Programme Specification
BMus Music
Academic Year 2025/26
A programme specification is required for any programme on which a student may be registered. All programmes of the University are subject to the University's Quality Assurance processes. All degrees are awarded by Queen's University Belfast.
| Programme Title | BMus Music | Final Award (exit route if applicable for Postgraduate Taught Programmes) |
Bachelor of Music | |||||||||||
| Programme Code | MUS-BM-S | UCAS Code | W302 | HECoS Code |
100070 - Music - 100 |
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| ATAS Clearance Required | No | |||||||||||||
| Mode of Study | Full Time | |||||||||||||
| Type of Programme | Single Honours | Length of Programme |
Full Time - 3 Academic Years |
Total Credits for Programme | 360 | |||||||||
| Exit Awards available | No | |||||||||||||
Institute Information
Teaching Institution |
Queen's University Belfast |
School/Department |
Arts, English and Languages |
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Quality Code Higher Education Credit Framework for England |
Level 6 |
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Subject Benchmark Statements The Frameworks for Higher Education Qualifications of UK Degree-Awarding Bodies |
Music (2008) |
Accreditations (PSRB) |
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No accreditations (PSRB) found. | |
Regulation Information
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Does the Programme have any approved exemptions from the University General Regulations None |
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Programme Specific Regulations There is some flexibility on a case by case basis for students to take modules outside the Programme. |
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Students with protected characteristics N/A |
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Are students subject to Fitness to Practise Regulations (Please see General Regulations) No |
Educational Aims Of Programme
The BMus degree, in accordance with the University's Mission Statement, aspires to be a broadly-based, research-driven unit with a dynamic world-class research and education portfolio and strong international connections and to promote the widest possible access to this portfolio of excellence in an environment of equality, tolerance and mutual respect, fully embracing its role in Northern Ireland and beyond. Within this context, the Bachelor of Music programme aims:
to deliver an innovative, broadly-based, flexible curriculum, in accordance with the QAA Benchmarks, that reflects the diverse field of scholarship and practice within Music;
to facilitate the study of Music through an integrated balance of practice and theory;
to attract students from local, national and international contexts through various entry routes, and to provide them with the best possible learning and teaching experience;
to provide all students with the widest possible opportunity to pursue and extend their knowledge and understanding of Music through a variety of learning methods;
to enable students to: develop advanced critical, analytical and physical skills, as well as their creative and imaginative skills; to improve their self-confidence, powers of concentration, understanding of group dynamics, and communication skills through a variety of oral, written, visual and performance media;
to introduce new areas of teaching and implement new pedagogical techniques and technologies in response to advances in scholarship technology, and educational research, student feedback, as well as the interests and aptitudes of staff members;
to provide a supportive and stimulating learning environment that enables learners with a variety of entrance qualifications to fulfil their potential and develop their capacity for motivated independent learning;
to provide appropriate learning resources, including suitable facilities for live performance and to supplement library provision by exploiting the possibilities offered by online learning;
to foster mutually beneficial connections within music in order to facilitate student learning;
to enrich students' learning experience by exploring possible interdisciplinary linkages /collaborations with other cognate and non-cognate subject areas within the School;
to embed a diverse range of generic and transferable skills in our pathways, and thus prepare students for a variety of academic and professional careers.
Learning Outcomes
Learning Outcomes: Subject SpecificOn the completion of this course successful students will be able to: |
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Engage with and evaluate a variety of sources (texts, notated scores, recorded and live performances) |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, class group-work, seminars, tutorials, workshops, concert attendance; interpreting, analysing and discussing ideas generated through class discussion and group exercises. Methods of Assessment Written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations, editions of music, textual editing, podcasts, composition portfolios, stylistic pastiche. |
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Understand complex issues and arguments and communicate this understanding both orally and in written form |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, class group-work, seminars, tutorials, workshops; referring to current theory and commenting on it both through oral and written work. Methods of Assessment Written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations, editions of music, textual editing, podcasts. |
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Critically evaluate written, notated and performed materials |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, tutorials, seminars (delivered by students and also by external professional musicologists, performers and composers; the delivery of seminars with other students and the requirement within tutorials to work in groups is inherent to the programme), independent study. Methods of Assessment Written exams, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, reviews, dissertations, editions. |
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Demonstrate an analytical and practical understanding of musical language through pastiche, written analysis, and effective performance (where studied) |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Individual and group lessons, lectures, tutorials, seminars (the delivery of seminars with other students and the requirement within tutorials to work in groups is inherent to the programme), teamwork, independent study (performers and composers required to demonstrate sustained work as individuals culminating in portfolios of original work and effectively communicated and interpreted performances). Methods of Assessment Recitals, class performances, written exams, essays, learning journals, class tests, pastiche exercises, keyboard harmony tests, dissertations. |
