Master of Education

All MEd applicants are expected to hold a Bachelor’s degree or equivalent (FHEQ Level 6), normally in music. If your qualification is not in music, you will need to satisfy the RNCM, at interview, that you have the necessary musical background and demonstrate potential to successfully complete the programme.

An IELTS score of 7.0 is normally required for candidates whose first language is not English with exceptions being at the discretion of the admissions panel. If you are continuing from previous RNCM programmes, no further IELTS will be required, and your ability would be assessed at interview.

Once you have completed your UCAS Conservatoires application, you need to submit your portfolio of work via Acceptd. This should include:

• A five-minute recording of your teaching, taken from a larger activity, lesson or rehearsal.
• Permission forms for every person featured in the recording. A permission form template will be provided by the RNCM Admissions team once we have received your UCAS application. If it is not possible to submit a video or gain consent, applicants should submit an alternative piece of evidence that highlights their good pedagogical practise, such as a set of lesson plans or a musical resource they have created.
• A 1000-word sample of writing, normally on music (which may be an excerpt from an existing piece of work you have written), using references, is required if your undergraduate degree was not undertaken at the RNCM.

UK applicants may be required to undertake an Enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) Check to participate in some professional placement modules within this course. Applicants from countries other than the UK, or UK residents who have spent six months or more in any non-UK country within five years of the course start date must additionally provide a police certificate of good conduct from the relevant country.

The Master of Education programmes enable you to:

• Develop knowledge of a range of relevant and current educational concepts as it informs your own practice as educators and/or community conductors.
• Demonstrate critical and ongoing reflection of your own practice as educators.
• Creatively respond to ever-changing developments in pedagogy and music education through innovation, adaptability, flexible approaches to your practice, and supportive, inspiring leadership and collaboration.
• Promote healthy and holistic approaches to learning and teaching informed by principles of social justice, equality, diversity and inclusion.
• Become an educator with the ability to work in complex musical situations and respond to complex and diverse issues proactively and creatively.

Intended Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of the programme students will be able to:

Knowledge and Understanding

• Demonstrate systematic understanding of current practices relevant to your own teaching and/or conducting.
• Demonstrate sophisticated, original, and thoughtful pedagogical concepts in your teaching and/or conducting.
• Demonstrate expert theoretical skills and the ability to put them into practice, with the ability.
• To critically reflect on these through healthy approaches to teaching and learning
• Demonstrate critical engagement with a comprehensive knowledge of the concepts relevant to your area of teaching and/or conducting.
• Demonstrate originality in your development of knowledge and understanding of pedagogical concepts through research.

Specialist Subject Skills

• Demonstrate flexible and responsive leadership in a variety of teaching and learning activities.
• Reflect on, develop, and refine your teaching and/or conducting practice.
• Critique, evaluate and apply research methodologies in your practice.
• Disseminate the knowledge of and insights into your practice fluently and concisely to the widest range of audiences at an appropriately inclusive level.
• Demonstrate innovation, entrepreneurship, flexibility and resilience in drawing on a range of relevant pedagogical techniques and/or research methods applicable to your practice.

Generic and Graduate Skills

• Assimilate and synthesise current research and practice as it relates to your own field, deploying it theoretically and/or applying it within the relevant discipline.
• Command a range of relevant research and dissemination tools, employing appropriate media and technologies.
• Plan, research and realise individual projects at an advanced level, harnessing independent learning skills for personal career development.

The PGCert in Education or Community Conducting enables you to:

• Demonstrate critical and ongoing reflection of your own practice as educators.
• Creatively respond to ever-changing developments in pedagogy and music education through innovation, adaptability, flexible approaches to your practice, and supportive, inspiring leadership and collaboration.
• Promote healthy and holistic approaches to learning and teaching informed by principles of social justice, equality, diversity and inclusion.
• Become an educator with the ability to work in complex musical situations and respond to complex and diverse issues proactively and creatively.

Intended Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of the programme students will be able to:

Knowledge and Understanding

• Demonstrate critical and ongoing reflection of your own practice as educators.
• Creatively respond to ever-changing developments in pedagogy and music education through innovation, adaptability, flexible approaches to your practice, and supportive, inspiring leadership and collaboration.
• Promote healthy and holistic approaches to learning and teaching informed by principles of social justice, equality, diversity and inclusion.
• Become an educator with the ability to work in complex musical situations and respond to complex and diverse issues proactively and creatively.

Specialist Subject Skills

• Demonstrate flexible, adaptive and responsive leadership in a variety of practical activities
• reflect on, develop, and refine your pedagogical and/or conducting practice.
• Disseminate the knowledge of and insights into your practice fluently and concisely to the widest range of audiences at an appropriately inclusive level.
• Demonstrate innovation, entrepreneurship, flexibility and resilience in drawing on a range of relevant pedagogical techniques applicable to your practice.

Generic and Graduate Skills

• Assimilate and synthesise current relevant practical concepts as they relate to your own field, deploying it theoretically and/or applying it within the relevant discipline.
• Command a range of relevant practical and pedagogical tools, employing appropriate media and technologies.
• Plan, research and realise individual projects at an advanced level, harnessing independent learning skills for personal career development.

Music Education: Philosophy, Theory and Practice MEPTP (30 credits)
Research Methods: Music Education RMME (30 credits)
Dissertation (Minor 30, Major 60 credits)
Placement (60 credits)

Optional Modules 

In addition to the compulsory modules above, you can elect one 30-credit elective from most other modules from the Graduate School suite of programmes. The following mix of practical, research and vocational modules may be taken:

Accompaniment
Arrangement
Composition Elective
Conducting Elective
Contemporary Songwriting
Cross-cultural Approaches to Musicianship
Dalcroze Eurhythmics and Dynamic Rehearsal
Electronic Experimental Ensemble
Freelance Musician
Music & Environment
Musicianship for Vocalists: Consort Singing
Practical Pedagogy
Professional Audition
Professional Placement
Repertoire Project
Research Lecture Recital
Small Ensemble Performance
Underrepresented Music and Musicians