Scholarships in Music, Dance, & Theatre

Music Scholarships

The department offers music scholarships to deserving students. The Department Scholarship Committee will serve to oversee Department Scholarship policy. The total number of awards and dollar amounts are ultimately determined by the department's budget and the availability of additional scholarships through outside sources.

SCHOLARSHIP POLICY GUIDELINES

  1. All scholarships are to be awarded per semester based on the level of performance and academic achievement , regardless of the major area of music concentration. Most scholarships are applied as a reduction in tuition expenses.
  2. A student may be granted a scholarship for a period of no more than eight semesters.
  3. General Scholarship awards do not generally exceed $600 per semester. In exceptional cases, awards of $700 or $800 may be offered with the approval of the scholarship committee, area coordinator and the department chair.
  4. All scholarship students are to maintain a 3.0 average in music major coursework and a 2.75 overall cumulative average each semester.
  5. All scholarship students must be enrolled in and then successfully complete a minimum of twelve semester credit hours each semester they receive an award. Anything below this minimum will result in automatic removal of a scholarship. Reinstatement requires reapplication, following successful completion of a twelve-credit semester of study that meets the academic standards listed above.
  6. A student must be enrolled in academic courses, applied music and ensemble course requirements for his/her degree program each semester while on scholarship.
  7. Non-compliance will render a scholarship null and void.

*At any time throughout the academic year, the Faculty Scholarship Committee may exercise its right to review, discuss and decide on future agreements with student recipients of a scholarship award.

PROCEDURES FOR SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS

NEW STUDENTS

After the initial audition for acceptance into the Department by a first semester student, the Area Coordinator may recommend that student to the Department Chair for scholarship consideration at a specified amount. The Chair accepts, rejects or revises the Coordinator's recommendation.

CONTINUING STUDENTS

  • During each jury performance of a continuing scholarship recipient, all members of the adjudicating faculty are required to complete a Continuing Scholarship Renewal Form.
  • Continuing students who do not receive scholarships may be eligible for future awards based on their academic and music performance achievements. Their performance at juries may allow the area coordinator and adjudicating faculty to recommend a scholarship to the chairperson.
  • Once completed, the panel members will forward the assessments directly to the Department Chair as input for his/her decision.
  • The Department Chair will prepare and submit a list of recommendations for recipients of continuing scholarships to the Faculty Scholarships Committee for review.
  • The Committee will then determine if the recommended students have fulfilled their ensemble and academic responsibilities.
  • With academic, ensemble and performance assessments in hand, the Scholarship Committee will give the Chair their recommendations regarding who the continuing scholarship recipients are to be, including their financial awards. The Chair will then distribute the list of scholarship recipients to the MDT Faculty.

The Chair will:

  • Send a personalized letter to the scholarship awardees advising them of their status (new, continuance, adjusted continuance) along with their academic and ensemble responsibilities.
  • Send a personalized letter to those students whose scholarships have been discontinued advising them of the process for reapplication.

Special Awards

Continuing scholarship students have an opportunity for special awards of $1000 per semester in lieu of the normal award. This award is not given automatically. Students must be able to demonstrate consistently superior work in both music performance and academic study. The Department will approve/disapprove such applications during a Governance Board Meeting once the application is made. Recommendations for such an award may be made on behalf of a student by the area coordinator.