in Music Theory form (depending on the minor field). 

The Advisory Committee request form does not require faculty signatures, but both the Minor Field representative in Music History & Literature form and the Minor Field representative in Music Theory form do require faculty signatures. The minor field representative does not need to be declared at the same time as the minor - students can declare each minor field representative any time after the minor is formally approved and before the student begins the qualifying exam stage of the degree. To update changes to a previously established Advisory Committee, click here.

Degrees

Doctor of Music

First Minor

The first minor declared by a doctor of music student must be in music history and literature, music theory, or music education. Certain departments may further restrict the choice of options for the minor field for their majors. For D.M. students who have completed master's degrees in one of these three fields, the appropriate department may, with the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies, waive part or all of the doctoral minor course work and determine an appropriate department involvement in the written and oral qualifying examinations. Students will take additional courses in the major field or in other areas to make up the required 12 credit hours of the first minor.

Second Minor

The second minor can be 12 credits reflecting the following grouping:

• A second formal minor;
• An individualized minor in or outside of music; or
• Guided electives.*

If a student has a master's degree in a field other than musicology, music education or music theory, the appropriate department may, with the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies, waive part or all of the doctoral minor course work for the second minor and determine an appropriate departmental involvement in the written and oral qualifying examinations. Students will take additional courses in the major field or in other areas to make up the required 12 credit hours of the second minor. 

If the student is majoring in music performance, the second minor cannot be in another area of performance except that modern-instrument performers may elect an early-music minor and vice versa. A minor in performance, when allowed, requires study at the 800 level. 

*Guided electives are not available to composition majors.

Doctor of Philosophy in Music Theory

First minor

Second minor

The second minor may be inside or outside of the School of Music. For the second minor, the student may also select a coherent individualized curriculum, approved by the advisory committee and the director of graduate studies

Doctor of Music Education and Doctor of Philosophy in Music Education

First Minor

12 credit hours within or outside the field of music in any subject for which the candidate has the necessary background for advanced course work.

Second minor

Students may choose to complete a second formal minor or, with approval of their advisory committee and the director of graduate studies, use the remaining 12 credit hours as free, graduate-level electives inside or outside the field of music.

Doctor of Philosophy in Musicology

One minor consisting of 12 credit hours.  The subject can be within or outside the field of music.  Students in the PhD in Musicology program are not required to have a second minor.

Formal Minors

This is a partial list. Students are welcome to consult with department chairs or the Graduate Office about minors in other fields. Note that some departments (including Orchestral Conducting) do not offer minors.

Minor in Choral Conducting

Prior conducting experience and a conducting audition are required for acceptance into the minor in choral conducting. The minor in choral conducting must include M555 Foundations in Choral Score Analysis and Preparation (3 cr.), M565 Master’s Seminar in Choral Literature (3 cr.), and G561-562 Master’s Choral Conducting I-II (3-3 cr.).

Minor in Composition

The minor in composition consists of: (a) 12 credits of K810 private composition lessons (3 credits of K554 Advanced Orchestral Arranging for Graduate Students may be substituted for 3 credits of K810 at the recommendation of the composition faculty); (b) the public performance on student composition recitals of at least three compositions written while enrolled in K810, to be graded as Pass/Fail by a committee of at least three composition faculty in attendance; and (c) a minor field examination in two parts: (1) the composition of a vocal work to an assigned text within a 24- hour period, and (2) the composition of a short movement for chamber ensemble within a seven-day period. Both compositions will be graded Pass/Fail by a committee of at least three composition faculty members.

Minor in Early Music

The minor in early music must include 6 credit hours selected from M517-M518-M519 Literature and Performance Practice I-II-III (3 cr.) or M697 Advanced Seminar Materials in Early Music (3 cr.), and 6 credit hours of electives (performance study, chamber music, or other courses) offered by the Early Music Department and approved by the department chairperson. A minimum grade of B is required in each course to be counted toward the minor.

Minor in Jazz Studies

The minor in jazz studies must include M592 Jazz Literature 2: The Bebop Era (3 cr.) and 9 credit hours selected from available graduate courses in jazz approved by the jazz department chairperson.

Minor in Music Education

The minor in music education must consist of 6 credit hours selected from E518 Foundations of Music Education (3 cr.); E519 Psychology of Music (3 cr.), E530 Learning Processes in Music (3 cr.); E535 Measurement, Evaluation, and Guidance in Music (3 cr.); E616 Curriculum in Music Education (3 cr.); E635 College Music Teaching (3 cr.); and 6 credit hours of electives in graduate music education.

