Part-time, distance learning
Drawing students from all over the world, these courses focus on the application of psychological research to musical experiences and professions and attract graduate musicians who work in the fields of music therapy, performance, or teaching.
We provide you with training in the research methods used by psychologists, together with the conceptual framework within which these methods can help to inform and explore musical expertise and understanding.
You will also benefit from newly-written online materials, and from the department´s extensive resources of books and journals in music education.
Music at Sheffield attracts world-leading academics and musicians working in a wide range of specialist fields. This is reflected in the diversity of the MA programmes we offer, both on campus and by distance learning. Our courses are taught by experts and backed by world-class research. In the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) 84 per cent of our work was rated internationally excellent or world-leading.
We are influential in composition, ethnomusicology, musicology, performance, music technology, music management and psychology of music. Our MA programmes allow students to take advantage of the department’s distinctive interdisciplinary research environment and to be part of a strong postgraduate community by taking modules from other specialist areas. Our three research centres, Music, Mind, Machine; Sheffield Performer and Audience Research Centre, and Music and Wellbeing provide a hub for research collaborations in music psychology and audience research.
Performance is an important part of our work. You will have the chance to participate in orchestras, music theatre, contemporary music, folk and world traditions. We have strong links with the community, giving you the chance to volunteer with local arts organisations.
Our graduates are employed by universities, colleges, concert agencies and music promoters. Many work in education; others are performers in various genres, in the UK and abroad. Some work in recording studios.
A number of graduates from our Masters programmes develop their research interests further and continue on to PhD study. Visit: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/research-degrees
We have a postgraduate research suite and several studios for advanced compositional work, software development, sound recording, laboratory and field experimentation, transcription, music notation and other research applications. You will have access to scores, books, periodicals, recordings and online resources.
Through a series of graduate study days you will be able to use the tools for digital recording, video and film. We also have excellent practice facilities and collections of historical and world music instruments.
Our team of professional musicians bring performance expertise to the department – including clarinettist Sarah Watts, pianist Inja Davidovic, jazz guitarist Ronan McCullagh and North Indian tabla and santoor performer John Ball.
The University offers a range of scholarships and funding for the brightest students and the Department of Music offers a number of studentships for the strongest candidates. Small grants are also available to support postgraduate research project.
For more information about funding opportunities including application deadlines visit: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/funding
Find information about scholarships and funding for international students at: http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/international/enquiry/money/scholarships
Our tutors Nikki Dibben, Stephanie Pitts, Vicki Rowe, Renee Timmers and Victoria Williamson are renown for their expertise in the field and have been published widely in music psychology and education.
See http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/taught
Much of the course is taught online in online discussions and tutorial groups, email and telephone tutorials.
You’ll also attend lectures and seminars at annual residentials and optional study days. Assessments take a variety of forms such as reports and essays. They are usually individual assessments, even if they concern the processes and outcomes of group work.
If you have a background in music or psychology, this programme will allow you to study existing research and theories in the psychology of music while continuing to follow your own musical interests.
You’ll develop your knowledge of qualitative and quantitative research methods, building your own research skills while learning to critically evaluate studies in the field of music psychology. Using real-world case studies you’ll explore areas such as music education, therapy, advertising, science and technology – but you’ll also be able to take optional modules in composition, performance, musicology, aesthetics, editing, electronic and computer music or other aspects of music.
Taught by experts in world-class facilities, you’ll gain an insight into the importance and role of research in music psychology to prepare you for further research or a wider range of careers.
We have a variety of excellent facilities to support your learning, including rehearsal, performance and practice spaces, a lab for studying the psychology of music and studios for sound recording, software development and computer music composition.
We also have good working relationships with a range of prestigious arts organisations: we host BBC Radio 3 concerts, Leeds Lieder and the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition, as well as enjoying a close partnership with Opera North and many others in a city with a thriving music and cultural scene.
Take a virtual tour of the School of Music.
Core modules that run throughout the year will develop your knowledge of music psychology, as well as your understanding of research methods. You’ll focus on case studies in different areas of the subject, gaining a sense of the key issues, debates and theories and becoming confident evaluating and using quantitative and qualitative techniques to collect data.
At the same time, you’ll select from optional modules that allow you to pursue your interests in different areas of music such as aesthetics, musicology, audience engagement, composition, performance, editing and archival studies, electronic and computer music or musicology. For some of these modules, we may need to see evidence of your ability before you begin – see ‘How to apply’ for more information.
By the end of the programme, you’ll be able to demonstrate the knowledge and skills you’ve gained when you submit your dissertation – an independent piece of research, with an empirical component, on a topic of your choice within music psychology.
If you choose to study part-time, you’ll study over a longer period and take fewer modules in each year.
These are typical modules/components studied and may change from time to time. Read more in our Terms and conditions.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
You’ll then choose one from the optional modules below.