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Effectively apply and interpret the principles of notation and orchestration |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Individual and group lessons, lectures, tutorials, seminars (the delivery of seminars with other students and the requirement within tutorials to work in groups is inherent to the programme), team work: ensemble participation is available to all BMus students; workshops with visiting artists; independent study. Methods of Assessment Recitals, class performances, compositions, written exams, pastiche exercises, orchestrations, arrangements, dissertations, editions. |
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Understand the productive processes of preparation, rehearsal, marketing and delivering compositions and performances |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Individual and group lessons, lectures, tutorials, seminars, independent study, workshops with visiting artists, collaborations between performance and composition students. Methods of Assessment Recitals, class performances, compositions, podcasts. |
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Demonstrate a highly-developed understanding of composers and genres within broad and narrow contexts |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, tutorials, seminars (delivered by students and also by external professional musicologists, performers and composers; the delivery of seminars with other students and the requirement within tutorials to work in groups is inherent to the programme), independent study. Methods of Assessment Written exams, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, dissertations, editions. |
Learning Outcomes: Cognitive SkillsOn the completion of this course successful students will be able to: |
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Contextualise music and its history from a variety of perspectives and contexts |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, class group-work, seminars, tutorials, workshops; forming independent views on a range of sources (notated, written, performed) and expressing them effectively through discussion and written work. Methods of Assessment Written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations, editions of music, textual editing, podcasts, composition portfolios, stylistic pastiche. |
Learning Outcomes: Transferable SkillsOn the completion of this course successful students will be able to: |
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Work independently and as part of a team demonstrated through individual and group work (written and practical) |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Rehearsals, class group-work, workshops; balancing and managing the demands of conflicting deadlines and various types of formative and summative assessment effectively. Methods of Assessment Performances (particularly ensembles), written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations, editions of music, textual editing, podcasts, composition portfolios, stylistic pastiche. |
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Demonstrate effective oral and written communication skills |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies The delivery of verbal presentations within small and large group contexts develops oral communication skills while a variety of short and more extended written work on which formative and summative assessment is made develops well-structured and synthesised writing on a variety of topics. Methods of Assessment Performances, written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations, editions of music, textual editing, podcasts. |
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Show effective team-working and leadership skills |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Exercises within classes and tutorials which exploit teamwork – reporting back on a topic within a given timeframe and adopting a position within the team that enables the group to deliver effectively generates vital team-working and leadership experience. Methods of Assessment The strategy outlined here often feeds into individual methods of assessment such as those outlined above. Group-work is sometimes assessed more directly, depending on the module, through seminar presentations and contributions, ensemble performance and work placement learning journals. |
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Demonstrate efficient time management skills |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies The management and prioritisation of a range of assignments and course requirements together with the ongoing discipline involved in working in isolation on continual development as a musicologist, performer and/or composer develops efficiency in time management. Methods of Assessment All methods of assessment have submission deadlines that require time-management skills on the part of the student. With performance and composition modules, in particular, time-management is inherent in the learning process (e.g. attendance at rehearsals). |
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Learn through independent study |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies The process of independent learning is inherent in all modules within the programme (perhaps most notably in performance, but also in composition and musicology) and instilled from induction onwards. It is particularly pronounced in stage 3, when students are encouraged to undertake project-type work. Methods of Assessment Performances, written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations, editions of music, textual editing. |
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Demonstrate basic word processing and other IT skills |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Submission of word-processed assignments and the need to explore web-based sources develops and requires basic IT proficiency. Methods of Assessment Essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations (e.g. facility with PowerPoint), concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations. A facility with music processing is also a feature of all these types of assessment, plus editions of music, orchestration exercises, composition portfolios, podcasts. |
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Collate, evaluate and process information from a variety of sources |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies The ability to critically evaluate a variety of sources is inherent in all modules within the programme and instilled from induction onwards. Methods of Assessment Written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations, editions of music, orchestration exercises, podcasts. |
