Director: Christopher Johnson
Office: 448 Murphy Hall
Phone: (785) 864-4784
E-mail address: memt@ku.edu
To find out, ask yourself: Do I enjoy making and talking about music? Do I like to share my skills and interests with others? Do I enjoy working with young people, and am I eager to introduce them to music? Am I comfortable talking to groups? Do I enjoy working with and meeting people of diverse race, ethnic, and religious backgrounds? Am I committed to helping others? Do I believe music enriches life?
KU's Music Education and Music Therapy division in the School of Fine Arts offers programs in music education and music therapy. If you want to teach music, you will earn a degree in music education. This program will develop your teaching skills as well as your skills as a musician on an instrument of emphasis and on an accompanying instrument. It will give you a broad understanding of music's contribution to culture and recreation.
You will be recommended for licensure as a music teacher for students ranging in age from prekindergarten through 21 years after you complete the requirements of the division's music education program.
Music education undergraduates earn a Bachelor of Music Education (B.M.E.). The B.M.E. requires a broad but structured sampling of courses in the humanities, language arts, social sciences, and natural sciences. It includes substantial course work in music education and music. The program meets state requirements for teacher licensure in Kansas and reciprocal licensure in many other states.
The division also offers a dual-degree program that enables students to earn a bachelor's degree in both music education and music therapy. Students usually complete the degree requirements for the music therapy program and then complete the courses needed for licensure in music education.
Check the Admissions Requirements Page.
You will be enrolled in the Department of Music and Dance in the School of Fine Arts. You will complete many liberal arts and basic music courses during the first two years. You will take a sampling of introductory music courses that will develop your basic performance skills on several instruments, including your instrument of emphasis, and in conducting and sight-reading.
Students do not enter the Music Education Professional Sequence until the junior year, but your first semester will give you a taste of music education. You will observe and work with children in a classroom setting. This experience will help you decide if music education is the career for you.
If you have no prior experience with piano, your first year's music education schedule may look something like this:
|
First semester |
Hours |
|
MEMT 160 Principles of Music Education |
1 |
|
MEMT 116 Performance Media: Strings |
1 |
|
MEMT 116 Performance Media: Brass |
1 |
|
MEMT 116 Performance Media: Voice |
1 |
|
MTHC 105 Theory I |
4 |
|
PIAN 144 Elementary Keyboard Skills I |
1 |
|
121 Major Instrument Private Lessons |
1 |
|
Band/Orchestra/Choral Group |
1 |
|
ENGL 101 Composition |
3 |
|
MATH 101 Algebra (or higher) |
3 |
|
TOTAL |
17 |
|
Second semester |
Hours |
|
MEMT 116 Performance Media: Woodwinds |
1 |
|
MEMT 230 Ensemble Clinic:Choral |
1 |
|
MTHC115 Theory II |
4 |
|
PIAN 148 Elementary Keyboard Skills II |
1 |
|
121 Major Instrument Private Lessons |
1 |
|
Band/Orchestra/Choral Group |
1 |
|
ENGL 102 Composition and Literature |
3 |
|
MATH 106 Introduction to Finite Mathematics |
3 |
|
COMS130 Speaker-Audience Communication |
3 |
|
TOTAL |
18 |
Students in Music Education and Music Therapy who will become licensed teachers earn a minimum of 130 credit hours and a B.M.E. during their first four years. They then take additional courses during their Licensure Year. Most students average about 18 credits, or 10 to 11 courses, a semester. Some courses require a commitment to regular practice hours. Others require regular field work in nearby schools.
During your junior and senior years, you will complete your basic liberal arts requirements, music and performance courses, and studies in your major instrument. You also will take education courses that will prepare you to teach. Your fifth and final year will be devoted entirely to your professional education. This is the year when you will student teach and complete the required graduate courses and an internship. When you've completed the five-year program, you will have your teaching license and your B.M.E. degree, and you will have earned many of the credits needed for a master's degree in music education.
You must apply for admission to the Music Education Professional Sequence after you have completed the first semester of your sophomore year. To be admitted you must have at least a 2.5 overall grade-point average, or a C+. You must, however, have at least a 2.75 GPA in your teaching major and in 35 hours of specified course work as required by the Kansas Board of Regents. You must also have received satiKU Fine Artsctory faculty evaluations and have passed all three parts of the Pre-Professional Skills Test with acceptable scores.
You can compete for music performance scholarships. The music and dance department office, (785) 864-3436, has information about music scholarships.
For information about scholarships based on academic merit, diversity, major, and residence, write or call the University of Kansas, Office of Admissions and Scholarships, Lawrence, KS 66045, (785) 864-3911. For information about grants, loans, and other need-based financial aid, write or call KU's Office of Student Financial Aid, 50 Strong Hall, Lawrence, KS 66045-1920, (785) 864-4700.
For information about the division, careers, admissions, testing, and advising, contact George Duerksen, Music Education and Music Therapy, the University of Kansas, 311 Bailey Hall, Lawrence, KS 66045, (785) 864-4784.
Perhaps you will choose a different aspect of education or major in music therapy. You may earn a different degree in fine arts. Some of the courses you take your first year will apply toward other degrees. The variety of courses will help you choose a major.
The KU Broadway, Concert, Chamber Music, and New Directions Series bring the finest solo artists and ensembles to campus to perform in the Lied Center of Kansas, KU's acclaimed performance hall. Each year influential composers lecture and perform as part of the Symposium of Contemporary Music. A steady stream of guest artists, lectures, special events, and clinics will enrich your music experience.
The music education faculty are nationally and internationally recognized leaders in the profession. They have taught in large and small school systems, both urban and rural. You will work with widely published composers, concert and chamber musicians, soloists, and music educators. The faculty includes artists and theorists recognized for their dedication to music and teaching.
The division has a well-equipped psychology and acoustics of music laboratory, electronic music synthesizers, and music sequencing, editing, and printing equipment. You will use an array of ethnic and folk instruments and recordings, curriculum and teaching materials, and equipment for music recording, production, and research.
Once you have your degree and license, school districts will want to hire you. School administrators know our five-year graduates are well-trained, experienced teachers. They often tell us our graduates are especially mature and hit their first jobs running. That fifth year of student teaching, advanced course work, and internship will make you a confident and enthusiastic teacher.
Department-Specific Requirements:
Department of Art Admissions
Department of Design Admissions
Department of Music & Dance Admissions
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The University of Kansas School of Fine Arts Lawrence, KS 66045 785/864-3421 |
Copyright © 2008 by The University of Kansas |
