Music
Entry requirements
A level
A Level grades BBB-BCC preferred.
Access to HE Diploma
Access to HE courses – typical offers for applicants with Access to HE will be the Access to HE Diploma or Access to HE Certificate (60 credits, 45 of which must be Level 3, at Merit or higher) together with evidence of a high level of experience in music, composing, music technology or music performance.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
A minimum of 32 points are required.
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
BTEC – Extended Diploma grades from Distinction Distinction Merit (DDM) to Distinction Merit Merit (DMM) in a related subject.
T Level
T Levels – grade Merit preferred in a relevant subject.
UCAS Tariff
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About this course
**Discover who you are as a musician and develop the skills you need to thrive in your future career.**
- Develop your skills through practical music-making every working day.
- Learn how to make a difference in the world through your music.
- Ready yourself for a viable and sustainable career in the wider music sector.
BA Music is a practical and applied degree designed to give you access to a broad range of careers in music through an artist-first approach to study. On the course, you'll consider how music exists in the world around us today, exploring both how music is not only something to do, but something to do things with. You'll learn to use your musical skill and knowledge to make a difference in the world, starting your career as a creator, manager, educator or leader in the community music and wellbeing sectors.
Our Music degree focuses on developing your creative skills as a practitioner in a wide range of musical styles and contexts. You'll have regular music-making opportunities, enhancing your skills as a practical and entrepreneurial musician who understands music as it is made in contemporary society, engaging directly with the music industry and diverse communities. You'll also develop as a music creator, exploring your personal musical identity through making original work.
Your creative and practical musicianship skills will be developed in the context of viable career paths within music. You'll gain the practical training and work experience you need to take music beyond concert venues and into peoples’ everyday lives – into schools, prisons, community organisations, health and social care settings and music societies – in an inclusive and sustainable way. You'll develop a portfolio of tangible experience and materials, ready to kick-start a career in music, such as through public-facing performances, professional placements, websites and online content, or educational materials and workshop plans. You'll work with our external partners across Bath and the wider region, enabling you to acquire the communication, business, entrepreneurial, digital literacy and evaluation skills you'll need to support your artistic and professional activities.
Modules
Year one – Focus on developing and refining your core practical musicianship skills. Through this practical work, you’ll learn about current music in relation to societal contexts, exploring the areas in which your practice can make a difference in people’s lives. You'll also develop your ability to make recordings and videos, learning to edit these for online contexts. Across the year, you’ll undertake a series of short projects, working in groups as well as individually.
Year two – Apply your skills within a series of industry contexts, helping you to understand what careers are available to you as a musician. You'll continue to develop your artistic practice, while considering how external factors such as collaborating with others or undertaking research can open up new ideas. This work is also explored through working with communities, in educational settings, and producing events. You'll also develop your ability to communicate ideas about music in different media, such as podcasts, video creation, and social media.
Year three – In your final year, you’ll be supported in transitioning to work as an independent industry professional. You’ll design and deliver projects in areas such as education, community music, health and wellbeing, and arts management. You’ll be able to focus on your individual career aspirations as a professional musician, and build the CV you need to get you there, supported by placement opportunities. You'll work on two large-scale projects of your choice, focusing on your creative practice and applied research. We help you plan and manage these projects, balancing creative, research and entrepreneurial decision-making to reach your goals. You'll also gain valuable industry experience through a work placement, helping you to demonstrate your potential to employers.
Assessment methods
All of our assessments are based in practical and applied music-making. In addition to the creative work you make through performances and compositions, you’ll create outputs such as audio-visual documentation, podcasts, websites, written reports and research papers, teaching materials, project proposals and public events.
As a result, your assessment projects will form a portfolio that can be used to evidence your skills to employers, as part of a showreel or CV.
Tuition fees
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The Uni
Bath Spa University
School of Music and Performing Arts
What students say
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Music
Teaching and learning
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Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
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Music
What are graduates doing after six months?
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Top job areas of graduates
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Music
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£14k
£18k
£22k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
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While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
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