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Respond effectively and productively to constructive feedback on written and practical work |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies The process of managing criticism and working with feedback to improve work is encouraged throughout the programme. Methods of Assessment Many examples of these, e.g. dissertations that respond to feedback on written drafts; projects and written examinations that respond to feedback on essays and seminar presentations; essays, pastiche exercises, orchestration exercises that respond to feedback on class group-work; recitals that respond to feedback in performance seminar classes, etc. |
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Think and work creatively within a variety of contexts |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Creative thinking is inherent in the nature of the programme. The variety of contexts means that it often takes different forms in teaching (lectures, group-work, seminars in performance platform and composition, etc.) and learning strategies (both verbal and – in composition, performance and stylistic pastiche – non-verbal). Methods of Assessment Performances, composition portfolios, written examinations, seminar presentations (e.g. answering questions), orchestration exercises, pastiche exercises, among others. |
Learning Outcomes: Knowledge & UnderstandingOn the completion of this course successful students will be able to: |
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Demonstrate a broad knowledge of the history of Western music |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, providing a springboard for further enquiry carried out through small-group seminars, individual tutorials and feedback sessions, independent study, and seminars by visiting musicologists, performers and composers. Methods of Assessment Performances, composition portfolios, written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations, editions of music, textual editing. |
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Understand the range of periods in musical history and of their political, aesthetic, social and cultural contexts |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, providing a springboard for further enquiry carried out through small-group seminars, individual tutorials and feedback sessions, independent study, and seminars by visiting musicologists, performers and composers. Methods of Assessment Performances, composition portfolios, written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations, editions of music, textual editing. |
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Demonstrate a knowledge of the output of significant composers within the Western canon including clear concepts of their individual contribution to its development and perpetuation |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, providing a springboard for further enquiry carried out through small-group seminars, individual tutorials and feedback sessions, independent study; seminars by visiting musicologists, performers and composers; attendance at concerts held within the School. Methods of Assessment Performances, composition portfolios, written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations, editions of music, textual editing, pastiche exercises. |
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Show an awareness of particular works and their composers through independent study |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, providing a springboard for further enquiry carried out through small-group seminars, individual tutorials and feedback sessions, independent study; seminars by visiting musicologists, performers and composers; attendance at concerts held within the School. Methods of Assessment Performances, written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, learning journals, seminar presentations, concert reviews, book reviews, dissertations, orchestration and arrangement exercises, pastiche exercises. |
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Understand and apply practically the evolving vocabulary of music across a range of periods |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, providing a springboard for further enquiry carried out through small-group seminars, individual tutorials and feedback sessions, independent study; seminars by visiting musicologists, performers and composers; attendance at concerts held within the School. Methods of Assessment Performances, written examinations, listening tests, essays, projects, concert reviews, dissertations, weekly homeworks, orchestration and arrangement exercises, pastiche exercises. |
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Show familiarity with a range of theoretical and practical approaches to the study of music in all its aspects |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, providing a springboard for further enquiry carried out through small-group seminars, individual tutorials and feedback sessions, independent study; seminars by visiting musicologists, performers and composers; attendance at concerts held within the School; master-classes, workshops, rehearsals and activities provided through, for example, visiting artists and the Sonorities Festival of Contemporary Music provide access to a variety of teaching situations. Methods of Assessment Performances, composition portfolios, written examinations, essays, projects, learning journals, concert reviews, dissertations, orchestration and arrangement exercises, pastiche exercises. |
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Demonstrate an awareness of structure, notation, orchestration and tonality within music across a range of periods |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Lectures, providing a springboard for further enquiry carried out through small-group seminars, individual tutorials and feedback sessions, independent study; seminars by visiting musicologists, performers and composers; attendance at concerts held within the School; master-classes, workshops, rehearsals and activities provided through, for example, visiting artists and the Sonorities Festival of Contemporary Music provide access to a variety of teaching situations Methods of Assessment Performances, listening tests, essays, projects, seminar presentations, dissertations, editions of music, weekly homeworks, orchestration and arrangement exercises, pastiche exercises. |
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Apply this knowledge practically through (where followed) performance and composition |
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies Master-classes, workshops, rehearsals and activities provided through, for example, visiting artists and the Sonorities Festival of Contemporary Music provide access to a variety of teaching situations. Methods of Assessment Performances, composition portfolios, orchestration and arrangement exercises. |
Module Information
Stages and Modules
