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How and When to Apply
How and When to Apply
How and When to Apply
Our Graduate Degree Programs
We offer programs leading to the MA degree (musicology, music theory) and MMus degree (music education, composition, and music performance).
Applicants to our master's programs normally hold a BMus or BA degree with a major in music from an accredited university. A 70% minimum average is required; 80% or higher is customary in the proposed area of concentration. Please note that meeting these minimum requirements is not a guarantee of admission.
Our doctoral programs include the PhD (musciology, composition, music theory, and music education) and DMA (in voice, piano, violin, viola, cello, clarinet, trumpet, saxophone, trombone, and choral conducting). Admission to our doctoral programs normally requires an MA or MMus degree in the proposed area of study.
How to Apply
The application is online and administered by Western's School for Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. Applicants are required to upload all supplementary documents to the online application by the deadline.
For a full list of admission requirements and application materials for each of our degree programs, consult the webpage for each program listed here.
Message for International Applicants
International students require a study permit to enrol in a graduate program in Canada. Study permits are issued through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. The School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (SGPS) has created a web page that will be updated on an ongoing basis as we continue to receive new information about study permits: Canadian Study Permit Policies.
When to Apply
Important Dates
Application opens: early October
Application deadline: December 1
Admission decisions communicated to applicants: mid to late March
Program start date: September 1
The 2026 application is now closed.
Ready to apply?
Online application opens early October. Deadline is December 1
Application FAQs
Applicants whose first language is not English must provide evidence of their proficiency in English through satisfactory achievement on an accepted language test within the past two years:
- The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) iBT (internet-Based Test): For tests taken before January 21, 2026, Western requires a minimum overall score of 86, with no individual section score below 20. For tests taken on or after January 21, 2026, Western requires a minimum overall score of 4.5, with no individual section score below 4. Western’s TOEFL ID is 0984.
- International English Language Testing Service Academic (IELTS Academic). The minimum acceptable score is 6.5 out of 9.
- The Duolingo English Test. Applicants must attain a minimum score of 115.
For the full list of acceptable proficiency tests, please see the SGPS website.
The English language proficiency requirement is waived for applicants who have completed at least two years in a university degree program where the language of instruction and the first official language of the country is English.
List of eligible countries: Australia, Barbados, Botswana, Canada, Ghana, Guyana, Ireland, Jamaica, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Malta, Namibia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Sierra Leone, Singapore, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States of America, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
No, you do not need to find a supervisor before applying.
Part-time registration is only offered in the MMus Music Education program. All other graduate programs in Music require full-time registration.
Contact gradapps@uwo.ca for all technical and payment issues related to the online application.
Questions? Contact us!
Dr. Kevin Mooney
Office: TC 215
Email: kmooney@uwo.ca
Graduate Program Assistant
Audrey Yardley-Jones
Office: TC 216
Phone: 519-661-2111 x85354
Email: ayardley@uwo.ca