Final Project

Requirements for the Masters Final Project (Thesis, Recital/Portfolio or Composition)

As the culmination of the degree program, each student is expected to present a final research or creative project appropriate to the student’s area of specialization. Credit for this requirement is given under the course numbers MuCT/MusP 6980, MuEd 6380 or MuCT/ MuEd /MusP 6990. The student may enroll for up to 12 hours of credit in the final project, but no more than the number of hours specified on each curriculum sheet will be counted toward the degree. All submissions must follow the schedule of deadlines published by the Graduate College.  

Degree Candidates Deadlines

Please also see the CMA Master’s Final Project Handbook. 

Candidates in performance are expected to fulfill the final project requirement by presenting a public recital or recitals according to the degree specifications, and completing either a comprehensive examination or a thesis. Graduate performance students are expected to present their recital in the Moore Musical Arts Center so that it can be recorded by the College’s Recording Services. All graduate recitals presented in the MMAC will automatically be scheduled for recording provided that the event was scheduled appropriately with the proper notice. Late requests or rescheduled events may not provide enough lead time for Recording Services. At the conclusion of the recital, Recording Services will send a download link to you and to the University Library for archival purposes. The recording of the recital serves as verification of its completion; therefore, no signed program is needed by the main office—that is an undergraduate requirement only. For conducting students who are compiling recordings in lieu of a recital, please discuss with your faculty advisor and inform the Assistant Dean for Graduate Studies and the graduate secretary.

Because of the recording requirement, Master’s students and Music Certificate students are expected to present their degree recital on campus. Exceptions may be made if the recital program has specific space/instrumentation requirements clearly better accommodated in an off-campus venue and/or for other reasons of professional advancement. In all cases, a high-quality recording of the entire recital must be presented to Recording Services for archiving within two weeks after the event, the recital must be performed in a location that is reasonably accessible to other BGSU students (e.g., within the Toledo metro area, no cover charge for entry, etc.), and the venue must be agreeable to all performers. The student giving the recital is solely responsible for all charges and fees accrued for external bookings and services, including recording. Petitions to perform off-campus degree recitals will be made to the college’s Assistant Dean for Graduate Studies using the available online form: Off Campus Recital Permission Form

Plan I Music Education students are expected to submit a thesis on a substantive issue in music education. Music Education majors who are excellent performers may, with the approval of the area performance faculty and the chair of the music education department, fulfill the thesis requirement by means of a recital and written document. Plan II Music Education students submit a portfolio and take written and oral comprehensive examinations as the final project. These examinations will be administered toward the end of the final semester of course work and will cover material from any graduate courses that were completed.

Students in Ethnomusicology and Music History may elect to either submit a thesis or submit a portfolio of academic writing. Composition students fulfill the thesis requirement by submitting the score of an original musical composition. Specific guidelines regarding the length and instrumentation of the composition are available through the Final Project Handbook. 

The written portion of final projects must adhere to a style manual acceptable to the student’s thesis chair, to the additional guidelines specified in the Graduate College’s Thesis and Dissertation Handbook, and to the College of Musical Arts’ Final Project Handbook.

Students in Music Education – Plan I, Music History and Ethnomusicology (thesis option) must pass a thesis defense. For students in Composition, an oral defense of the final project composition is required; performance of the composition may stand in lieu of a defense. Students in Music History and Ethnomusicology must also pass qualifying examinations before beginning the thesis. Students in Performance – Plan I do not need to defend their thesis.

Music Education – Plan II student must pass a written and oral comprehensive examination at the completion of all course work. Students in Performance – Plan II must pass an oral portfolio examination.