Graduate Degrees, Composition - School of Music - College of Liberal Arts & Sciences



Current Students Undergraduate Graduate Nonmajors		Graduate Degrees - Composition Master of Arts Click for M.A. Degree Course Checklist for composition The M.A. degree in composition requires a minimum of 34 postbaccalaureate semester hours, of which at least 24 must be earned at The University of Iowa. A. Specific Admission Requirements A minimum undergraduate grade point average of 3.0, documented by official copies of transcripts. Three letters of recommendation. A current resumé including a list of compositions with instrumentation, performances of compositions, and a summary of composition study listing composition teachers. In addition to the UI Graduate College application, applicants should submit three scores and if possible CD or cassette recordings of original compositions. (These materials should be sent to the School of Music Academic Office.) Admission to the composition degree program requires a favorable evaluation of the portfolio by the composition faculty, and approval by the Head of the Composition/Theory Area and the Associate Director of Graduate Studies. Students applying for fall admission should submit a complete application by February 15; later applications will be considered if openings remain. B. Area Language Requirement Before admission to the M.A. Final Examination the student must demonstrate ability to read professional literature in either French or German (other languages must be approved by the composition area). The language requirement must be satisfied before the student will be permitted to schedule the M.A. final examination. C. Area Keyboard Examination The student must demonstrate basic keyboard ability in one of two ways: (1) take and pass (with a B or better) the course 025:153 Keyboard Harmony, or (2) take and pass the final examination for 025:153 by arrangement with the organ faculty. The keyboard requirement must be satisfied before the student will be permitted to schedule the M.A. comprehensive examination. D. Master of Arts Thesis Composition The thesis composition must be at least ten minutes in duration and for a medium which demonstrates technical mastery, without exceeding the possibilities of actual performance by School of Music forces. Whenever possible the thesis composition should be tested in a reading session or performance prior to the Final Examination. Before the end of the second year of residency the student must present a proposal for the thesis composition to the composition faculty. The thesis proposal should Describe the planned composition Nominate a member of the composition faculty holding a regular (tenured/tenure-track) faculty position in the School of Music as the thesis advisor and chair of the thesis committee Nominate two additional composition faculty (regular or visiting) as members of the thesis committee. Approval of the thesis proposal and the nominations of the advisor and thesis committee requires a vote of the composition faculty. The committee membership must be endorsed by the Composition/Theory Area Head, and forwarded to the Associate Director for Graduate Studies. E. Master of Arts Final Examination A written examination, administered in three four-hour sessions, evaluating the student’s mastery of: Music history and literature of all periods. Music analysis. Practical skills in harmony, counterpoint and composition. The Final Examination committee is distinct from but may have the same members as the thesis committee. The Final Examination committee consists of three faculty members; at least two, including the committee chair, must be from the composition faculty. A visiting faculty member may serve on but may not chair the committee. The final examination committee is nominated by the student in consultation with the thesis advisor, and approval of its membership requires a vote by the composition faculty. The committee membership must be endorsed by the Composition/Theory Area Head, and forwarded to the Associate Director for Graduate Studies. Doctor of Philosophy Click for Ph.D. Degree Course Checklist for composition PH.D. with Thesis Composition, 72 postbaccalaureate s.h. minimum. Full-time residency is required for two semesters (minimum of 9 s.h. course work), or if the student holds a teaching assistantship of 25% or more, the residency requirement may be fulfilled with three semesters of 6 s.h. course work. A. Admission Requirements A minimum grade point average of 3.0 in previous graduate study, documented by official copies of transcripts. Three letters of recommendation. A current resumé, including a list of compositions, performances of compositions, and a summary of composition study listing composition teachers. In addition to the UI Graduate College application, applicants should submit a portfolio of scores and if possible CD or cassette recordings of original compositions. Admission to the composition degree program requires a favorable evaluation of the portfolio by the composition faculty, and approval by the Head of the Composition/Theory Area and the Associate Director of Graduate Studies. Students applying for fall admission should submit a complete application by February 1; later applications will be considered if openings remain. B. Area Keyboard Requirement The student must demonstrate basic keyboard ability in one of two ways: (1) take and pass (with a B or better) the course 025:153 Keyboard Harmony, or (2) take and pass the final examination for 025:153 by arrangement with the organ faculty. C. Ph.D. Qualifying Examination The Qualifying Examination is to be taken not later than the end of the second semester of residency. It is based primarily on a reading and listening list provided the examinee early in the semester in which the examination is to occur. The examination comprises both a written and an oral component. The written component takes place during a single four-hour sitting which is set aside to address questions submitted to the examinee by the examination committee, comprising all available members of the composition faculty. (The committee must have at least three members.) Questions typically deal with analysis, concepts in theory and composition, problems in counterpoint, orchestration and the like. A student who has had the M.A. Final Examination in Composition at the University of Iowa may, at the discretion of the Area faculty, be allowed to substitute that examination for all or part of the written component of the Qualifying Examination. The oral component of the examination normally occurs within two weeks of the written component, allowing time for Area faculty to read and discuss the latter. Oral questioning by the examination committee typically follows up issues in the written examination, as well as probing subjects broadly related to the examinee’s specialization. A student who does not qualify has the option of being reexamined once, in a complete or partial examination, during the semester, summers excepted, following the first Qualifying Examination. D. Area Language Requirement The student must demonstrate ability to read professional literature in either French or German (other languages must be approved by the composition area). The language requirement must be satisfied by the end of the student’s final semester of course work. E. The Comprehensive Examination The examination is normally taken in the final semester of course work. The examination must be scheduled through the School of Music academic office. The student and academic advisor complete the Doctoral Plan of Study, and the Request for Comprehensive Examination form nominating the examination committee members. The Area Head forwards these to the Associate Director for Graduate Studies for approval and submission to the Graduate College. The examination committee has five members, including at least three members of the Composition faculty, a faculty member from Theory, and a member of another Area (typically music history). The committee is chaired by a tenured member of the Composition faculty. F. The Ph.D. Thesis Composition 1. The Ph.D. Thesis Composition culminates a series of works in varied media and is typically of sizable proportions (at least 15 minutes’ duration) and for a medium which demonstrates technical mastery and professional competence. By the final semester of residency the student must submit to the composition faculty a thesis composition proposal that: Describes the prospective composition Nominates the thesis composition advisor Nominates the Final Examination Committee. The advisor must be a regular member of the composition faculty. The Final Examination Commitee must include at least five members: three from the composition faculty (including the advisor, who is normally a tenured member of the composition faculty), one from another area in the School of Music, and one faculty member from another academic unit in the UI Graduate College. The proposal and nominations of the advisor and committee must be approved by a convened meeting of the Composition/Theory Area faculty, endorsed by the Composition/Theory Area Head, and forwarded to the Associate Director for Graduate Studies of the School of Music. Whenever possible the thesis composition should be tested in a reading session or performance prior to the Final Examination. Graduate Programs In Composition A. Midwest Composers Symposium The University of Iowa School of Music's Composition Area participates in the Midwest Composers Symposium, a consortium comprising the University of Illinois, the University of Michigan, Indiana University, Oberlin Conservatory, and Iowa. Each year a symposium takes place at one of the member campuses, and works from each are presented. B. Awards The School offers the Henry and Parker Pelzer Award in Composition, major cash prize awarded each spring to an outstanding composer. Details of eligibility can be obtained from the Area Head. C. The Composers Workshop The Composers Workshop offers typically four programs of new works composed on campus each semester. One of the assistantships offered in composition includes the management of this series. D. Center for New Music A major feature of the Composition program is its intimate connection with the School's Center for New Music. The center offers typically four concerts per academic year, and all rehearsals are open. E. Electronic Media The Area offers instruction in analog and digital electronic media, and encourages the formation of improvisational and experimental ensembles. The School's many students of performance frequently take part in the creation of new works by Iowa's graduate composers. Last updated 15-oct-07
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Graduate Degrees - Composition