You’ll benefit from a range of teaching and learning methods. These will include seminars, tutorials and lectures in some modules, as well as instrumental or vocal lessons with our expert tutors if you select performance modules. However, independent study is crucial to this degree, allowing you to develop your skills and pursue your interests at your own pace.
You’ll also be assessed using a range of methods, including presentations, bibliographic exercises, essays and group project work. Specialised music modules will also use relevant methods of assessment, such as compositions, recitals, critical editions and commentaries on musical sources.
This programme will allow you to gain a range of transferable skills in research, analysis, interpretation and oral and written communication. All of these can be applied in musical as well as non-musical contexts.
Recent graduates have gone on to launch careers within the fields of music education, music advertising, business development, marketing and administration, and artist management. Others have also continued with their research at PhD level.
We also offer additional support as you develop your career plans: the School of Music boasts a unique Alumni Mentoring Network, where students can be supported by past students as they start to plan their next steps.
We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That’s one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.
The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.
This unique programme combines music psychology with neuroscience, focusing on both the biological and cognitive aspects of musical behaviour.
The MSc in Music, Mind and Brain (MMB) is highly interdisciplinary and draws on expertise from leading figures in the field, in areas ranging from music cognition, cognitive neuroscience, computational modelling, music education and music therapy.
As a student on the MSc, you will learn about topics in music psychology (from perception to cognition) and the cognitive neuroscience of music, and will acquire all the necessary skills to pursue your own high-quality research.
The programme benefits from good links with institutions such as the Institute of Education, the Royal College of Music, and the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery.
The Msc in Music, Mind and Brain was founded by Professor Lauren Stewart.
Current programme directors Dr Daniel Müllensiefen and Dr Maria Herrojo-Ruiz are joined by an expert teaching faculty, all of whom have international profiles within the fields of music psychology and/or the neuroscience of music.
Our Eminent Invited Speaker Series brings world-leading researchers to Goldsmiths to present their latest research to our students.
We offer a range of research projects, drawing on a variety of approaches: behavioural, computational, neuroscientific. Students are also invited to propose a project of their own choice, providing appropriate supervision can be offered.
If a student has a contact with an external supervisor, it may be possible to arrange for project supervision outside Goldsmiths with the involvement of a faculty member as co-supervisor. Examples of previous projects include:
Written examinations; written coursework (essays); oral presentations; research dissertation.
The programme will appeal to you if you are interested in pursuing doctoral research in this area or if you are already a music professional wishing to approach music scientifically.
Graduates from the Music, Mind and Brain programme have gone on to work in one of the following areas:
Other careers that would be informed by this programme include music therapy, neuro-rehabilitation, music consultancy and music and adverstising.
Find out more about employability at Goldsmiths.
This course is the longest established masters in music psychology in the UK, and a collaboration with the Department of Psychology. Our tutors – Nikki Dibben, Stephanie Pitts, Vicki Rowe, Renee Timmers and Victoria Williamson – have been published widely in music psychology and education.
This course allows you to use psychological methods and theory to interpret and understand musical behaviours, sounds and ideas. You will be introduced to a range of areas including music cognition and neuroscience, musical development, music in everyday life, and musical performance.
You may specialise within an area through a written dissertation, and the pursuit of original research, generally including experimental or observational empirical investigation. Students may also take cognitive neuroscience modules within the Department of Psychology.
Music at Sheffield attracts world-leading academics and musicians working in a wide range of specialist fields. This is reflected in the diversity of the MA programmes we offer, both on campus and by distance learning. Our courses are taught by experts and backed by world-class research. In the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) 84 per cent of our work was rated internationally excellent or world-leading.
We are influential in composition, ethnomusicology, musicology, performance, music technology, music management and psychology of music. Our MA programmes allow students to take advantage of the department’s distinctive interdisciplinary research environment and to be part of a strong postgraduate community by taking modules from other specialist areas. Our three research centres, Music, Mind, Machine; Sheffield Performer and Audience Research Centre, and Music and Wellbeing provide a hub for research collaborations in music psychology and audience research.
Performance is an important part of our work. You will have the chance to participate in orchestras, music theatre, contemporary music, folk and world traditions. We have strong links with the community, giving you the chance to volunteer with local arts organisations.
Our graduates are employed by universities, colleges, concert agencies and music promoters. Many work in education; others are performers in various genres, in the UK and abroad. Some work in recording studios.
We have a postgraduate research suite and several studios for advanced compositional work, software development, sound recording, laboratory and field experimentation, transcription, music notation and other research applications. You will have access to scores, books, periodicals, recordings and online resources.
Through a series of graduate study days you will be able to use the tools for digital recording, video and film. We also have excellent practice facilities and collections of historical and world music instruments.
Our team of professional musicians bring performance expertise to the department – including clarinettist Sarah Watts, pianist Inja Davidovic, jazz guitarist Ronan McCullagh and North Indian tabla and santoor performer John Ball.
University and faculty funding is available each year. The closing date for applications is mid-January. The department has a number of studentships available for our strongest candidates. The closing date for these is the end of April. You can also apply for a small grant to support your postgraduate research project.
See http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/taught
You’ll learn through seminars, laboratory-based demonstrations and individual tutorials. The taught programme is continuously assessed through a variety of forms such as reports and essays.
They are usually individual assessments, even if they concern the processes and outcomes of group work.
Combine your knowledge and skills in music with managerial training with this distinctive and diverse degree.
Taught by the School of Music and Leeds University Business School, this programme will allow you to specialise in an aspect of music that suits your interests and talents while gaining an insight into the principles and strategies of management across the creative industries. You’ll also study modules designed specifically for this programme which bring music and management together, giving you the chance to connect with professionals in the music industry.
You could specialise in music management and promotion, performance, composition, music psychology, electronic and computer music or source studies while exploring strategic management, marketing and entrepreneurship. Whether you’re looking to launch a management career in the music industry or you want to enhance your skills and promotion prospects, you’ll learn from experts in both subjects to gain the diversity of skills to succeed.
We have a variety of excellent facilities to support your learning, including rehearsal, performance and practice spaces, a lab for studying the psychology of music and studios for sound recording, software development and computer music composition. We also have good working relationships with a range of prestigious arts organisations: we host BBC Radio 3 concerts, Leeds Lieder and the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition, as well as enjoying a close partnership with Opera North and many others in a city with a thriving music and cultural scene.
Leeds University Business School is internationally recognised for the quality of its teaching and research. It’s among just 1% of institutions offering business degrees to be triple-accredited by the world’s best-known accreditation bodies.
Read more about Leeds University Business School
The focus of the degree will be a major project: working with a tutor, most of our students devise a music and management project to combine and reflect upon music management theory and practice. This could include, for example, organising an event, acting as a consultant during a work placement you organise, or managing a musical group. Alternatively, you can complete a dissertation on a topic of your choice.
A core module throughout the year will introduce you to research methods in music, equipping you with the skills to support the rest of your studies. You’ll also choose from optional modules to specialise in one of computer music, aesthetics, musicology, editing, psychology of music, performance, composition, artistic management or live music promotion.
In both semesters you’ll study core modules run by Leeds University Business School. These will introduce you to strategic management, marketing for managers and how businesses in the creative industries are actually run and managed, applying concepts and theories to understand the business models of media companies, as well as the impact of digital technologies and the rise of exciting new markets.
If you choose to study part-time, you’ll study over a longer period and take fewer modules in each year.
These are typical modules/components studied and may change from time to time. Read more in our Terms and conditions.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
You will choose 15 credits from Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Creation, and Intellectual Property Management, and complete your enrolment by choosing one module from the list below.
Because this programme is so diverse, you’ll come across a range of teaching and learning methods. These will include lectures, seminars and tutorials as well as group learning. You’ll also take instrumental or vocal lessons in some modules, depending on your choices. Independent study is also vital to this programme, allowing you to build a variety of skills and express your creativity
You’ll also be assessed using a range of methods, including presentations, bibliographic exercises, essays and group project work. LUBS modules may include written exams. Specialised music modules will also use relevant methods of assessment, such as compositions, recitals, critical editions and commentaries on musical sources.
This programme will equip you with in-depth knowledge of economic and management issues, both within and beyond the music industry. It will also equip you with transferable skills in research, analysis, interpretation, communication, cultural and commercial awareness that are valuable to a wide range of employers.
All of this will put you in a great position to succeed in the music industry, as well as other related areas of arts and creative industries management .
We also offer additional support as you develop your career plans: the School of Music boasts a unique Alumni Mentoring Network, where students can be supported by past students as they start to plan their next steps.
We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That’s one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.
The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.
This unique course combines traditional areas of study, such as history and theory, with newer disciplines including music psychology and ethnomusicology.
We have a reputation for research of international quality and play an important role in Sheffield’s thriving cultural life, promoting over 60 concerts a year as well as productions of opera in the University’s theatre. We also have close links with Music in the Round, which brings some of the world’s finest musicians to Sheffield.
Music at Sheffield attracts world-leading academics and musicians working in a wide range of specialist fields. This is reflected in the diversity of the MA programmes we offer, both on campus and by distance learning. Our courses are taught by experts and backed by world-class research. In the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) 84 per cent of our work was rated internationally excellent or world-leading.
We are influential in composition, ethnomusicology, musicology, performance, music technology, music management and psychology of music. Our MA programmes allow students to take advantage of the department’s distinctive interdisciplinary research environment and to be part of a strong postgraduate community by taking modules from other specialist areas. Our three research centres, Music, Mind, Machine; Sheffield Performer and Audience Research Centre, and Music and Wellbeing provide a hub for research collaborations in music psychology and audience research.
