Audition Information

The NIU School of Music’s audition materials are designed to allow you to share a snapshot of your musical journey through a flexible performance of repertoire and technique. During your audition, our faculty members are listening for your strengths as a musician and how they can assist with your musical next steps.

Register for Audition/Interview

Students seeking to enter our Bachelor of Music (B.M.) program are required to complete the School of Music application and an audition.

If you are interested in our Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), you have a variety of options to choose from for admission to your degree program. One of these options is to complete the School of Music application and an audition.

Master of Music (M.M.) students are required to complete an audition in addition to their application if their intended degree is performance or jazz studies.

Students intending to earn a Performer’s Certificate (P.C.) from our School of Music must also complete an audition for admission.

Upon admission to NIU in another degree path, students may choose to declare a music minor, for which they are required to complete an audition. Music minor auditions should be scheduled by contacting our music admissions coordinator.

Following a successful audition, you will be formally admitted to the School of Music in the degree path you indicated on your application to NIU.

Submit your application materials for both the university and the School of Music and register for an audition before the following dates for priority admission and scholarship consideration.

  • Undergraduate – Wednesday, February 21, 2024
  • Graduate – Friday, March 1, 2024

Following priority deadlines, applications and auditions will be considered and reviewed as studio space remains available or until the following dates, whichever occurs first:

  • May 15 for auditions into the following fall semester.
  • December 1 for auditions into the following spring semester.

Audition dates for fall 2024 are as follows:

  • Friday, February 2, 2024 – All classical and jazz studios
  • Saturday, February 3, 2024 – All classical and jazz studios
  • Friday, February 9, 2024 – Program interviews
  • Friday, February 16, 2024 – Classical studios (except double reeds)
  • Saturday, February 17, 2024 – Classical studios (except double reeds)

If you have conflicts on all dates applicable to your instrument, please contact our music admissions coordinator.

For those students seeking admission for the spring 2024 semester, please contact our music admissions coordinator to schedule an audition on a date prior to December 1.

Repertoire and additional requirements for your audition are contained in the documents below, categorized by area. In addition to performing your prepared audition repertoire, your audition will include an aural skills assessment, which may include sight-reading and pitch matching.

  1. Check in at our Music Building
  2. Attend our welcome meeting
  3. Prepare in our practice rooms
  4. Audition at your scheduled time
  5. Tour our campus

At the NIU School of Music, we are committed to making our entire application process accessible and equitable. Please let us know if you need any special accommodations for your audition day.

If your travel situation makes it impossible to be present for a live audition, you may submit a video audition with prior approval from our music admissions coordinator. Video submissions must not be edited or enhanced to change the quality of the audition. If the video submitted is suspected of being edited or enhanced, you will be asked to submit a new audition.

Students that have taken some theory/aural skills coursework but not completed a full Music Theory/Aural Skills 1 through Music Theory/Aural Skills 4 sequence with C’s or better, will enroll in the next appropriate level of Music Theory and Aural Skills, determined in consultation with the music advisor. Based upon the number of theory and aural skills courses previously taken students may take the music theory placement exam in attempts of a higher placement.

First-year students that have completed any music theory coursework in high school or the AP Music Theory Exam are welcome to take the placement exam if interested in attempting a higher music theory placement.

The Advanced Placement (AP) credit for Music Theory is not accepted for specific music theory credit by the School of Music.

Contact

Austyn Menk

Austyn V. Menk
Music Admissions Coordinator
815-753-6306
avmenk@niu.edu
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