BMus (Hons) Popular Music

This ground-breaking degree embraces popular music in its many forms, and centres on exploration and experimentation in creative practice.

• This programme will allow you to acquire and develop a variety of skills, both individually and collaboratively, including musicianship and ensemble playing, songwriting, production and recording (at Goldsmiths Music Studios), composition and making music for film, and alternative sites for music.
• We have strong links with the music industry, employing professional musicians, producers, and artists as lecturers.
• We also present frequent, high-profile speakers from the music industry at our talks and events. Recently, these have included Dave Okumu, Nigel Godrich, Darkstar, Mica Levi, Matana Roberts, and Arts Council Music Relationship Managers.
• You’ll be very well set-up for the world of work. Employers look for initiative-driven graduates who think critically about their actions, work well with others and adapt quickly and creatively to new ideas. These ideas are written into the DNA of the degree, which will help you develop these skills.
• Through a collaboration with Matthew Herbert's Accidental Records we have created NX Records, an independent record label based at Goldsmiths, giving us the potential to promote our students' work on an international stage.
• You'll be within easy reach of South East London's many venues, as well as those across the capital, which provide a connection to music, art, dance, and theatre with an international focus, but also to local promoters, labels and the London-based music industry.
• You'll have the opportunity to perform at student-run showcases, in department ensembles, and at PureGold, our annual music festival that celebrates music created and performed at Goldsmiths.

Contact the department

If you have specific questions about the degree, contact Goldsmiths Department of Music.

We accept the following qualifications:

A-level: BBB
BTEC: DDM
International Baccalaureate: 33 points overall with three HL subjects at 655
UAL Extended Diploma: Merit overall
Access: Pass with 45 Level 3 credits including 30 Distinctions and a number of merits/passes in subject-specific modules
Scottish qualifications: BBBBC (Higher) or BBC (Advanced Higher)
European Baccalaureate: 75%
Irish Leaving Certificate: H2 H2 H2 H2

Additional requirements

You should be able to demonstrate skills and experience in both practical music-making and an aspect of music creation: this could be songwriting/composition (whether individual or collaborative), band/group work, production, improvisation, sets/cyphers, and so on. We are mindful that not all applicants will have had access to the same developmental opportunities, and we consider each application on its individual merits.

Please note that we do not accept applications for deferred entry.

Selection process

International qualifications

We also accept a wide range of international qualifications. Find out more about the qualifications we accept from around the world.

If English isn’t your first language, you will need an IELTS score (or equivalent English language qualification) of 6.0 with a 6.0 in writing and no element lower than 5.5 to study this programme. If you need assistance with your English language, we offer a range of courses that can help prepare you for degree-level study.

Alternative qualifications

See our full list of undergraduate entry qualifications.

Careers for those with a music degree

Many of our graduates choose careers in fields related to their musical knowledge, such as:

• Teaching
• Performing
• Arts administration
• Music librarianship
• Publishing and retailing
• Record companies and production
• Technical work in radio or television

Statistically, music graduates demonstrate very good employment rates, because they are often highly trained in the kinds of transferable skills employers are seeking, such as individual motivation, team working and effective communication.

Find out more about employability at Goldsmiths.

Skills

You will develop specific musical skills including:

• Performance
• Composition
• Use of music technology
• Knowledge of a range of historical, contemporary, popular and world styles of music, and the debates and practices surrounding them
• Critical listening and score analysis

You'll also develop a wide range of key skills through both the practical and academic content of your degree, including:

• Communication (including public speaking, developing and presenting an argument, note taking, report writing)
• Analytical thinking
• Awareness of social, political and cultural processes
• Awareness of social and cultural difference
• Ability to take creative approaches
• Attention to detail
• Team work and collaborative practice
• The ability to undertake detailed research