What will I learn?

The Doctor of Musical Arts degree is designed for musicians who desire careers that combine performance or composition with an academic appointment. Our extensive application and audition process establishes cohorts of accomplished, ambitious individuals.

The degree includes studio teaching, a wide array of performance opportunities and engaging, challenging academic courses. Simultaneously, our doctoral students receive teacher training under the direction of dedicated and imaginative faculty mentors.

Upon completing the DMA degree, students will be able to:

Demonstrate technical and musical competence in performance or composition at a professional level.
Develop highly developed analytical skills in advanced music theory and a profound understanding of how those skills inform music performance.
Demonstrate a thorough understanding of the relationship between music history and music performance with greater familiarity of a wide variety of historical and contemporary performance practices.
Develop career development skills that complement their professional-level performance skills.
Develop working knowledge of and have experience with both classroom teaching and studio teaching methods at the conservatory and university levels.

Students pursuing the DMA degree in all fields of study must complete:

A minimum of 90 credit hours to satisfy degree requirements.
Students must register for a minimum of 9 credit hours per semester of enrollment. Upon achieving candidacy, students are expected to make progress towards the completion of their degree each semester.

Field areas:

Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Cello Performance
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Clarinet Performance
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Composition
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Double Bass Performance
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Flute Performance
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Oboe Performance
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Organ Performance
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Percussion Performance
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Piano Performance
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Viola Performance
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Violin Performance
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) Degree in the field of Vocal Performance

Which department am I in?

Shepherd School of Music

Study options

Full Time (90 Hours)

Tuition fees

US$31,950.00 per year

USD $15,975 per semester

*Price shown is for indicative purposes, please

Start date

August 2025

Venue

Shepherd School of Music

6100 Main Street,

HOUSTON,

Texas,

77005, United States

Entry requirements

For international students

Students can apply directly from a bachelor鈥檚 program (three-year bachelor鈥檚 degrees are accepted). In general, applicants should have at least a 3.0 (B) grade point average, or the equivalent, in their undergraduate work.

Applicants who are foreign nationals and those whose native language is not English must provide evidence of English proficiency. The following language proficiency tests are accepted by Rice graduate programs and will be used to assess English language proficiency:

TOEFL: a score of at least 100 on the iBT test
IELTS Indicator. A minimum score of 7 is required.
Duolingo. A minimum score of 120 is required.

Application Deadline: December 1

*There may be different IELTS requirements depending on your chosen course.