In Acadia University’s School of Music, we believe an undergraduate school of music in a liberal university should be more of a laboratory than a conservatory. We strive to create versatile, confident, and well-rounded musicians who are prepared to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Our foundational curriculum is based on making music in multiple environments. It combines courses in the following:
Our courses are taught in a creative way, with outcomes geared for contemporary musicians. The aim is to graduate well-rounded musicians who can thrive in a variety of professional contexts and styles. Our program also strives to create connections to community. We will teach you how to build and facilitate the cultural spaces you will be part of. Performances happen across campus in the many halls and venues of Acadia. You can even learn in our world-class Electroacoustic Music Studio.
All School of Music degrees offer you the chance for individual lessons to establish strong technical and artistic foundations. Our classroom courses, ensemble opportunities, and major artistic projects ensure that students can function as contemporary artists across genres. In fact, our applied lessons structure even affords you the opportunity to study more than one instrument at a time through your degree. This can be an exciting thing for any multi-instrumentalist (such as a singer/songwriter) who wishes to continue growing in multiple ways.
Are you interested in music therapy? Acadia offers the only Music Therapy Program in Eastern Canada. You will begin in the Bachelor of Music degree. Your first step is to successfully complete the two-year School of Music core. Then you may apply to enter the Bachelor of Music Therapy degree. Specialized courses in music therapy include hands-on clinical practicums and courses in psychology. Once you have graduated and completed a 1,000-hour internship, you can earn the Music Therapist Accredited (MTA) designation. If you have already completed a degree in music, the Certificate in Music Therapy is designed for you. This post-graduate program is a 30-credit certificate that also leads to the MTA designation.
The Bachelor of Arts in Music is an academic-oriented program. It is for students interested in intensive study of music theory, history, culture, and technology. The audition and application process is slightly different for this degree. There are no applied one-on-one lessons in this program. Our Bachelor of Arts in Music students can also pursue a double major or an honours option.
The innovative Bachelor of Music degree gives you the opportunity to study many different styles of music in an environment that champions creativity, reflection, excellence and rigour. You will find your own unique voice with the many skills these studies will teach you. Reach out for details on what our program offers, as it is truly unique in Canada. We know you will be surprised!
FUTURE CAREERS
Graduation Requirements
Students must complete the program as outlined below. Additionally, students must achieve a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.00 to graduate from the program.
Bachelor of Arts in Music Program Requirements: 120 credit hours (120h)
1. The School of Music Core (33h).
2. 15h of additional Music Theory, History and Culture.
3. 30h Music electives.
4. 42h non-Music electives.
*Price shown is for indicative purposes, please
January 2025
Faculty of Professional Studies
3 Horton Avenue, Godfrey House,
WOLFVILLE,
Nova Scotia (NS),
B4P 2R6, Canada
Admission from High School
When planning their secondary school programs, students should note that a number of courses taken in the first university year have secondary school prerequisites. Generally, students continuing university work in subjects available in secondary school are advised to have senior year secondary school standing in those subjects.
All students must present a penultimate (NS Grade 11 or equivalent) high school year course in mathematics
Required courses:
Admission from the International Baccalaureate Program
Students will be considered for admission using the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma with a minimum score of 24. Students admitted to Acadia University with a score of 30 or higher on the IB Diploma will receive 30 credit hours (30h) of university credit.
Students who have completed IB courses but do not possess the diploma will be considered based on their coursework. Acadia gives individual credit for IB courses completed at the higher level with grades of 5, 6, or 7.
Additional Grade 12 courses necessary for specific programs
English Language Proficiency
TOEFL score is 80 (PBT 550) with a minimum score of 90 (PBT 580) with no subtest score below 20. Overall IELTS score of 6.5 (with no subtest score below 6.0), a CAEL score of 70 (with no subtest score below 60), a PTE Academic score of 61 (no subtest score below 60), Cambridge English: Advanced with a total of 176 (no subtest score below 169), and MELAB with an overall score of 80.
*There may be different IELTS requirements depending on your chosen course.
Students receive an intimate learning experience in an environment where all voices are heard.