Students pursuing an undergraduate degree in dance gain in-depth knowledge of dance as an art form and an area of scholarly inquiry. The degree provides a foundation for eventual careers in professional dance, dance teaching in K-12 and higher education, dance entrepreneurship, dance/movement therapy, Pilates, the health and fitness industry, arts administration, as well as many other fields.
The Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Dance requires a minimum of 57 major credits and is designed for students who wish to pursue a degree in dance and another major or degree program in a second area of interest.
A dance degree at UWMadison offers opportunities to:
- Study with a world-class faculty, with excellent teacher-student ratios.
- Perform frequently in faculty and student-choreographed works, in state-of-the-art facilities.
- Pursue an additional major or degree in a second area of interest.
- Experience an interdisciplinary, rigorous approach that connects dance to the arts and humanities, as well as the social, biological, physical, and biological social sciences.
- Earn scholarship and award funding for study in the academic year and summer, including departmental awards for honors study.
- Work with nationally and internationally renowned guest artists and master class instructors, such as the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Pilobolus, Meredith Monk, Elizabeth Streb, David Parsons, Sean Curran, Danielle Russo, Carrie Hanson, Joe Goode, Susan Marshall, Kun-Yang Lin, and Tim Miller, Abdel Salaam/Forces of Nature.
- Train intensively in choreography to create solo and group works for performance.
An audition is required to declare a dance degree. Auditions are held in November and February.
The Dance department also offers four certificates: a general certificate in Dance, a certificate in Dance Studies, a certificate in Dance/Movement Therapy, and a certificate in Pilates.

