Eastman School of Music

Degree Requirements

Core Curriculum Link to section

The components of the Bachelor of Music degree common to all majors are referred to as the core curriculum. Each major features specific departmental requirements above and beyond the core which, when combined, will total a minimum of 120 credits necessary for the Bachelor of Music degree. Any variations or exceptions to the core curriculum are noted under specific degree program listings.

Student Performance in Academic Programs Link to section

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) guidelines require undergraduate students at the Eastman School of Music to achieve a specified cumulative and current GPA, as well as accumulate a specific number of credit hours by the end of each semester. Students must meet these standards, which are based on federal regulations, in order to maintain their institutional merit scholarships, as well as federal aid. Academic progress is reviewed at the end of the fall and spring semesters by the Academic Progress Committee.

The minimum Satisfactory Academic Progress standards for a Bachelor of Music degree student are described in the chart below. Please note that while these guidelines allow students up to 10 semesters of Title IV eligibility to complete their degree program, students will only be allowed to take eight semesters of applied lessons. Any additional semesters required to complete outstanding coursework will not include applied lesson instruction. Transfer students enter the SAP chart based on the number of credits transferred upon admission to Eastman.

In addition to the above guidelines, undergraduate students registered for a full-time course load are required to successfully complete at least 12 credits. Incompletes (I), no grades (N) and withdrawals (W) will be calculated as courses attempted and not completed, while audited courses will not factor into SAP calculations as no grade is earned for the course. Pass-fail courses (S/E) are factored into SAP calculations as credits attempted and earned.

In addition to the above SAP guidelines, a student’s institutional merit aid may be reduced should they not maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 by the end of the first year of study.

Students may repeat a course due to failure only one time. If a course is failed a second time, Federal Title IV Financial Aid will not pay for a third attempt.

Students who do not maintain SAP may face sanctions. Students will be notified in writing should there be any concerns regarding their progress in their programs of study and an electronic notation will be put into their academic and financial aid records. The Registrar, Financial Aid, the student’s department chair, advisor(s) and parents of dependent students will receive copies of any written correspondence regarding Satisfactory Academic Progress.