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    * Major in Music Studies

  Major in Music Studies

      42 Units

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        The School of Music at the University of Ottawa is one of the country's leading music schools. It is the ideal place to nurture your passion for all things musical and to pursue the rigorous training needed for an active and successful career in the field. We maintain close ties with renowned institutions such as the National Arts Centre (NAC) and the Ottawa Symphony Orchestra. Our program boasts state-of-the-art music facilities and internationally recognized professors who perform around the globe and publish in leading academic journals. We are a full-service music school offering programs in performance, composition, music education, theory and musicology.

        This program is offered in English and in French.

        Learn more about this program

      The table below includes only the discipline-specific courses. Please refer to the Academic Regulations for information on the Honours bachelor's with double major and the Honours bachelor's with major and minor.

        The French immersion stream is available when taken as part of an honours degree.

      Requirements for this program have been modified. Please consult the 2025-2026 calendars for the previous requirements.

      Course List
        Code                                  Title                                           Units  
        Compulsory course at the 1000 level                                                 
        MUS 1303                              Materials of Music I                            3 Units
        Compulsory courses at the 2000 level                                                
        MUS 2365                              Music: The Big Questions I                      3 Units
        MUS 2366                              Music: The Big Questions II                     3 Units
        MUS 2367                              Indigenous Musics                               3 Units
        MUS 2368                              Music and Identity                              3 Units
        Optional courses                                                                    
        6 optional course units from:         6 Units                                       
          MUS 1191                            Sight-Singing and Dictation I: General 1               
          MUS 1194                            Sight-Singing and Dictation I: Enriched 1              
          MUS 1901                            Solo Performance Studies 3                             
          MUS 2304                            The Sound of Rock                                      
          MUS 2306                            Theory and Analysis I 2                                
          MUS 2307                            Theory and Analysis II                                 
          MUS 2310                            Music in the Movies                                    
          MUS 2382                            Introduction to World Music                            
        15 optional course units from:        15 Units                                      
          MUS 3110                            Music Education I                                      
          MUS 3111                            Music Education II                                     
          MUS 3307                            Theory and Analysis IV 2                               
          MUS 3308                            Popular Music in Society                               
          MUS 3315                            Music and Computers I                                  
          MUS 3365                            Music and Genre                                        
          MUS 3366                            Music and Text                                         
          MUS 3367                            Musical Entrepreneurship                               
          MUS 3901                            Orchestra 3                                            
          MUS 3902                            Wind Ensemble 3                                        
          MUS 3903                            Opera Production 3                                     
          MUS 3904                            Choral Ensemble 3                                      
          MUS 3907                            Guitar Ensemble 3                                      
          MUS 3916                            Piano Ensemble 3                                       
          MUS 3925                            Orchestration                                          
          MUS 3951                            Instrumental Classes - Guitar                          
          MUS 3953                            Instrumental Classes - Recorder                        
          MUS 3955                            Compositional Techniques                               
        6 optional course units from:         6 Units                                       
          MUS 4301                            Selected Topics in Musicology 3                        
          MUS 4302                            Selected Topics in Music Education 3                   
          MUS 4310                            Selected Topics in Music Theory and Analysis 3         
          MUS 4315                            Topics in Music Technology 3                           
          MUS 4910                            Practicum                                              
          MUS 4912                            Arranging                                              
          MUS 4924                            Research Project I                                     
          MUS 4928                            Advanced Research in Music: Tools and Methods          
        Total:                                42 Units                                      
        

        Note(s)

        1

        A written test at the beginning of the course MUS 1191 will determine placement in an additional weekly lab.

        2

        A written test at the beginning of the course MUS 2306 will determine if the student must also enrol for MUS 1303.

        3

        Enrolment subject to audition, prerequisite, and/or permission of the School of Music.

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