DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN MUSIC EDUCATION

The Doctor of Philosophy in Music Education program provides opportunities for advanced study through specialization in music education practice and research. It is purposefully designed for flexibility to meet the needs of today's practitioners. The PhD prepares experienced music educators for university teaching and research.

 

General Program Requirements
(see also Graduate Music Admissions)

 

Admissions

Decisions are made after the application is complete and all required credentials have been received.

GPA	Minimum 3.0 in undergraduate work
Letters of Reference (2)	Two letters of recommendation should be written by evaluators who are qualified to provide insight into the applicant's abilities, talents and character, as well as comment on aptitude for graduate study in Music Education (applicants holding a degree from the Boyer College of Music and Dance within the previous 12 months are exempt from this requirement).
Required Coursework	Applicants must present credentials that are the equivalent of the appropriate Bachelor of Music degree at Temple University (124 to 135 hours). Doctoral candidates must hold the Master of Music degree (or the equivalent) in the field of specialization from an accredited institution. At least one held degree must be in Music Education. Applicants accepted with deficiencies will find the deficiencies noted in the letter of admission. Deficiencies must be removed prior to the completion of the degree.
Master's Degree in Discipline/Related Discipline	A degree in Music is expected. At least one held degree must be in Music Education.
Bachelor's Degree in Discipline/Related Discipline	A bachelor's degree in Music is required. At least one held degree must be in Music Education.
Certification	Applicants must be certified to teach by at least one state in the US. A copy of the teaching certificate must be submitted.
Teaching Experience	A minimum of three years' full-time (or the equivalent) successful elementary or secondary teaching experience is required.
Statement of Goals	The applicant must submit a written account of accomplishments to date, goals and expectations for the program, goals for beyond the program, and special interests in the discipline.
Standardized Test Scores	Required: GRE and/or MAT. The TOEFL® is required of all applicants who are not native speakers of English, regardless of the previous language of instruction. Applicants with an undergraduate degree conferred by an American university are exempt from the TOEFL® requirements. In addition, international applicants who are not native English speakers must take either the Test of Spoken English (TSE) or the speaking section of the new TOEFL® test (or the TOEFL® Internet Based Test) offered by the Educational Testing Service. Please have the scores sent to Temple University electronically by ETS. Minimum TOEFL® scores for the PhD are: 600 (paper), 250 (computer), or 100 (internet). Any student admitted with a TOEFL® score below 625 on the paper-based, 275 on the computer-based, or 110 on the internet-based examination must pass an English skills course or successfully pass the Test of Spoken English during the first semester of enrollment at Temple University.
Academic and Musical Profile (AMP) - Performance	The AMP consists of two parts: Performance and Written. For the Performance portion, applicants must submit a digital video of representative instruction episodes that adequately demonstrate both teaching skills and musicianship. The recording should be no more than 15 minutes in duration and may include any type of music teaching. Applicants should include a brief written narrative explaining the contents of the video.
Academic and Musical Profile (AMP) - Written	The AMP consists of two parts: Performance and Written. The Written portion is completed by the applicant during the on-campus interview visit. The applicant has 90 minutes to demonstrate writing skills and general knowledge about music education, including contemporary theories, practices, problems, and trends. The exam is scored by Music Education faculty. Results are considered in the admissions decision. Additional coursework may be required to remediate inadequacies.
Evidence of Scholarship	Applicants should submit a paper that was completed during the Masters degree. This paper should demonstrate the applicant's scholarship and writing ability.
Additional Materials	Applicants are encouraged, but not required, to submit any additional information that will help the faculty in the admission decision. Additional items may include but are not limited to digital recordings of compositions or arrangements, recordings of performance groups, lesson or rehearsal plans, curriculum development material, and recital performance recordings.
Interview	After the application has been received by Temple University, the applicant should contact the Music Education Department at 215-204-8310 to arrange a campus visit and an interview with the department chair and the faculty.
Résumé	The résumé should be current. Enclose the résumé with the application and forward an electronic version to the department chair, Dr. Deborah Sheldon.

 

Download the PhD Application Checklist

Graduate school application materials should be mailed to:

Boyer College of Music and Dance

Presser Hall (021-00)

2001 N. 13th Street

Philadelphia, PA 19122

 

Entrance Examinations

In addition to the AMP taken during the on-campus interview visit, applicants take the following written entrance exams prior to or during the first semester of doctoral study. Candidates who fail the entrance examinations the first time may, upon application to the Associate Dean of the Boyer College of Music, be permitted to take the examinations a second time. A third opportunity will not be allowed. If the examinations are failed a second time, remediation must occur. Students are advised by departmental faculty who will develop a remediation plan according to the student's needs.

