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How to Apply
• Apply to the Graduate School
• Submit three letters of recommendation
• Submit two official copies of your transcript(s)
• Submit your GRE scores
• Complete the Music Department's diagnostic examination
• Submit your Statement of Purpose
• Submit your writing samples
• Submit the Application Fee
• Monitor the completion of your application
• Respond to admissions and financial aid award information
1. Apply to the Graduate School.
Detailed information about applying to the Graduate School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is available online at http://gradschool.unc.edu/admissions/instructions.html. Please read the instructions carefully, then fill out the online application form. Students applying for entrance to the M.A. program must apply for both the M.A. and the Ph.D. degrees (that is, fill out the application for the M. A. degree, and check the box "I plan to pursue the Ph.D. degree.") Students already holding an M.A. in musicology may apply directly to the Ph.D. program; such entrance may be granted on a provisional basis pending successful completion of our doctoral qualifying examination. In order to be considered for funding, your application must be complete by December 15 (the Graduate School recommends that international students apply by December 1).
For questions about Graduate School Applications, please email gradinfo@unc.edu
2. Submit three current letters of recommendation.
Letters of recommendation should be from faculty members who know you and your work and who are in a position to judge your potential in the field of musicology. As a courtesy to your recommenders, you should ask if they will write on your behalf well in advance of the deadline. Printable forms are available at the Graduate School’s website. Letters of recommendation should be sent by the recommender directly to the Director of Graduate Admissions in the Music Department by December 15. Recommenders should scan their letters, together with the applicant’s right-of-access waiver, to pdf and email them to gradadmissionsmusic@unc.edu. All letters of recommendation are treated in the strictest confidence.
3. Submit two official copies of your transcript(s).
Two official transcripts of all post-secondary education (undergraduate and graduate), bearing the signature of the registrar and the seal of the institution, are required. Send one copy to the Graduate School and one copy to the Director of Graduate Admissions in the Music Department.
4. Submit your GRE scores.
Official GRE General Test scores are required for applicants to the Graduate Program in Musicology. Scores for the Subject Test in Music are not required. You should plan to take the GRE no later than October—please see the Graduate School ’s website for detailed instructions. Combined GRE Verbal and Quantitative scores for students receiving university-based fellowships through the Music Department tend to be above 1350. If you feel your scores do not accurately reflect your abilities, you may wish to take the examination a second time.
5. Complete and submit the Music Department's diagnostic examination.
No application for graduate study in musicology at UNC-Chapel Hill is complete without the Music Department’s diagnostic examination. The exam is designed to allow you to demonstrate your current musical skills and knowledge of music history, theory, and cultural studies. The diagnostic examination is divided into four sections: (1) basic music-theory skills; (2) short answers on the history and culture of music and identification of terms; (3) an essay, written on your choice of three given topics; and (4) score studies, in which you will be given short excerpts from scores and asked questions about the music's approximate chronology, likely composers, stylistic periods, and the specific aspects of the scores that pertain to your responses.
Early in your application process, send the Director of Graduate Admissions in the Music Department (gradadmissionsmusic@unc.edu) an email with the name and email address of a faculty member at your home institution or location who is willing to proctor your diagnostic exam. The exam will be available from September 15 through December 15, and we will send it to your proctor electronically. The diagnostic examination lasts two hours and is to be completed without the aid of any outside resources (recordings, instruments, notes, books, the internet, etc.). Section 1 of the diagnostic exam may be written on paper with pencil; sections 2, 3, and 4 may be typed. Detailed instructions will be included with the exam.
Sample questions from previous examinations are posted here.
6. Submit your Statement of Purpose.
In your Statement of Purpose (approximately 500-750 words), you should identify the particular nature of your interest in graduate study in music, your reasons for applying specifically to the graduate program at UNC-Chapel Hill, and your long-term goals in the field. Submit an electronic copy of your Statement of Purpose to the Director of Graduate Admissions in the Music Department at gradadmissionsmusic@unc.edu. Be sure that all parts of your application have your name on them.
7. Submit writing samples.
These should consist of two essays that represent what you consider to be your best work to date in the field of music. In order to give our faculty as full an idea as possible of your accomplishments and potential, it would be helpful if the two essays were different in kind. For example, one essay might be historical in nature, the other analytical; or one essay might deal with an issue of music in culture, the other with a specific source. These essays need not be lengthy, although they should be substantial enough to demonstrate your strengths and abilities. Submit your writing samples to the Director of Graduate Admissions in the Music Department at gradadmissionsmusic@unc.edu. Be sure that all parts of your application have your name on them.
8. Submit your Application Fee.
The Graduate School requires a non-refundable $77 application fee, which can be paid by credit card (online), check, or money order. Instructions for submitting your application fee are posted on the Graduate School’s website. Your application is not considered complete and will not be evaluated until the application fee has been received.
9. Monitor the completion of your application
Review the checklist below to make sure that your application is complete. Most of the funding for our graduate students comes through the Graduate School , and for this reason it is important that all parts of your application be submitted no later than December 15. You may monitor the status of your application at https://admissionsapp.unc.edu/grad//.
10. Respond to admissions and financial aid award information
Based on your completed application package, the Music Department’s Graduate Admissions and Financial Aid Committee will decide whether or not to recommend an offer of admission to the Graduate School. The Graduate School , acting on this recommendation, will inform you of its admissions decision no later than March 15. Information on fellowships and funding will be sent to you shortly afterward in a separate mailing. We ask that you respond to these offers of admission and funding by the dates specified in the letters informing you of these decisions.
Although we do not require an interview as part of the application process, we warmly encourage you to visit us and talk with our faculty and graduate students. We invite you in particular to contact individual faculty members whose areas of research mesh with your own. Should you have any further questions about the application process, please contact the Director of Graduate Admissions at gradadmissionsmusic@unc.edu.
Timeline for the Application Process
Application Preparation (early autumn)
• Arrange for a proctor for your Diagnostic Exam and email the proctor’s name and email address to the Director of Graduate Admissions
• Request letters of recommendation from three faculty members who know you and your work well
• Take the GRE General examination
Application Deadlines
ALL APPLICATION MATERIALS MUST BE SUBMITTED NO LATER THAN DECEMBER 15 (DECEMBER 1 RECOMMENDED FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS)
Submit to the Graduate School:
• Graduate School application
• Transcripts (one copy)
• GRE scores
• $77 application fee
Submit to the Music Department:
• 3 letters of recommendation
• Transcripts (one copy)
• Completed diagnostic exam (available from September 15 to December 15)
• Statement of Purpose
• 2 writing samples
Mailing Addresses
We encourage you to submit as much of your application as possible online. If you have any difficulties with the online processes, both the Graduate School and the Music Department are happy to accept paper copies sent by US or International Post.
Application, Fee, & Transcripts (1 copy):
http://gradschool.unc.edu/admissions/instructions.html#minreq
Letters of Recommendation, Diagnostic Examination, Statement of Purpose, Writing Samples, and Transcripts (1 copy):
gradadmissionsmusic@unc.edu
The Graduate School
Campus Box # 4010
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-4010
Director of Graduate Admissions
Music Department
Campus Box # 3320
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3320
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