Performance is an important part of our work. You will have the chance to participate in orchestras, music theatre, contemporary music, folk and world traditions. We have strong links with the community, giving you the chance to volunteer with local arts organisations.
Our graduates are employed by universities, colleges, concert agencies and music promoters. Many work in education; others are performers in various genres, in the UK and abroad. Some work in recording studios.
We have a postgraduate research suite and several studios for advanced compositional work, software development, sound recording, laboratory and field experimentation, transcription, music notation and other research applications. You will have access to scores, books, periodicals, recordings and online resources.
Through a series of graduate study days you will be able to use the tools for digital recording, video and film. We also have excellent practice facilities and collections of historical and world music instruments.
Our team of professional musicians bring performance expertise to the department – including clarinettist Sarah Watts, pianist Inja Davidovic, jazz guitarist Ronan McCullagh and North Indian tabla and santoor performer John Ball.
University and faculty funding is available each year. The closing date for applications is mid-January. The department has a number of studentships available for our strongest candidates. The closing date for these is the end of April. You can also apply for a small grant to support your postgraduate research project.
See http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/taught
Individual instrumental or vocal tuition, seminars and individual tutorials. You will be assessed by a recital at the end of the course, presentations and coursework.
2019 start
This distance learning course combines annual residential weeks in Sheffield with longer periods of internet-supported study which means students can be anywhere in the world.
Traditional and world musics and their associated cultures are studied through practical methods such as fieldwork and direct participation in music-making as well as library research and theoretical interpretation. You'll gain both a deeper knowledge of the music and a set of skills for discovering and communicating new knowledge about music.
The courses are intended for musicians, educators and enthusiasts who want to know more about traditional and world musics and about ways of studying and understanding music in its social and cultural context.
The course shares various modules with MA Traditional Music of the British Isles, while allowing students to specialise in an area of their choice. World Music Studies is interpreted quite literally as encompassing, in principle, the study of any and all musical activity in the world: Western as well as ‘exotic’, popular as well as classical, amateur as well as professional.
Music at Sheffield attracts world-leading academics and musicians working in a wide range of specialist fields. This is reflected in the diversity of the MA programmes we offer, both on campus and by distance learning. Our courses are taught by experts and backed by world-class research. In the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) 84 per cent of our work was rated internationally excellent or world-leading.
We are influential in composition, ethnomusicology, musicology, performance, music technology, music management and psychology of music. Our MA programmes allow students to take advantage of the department’s distinctive interdisciplinary research environment and to be part of a strong postgraduate community by taking modules from other specialist areas. Our three research centres, Music, Mind, Machine; Sheffield Performer and Audience Research Centre, and Music and Wellbeing provide a hub for research collaborations in music psychology and audience research.
Performance is an important part of our work. You will have the chance to participate in orchestras, music theatre, contemporary music, folk and world traditions. We have strong links with the community, giving you the chance to volunteer with local arts organisations.
Our graduates are employed by universities, colleges, concert agencies and music promoters. Many work in education; others are performers in various genres, in the UK and abroad. Some work in recording studios.
We have a postgraduate research suite and several studios for advanced compositional work, software development, sound recording, laboratory and field experimentation, transcription, music notation and other research applications. You will have access to scores, books, periodicals, recordings and online resources.
Through a series of graduate study days you will be able to use the tools for digital recording, video and film. We also have excellent practice facilities and collections of historical and world music instruments.
Our team of professional musicians bring performance expertise to the department – including clarinettist Sarah Watts, pianist Inja Davidovic, jazz guitarist Ronan McCullagh and North Indian tabla and santoor performer John Ball.
The University offers a range of scholarships and funding for the brightest students and the Department of Music offers a number of studentships for the strongest candidates. Small grants are also available to support postgraduate research project.
For more information about funding opportunities including application deadlines visit: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/funding
Find information about scholarships and funding for international students at: http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/international/enquiry/money/scholarships
This course is taught by qualified ethnomusicologists who have both scholarly and practical expertise in traditional and world musics: Fay Hield, Simon Keegan-Phipps and Andrew Killick.
See http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/taught
Lectures, seminars, world music performance workshops and email tutorials with supporting course texts and guidance notes. Assessments take a variety of forms such as reports and essays, fieldnotes and recordings, and a final dissertation or folio.
Distance learning means most of the teaching is done through online course materials and readings supported by email, phone or Skype tutorials. You will need to attend the University for one residential each year.
The Graduate Diploma programme combines modules from different levels of undergraduate study into a single year.
If your first degree isn’t in Music but you have a high level of expertise, or if you’re an international student who isn’t confident in the English language or UK education system, this programme allows you to expand your knowledge of music and focus on the aspects that suit your own interests. It can bridge the gap between an undergraduate and Masters degree, but the GradDip is a respected qualification in its own right.
