Bachelor of Arts in Music Education
The RNCM Bachelor of Arts in Music Education (BA (Hons)) degree is a three-year programme providing the opportunity to develop musicianship alongside the skills to facilitate music-making in educational and societal contexts.
Students will study educational and cultural policy, to build an understanding of the place of music within policy structures and how this impacts practice, and carry out cross-cultural comparisons of international education systems.
Programme Overview
Duration: 3 years, full-time
UCAS Conservatoires Code: 401F
Tuition Fees
Applications open: 10 July 2025
Deadline for on-time applications: 14 January 2026
Please note that this course is subject to validation.
The BA (Hons) is a three-year programme designed for anyone interested in arts and cultural policy, sociology, cultural studies, educational studies. Whilst there is no one-to-one principal study tuition as part of the programme, students will make music as a group whilst building the skills to improvise and facilitate music-making.
Entrance Requirements and Application Process
Age, Qualifications and Standards
Entrance the RNCM BA (Hons) programme is dependent on the following:
- All applicants must be at least 18 years of age on 31 December in the year of entry.
- All applicants must achieve ABB-BCC at GCE A level (A2), including Music or Music Technology and a humanities subject or English Language. BTECs and international equivalents will be assessed on an individual basis – please contact [email protected] for more information.
- All applicants must have achieved a pass or higher in Grade 8 practical or performance, or equivalent on any instrument.
- All applicants must have achieved a pass or higher in Grade 5 Music Theory.
- All applicants must pass an RNCM interview prior to entry, demonstrating academic suitability to the course.
- Applicants whose first language is not English must obtain an overall IELTS score of 5.5, with a minimum score of 5.5 in every component.
Alternative Qualifications
Candidates with Scottish, Irish or other international qualifications, and those with alternatives such as BTEC, should contact Admissions on 0161 9075 465 or email [email protected].
How to Apply
- Submit an application via UCAS Conservatoires, using course code 401F, by Wednesday 14 January. Please select your preferred interview method within your application (in person or online).
- Prepare the following written piece, which you will be asked to submit via Acceptd.
Thinking about your own music education, can you give an example of what inspired you to continue with your music? In no more than 500 words, please tell us:
What is it that inspired you?
Describe the activity: this could be an ensemble that you played/sang with, a particular performance you gave, a performance that you attended, an artist or musician that you follow, your school music lessons.
Who inspired you?
Who were the people involved? These could be teachers, other musicians, parents. Describe how they helped you.
How did it inspire you?
What was it about the activity that inspired you: this could be how it made you feel, what opportunities it provided, did it lead on to other things.
Why did it inspire you?
Why do you think this activity and the people involved inspired you so much?
What does this tell you about music teaching?
What have you learnt from this activity and the way it inspired you that you would like to take forward into your future work as a music educator?
- Complete and submit your Acceptd application by Friday 30 January.
- Your application will be reviewed and if you are shortlisted, you will be invited to a live interview. This will take place in person at the RNCM or online via Microsoft Teams, depending on the preference you selected within your UCAS application.
- After you have completed your interview, you will receive a notification of your application outcome via UCAS Conservatoires, followed by an email from our Admissions Team.
