Music Scholarships

The College of Charleston Department of Music provides scholarship assistance to a select number of incoming first-year or transfer music majors who desire an opportunity for:

  • intensive individual study in performance, musicology/ethnomusicology, and composition/theory
  • a variety of performing opportunities
  • exposure to the rich cultural setting at the School of the Arts, as well as the Charleston Symphony Orchestra, Spoleto Festival USA, Piccolo Spoleto, and many other music, theatre, and dance companies.

Scholarship awards are based on ability and potential and are normally renewable provided satisfactory academic and musical progress is demonstrated.

Deadlines & Timelines

Please check back for the 2024-25 scholarship application this fall.

The Music Scholarship Application typically opens in early November with a deadline in early January. 

Apply for a Music Scholarship

Application & Audition Requirements

Applicants with a serious interest in multiple areas (e.g. performance, composition/theory, and/or musicology/ethnomusicology) are encouraged to consider submitting scholarship application materials for each area and pursuing a double concentration within the music major. Following auditions and review of application materials, selected students are recommended by the faculty for a scholarship.
  • Performance

    Audition Dates

    Audition dates are typically scheduled for mid-late January.

    • In-State students will be invited to campus for an in-person audition and interview in January.
    • Out-of-State students will be invited for a real-time Zoom interview in January.
    • Out-of-State students must submit two video recordings as part of their application packet.

    To arrange an audition for a scholarship in performance, submit the application form in addition to  two letters of recommendation to the Department of Music. You will be contacted to confirm a definite audition time on your designated audition date.

    Audition Requirements: Performance

    • Piano: Two contrasting pieces (memorization is not required)
    • Voice: Two contrasting pieces, one in a foreign language
    • Strings:
      • All major and minor scales and arpeggios, 3 octaves
      • Two contrasting works from the standard solo repertoire that best represent the candidate's technique and musicianship: a movement of a solo work by Bach, a movement from a concerto, and/or a short virtuosic piece are recommended.
    • Classical Guitar: Two contrasting pieces from memory
    • Other instruments: Two contrasting pieces (memorization is not required)
    • Jazz: Play melody and improvise over chord changes on two contrasting jazz standards

    Audition Requirements for Jazz Percussion

    1. 13 Essential PAS rudiments:

    • Double stroke roll
    • Flam Single stroke roll
    • Flam accent
    • Five stroke roll
    • Flam tap
    • Seven stroke roll
    • Flam paradiddle
    • Single paradiddle
    • Drag Double paradiddle
    • Single drag tap
    • Triple paradiddle

    2. Two prepared pieces on snare drum
    3. Sight-reading on snare drum
    4. Drumset applicant will prepare and provide songs for this section of the audition*

    • Medium to up-tempo swing on 12-bar blues form w/ sticks
    • Solo over 12-bar blues w/ sticks
    • Slow to medium-tempo swing w/ brushes
    • Medium to up-tempo Latin groove, i.e. Bossa, Samba, Afro-Cuban

    Drumset will be provided if necessary.

    *Jazz Percussion Applicants should submit prepared pieces via e-mail to Robert Lewis (LewisR@cofc.edu) at least three weeks prior to scheduled audition.

    Apply for a Music Scholarship
  • Musicology/Ethnomusicology

    Application Requirements: Musicology/Ethnomusicology

    • Submit a 1 to 2 paragraph statement of interest in researching and writing about music.
    • Submit a 2 page response to the following prompt:

      Imagine that there is a global project underway to create a Museum of the World’s Music to preserve the most significant expressions of human musical culture for future generations. You have been invited to nominate two musical artifacts for inclusion in this project: one that was created during your lifetime, and another from before your lifetime. In an essay of no more than 3 double-spaced pages, explain your two nominations to the museum’s curatorial board:
      1. What is the nature of the artifacts you have chosen: A recording? A score? An implement for making music? Something else?
      2. Is there a relationship between the two artifacts you have chosen?
      3. Most importantly, explain why (and perhaps to whom) these particular artifacts are (or have been) significant. What evidence do we have of their importance?

    • Applicants who are not also submitting audition materials for a performance-based scholarship should submit a recording of not more than five minutes of music demonstrating their capacity as a performer of any instrument (including voice and electronic instruments/digital media).
    • Submit your statement of interest and essay (in Word or PDF format) and performance recording (if applicable, as an mp3 or video file) to the Scholarship Application Link below.
    Apply for a Music Scholarship
  • Composition & Music Theory

    Application Requirements: Composition/Music Theory

    • Submit a 1 to 2 paragraph statement of interest in composition and/or theory, including past experience and involvement.
    • Submit one or more (up to three) notated compositions for any combination of instruments/voices in PDF format.
    • Submit matching audio files in mp3 format, if available.
    • Applicants who are not also submitting audition materials for a performance-based scholarship should submit a recording of not more than five minutes of music demonstrating their capacity as a performer of any instrument (including voice and electronic instruments/digital media).
    • Submit your compositions (in PDF format), matching audio files (in mp3 format), and performance recording (if applicable, as an mp3 or video file), to the Scholarship Application Link below.
    Apply for a Music Scholarship