Certificate Program

The Music Certificate Program is available to pre- and post-master's degree students. It requires 12 credit hours of music courses and may require an additional 6 credits of English-language courses for international applicants who do not have qualifying English-language test scores (minimums are TOEFL 80, IETLS 6.5, DET 110).  Please refer to current tuition rates.  You may also wish to use the university's tuition calculator to help you determine cost.

Major programmatic emphasis is placed on the development of solo and ensemble skills. Minimum residency of two semesters (summers excluded) at Bowling Green State University is required with 12 hours of earned credit in music courses. Students must maintain a 3.0 grade point average and show satisfactory performance at semester examination juries. A solo recital or concerto performance with orchestra or major musical composition is required. A major operatic role may substitute for the recital at the discretion of the Voice Area Coordinator.

Although the Music Certificate Program is open to all qualified students, the program attracts many international musicians. Past certificate candidates include musicians from all over the world, including China, Japan, Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Germany, Italy, Romania, Poland, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Venezuela. International students may enroll in English courses in addition to the 12 credit-hour requirement. Although acceptance into the Certificate Program does not automatically constitute admission to the Graduate College, many certificate students have successfully continued their studies as graduate candidates at BGSU. A maximum of nine credits may be transferred upon petition to other graduate programs in the College of Musical Arts if the candidate is later unconditionally admitted to a master’s degree program.

Materials concerning details about the Music Certificate Program at BGSU may be received upon request.

*Please check your spam/junk email folders for correspondence from BGSU. You will get several emails from the College of Musical Arts as well as the Graduate College in regards to auditions and your application and often our emails go directly into spam/junk folders. 

Application Requirements

• Graduate College Music Certificate Program Application
  
• Three Letters of Recommendation
• Transcripts from all institutions where degrees were awarded (undergraduate and graduate if applicable)
• In-Person audition or recorded audition uploaded to application (submission of scores for composers)
  Please make sure to review the Audition Requirements        
• Recommended TOEFL score of at least 61 IBT. (International students only)
  
• International students please see the International Student Services webpage for additional documentation
  

Application Deadline

Application deadlines are March 1 for entry in fall semester; October 15 for entry in spring semester.

Costs and Financial Aid

Applicants should use BGSU's Graduate Tuition Calculator to estimate the cost of attendance. Domestic applicants should assume a courseload of six credit hours per semester; international applicants should assume a load of nine credit hours per semester unless they have achieved the minimum English-language test score or are from an exempt country.

Room and board is not included in the estimated tuition expenditures. There is ample off-campus housing and apartment options for consideration. Information concerning housing can be obtained through Off-Campus Student Services.