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Information on graduate programs in Music History

General information regarding applications

For more detailed information on graduate programs in music history at the University of Washington, please write to Professor JoAnn Taricani at taricani@u.washington.edu – and consult the program requirements for the M.A. and Ph.D. on the website. Students planning to apply for the masters-level program are expected to have the equivalent of the B.A. in music history, and applicants for the doctoral degree are expected to have the equivalent of the M.A. at the University of Washington, including a thesis in music history or a related area.  Applicants should submit two or three papers in the area of music history or another academic area of music; these should display the ability of the student to write thoughtfully and with clarity about issues in music.  The "Statement of Purpose" is a significant aspect of the application, in which the applicant is expected to outline his or her areas of scholarly interest and eventual career plans.   

Financial support for graduate students

Graduate students are supported through a combination of teaching assistantships and scholarship support.  Teaching assignments include a range of courses, such as a survey of Western art music, a course in American popular music, the core history courses for music majors, and courses that focus on writing about music, offered through the Department of English.  For recent examples of course materials developed by teaching assistants in music history, see here for information on a course on writing about music, and here for a syllabus for a survey of Western music, both taught by a Ph.D. candidate in music history. 

Current students and recent graduates

The graduate students in music history include a mixture of masters and doctoral students with undergraduate degrees from universities around the country, who are working on a wide array of topics, ranging from the manuscripts of Guillaume de Machaut to a variety of topics in American popular music.  Recent Ph.D. graduates are currently employed as faculty members at Florida State University, the University of Utah, and the University of Puget Sound. Recent graduates of the M.A. program in music history have moved on to Ph.D. programs at Harvard University, Yale University, Stanford University, and Florida State University.