Music College in the United States

What schools ask for

• Prescreening recording. Many schools ask for a video first. They use it to choose who comes to a live audition. Juilliard, Curtis, New England Conservatory and Manhattan School of Music all use one.
• Live audition. You perform prepared pieces for a faculty panel. Some schools add scales or sight-reading.
• Musicianship check. Some schools test your ear and your theory at the audition. Juilliard piano finalists take a written musicianship exam. USC Thornton Popular Music gives a short check of theory, ear skills and rhythm.
• Interview. Berklee applicants talk with faculty about their musical experience and goals.
• Portfolio. Composers send scores with recordings. Songwriters and producers send original work.

How the schools differ

Conservatories with a prescreen. At Juilliard and Colburn, a recorded prescreen comes first. A live audition follows by invitation. At Curtis, most departments ask for a prescreen. Each department sets its own rules.

University music schools. Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and the University of Michigan decide on prescreening for each instrument or program. Both offer a recorded or online final audition in some cases.

Berklee. Berklee holds a live audition with a prepared piece, improvisation, sight-reading and ear training. It asks for no prescreen video. Its online auditions take place live by video call.

Programs for original work. USC Popular Music, NYU Steinhardt songwriting and Peabody Hip Hop ask applicants to send their own songs or tracks.

Composition. Most programs judge a portfolio of scores and recordings. At USC, New England Conservatory and Oberlin, composers do not audition on an instrument. Eastman and Michigan ask for an instrument audition as well.

What to prepare

1. Read the page for your instrument at each school. Write down the repertoire, the recording rules and the order of rounds.
2. Follow each school's recording rules exactly. Clear sound and a steady camera let the panel hear your playing.
3. Practice sight-reading and ear skills each day. Several of the schools above test them at the audition.
4. Prepare short spoken answers about your teachers, the music you study and what you want to do next.

Practice on The Music Stem

Berklee audition practiceIt covers the prepared piece, improvisation, sight-reading, ear training and the interview.Open →Juilliard and similar conservatoriesThe Juilliard and similar conservatories pathway follows the prescreen and the live round.Open →Mock auditionA mock audition runs a full session in order.Open →

• Sight-reading, ear tests, interview questions and improvisation train each part on its own.
• The AP Music Theory practice exam covers dictation, part writing and sight-singing.
• Measure Your Playing shows the pitch and timing of a recording of your prepared piece.
• StemLab takes a song apart by its instruments. Use it to learn a style by ear.

Study and visa information

EducationUSA is a US Department of State network. It sets out the steps of US study from research to departure. Student visa rules are on the US Department of State's student visa page. The school's international office answers questions about your own case.