You’ll study core modules that build your research skills and give you a good grounding in music studies. Then you’ll also choose from optional modules in areas such as performance, composition, music technology, aesthetics, psychology of music or musicology.
This is a flexible programme, so contact us to find out about the level of knowledge and qualifications you may need for different module choices.
We have a variety of excellent facilities to support your learning, including rehearsal, performance and practice spaces, a lab for studying the psychology of music and studios for sound recording, software development and computer music composition. The Special Collections housed in our beautiful Brotherton Library contain significant collections of music manuscripts, rare printed music and letters from composers and critics to help inform your work.
We also have good working relationships with a range of prestigious arts organisations: we host BBC Radio 3 concerts, Leeds Lieder and the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition, as well as enjoying a close partnership with Opera North and many others in a city with a thriving music and cultural scene.
Throughout the year you’ll take a variety of modules that both lay the foundations of musical study and allow you to specialise in the topics that interest you.
You’ll start with a core module that develops your research skills in music, preparing you for the rest of your studies, and choose from introductory modules at Level 1 that give you a background in musical interpretation and the role music continues to play in society.
From this starting point, you’ll build your knowledge with your choice of Level 3 modules – you can take specialist modules where you’ll study different aspects of music in line with the research interests of our staff. Alternatively, you could focus on performance, composition, music technology, editing and source studies or the psychology of music. If there’s a musical topic that particularly interests you, the dissertation will give you the chance to undertake independent research to explore the subject in depth.
If you still need to take further credits to complete the programme after these choices, you’ll then be able to select from Level 2 modules offered across the School of Music.
These are typical modules/components studied and may change from time to time. Read more in our Terms and conditions.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
For more information on typical modules, read Music GradDip in the course catalogue
Because this programme is so flexible, you’ll come across a range of teaching and learning methods depending on the modules you choose. These could include lectures, seminars and tutorials as well as vocal or instrumental lessons with our specialist teachers. Practical sessions and workshops may also be involved.
However, independent study is crucial to this degree, allowing you to build important skills and pursue your own interests more closely.
You’ll also be assessed by diverse methods depending on your module choices. These may include essays, exams and presentations as well as compositions, performances, project work, critical editions and commentaries among others.
This programme allows you to study undergraduate modules to develop your formal musical education. This means that it leaves you in a good position to progress to MA or MMus study in Music – and as a graduate of the University of Leeds, you will also be eligible for a 10% discount on postgraduate fees.
We also offer additional support as you develop your career plans: the School of Music boasts a unique Alumni Mentoring Network, where students can be supported by past students as they start to plan their next steps.
We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That’s one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.
The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.
Prepare to be one of the next generation Music Industry leaders with this prestigious, personalisable degree. Taught across the Department of Music and the Management School, our programme allows you to specialise in your areas of interest while gaining wider insight into the principles and strategies of management across the creative industries. Suitable for those looking to launch a management career in the music industry and for music creators wishing to enhance their prospects of success.
You can choose modules in management practices (finance, marketing, entrepreneurship) and specialise in several areas of arts management (festival management, music branding, audience development, arts funding) giving you the chance to develop an independent programme tailored to your needs ensuring your final dissertation project can be used to take you to the next level.
Practical work is embedded in our programme and we have close working relationships with a range of arts organisations including Music in the Round, Tramlines Festival and many others in a city with a thriving music and cultural scene. A range of exceptional facilities and opportunities will support your learning, including rehearsal, performance and practice spaces. The University of Sheffield Concerts Series provides opportunities to get actively involved as an intern or volunteer in staging events, and we support a local and international placement scheme.
As the music industry rapidly changes, private and public sector organisations are looking for graduates who can bring a high degree of flexibility and critical insight. The University of Sheffield's Music Management MA provides you with the essential knowledge, skills and experience needed to be a future leader in this environment.
Music at Sheffield attracts world-leading academics and musicians working in a wide range of specialist fields. This is reflected in the diversity of the MA programmes we offer, both on campus and by distance learning. Our courses are taught by experts and backed by world-class research. In the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) 84 per cent of our work was rated internationally excellent or world-leading.
We are influential in composition, ethnomusicology, musicology, performance, music technology, music management and psychology of music. Our MA programmes allow students to take advantage of the department’s distinctive interdisciplinary research environment and to be part of a strong postgraduate community by taking modules from other specialist areas. Our three research centres, Music, Mind, Machine; Sheffield Performer and Audience Research Centre, and Music and Wellbeing provide a hub for research collaborations in music psychology and audience research.
Performance is an important part of our work. You will have the chance to participate in orchestras, music theatre, contemporary music, folk and world traditions. We have strong links with the community, giving you the chance to volunteer with local arts organisations.
Our graduates are employed by universities, colleges, concert agencies and music promoters. Many work in education; others are performers in various genres, in the UK and abroad. Some work in recording studios.
