Degrees & Majors

The Georgia State Bachelor of Music with a concentration in Composition offers students personalized instruction and an immersive learning experience. The program features distinguished guest speakers like Eric Whitacre, George Lewis, Caroline Shaw, John Luther Adams and the Grammy Award-winning ensemble, Roomful of Teeth. Collaborative opportunities in film scoring, including a recent web series with the School of Film, Media, and Theater (FMT), further enhance students’ practical skills. This comprehensive program not only provides exceptional faculty guidance and inspiring guest lectures but also equips students for graduate study in composition, professional composing careers and teaching positions. Successful applicants demonstrate proficiency in theory and aural skills, submit a portfolio of compositions with accompanying recordings and pass an entrance jury. Freshman and sophomore students may enroll in Composition Seminar to develop their portfolio. Completion of Theory I and Aural Skills I is required for admission into the Composition Seminar.

The Georgia State University Bachelor of Music with a Music Education concentration offers a comprehensive and enriching program for aspiring educators passionate about fostering musical growth and learning in diverse educational settings. This concentration prepares students to teach music in schools or other group settings, covering early childhood through adulthood. Graduates are eligible for a Georgia teaching certificate in K-12 music. In addition to developing performance skills, students study child development, learning theories and various teaching methods specific to music education. Applicants are expected to have a strong background in music performance and music reading, coupled with a genuine interest in sharing their love of music with others.

A Georgia State University Bachelor of Science in Music Production & Audio Recording prepares students for artistic, technical and producer/engineer roles in the music and music-related media industries. Through a comprehensive curriculum, students become skilled audio engineers and music technologists with practical training and hands-on experience that prepares them for the multifaceted challenges of the industry. Graduates emerge from the program well-versed in the technical intricacies of sound recording, mixing and mastering and possess a discerning artistic sensibility that allows them to create captivating and high-quality audio productions.

The School of Music offers a dual Bachelor of Music and Master of Music program for all Performance concentrations, Jazz Studies, Composition and Piano Pedagogy. The dual-degree opportunity enables qualified students to enroll in graduate courses late in their undergraduate program and apply the coursework toward both the bachelor’s and master’s programs. The program is designed to take five years to complete. Students must be formally accepted into the dual-degree program by the school and the College of the Arts to be able to take graduate courses as an undergraduate. Acceptance into the dual program does not constitute admission to the master’s program. Students must fulfill regular graduate admissions requirements and apply for the master’s program following college processes. Through the dual-degree programs, highly talented and qualified students will have the opportunity to complete both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in as little as five years. If determined to be qualified by typical admission measures, students can begin taking coursework toward the designated master’s degree program while still completing their final year of bachelor’s work. Admission to the graduate program is provisional, contingent upon successful completion of the bachelor’s degree, maintenance of the required 3.5 GPA and performance in the graduate-level courses taken during the bachelor’s degree.