Major Preparation in the Herb Alpert School of Music
Source: https://admission.ucla.edu/apply/transfer/deciding-on-major/major-preparation-music Parent: https://admission.ucla.edu/apply/transfer/transfer-requirements
The Herb Alpert School of Music offers the following majors:
- Music composition
- Ethnomusicology
- Global jazz studies
- Music education
- Music industry
- Music performance
- Musicology
The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music aspires to educate students through productive collaborations between performance and scholarship, a cross-cultural, global understanding of music, and preparatory training for a broad range of careers in music following graduation.
Transfer applicants to the school are considered on the basis of academic achievement as well as departmental screening requirements and must have a minimum 3.2 GPA at the time of application. California Community College students are strongly encouraged, but not required, to complete IGETC; all other transfer students are encouraged to make progress toward completion of the school’s general education requirements.
In addition to the UC Application, applicants are required to submit supplemental application materials which vary by major and are used in a prescreening process to determine which students will be invited to interview and/or audition.
The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music houses the supplemental application on the Acceptd platform. For music performance, music education, and global jazz studies, applicants must select a primary instrument for an audition. Other general information about the application process can be found on the School of Music’s website.
Key Points
- Minimum GPA: 3.2
- IGETC required: No, but strongly encouraged
- Supplemental application required: Yes, a supplemental application and an audition and/or interview are required for all School of Music majors. Visit Acceptd to view the supplemental application.
- Supplemental application deadline: December 5, 2025
Major Preparation for Individual Majors
Music Composition
The music composition major welcomes composers who demonstrate extraordinary intellectual curiosity and whose primary goal is to communicate with others on a profoundly human level. The program emphasizes the collaborative relationship between composers and performers in such a way that a simulated professional experience is achieved.
Preparation for the Major
Recommended preparation for the major:
- A one-year comprehensive music theory course sequence, incorporating musicianship (ear training and sight singing), as well as keyboard skills; or one year of music theory and one year of musicianship (ear training and sight singing)
- Two years of applied studio instruction on a primary instrument or in voice (private lessons)
- Two years of participation in a large performance group such as orchestra, choir, or wind ensemble
More Information
Ethnomusicology
The ethnomusicology major combines hands-on musical experience with academic study to explore the rich variety of musical expressions throughout the world, including Africa, Europe, the Americas, and West, East, South, and Southeast Asia.
Preparation for the Major
Recommended preparation for the major:
- A one-year comprehensive music theory course sequence, incorporating musicianship (ear training and sight singing), as well as keyboard skills; or one year of music theory and one year of musicianship (ear training and sight singing)
- Two years of participation in a large performance group such as orchestra, choir, world music ensemble, or wind ensemble
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Global Jazz Studies
The global jazz studies major encourages students to think globally about the capacity of jazz to transform the musical and political worlds it engages, while building upon UCLA’s strong jazz studies and world music foundation.
Preparation for the Major
Recommended preparation for the major:
- A one-year comprehensive music theory course sequence, incorporating musicianship (ear training and sight singing), as well as keyboard skills; or one year of music theory and one year of musicianship (ear training and sight singing)
- One to two years of applied jazz studio instruction (private lessons)
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Music Education
The music education major is a music teacher preparation program. This major provides students the musical expertise, research skills, and curricular design abilities essential to teach music to the diverse student population of California and beyond and to provide administrative leadership in arts education.
Preparation for the Major
Recommended preparation for the major:
- A one-year comprehensive music theory course sequence, incorporating musicianship (ear training and sight singing), as well as keyboard skills; or one year of music theory and one year of musicianship (ear training and sight singing)
- Two years of applied studio instruction on a primary instrument or in voice (private lessons)
- Two years of participation in a large performance group, such as orchestra, choir, or wind ensemble
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Music Performance
The music performance major combines intensive applied study of Western classical music with the superb academics of a major research university situated in a global cultural capital. Students in the performance concentration study individually with world-class performers and teachers, participate fully in a range of large and small ensembles, and pursue rigorous coursework in music theory, history, and analysis.
Preparation for the Major
Recommended preparation for the major:
- A one-year comprehensive music theory course sequence, incorporating musicianship (ear training and sight singing), as well as keyboard skills; or one year of music theory and one year of musicianship (ear training and sight singing)
- Two years of applied studio instruction on a primary instrument or in voice (private lessons)
- Two years of participation in a large performance group such as orchestra, choir or wind ensemble
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Musicology
The goals of the musicology major are grounded firmly in the humanistic study of music. Musicology majors learn to research, analyze and understand many different musics: ancient and recent, classical and popular, Western and global, within culture and through a critical lens.
Preparation for the Major
Recommended preparation for the major:
- A one-year comprehensive music theory course sequence, incorporating musicianship (ear training and sight singing), as well as keyboard skills; or one year of music theory and one year of musicianship (ear training and sight singing)
- One year of participation in a large performance group, such as orchestra, choir, or wind ensemble
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Music Industry
The music industry interdepartmental program prepares students for transformative, creative career paths in and around an ever-evolving music industry. The program provides challenging historical, critical, and global perspectives through deep integration with the Herb Alpert School of Music and with other UCLA professional and arts schools. Balanced programs build the technical, computational, fiduciary, communications, and marketing skills necessary for success in any part of the professional music world. Internships, mentoring, and individualized capstone projects give students direct experience with working music communities.
Preparation for the Major
Recommended preparation for the major:
- Two quarters of musicianship or music theory training that provide a general introduction to music in the technological era of mass culture and music theory for the global 21st century music professional.
- Two quarters of study in finance and accounting that covers how money works in both nonprofit and for-profit music industries, including practical management of funds, budgeting, fee scales, servicing agreements, issues pertaining to trade unions, and various modes of accounting for salary, royalties, local and international taxation, streaming revenues, licensing payments, and other income and expenditure.
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Contact
Herb Alpert School of Music\ Phone: (310) 825-4768\ Email: admissions@schoolofmusic.ucla.edu