To continue registration in the doctoral program beyond the second semester of study, all portions of the examinations must be passed or the appropriate review courses (or the equivalent, as determined by the examining department and the student's department chair) must be in progress. Students planning to take the written examinations should request a list of dates from the Graduate Secretary, and submit a written request to the Associate Dean one month prior to the administration date.

 

Advanced Standing

The program consists of 60 discrete credits taken beyond the Master's degree. At the time of admission, the entire master's degree serves as advanced standing credits; these credits are not counted toward the 60 required credits in the doctoral degree. However, students may transfer into the doctoral degree up to 12 additional graduate credits in coursework taken beyond the Master's degree. Typically, this coursework is undertaken after admission to the Ph.D. degree and must be approved by the major advisor, the department chair, and the Associate Dean. The maximum number of advanced standing credits awarded is 32.

 

Curriculum

The PhD requires 60 semester hours (sh) beyond the Master's. Coursework in the PhD program focuses on the confluence of research and practice. The degree program provides a forum in which the candidate may hone musical and academic skills while training for the professoriate. Coursework stresses the development of university teaching skills and research experience.

The program is organized into two components, required courses (48 sh) and electives (12 sh):

Required Music Education Courses (30 hrs)

Electives are selected from graduate courses offered in Music, Music Education, Music Studies, Music Technology, Music Therapy, Advanced Research Methods, Educational Psychology, Educational Administration and Supervision. Applied music up to 6 credits may be applied to the degree with approval of department chair and the chair of vocal or instrumental music.

Transfer Credit: Students who wish to transfer credit should speak with their academic advisor and obtain a transfer of credit form, available at: www.temple.edu/grad/forms/documents/Transfer_Grad_Credit_06.pdf Transfer credits must be approved by the Advisor, the Department Chair, and the Associate Dean. The maximum number of credits a student may transfer is 6.

 

Preliminary Examination

The preliminary examination for the Ph.D. in Music Education has two components: the Written and Oral Examination and the publishable-quality Paper Project appropriate for the profession. 

Written Preliminary Examinations	These examinations may be taken during the final semester of course work, but no later than in the semester after completion of the course work. Students planning to take the written examinations should request a list of dates from the graduate secretary and submit a written request to the Associate Dean one month prior to the administration date. The written preliminary examination in Music Education examination requires the student to demonstrate knowledge and the ability to transfer concepts and ideas. The examination focuses on: Research Methods, Research Interpretation, Music Perception and Cognition, Teaching Methods, Assessment Methods, Current Issues in Music Education, Musicianship and Aesthetic Development, Foundations (psychological, sociological, historical, philosophical).
Oral Preliminary Examinations	Students who pass the written preliminary examination are not required to take the oral preliminary examination. (This refers only to the oral preliminary examination and does not refer in any way to the oral defense of the dissertation.) If a student fails one or more portions of the written preliminary examination, an oral examination will be administered by the major advisor and a minimum of two additional faculty members to be selected as follows: in the case of failure in one subject area, two members of that department will be asked by the student's major advisor to participate with the major advisor in the examination. In the case of failure in more than one subject area, at least one faculty member from each of the departments in which the failure occurred will be asked by the student's major advisor to participate in the examination. The examination is to be a formal oral examination rather than an informal meeting with graduate faculty from departments in which the examination revealed that the student needs further work. This does not preclude such informal meetings, however, in preparation for the oral examination. Upon passing the oral examination, the student as advised by the examining committee, will be permitted to schedule a second and final attempt at the failed portions of the written examination.
Paper Project	The paper project must demonstrate ability to synthesize information and processes of research and go significantly beyond any course assignment. It may not duplicate any previous papers completed by the student outside of the degree program. The work must meet current professional standards for publication. Work for this paper may begin at any time during coursework. The student works with the academic advisor on planning the paper project as soon as the student matriculates in the program. The academic advisor and Department Chair must approve all project plans.

Independent Study Courses

Independent study courses provide a special opportunity for graduate students to work in a highly individualized setting with one or more faculty members. All such study must receive the approval of the faculty member providing the instruction, the students' major advisor, department chair, and the Associate Dean. Approval will be granted only after the student has presented a detailed description of the intended independent study project. Approval of independent study projects will be granted only for students whose academic and musical record provides substantial support for the benefits of this type of study. In no case may more than 20% of a graduate student's curriculum be taken as independent study. Private lessons beyond those required in the curriculum are not an appropriate form of independent study.

