NOTE: The Southern Regional Studies program is not accepting applications at this time.
PhD Degree Program
The PhD degree is structured to allow maximum flexibility in designing a program around each student’s background and needs. Although the distribution of hours is firm, program requirements are to be regarded as general rather than fixed. The student’s preparation, experience, and stated goals are carefully evaluated before an individually selected course of study is prescribed.
Program objectives are: (1) competency in selected area of concentration and related research areas; (2) development of teaching skills; and (3) ability to successfully publish research in a selected music discipline.
Students will follow either:
MUSICOLOGY
A program providing a broad background in historical musicology culminating in a dissertation on a musicological topic agreed upon by the student and the doctoral committee.
Musicology Major Field (27 hours)
A minimum of 9 courses in the major area, including:
MUHL 8531 - Erly Musical Notation Credit Hours: (3)
MUHL 8505 - Seminar Musicology Credit Hours: (3)
Cognate Field (9 hours)
These 9 hours of graduate coursework must be in an approved humanistic discipline outside music.
Dissertation (6 hours)
MUHL 9000
Note: Students should familiarize themselves with the Thesis/Dissertation Preparation Guide before beginning to write.
A reading knowledge of two foreign languages, ordinarily including German, must be demonstrated before graduation. or
Southern Regional Studies
This program is not currently accepting applicants. A program providing a broad background in ethnomusicology with a focus on the music of the southern United States.
Ethnomusicology Major Field (27 hours)
A minimum of nine courses in the major area (27 hours). Two of the remaining five courses in music shall have a major focus on Southern regional music.
MUHL 7800 - Fld Mthd In Ethnmsclgy Credit Hours: (3) or
MUHL 8800 - Fld Mthd In Ethnmsclgy Credit Hours: (3)
MUHL 8801 - Ethnomusicology Credit Hours: (3)
MUHL 8805 - Trnscrpt/Anly Etnmsclgy Credit Hours: (3)
MUHL 8806 - Sem Southern Reg Music Credit Hours: (3)
Cognate Field (9 hours)
These 9 hours of graduate coursework must be in an approved humanistic discipline outside music.
Dissertation (6 hours)
MUHL 9000
Note: Students should familiarize themselves with the Thesis/Dissertation Preparation Guide before beginning to write.
A reading knowledge of two foreign languages, ordinarily including German, must be demonstrated before graduation.
*Price shown is for indicative purposes, please
September 2025
College of Communication and Fine Arts
MEMPHIS,
Tennessee,
38152, United States
A Baccalaureate or Master’s Degree: The applicant must provide an official transcript showing an earned bachelor’s or master’s degree, depending on program requirements. In cases, where a program’s accrediting body allows alternate admissions standards, exceptions may be made. If you are a UofM undergraduate student applying to Graduate School at UofM, you do not need to request that an official transcript be sent to Graduate Admissions. This office has access to your transcript. The degree must have been awarded by an accredited college or university. Only transcripts received directly from an issuing institution are considered official. Personal copies are not acceptable as official documents.
GPA: The applicant must have earned an acceptable grade point average, typically a minimum of 2.5 on a scale of 4.0, but departments may make exceptions for students whose overall GPA does not adequately reflect their ability to succeed in their chosen field.
International students must provide evidence of English Language Proficiency.
English proficiency test scores accepted by the University:
*There may be different IELTS requirements depending on your chosen course.
A degree from the University of Memphis is much more than a qualification. It is a community and an experience which prepares students for success.
