Learning Outcomes

1. Candidates who select the recital/treatise track will demonstrate the ability to perform musical works representative of a wide array of music styles and genres, and do so in a manner commensurate with doctoral-level musicianship. 
2. Candidates who have selected the dissertation track will perform a candidacy hearing, which will consist of a fifteen-minute program of music from two contrasting style periods. The music selected must be reflective of doctoral-level work.  The student must demonstrate knowledge of style, phrasing/musicality appropriate to that style period, and execution reflective of doctoral-level work. 
3. Candidates must complete a written document (either a dissertation or treatise) representing original scholarship on a topic incorporating appropriate research methods and approved by each candidate s dissertation/treatise adviser and degree committee. In addition, candidates must complete an oral presentation and defense of the findings of their research/scholarly work. 
4. Candidates will be able to demonstrate doctoral-level knowledge of piano literature by identifying, describing, comparing, and contrasting musical works from the Antiquity through modern times.

Admission

The general requirements for admission are: completion of master’s degree in music (or the equivalent); evidence of an ability to pursue doctoral study in the desired area (see information online); and fulfillment of the general requirements for admission to The Graduate School, including the submission of three recommendations. Applicants whose native language is not English are also required to submit a satisfactory score on the TOEFL or the IELTS Intl. Academic Course Type 2 exam. Normally, the minimum acceptable score on the TOEFL is 100 (internet-based) or 600 (paper-based). The minimum acceptable overall band score on the IELTS Intl. Academic Course Type 2 exam is 7. Additional admission requirements for specific areas are listed online. The D.M.A. in Performance is offered in selected areas. Admission decisions are based upon the applicant’s total portfolio with particular weight being given to the audition (for those applying in the area of conducting, performance, or piano pedagogy).

Degree Requirements (48 Post-Masters Hours)

Prior to taking any graduate music study, all doctoral students must take the Graduate Music Diagnostic Examination and, early in their studies, complete all deficiencies and required courses resulting from the exam. Doctoral students must be admitted to degree candidacy no later than the completion of the equivalent of two semesters of full-time study (12 credits total for graduate assistants and 18 credits total for others) and must complete a minimum of 48 credit hours of graduate work past the master’s degree. At least 18 of the credit hours must be completed as part of doctoral residency (18 approved credits taken within a span of three consecutive semesters, with at least one semester being spent in full-time study on the Columbia campus). The residency requirement for D.M.A. students in composition consists of a minimum of four full-time semesters of study on the Columbia campus, three of which must be consecutive. Prior to the scheduling of the comprehensive examination, degree candidates must have satisfied reading proficiency in a foreign language or completed an advisor-approved research course. Candidates for the D.M.A. must also complete written comprehensive examinations in the major area (and any minor area) as well as an oral comprehensive examination that covers the major area, music history/literature, music theory, and any doctoral minor. In addition, degree candidates must complete a dissertation or dissertation requirement, as follows: those in conducting or performance must present four full recitals and submit a research document; candidates in composition must complete a dissertation consisting of a musical work of major proportions and a research document; and candidates in piano pedagogy must complete a written dissertation or present two recitals and complete a written treatise. The final doctoral requirement is the successful oral defense of the dissertation or dissertation requirement.

Major Area (28 Hours)

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
MUSC 773	Seminar in Performance Pedagogy I	3
MUSC 774	Seminar in Performance Pedagogy II	3
Piano Pedagogy		3
Piano Literature or Pedagogy		3
MUSC 811A – MUSC 811Z - Advisor approval for the correct section		4
Total Credit Hours		16

Dissertation Track

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
MUSC 899	Dissertation Preparation	12
Total Credit Hours		12

Recital/Treatise Track

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
MUSC 891	Recital Preparation	4
MUSC 898	Treatise Preparation	6
MUSC 896	Solo Recital	1
Select one of the following:		1
MUSC 892	Lecture Recital
MUSC 893	Opera/Oratorio Role
MUSC 894	Concerto Recital
MUSC 895	Chamber Recital
MUSC 896	Solo Recital
Total Credit Hours		12

Other Studies in Music (20 Hours)

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
MUSC 747	Advanced Music Research	2
Select approved 700-level Music Theory courses		6
Select approved 700-level Music History courses		6
Select from 700-level Music courses not in major area		6
Total Credit Hours		20