 

Professional Development

All students in the Boyer College of Music and Dance, in addition to the required subjects toward their degrees, are obliged to serve in a number of capacities in order to enrich their academic and musical expertise. The Boyer College believes that such experiences give impetus to successful professional careers. Among the duties that may be required are conducting laboratory classes, tutoring, teaching private lessons, coaching, participating in the distribution and inventory control of University-owned musical instruments and instructional materials, participating in ensembles, accompanying, performing at admissions and open house events, supervising student teachers or performance classes, and other academically related activities.

 

Exit Requirements

The culminating projects for the Ph.D. student in Music Education are the Dissertation and Oral Dissertation Defense.

Dissertation	The dissertation is a product of systematic inquiry. It may conform to any of the basic types of research. The design, data collection and analysis may conform to a quantitative, qualitative, or mixed method dependent upon the research question(s). The project is base on an exhaustive, synthesized literature search and substantive research question(s). It must demonstrate academic rigor and an open-minded approach. The completed dissertation demonstrates the capability to integrate course work, identify a viable research topic, develop an appropriate research design, systematically gain evidence toward resolving the stated problem, and to write, defend, and publicize the results in a professional manner.
	Students enroll in Music Education 9998 (Pre-Dissertation Research) and work with the major advisor to prepare a proposal. With the knowledge of the major advisor, the student may consult other faculty members. When the major advisor approves the Dissertation proposal, an oral defense of the Dissertation Proposal is scheduled with all Music Education faculty members present.  Faculty members must receive a hard copy of the Dissertation Proposal no fewer than 2 weeks before the scheduled defense. Upon approval of  the Dissertation Proposal by department faculty and in consultation with the major advisor, the candidate may identify a potential Dissertation Advisory Committee (DAC). The major advisor provides the names of the DAC members to the Associate Dean for consideration.  The DAC is appointed officially by the Graduate School . The DAC consists of no fewer than three persons: the student's major advisor, a second person from the department, and a third person from outside the department. After a proposal for the dissertation has been developed by the student and approved by the major advisor and Music Education faculty subsequent to a successful oral defense, the student prepares a final copy for approval. Each member of the DAC must sign the final proposal. Once all DAC members have signed the title page, the student copies the final proposal and delivers, within thirty days, one copy to each member of the DAC, the Department Chair, the Associate Dean, and the Graduate School.
Oral Dissertation Defense	The oral defense is a 2-hour public presentation during which the candidate presents the dissertation and engages in discussion about the processes and findings with the Doctoral Examining Committee.
	When the dissertation is complete and approved by the major advisor, the major advisor notifies the Associate Dean and requests from the Associate Dean that the Doctoral Examining Committee (that is, the dissertation defense committee) be appointed. The Doctoral Examining Committee consists of the Doctoral Advisory Committee plus at least one additional graduate faculty member from Temple or another university, but not from the faculty of the student's home department. The DAC plus the outside reader comprise the Doctoral Examining Committee (DEC) for the oral defense. All members of the Doctoral Examining Committee attend the oral defense, and vote to pass or fail the dissertation and its defense after the conclusion of the public presentation.
	Two weeks prior to the oral defense, the student submits individual copies of the abstract and the completed dissertation/monograph to the Associate Dean and each member of the Doctoral Examining Committee. The graduate secretary notifies the Graduate School and posts notices of the impending defense on bulletin boards located within the Boyer College.
	Changes in the membership of a Doctoral Advisory Committee or a Doctoral Examining Committee must be approved by the Associate Dean. The change also must be communicated to the Associate Dean and to the Graduate School.

Non-Matriculating Students

Temple University allows potential graduate students to take a maximum of 9 hours as non-matriculated students. Students should take courses within the prescribed program and should consult the Department Chair before registering for courses.

There is no guarantee that the hours will be taken into the graduate program once the student matriculates, but if the courses are taken within the degree program and the student earns high grades, past practice has been to allow the courses in the degree program if all coursework is completed within a 5-year period.

Registration information may be obtained at from the Main Campus Office of Continuing Education: Services and Information for Graduate Students.

 

Application Deadlines

Fall:	February 1
Spring:	September 15

Contact Information

Tomeka Carr, Administrative Assistant
215-204-8310 (phone)
215-204-1982 (fax)

Dr. Deborah Sheldon, Department Chair