We have a postgraduate research suite and several studios for advanced compositional work, software development, sound recording, laboratory and field experimentation, transcription, music notation and other research applications. You will have access to scores, books, periodicals, recordings and online resources.
Through a series of graduate study days you will be able to use the tools for digital recording, video and film. We also have excellent practice facilities and collections of historical and world music instruments.
Our team of professional musicians bring performance expertise to the department – including clarinettist Sarah Watts, pianist Inja Davidovic, jazz guitarist Ronan McCullagh and North Indian tabla and santoor performer John Ball.
University and faculty funding is available each year. The closing date for applications is mid-January. The department has a number of studentships available for our strongest candidates. The closing date for these is the end of April. You can also apply for a small grant to support your postgraduate research project. More details available here
See http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/taught
Seminars and individual tutorials. Projects may see students undertaking consultancy and promotions work with national partners.
Assessment takes a variety of forms such as reports and essays.
2019 start
This distance learning course combines annual residential weeks in Sheffield with longer periods of internet-supported study which means students can be anywhere in the world. Traditional and world musics and their associated cultures are studied through practical methods such as fieldwork and direct participation in music-making as well as library research and theoretical interpretation.
Students gain both a deeper knowledge of the music and a set of skills for discovering and communicating new knowledge about music. The courses are intended for musicians, educators and enthusiasts who want to know more about traditional and world musics and about ways of studying and understanding music in its social and cultural context.
The course shares various modules with MA World Music Studies, while allowing students to specialise in an area of their choice. Traditional Music of the British Isles takes advantage of Sheffield's position as a major hub of both English and 'Celtic' musical activity to pursue in-depth studies on British and Irish traditional musics.
Music at Sheffield attracts world-leading academics and musicians working in a wide range of specialist fields. This is reflected in the diversity of the MA programmes we offer, both on campus and by distance learning. Our courses are taught by experts and backed by world-class research. In the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) 84 per cent of our work was rated internationally excellent or world-leading.
We are influential in composition, ethnomusicology, musicology, performance, music technology, music management and psychology of music. Our MA programmes allow students to take advantage of the department’s distinctive interdisciplinary research environment and to be part of a strong postgraduate community by taking modules from other specialist areas. Our three research centres, Music, Mind, Machine; Sheffield Performer and Audience Research Centre, and Music and Wellbeing provide a hub for research collaborations in music psychology and audience research.
Performance is an important part of our work. You will have the chance to participate in orchestras, music theatre, contemporary music, folk and world traditions. We have strong links with the community, giving you the chance to volunteer with local arts organisations.
Our graduates are employed by universities, colleges, concert agencies and music promoters. Many work in education; others are performers in various genres, in the UK and abroad. Some work in recording studios.
We have a postgraduate research suite and several studios for advanced compositional work, software development, sound recording, laboratory and field experimentation, transcription, music notation and other research applications. You will have access to scores, books, periodicals, recordings and online resources.
Through a series of graduate study days you will be able to use the tools for digital recording, video and film. We also have excellent practice facilities and collections of historical and world music instruments.
Our team of professional musicians bring performance expertise to the department – including clarinettist Sarah Watts, pianist Inja Davidovic, jazz guitarist Ronan McCullagh and North Indian tabla and santoor performer John Ball.
The University offers a range of scholarships and funding for the brightest students and the Department of Music offers a number of studentships for the strongest candidates. Small grants are also available to support postgraduate research project.
For more information about funding opportunities including application deadlines visit: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/funding
Find information about scholarships and funding for international students at: http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/international/enquiry/money/scholarships
The course is taught by qualified ethnomusicologists who have both scholarly and practical expertise in traditional and world musics: Fay Hield, Simon Keegan-Phipps and Andrew Killick.
See http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/taught
Seminars, individual tutorials and fieldwork. Assessment takes a variety of forms such as reports and essays. They are usually individual assessments, even if they concern the processes and outcomes of group work.
Distance learning means most of the teaching is done through online course materials and readings supported by email, phone or Skype tutorials. You will need to attend the University for one residential each year.
The Music Education MA will introduce students to research and research-informed practice at the forefront of music education. The programme will provide tools for interrogating musical and educational assumptions, values and practices. It will help students to expand their understanding of effective music teaching, evaluation and assessment across the lifespan.
Undertaking the Music Education MA programme will allow students to develop their critical thinking and ability to interrogate current educational research, literature and practice in the overarching fields of music and music education. They will also have the opportunity to pursue specialist lines of enquiry that are related to their own professional and/or academic interests, working alongside prominent academics in the field.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.
The programme consists of two core modules (60 credits), and either two optional modules (60 credits) and a research dissertation (60 credits), or three optional modules (90 credits) and a report (30 credits).
Core modules
The two core modules are founded on three strands in the study of music education: philosophy, psychology and sociology. These include historically-significant and cutting-edge contemporary approaches, theories and philosophies across a wide range of topics.
