Graduate
General Requirements for Doctoral Degrees
Structure of Doctoral Curricula
Information regarding the structure of the Doctor of Philosophy and Doctor of Music Education degrees is available under the relevant departmental sections of this bulletin. All Doctor of Music degrees, however, have a common structure, as discussed in this section. Specific requirements relating to each category may be found under departmental listings. Further details of general requirements for the degree may be found in the Regulations and Procedures section of this bulletin.
A. Major Field
36-38 credit hours.
B. Minor Field
12 credit hours. The Doctor of Music degree requires a minor in music history and literature, music theory, or music education. Certain departments may further restrict the choice of options for the minor field for their majors. For D.M. students who have completed master’s degrees in one of these three fields, the appropriate department may, with the approval of the director of graduate studies, waive part or all of the doctoral minor course work and determine an appropriate department involvement in the written and oral qualifying examinations. Students will take additional courses in the major field or in other areas to make up the required 12 credit hours of the first minor.
C. Other Required Credits
12 credit hours.
12 credit hours reflecting one of the following groupings are required in addition to the major and specified minor:
- A second formal minor;
- An individualized minor approved by a faculty member with expertise in the area of emphasis (this faculty member is responsible for the minor-field written examination) and the director of graduate studies; or
- Guided electives not in the major field; choices are approved by the chairperson of the student’s advisory committee and the director of graduate studies.
A formal minor requires the approval of the offering department. If the major is in performance, neither minor may be in performance, except that modern-instrument performers may elect an early-music minor and vice versa. A minor in performance, when allowed, requires study at the 800 level. If a student has a master’s degree in a field other than musicology, music education or music theory, the appropriate department may, with the approval of the director of graduate studies, waive part or all of the doctoral minor course work for the second minor and determine an appropriate departmental involvement in the written and oral qualifying examinations. If the major is in music performance, this substitute for a second minor may not be performance. Students will take additional courses in the major field or in other areas to make up the required 12 credit hours of the second minor.