Graduate Bulletin

Music Education, Ph.D.

BOYER COLLEGE OF MUSIC AND DANCE

Admission Requirements and Deadlines

Application Deadline:

Fall: February 1

Spring: September 15

Applications are processed as they arrive up to the deadline date. Decisions regarding admission are rendered after the application is complete and all required admissions materials have been submitted.

APPLY ONLINE to this graduate program.

Letters of Reference:

Number Required: 2

From Whom: Evaluations can be obtained from a variety of sources who know the abilities of the applicant. Evaluators should be able to provide insight into your abilities and talents, as well as comment on your aptitude for graduate study.

Coursework Required for Admission Consideration:

All applicants must present credentials that are the equivalent of the appropriate Bachelor of Music degree at Temple University, which is based on a curriculum of 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 completion of the degree.

Master's Degree in Discipline/Related Discipline:

A master's 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.

Statement of Goals:

The Statement of Goals should include your special interests within the discipline and expectations for the program.

Standardized Test Scores:

The GRE/MAT is required.

Minimum TOEFL score needed to be accepted: 577 paper-based, 233 computer-based, or 90 internet-based.

Doctoral Writing Entrance Examination:

All applicants are required to pass a Doctoral Writing Entrance Examination as a condition of admission. The exam is scored by faculty members of the applicant's department and results are considered in the admissions decision. Additional coursework may be required to remediate inadequacies.

Interview:

After the admissions application has been received by Temple University, applicants should contact the Department at 215-204-8310 to arrange a campus visit and schedule an interview with the department chair and faculty.

Resume:

A resume is required.

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.

Other:

Due to the large number of applications for admission and the competitive nature of its music programs, Boyer College of Music and Dance admits only a portion of its applicants. In addition to the general admissions credentials required of all Temple University graduate applicants, including a minimum GPA of 3.0, the College's specialized admissions criteria (i.e., auditions, portfolios, interviews, recommendations, departmental term papers, and standardized examinations) are weighted heavily in admissions decisions. Graduate applicants may be rejected for admission for failing to obtain the required level of proficiency in any one area of the specialized admissions criteria regardless of the level of success in meeting the Temple University general admissions criteria. In addition to the level of success demonstrated in the above-mentioned criteria, a final admission factor is the College's Optimum Enrollment Policy. This policy may preclude the admission of any student who meets the minimum requirements.

Applicants must be fully certified to teach in at least one state in the U.S.

A minimum of three years' successful elementary or secondary teaching experience is required.

Program Requirements

General Program Requirements:

Number of Didactic Credits Required Beyond the Master's: 60

Required Courses (30 credits):

ED 5325:  Introduction to Statistics and Research

ED XXXX:  Intermediate Statistics

MUSIC ED XXXX: Music in Cultural Perspectives (or other graduate course in Ethnomusicology)

MUSIC ED 8601: Qualitative Research in Music Therapy

MUSIC ED 8652: Measurement and Evaluation in Music

MUSIC ED 8653: Learning Theory in Music

MUSIC ED 8655: Quantitative Research

MUSIC ED 8656: Academic Writing Skills

MUSIC ED 9999: Doctoral Dissertation

Other Required Courses (30 credits):

Music History and Theory (18 credits)

Electives (12 credits) selected from graduate courses offered in Advanced Research Methods, Educational Administration, Music, Music Education, Music Studies, Music Technology, and Music Therapy. Up to 6 credits can be taken in Applied Music with the approval of the department chair and the chair of vocal or instrumental music.

View all COURSE OFFERINGS in Music, Music Education, and Music Studies.

Internship: No internship is required.

Language Examination: No language examination is required.

Additional Requirements:

Written Entrance Examinations:

All doctoral students must take 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 Boyer College, be permitted to take the examinations a second time. A third opportunity will not be allowed.

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.

1. Music History Exam: a general examination covering the history of music. Questions relative to forms, styles, and periods of music will be included. It is expected that all examinees will be acquainted with the standard literature of music.

2. Harmony Exam: completion of a harmonic excerpt in advanced chromatic idiom and the creation of a bass line with figuration (figured bass) in Baroque style.

3. Counterpoint: from a given motive, complete approximately 20 measures of imitative counterpoint in three parts.

4. Form and Analysis: analysis of specified passages from a designated score. The score is provided at the examination.

5. Music Education: consideration of contemporary theories, practices, problems, and trends in music education.

6. Writing Sample: a 90-minute examination of the student's ability to write at the doctoral level. Examination topics are of a general nature.

