If you’re looking for a truly interdisciplinary education, consider adding a minor in music to your undergraduate experience. The skills you develop as a musician or gain as you deepen your understanding of music’s role in society will prepare you to think critically, lead with confidence and innovate in whatever field you choose.
Music is part of who you are and there’s no reason to give that up when you get to college. Our two music minors let you choose whether to pursue focused study of your instrument, or explore music more broadly:
- Music Performance Minor
- Music Studies Minor
Our outstanding faculty will help you get exactly what you want out of your music minor. You’ll also join our passionate community of student-musicians, music scholars and enthusiasts on campus, while building a foundation for lifelong music making and engagement with the arts.
Being a vocal performance minor has been both a challenging and rewarding experience for me to become a stronger musician and performer.
Rachel Harris, ’22
B.S. Industrial Engineering
Music Minor – Vocal Performance
Music Performance Minor
In the music performance minor, you’ll develop your artistry and musicianship on your instrument through private study with our applied faculty of professional musicians. Through one-on-one instruction, departmental recitals and ensemble performance, you will form personal and meaningful connections with our faculty and other students, and become part of our passionate community of student-musicians. The performance minor culminates in a final recital, and prepares you for a lifelong exploration of music by developing your capacity for further musical training and self-instruction.
Music Studies Minor
The music studies minor opens up our full catalog of courses so you can shape the curriculum that most interests you. Once you complete your core courses, you’ll have 60+ classes to choose from—including performing ensembles, world music, music theory, applied music lessons, popular music, songwriting with digital audio workstations, and more. Through the music studies minor, you’ll acquire a broad understanding of music from a number of approaches, with the flexibility to follow your curiosities where they lead.
Admissions process
Current NC State students can use the self-service Change of Degree Application (CODA) portal to add the music minor to their degree plan. Afterward, a music minor advisor will contact you to discuss your goals and plan of study. Prospective students do not need to declare the minor in advance of their admission to the university.
For students in the music performance minor, admission is through a preliminary audition. Upon recommendation, students are assigned to an applied instructor and enroll in MUS 193. The jury exam at the end of their first semester of MUS 193 determines eligibility for continuation in the performance minor.
Course requirements
Course requirements for the music minors and descriptions of our courses can be found in the course catalog.
