UCAS code W301
This degree offers you a great deal of flexibility and allows you to select from both our classical and popular music modules. There is no better place to study music than Liverpool: we work closely with musical venues and organisations throughout the city, including the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic; and we established the world’s first specialist centre for its study - the Institute of Popular Music - in 1988.
The modules on this programme vary, with some being practical – concerned with musical performance, composition and orchestration, song-writing or creative music technology – while others focus on music history topics or music analysis and theory. Our studio and performance modules cater for both classical and popular musical styles, allowing you to choose the route best suited to you; and a generous range of optional modules includes specialist topics such as music psychology, audio-visual media (films and videogames), and vocational modules. Throughout, you will learn to write about music from a historical, critical, sociological, or philosophical viewpoint.
Year in industry
Undergraduate students in the Department of Music have the opportunity to spend a year in industry, either in their third year, or by adding a ‘follow-on year’ at the end of their academic studies. These are paid placements within an organisation in industry, broadly defined, and you will receive support from the Department and the School of the Arts to source and apply for opportunities. Find out more about the difference between these options, including how to apply.
Discover what you'll learn, what you'll study, and how you'll be taught and assessed.
You will take two compulsory modules, and choose the rest of your modules from a range of options.
| Compulsory modules | Credits |
|---|---|
| MUSIC AS AN INDUSTRY (MUSI150) | 15 |
| MUSIC IN CONTEXTS: WHY MUSIC MATTERS (MUSI121) | 15 |
Programme details and modules listed are illustrative only and subject to change.
You will choose from entirely optional modules, the range of which balances classical and popular modules, and ensures coverage of repertoire, contexts and praxis.
In year 2, students:
• Must take at least one of the following: MUSI219, MUSI220, MUSI230, MUSI232, MUSI261, MUSI263.
• Must take at least one of and may take a maximum of four from: MUSI200, MUSI201, MUSI202, MUSI203, MUSI204, MUSI205, MUSI206, MUSI207,
MUSI208, MUSI209, MUSI210, MUSI213, MUSI214, MUSI216, MUSI217, MUSI243, MUSI252 (Practical options)
• May not take both Classical Performance and Popular Performance.
Programme details and modules listed are illustrative only and subject to change.
In your final year, you will undertake a major independent project in research, performance, composition or technology. The rest of your modules will be taken from a range of options.
Specialist topics can be studied alongside advanced level analysis, performance or composition modules. There is a particular emphasis in the final year on specialism, including an extended or independent project (such as a research project, a composition portfolio or a music technology project).
In year 3, students:
• Must take at least one of the following: MUSI320, MUSI331, MUSI353.
• Must take one and only one Independent Project.
Students who take SOTA600 (Year in Industry) may not take SOTA300.
Programme details and modules listed are illustrative only and subject to change.
We employ a range of teaching methods, including lectures, seminars, tutorials, workshops, master classes, 1-2-1 instrumental lessons, ensemble coaching, and online tasks and projects. The emphasis is on student participation and interaction. We fit the most appropriate mode of teaching to the particular subject, conscious that the learning process needs to be enjoyable, enabling you to acquire useful and marketable skills and knowledge.
Each module has an individually determined system of assessment (by coursework, written paper, test, recital, composition or technology portfolio, presentation or podcast, examination, and combinations of these), and we select the method that best suits the nature of the module.
We have a distinctive approach to education, the Liverpool Curriculum Framework, which focuses on research-connected teaching, active learning, and authentic assessment to ensure our students graduate as digitally fluent and confident global citizens.
The Liverpool Curriculum framework sets out our distinctive approach to education. Our teaching staff support our students to develop academic knowledge, skills, and understanding alongside our graduate attributes:
Our curriculum is characterised by the three Liverpool Hallmarks:
All this is underpinned by our core value of inclusivity and commitment to providing a curriculum that is accessible to all students.
Studying with us means you can tailor your degree to suit you. Here's what is available on this course.
University of Liverpool students can choose from an exciting range of study placements at partner universities worldwide. Choose to spend a year at XJTLU in China or a year or semester at an institution of your choice.
Immerse yourself in Chinese culture on an optional additional year at Xi'an Jiaotong Liverpool University in stunning Suzhou.
Broaden your world by spending an additional year of study at a partner university abroad following your second year of study.
Take a semester of your second year of study at one of our worldwide partner institutions.
Spend a summer abroad on a study placement or research project at one of our worldwide partner institutions.
Year in industry placements give you an in-depth workplace experience where you can develop your skills and apply your learning.
You don't need to decide now - you can choose to add a year in industry after you've begun your degree.
Learn more about year in industry
To spend a year in industry, you'll need to secure a placement with an organisation. If you're unable to find a placement, you'll continue with the standard version of the course without a year in industry.
Every student at The University of Liverpool can study a language as part of, or alongside their degree. You can choose:
Much of your teaching will take place in the Department of Music. Our recently renovated facilities include studios, teaching spaces and industry standard equipment, and we recently opened the Tung Auditorium: a 400-seat state of the art performance venue, which has been developed to support our requirements and to function as a public-facing space for concerts outside of teaching time.
From arrival to alumni, we’re with you all the way:
Want to find out more about student life?
Chat with our student ambassadors and ask any questions you have.
Studying music opens up many career opportunities. As well as jobs in music (from performance, composition, and production, through to teaching, music therapy and community arts), employers in many sectors are increasingly seeking arts and humanities graduates for their transferable skills.
As a music student you will achieve creative flair and imagination, confidence in expressing yourself, an openness to new ideas, a capacity for hard work and an ability to analyse data. You will learn the value of working with others towards a shared, finished product and a whole range of flexible, professional skills.
As a student in the School of the Arts, you will be supported to maximise your employability from day one.
The School has its own placements and employability officer, and you will have the opportunity to undertake the following work experience opportunities: