The Master of Music in Music Education, Composition Specialization is intended as a professional degree with specialized training towards composing music for educational ensembles and incorporating composition, improvisation, and music theory into K-12 music classrooms. Students enrolled in the program produce original compositions for educational ensembles and have them performed publicly by student ensembles.
The degree option in music education with a specialization in composition is designed to provide music educators with the ability to apply compositional and arranging skills and the pedagogy of the creative process to the classroom in K-12 settings. This provides an option for a master's degree in music education for students with an interest in composition, arranging, and the pedagogy of the creative process as opposed to the more traditional CSU graduate music education offerings of conducting, Kodály, instrumental, and choral.
Students take advanced coursework in scoring and arranging for educational ensembles, curriculum development for composition in K-12 classrooms, music theory and history, and applied composition lessons. Students in the program have multiple opportunities to have their works performed and recorded by local student ensembles.
Admission
This hybrid program is open to students with bachelor's degrees in either music education or composition and equips students to pursue a career in the field of educational composition.
In addition to the admissions processes for the Graduate School and the School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, applicants will submit a portfolio of three original compositions with recordings, at least one of which is composed for an educational ensemble (choral, orchestral, or wind band work at an appropriate difficulty for secondary schools). Select applicants will complete an on-campus or video interview with the composition and music education faculty. Please visit the Music website for additional details.