Optional modules
The Critical Studies in Music Pedagogy and Practice module examines past and present music education research and practice across a range of social and cultural contexts. Music Technology in Education provides students with opportunities to engage with published commentary and also develop practical skills. Choral Conducting, Leadership and Communication develops the skills of effective choral conducting and rehearsing in educational contexts.
Please note: at the programme leader's discretion, a student might be able to import a maximum of 60 credits.
Dissertation/report
All students undertake an independent research project, which culminates in a 20,000-word dissertation or 10,000-word report.
Teaching and learning
The main mode of delivery is through a combination of weekly lectures and seminars.
There are ten-week lecture courses for the two core modules, and also for Critical Studies in Music Pedagogy and Practice (optional module), with sessions held in the evenings at the UCL Institute of Education. However, the Choral Conducting Leadership and Communication optional module takes place over five full days at the UCL Institute, as well as through additional student-led sessions. Students are also required to engage actively with UCL's online learning environments across the programme. The Music Technology in Education optional module is delivered online. All students are entitled to face-to-face tutorials with their allocated tutors.
Assessment is predominantly through a written assignment for each taught module.
Further information on modules and degree structure is available on the department website: Music Education MA
Graduates of this programme are currently working as:
Recent career destinations for this degree
Careers data is taken from the ‘Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education’ survey undertaken by HESA looking at the destinations of UK and EU students in the 2013–2015 graduating cohorts six months after graduation.
The Music Education MA at UCL is the only postgraduate programme of its type in the UK, and one of the largest recruiting in the world, that is dedicated to music education.
The programme is taught by leading academics with current and extensive expertise in externally-funded research. Research and publications from our lecturers have significant impact on educational policy and practice both in the UK and internationally. This informs learning and teaching on the programme whilst fostering the development of a research-based culture. Many of our students pursue further study at doctoral and post-doctoral level.
Our programme meets the needs of a wide range of professionals from across the international communities of music and music education. Our alumni have been and continue to be leading figures in education worldwide.
The Research Excellence Framework, or REF, is the system for assessing the quality of research in UK higher education institutions. The 2014 REF was carried out by the UK's higher education funding bodies, and the results used to allocate research funding from 2015/16.
The following REF score was awarded to the department: Culture, Communication & Media
78% rated 4* (‘world-leading’) or 3* (‘internationally excellent’)
Learn more about the scope of UCL's research, and browse case studies, on our Research Impact website.
This programme focusses the creative, historical, critical, technical, and performative aspects of electronic and computer music, emphasising the many ways in which technology and musical practice influence each other.
You’ll engage with current thinking and practice in areas including experimental electronic music, sound synthesis, electrical and electronic musical instruments, signal processing, technologically-mediated approaches to composition, live electronic music, interfaces and interactivity, sound spatialisation, electronic music in the museum, and more. You’ll also learn to place these developments within the aesthetic, critical, cultural and historical context of electronic music and music technology.
A distinctive feature of this programme is the balance it strikes between creative practice, technical skills and theory, and critical/cultural/historic context in electronic and computer music.
Electronic and computer music is a broad and exciting field of research, and you’ll learn from an academic team with a strong presence in the international computer music, sonic arts, and electronic music research communities. It’s a great opportunity for musicians, creative professionals, educators, scientists, or artists who are interested in the integration of music and technology to collaborate across disciplines in a city with a thriving music and cultural scene.
The degree is also available to study part-time over 24 months. The part-time MA may be of special interest to those who are working in related fields as part of their career development.
We have a variety of excellent facilities to support your learning, including rehearsal, performance and practice spaces, a lab for studying the psychology of music and studios for sound recording, software development and computer music composition.
We also have good working relationships with a range of prestigious arts organisations: we host BBC Radio 3 concerts, Leeds Lieder and the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition, as well as enjoying a close partnership with Opera North and many others in a city with a thriving music and cultural scene.
You’ll work on your own practice from the beginning of the programme. A core module will allow you to complete different electronic and computer music exercises using a range of frameworks, while another will introduce you to the development of electronic and computer music and the current state of the art form. You’ll consider the people, institutions, innovations, repertoires, and critical perspectives that continue to shape electronic and computer music.
Throughout the year your knowledge and skills will be underpinned by Professional Studies, a module which introduces you to research methods in music and allows you to build important skills. You’ll also put this into practice with your major project, where you’ll research, plan and document an independent project on a related topic of your choice.
Outside of the field of electronic and computer music, you’ll also choose an optional module from those offered across the School of Music. You could study psychology of music, aesthetic theory or editing, or if you have some experience of composing or performing you could even continue with these.
If you choose to study part-time, you’ll study over a longer period and take fewer modules in each year.
These are typical modules/components studied and may change from time to time. Read more in our Terms and conditions.
COMPULSORY MODULES
You’ll study the three core modules below and then choose either the Electronic and Computer Music Portfolio (60 credits) or a Dissertation (60 credits).