Minor in Music History and Literature

The minor in music history and literature must include four graduate courses in music history and literature taught by members of the musicology faculty.

Minor in Music Information Technology

The minor in Music Information Technology consists of any four graduate courses in music information technology.

Minor in Music Theory

The minor in music theory must include T550 Readings in Music Theory (3cr.) or T591 Teaching of Music Theory (3 cr.), T551 Analytical Techniques for Tonal Music (3 cr.) or T556 Analysis of Music Since 1900 (3 cr.), plus 6 credit hours from available graduate courses in music theory by consultation with the department chairperson or the coordinator of graduate studies in music theory. A minimum grade of B is required in each course to be counted toward the music theory minor.

Minor in Musicology

The minor in musicology must include M551 Introduction to Historical Musicology (3 cr.) (prerequisite: M539 Introduction to Music Bibliography), two musicology seminars M602 Seminar in Musicology: Variable Topics (3-3 cr.); and a fourth course approved by the musicology department chairperson.

Minor in Stage Direction for Opera

The minor in stage direction for opera must include R505 Opera Stage Direction Technique I(3 cr.), R591 Principles of Acting in Opera (2cr.), R502 Stage Management (1 cr.), and 6 credit hours selected from M561-M562-M563-M564 History and Literature of Opera I-II-III-IV (3-3-3-3 cr.) or M525 Survey of Operatic Literature (3cr.).

Minor in Voice

The minor in voice must include 6 credit hours of V800 Voice, plus 6 credit hours selected from E694 Applied Comparative Voice Pedagogy (3 cr.), E695 Seminar in Vocal Pedagogy Research (3 cr.), or M531-M532 Song Literature III-IV (3-3 cr.), M685 Vocal Literature before 1800 ( 3 cr.), M686-M687 Romantic Song Literature and Oratorio I-II (3-3 cr.), and M688 Twentieth-Century Vocal Literature (3 cr.). For audition information, see the department chairperson.

Individualized Minors

An individualized minor is a set of courses (at least 12 credits total) which you propose and which must fit a specific theme or emphasis. A written proposal in required. This minor requires approval by a faculty member with expertise in the area of emphasis and the Director of Graduate Studies.

Guided Electives

NOTE: Guided Electives are not available to composition students.

Doctor of Music students under Bulletins from 1995 or later may elect to forgo a second formal minor and instead choose twelve hours of "guided electives." The courses to be counted under this heading are approved by the chair of the student's advisory committee and the Director of Graduate Studies. The following guidelines should help you in choosing appropriate courses to be approved:

1. The total number of credit hours for the guided electives category must be at least 12.
2. Courses which could count toward your major field are not eligible (that is, you may not count "excess" hours on the major toward guided electives).
3. A maximum of 4 credit hours may be taken in courses closely related to the major field only if they are not specifically required as part of the major or able to fill an elective slot in the major. These courses might include string pedagogy for string majors, string technology for string majors, instrument repair for brass or woodwind majors, and similar courses. Applied study in a related instrument at the minor (800) level or above may also be eligible.
4. Courses which are normally used to satisfy proficiencies (such as M541/542, T508, T509, T511, and piano classes and lessons taken to prepare for the keyboard proficiency or performance proficiency exam) are not eligible .
5. Courses outside the School of Music must be at a level that is acceptable for graduate study. Courses at the 100 or 200 level are not eligible. Courses at the 300 or 400 level may be eligible if they satisfy a requirement for the undergraduate major in that subject. Courses at the 500 level and above will normally be eligible if they can satisfy a requirement for a major or minor in that field. No more than 6 hours of courses below the 500 level may be counted toward guided electives.
6. It is essential that you consult with the chair of your advisory committee and the Director of Graduate Studies before enrolling in a class.  Neither is obligated to approve "after the fact" any courses you may have taken.

Please note the following:

• The guided electives option is not a minor field and therefore is not subject to qualifying examinations. There is no representative for guided electives on the advisory committee.
• The guided electives category may not be used as a device to avoid a minor-field qualifying examination. If you use guided electives to take courses exclusively in one area that has traditionally been used as a minor field, you will be required to declare the minor and take a qualifying examination.