Written Preliminary Examinations:

These examinations may be taken during the final semester of coursework, but no later than in the semester after completion of coursework. 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.

Oral Preliminary Examination:

For those students who pass the written preliminary examinations, no oral preliminary examination will be required. (This refers only to the oral preliminary examination and does not refer in any way to the oral defense of the dissertation, monograph, or final project.) If a student fails one or more portions of the written preliminary examinations, 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.

Performance Medium Guide:

Students must demonstrate in one primary performance medium basic keyboard skills and the ability to sing at sight single voice parts from a score, play a four-part Bach chorale at sight, and improvise piano accompaniments to simple melodies.

a. Piano: a representative work by J. S. Bach (i.e., two- or three-part invention, a movement of a suite or partita, or a selection from The Well-Tempered Clavier); the initial movement of a sonata; one of the shorter forms of the Romantic period (Schubert to Debussy); a contemporary 20th-century work.

b. Instrumental: a full recital program of 45 to 60 minutes in duration, including the first movement of a concerto from either 18th- or 19th-century literature; the first movement of a sonata from either 19th- or 20th-century literature; and two compositions representative of the smaller forms.

c. Vocal: a full recital program of 45 to 60 minutes in duration, including early Italian songs; German lieder; French art songs of the 20th century (Impressionist era); contemporary songs in English; two selections from standard operatic or oratorio repertory. The latter need not be from memory.

Note: From the above recital program, the auditioning committee will select numbers to be heard for the examination. The applicant will submit the actual program, typewritten, to the committee on the day of the examination. The applicant will furnish his/her own accompanist. The vocal recital is to be memorized.

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 student's 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 records provide 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 Policy:

All students in Boyer College, in addition to completing 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; providing accompaniment; performing at admissions and open house events; supervising performance classes; and other academically related activities.

Acceptable English:

All students, including those for whom English is not the native language, are expected to present all written work in acceptable English. No double standard exists to differentiate students on the basis of proficiency in the use of the English language. Students are also responsible for becoming familiar with the College's statement on plagiarism and academic honesty.

Other:

Graduate assistantships and other forms of university-sponsored financial aid do not cover private lesson and recital extension fees.

Continuous registration of at least 3 s.h. must be maintained each Fall and Spring (but not Summer) semester from the time of acceptance into the program until the completion of all coursework.

Once all coursework is completed, preliminary examinations have been passed, and the dissertation proposal has been accepted by the Music Education faculty, the candidate should register for MUSIC ED 9999:  Dissertation Research each Fall and Spring semester until the dissertation has been successfully defended. Doctoral candidates are required to register for a minimum of 6 s.h. of MUSIC ED 9999 during their program as a whole, but must register for a minimum of one such credit each semester while working on the dissertation.

Each course or seminar will require an end-of-semester final grade based on papers presented, recitals prepared, discussion and/or examinations taken during the course of the semester. Each semester of private study will culminate in a performance examination or jury, except during semesters in which the student has presented one of the required adjudicated recitals. Grades of less than "B-" cannot be counted toward the degree. Should the student earn a grade of less than "B-," s/he may, with permission of the department chair and the Associate Dean, retake the semester of study one additional time. Screening for continuation in the program after the first semester of study will be conducted at adjudicated recitals, end-of-the-semester juries, and major examinations. This will ensure that only the most qualified students will be continued beyond the early stages of the program.

While a student is matriculated, completion of at least one pre-dissertation sole-authored article suitable for publication in a refereed journal is required.

Culminating Events:

Preliminary Examinations:

Written preliminary examinations are administered several times each calendar year, and span two consecutive days of six hours of examination each day. They should be taken no later than the end of the fifth year. Subject areas are in the major field, as well in the minor field areas (typically Music History and Music Theory).

Faculty members within the student's major and minor subject areas are involved in preparing the examination questions. A study guide for the Music Education Preliminary Examinations is available in the Music Education Office. Students are advised to prepare written answers to the questions in the study guide.

At least three graduate faculty members independently read and score each section of the written preliminary examinations. Students are typically graded "Pass" or "Fail," based on a consensus of the examination readers.

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. Students are notified in writing of the specific dates and administration times of the preliminary examinations for which they have been scheduled.

Proposal:

Students enroll in MUSIC ED 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 two weeks before the scheduled defense.