OPTIONAL MODULES
This programme will equip you with in-depth subject knowledge and a range of transferable skills in research, analysis, ICT and communication, as well as critical awareness. Beyond these, we also encourage an approach to skills development that is tailored to your individual needs.
You’ll focus on areas that interest you in your project work to gain the knowledge and skills you need to suit your career or research plans. After an audit of your existing skills, you’ll follow an individual development programme.
We also offer additional support as you develop your career plans: the School of Music boasts a unique Alumni Mentoring Network, where students can be supported by past students as they start to plan their next steps.
We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That’s one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.
The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.
The Reid School of Music offers an exciting research environment that combines the theory, history, composition and practice of music with the scientific study of sound. We engage with a broad range of genres and traditions, including classical and popular music, Western and non-Western music, professional and amateur music making and music for screen. Our research is highly interdisciplinary, with centres and groups spanning other Colleges and Departments within the University of Edinburgh, from Physics and Neuroscience to Informatics, the Humanities, Divinity and the Social Sciences.
We have a large community of postgraduate students undertaking independent research in music.
If you are interested in undertaking a small independent research project in music, the 12-month MSc by Research is ideal. This programme is offered in any area served by the expertise of our music staff. In consultation with your supervisor you will develop an individual programme of coursework and research training over two semesters. You will submit a dissertation, or portfolio of projects equivalent to 30,000 words.
Candidates for larger-scale, doctoral research are normally admitted as probationary students for the first year of study, and on satisfactory completion of this first year are approved for registration for either MPhil (normally two years full-time, dissertation of 60,000 words) or PhD (maximum four years full-time, dissertation of 80,000–100,000 words).
All our research degrees may be studied part-time (for example, MSc by Research may be studied part-time over two years).
Staff have a wide range of research interests, engaging in research clustered around four main themes:
Some of our current hubs of research activity include:
Please consult our staff profile pages to see our interests and availability; you may propose projects in any area for consideration.
All of our research students benefit from ECA’s interdisciplinary approach and all are assigned two research supervisors. Your second supervisor may be from another discipline within ECA, or from somewhere else within the College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences or elsewhere within the University, according to the expertise required. On occasion more than two supervisors will be assigned, particularly where the degree brings together multiple disciplines.
Part-time, distance learning
Drawing students from all over the world, these courses focus on the application of psychological research to musical experiences and professions and attract graduate musicians who work in the fields of music therapy, performance, or teaching.
We provide you with training in the research methods used by psychologists, together with the conceptual framework within which these methods can help to inform and explore musical expertise and understanding.
You will also benefit from newly-written online materials, and from the department´s extensive resources of books and journals in music education.
Music at Sheffield attracts world-leading academics and musicians working in a wide range of specialist fields. This is reflected in the diversity of the MA programmes we offer, both on campus and by distance learning. Our courses are taught by experts and backed by world-class research. In the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) 84 per cent of our work was rated internationally excellent or world-leading.
We are influential in composition, ethnomusicology, musicology, performance, music technology, music management and psychology of music. Our MA programmes allow students to take advantage of the department’s distinctive interdisciplinary research environment and to be part of a strong postgraduate community by taking modules from other specialist areas. Our three research centres, Music, Mind, Machine; Sheffield Performer and Audience Research Centre, and Music and Wellbeing provide a hub for research collaborations in music psychology and audience research.
Performance is an important part of our work. You will have the chance to participate in orchestras, music theatre, contemporary music, folk and world traditions. We have strong links with the community, giving you the chance to volunteer with local arts organisations.
Our graduates are employed by universities, colleges, concert agencies and music promoters. Many work in education; others are performers in various genres, in the UK and abroad. Some work in recording studios.
We have a postgraduate research suite and several studios for advanced compositional work, software development, sound recording, laboratory and field experimentation, transcription, music notation and other research applications. You will have access to scores, books, periodicals, recordings and online resources.
Through a series of graduate study days you will be able to use the tools for digital recording, video and film. We also have excellent practice facilities and collections of historical and world music instruments.
Our team of professional musicians bring performance expertise to the department – including clarinettist Sarah Watts, pianist Inja Davidovic, jazz guitarist Ronan McCullagh and North Indian tabla and santoor performer John Ball.
The University offers a range of scholarships and funding for the brightest students and the Department of Music offers a number of studentships for the strongest candidates. Small grants are also available to support postgraduate research project.
For more information about funding opportunities including application deadlines visit: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/funding
Find information about scholarships and funding for international students at: http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/international/enquiry/money/scholarships
See http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/music/prospective-pg/taught
You’ll learn through seminars, laboratory-based demonstrations and individual tutorials. The taught programme is continuously assessed through a variety of forms such as reports and essays.
They are usually individual assessments, even if they concern the processes and outcomes of group work.