| Module Title | Module Code | Level/ stage | Credits | Term |
Duration | Pre-requisite | Assessment |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core | Option | Coursework % | Practical % | Examination % | |||||||
| Introduction to Music | MUS1002 | 1 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | YES | -- | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Music in History | MUS1041 | 1 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | YES | -- | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Fundamentals of Sound | MUS1010 | 1 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 25% | 0% | 75% |
| Being Creative: Music Media and the Arts | ESA1001 | 1 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Introduction to Composition | MUS1005 | 1 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | YES | -- | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| 1 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 80% | 20% | 0% | ||
| Fundamental Harmony | MUS1013 | 1 | 20 | Full Year | 24 weeks | N | YES | -- | 60% | 0% | 40% |
| Ensemble Performance 1 | MUS1018 | 1 | 20 | Full Year | 24 weeks | N | -- | YES | 0% | 100% | 0% |
| Sound Recording and Production 1 | MUS1038 | 1 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | YES | -- | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Introduction to Film Studies 1 | FLM1001 | 1 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Solo Performance 1 | MUS1017 | 1 | 20 | Full Year | 24 weeks | N | -- | YES | 20% | 80% | 0% |
| Composition II | MUS2011 | 2 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | YES | -- | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Early Music | MUS2081 | 2 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Instrument and Installation Design | MUS2034 | 2 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Sound Design for Screen | MUS2036 | 2 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Radio and Podcast Production | BCP2002 | 2 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Harmony and Theory 2 | MUS2082 | 2 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | YES | -- | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Songwriting | MUS2055 | 2 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Experimental Popular Musics | MUS2033 | 2 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Improvisation | MUS2050 | 2 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 30% | 70% | 0% |
| Music Psychology | MUS2052 | 2 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 75% | 25% | 0% |
| Culture, Class, and Emotion | AEL2008 | 2 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Sonic Arts | MUS2004 | 2 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 80% | 20% | 0% |
| Sound Recording and Production 2 | MUS2038 | 2 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Ensemble Performance 2 | MUS2018 | 2 | 20 | Full Year | 24 weeks | N | -- | YES | 65% | 35% | 0% |
| Solo Performance 2 | MUS2017 | 2 | 20 | Full Year | 24 weeks | Y | -- | YES | 30% | 70% | 0% |
| Principles of Business in Arts, Cultural and Creative Industries | SCA2002 | 2 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Traditional Irish Music: Form, Style and Development | MUS3069 | 3 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 40% | 10% | 50% |
| Composition 3a | MUS3011 | 3 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Classical Analysis | MUS3015 | 3 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Bach and Mozart | MUS3033 | 3 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Special Project | MUS3076 | 3 | 20 | Full Year | 24 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Music in Culture | MUS3088 | 3 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | YES | -- | 0% | 100% | 0% |
| Music, Power and Conflict | ESA3013 | 3 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Work-based Learning | AEL3001 | 3 | 20 | Full Year | 24 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Sonic Arts 2 | MUS3003 | 3 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Sound Recording and Production 3 | MUS3038 | 3 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Composing for Screen | MUS3014 | 3 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Double Performance 3 | MUS3082 | 3 | 40 | Full Year | 21 weeks | N | -- | YES | 20% | 80% | 0% |
| Politics in Popular Song from the French Revolution to Punk | MUS3055 | 3 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 70% | 30% | 0% |
| Dissertation | MUS3084 | 3 | 40 | Full Year | 24 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| The Politics of Performance: From Negotiation to Display | ESA3002 | 3 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 90% | 10% | 0% |
| Audio Post Production | MUS3009 | 3 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Music and Medicine | MUS3008 | 3 | 20 | Spring | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Single Performance 3 | MUS3072 | 3 | 20 | Full Year | 24 weeks | Y | -- | YES | 20% | 80% | 0% |
| Directed Study | MUS3099 | 3 | 20 | Full Year | 24 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Auditory Perception | MUS3010 | 3 | 20 | Autumn | 12 weeks | N | -- | YES | 100% | 0% | 0% |
Notes
Stage 3
Students must take 120 CATS points.
Students are not permitted to enrol on more than 2 non MUS/AEL modules.
Students must enrol on at least one of MUS3008, MUS3033, MUS3055 OR MUS3069.
Students can take up to 5 of the other optional modules.
In addition, the following module combinations are not permissible: MUS3076 and MUS3084; MUS3072 and MUS3082; MUS3099 and any of a) MUS3076, b) MUS3084, c) AEL3001 if the Directed Study is on a vocational topic.
Students must not take 2 Performance modules.
MUS3011 - pre-requisite is 58% or above in MUS2011
MUS3012 - pre-requisite is 58% or above in MUS3011
MUS3014 - pre-requisite is MUS2011 or MUS2004
MUS3072 pre-requisite: 60% overall in MUS2017 and 60% for exam
MUS3082 pre-requisite: 64% overall in MUS2017 and 64% for exam
MUS3076 pre-requisite: Proposal by Induction Week
MUS3084 pre-requisite: Proposal by Induction Week
Stage 1
Students must take 120 CATS points including the 5 core modules plus ONE other module from those listed. Students wishing to take a performance module must select MUS1017 or MUS1018. Students cannot take MUS1017 and MUS1018.
Necessary pre-requisite:
MUS1017 - pre-requisite is successful audition
Students may substitute up to 20 CATS points in another subject, for which they have the necessary pre-requisites, subject to approval from their Adviser of Studies. It is not permissible to enrol on more than one Performance stream.
Stage 2
Students must take 120 CATS points including MUS2011 and MUS2082, plus at least one of MUS2033 OR MUS2081.
It is not permissible to enrol on more than one Performance stream, so performance students who have successfully passed MUS 1017 can choose from either MUS2017 or MUS2018.