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 30 days, one copy to each member of the DAC, the department chair, the Associate Dean, and the Graduate School.

Upon approval of  the dissertation proposal by department faculty and in consultation with the major advisor, the candidate may identify a potential Doctoral 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.

Dissertation:

The completed dissertation demonstrates the capability to integrate coursework; identify a viable research topic; develop an appropriate research design; systematically gain evidence toward resolving the stated problem; and write, defend, and publicize the results in a professional manner. When the dissertation is complete and approved by the major advisor, the major advisor of the DAC asks the Associate Dean to appoint an outside reader, who is a 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 Dissertation Examining Committee (DEC) for the oral defense. The DEC is formed early in the semester in which a defense is anticipated.

One month prior to the requested defense date, the "Permission to Schedule Dissertation/Monograph Defense" form bearing all appropriate signatures must be submitted to the Associate Dean. This form is available in the Main Office and on the Graduate School website. 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 DEC. The Graduate Secretary notifies the Graduate School and posts notices of the impending defense on bulletin boards located within the Boyer College. All members of the DEC attend the oral defense and vote to pass or fail the dissertation and its defense after the conclusion of the public presentation.

Changes in the membership of a Doctoral Advisory Committee or a Dissertation Examining Committee must be approved by the Associate Dean. The change also must be communicated to the Associate Dean and to the Graduate School.

Contacts

Program Contact Information:

www.temple.edu/boyer/

Department Information:

Dept. of Music Education and Therapy

Boyer College of Music and Dance

2001 North 13th Street

Philadelphia, PA 19122

dsheldon@temple.edu

215-204-8310

Department Contacts:

Admissions:

James Short
jshort@temple.edu
215-204-8598

Program Coordinator:

Professor Deborah Sheldon
dsheldon@temple.edu

215-204-8310

Graduate Chairperson:

Professor Deborah Sheldon
dsheldon@temple.edu

215-204-8310

Chairperson:

Professor Deborah Sheldon
dsheldon@temple.edu

215-204-8310

About the Program

The Ph.D. program in Music Education stresses the development of university teaching skills and research experience.  It prepares music educators with advanced skills in quantitative or qualitative research modes to effectively translate research findings into music education practice and to develop a cadre of music education professors who can assume leadership roles in the music education profession.

Time Limit for Degree Completion: 7 years

Campus Location:

Main

Full-Time/Part-Time Status:

Students are required to complete the degree program through classes offered before and after 4:30 p.m. Students are also able to complete the degree program on a part-time basis (8 credit hours or less per semester).

Department Information:

Dept. of Music Education and Therapy

Boyer College of Music and Dance

2001 North 13th Street

Philadelphia, PA 19122

dsheldon@temple.edu

215-204-8310

Interdisciplinary Study:

Not applicable.

Affiliation(s):

Not applicable.

Study Abroad:

No.

Ranking:

The Boyer College of Music and Dance has been ranked among the top 30 music schools in the country by U.S. News & World Report.

Accreditation:

The music education programs at the Esther Boyer College of Music and Dance are fully accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM) , the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education.

Areas of Specialization:

The focus of music education research at Temple is in one of the following topics of inquiry: psychology of music, measurement and evaluation of music aptitude and achievement, supervision and administration of K to 12 music programs, philosophical or sociological schools of thought on music, contemporary computer technology with implications for music education, or choral conducting as practiced in music education.

Job Placement:

Students typically find employment in colleges and universities, public and private educational systems, among other venues in the music industry, or as independent researchers.

Licensure:

Not applicable.

Non-Degree Student Policy:

Non-matriculated students may enroll in selected courses in music with permission, but may not take applied lessons until they have been fully admitted and matriculated.

Financing Opportunities

A number of assistantships and academic internships are offered to matriculated graduate students. Full awards carry a cash stipend plus full tuition remission for the Fall and Spring semesters. Partial awards also are available in values of 1/4 or 1/2 of a full award. Duties for assistantships and internships vary, but typically include teaching, tutoring, classroom assistance, research, artistic performance, and/or direct service related to academic programs. Applicants must submit an assistantship/internship application by March 1 to obtain priority consideration for an award. Applications are available online at the Graduate Financial Aid page of Boyer's website. Typically these awards are made only in the Fall semester for the Fall and Spring semesters. Awards may be renewed on an annual basis (typically up to one additional year for master's students and up to three years for doctoral students) based on departmental needs as well as satisfactory academic and musical progress by the recipient.

Updated 12.9.08