Scholarships & Financial Aid

Undergraduate & Transfer Scholarships

• All applicants that select a music degree on their application to the university and complete the audition process by March 1 are eligible for music scholarships. There is not a separate application for music scholarships. Music scholarships are only eligible for music majors.
• Music scholarships are available to qualified students, but awards are competitive. All students that complete the audition process by March 1 are considered for scholarship.
• The School of Music bases scholarship awards on several factors: musical talent, academic achievement and priorities in instrumentation.
• The Scholarship Committee will consider your audition and application materials in making their recommendations. We suggest that you complete your application as early as possible.
• Scholarship awards are generally offered late March or early April. Offers continue until the May 1 deadline.
• Awards are renewable for a total of eight (8) semesters. Requirements for maintaining music scholarships are detailed in the music award contract a student receives when an offer is made. Provided students maintain the requirements, music scholarships are automatically renewed between the fall and spring semester.

School of Music scholarships are not the only aid available to you. The University of Louisville offers several scholarships for students regardless of major and is committed to making college affordable for its students. More than 50% of UofL students receive financial aid in the form of scholarships, grants, loans and/or work-study programs. 

Please note the deadline for UofL Mentored Scholarships is December 15. The deadline for Competitive Scholarships is December 15. Music scholarships can be stacked with academic scholarships. 

For more information about academic scholarships, visit the UofL Scholarship website. For information about financial aid, visit the UofL Financial Aid website.

Work Study

Work Study offers two tremendous benefits: the opportunity to learn specific, real-world skills and the chance to directly participate in the inner workings of the music business at the university level. They are many diverse options for Work Study at the School of Music, including sound and stage technical support, library services support – including the area of audio-visuals, research guidance (including on-line guidance) and circulation in the Anderson Music Library – office and clerical support, and others. 

Many other opportunities specific to individual degree programs are available. Be sure to ask about other options when you apply.

School of Music Assistantships & Service Awards

Graduate Teaching Assistantships are available in, but not limited to, the following areas:

•    Wind, Brass and/or Percussion
•    Choral Conducting
•    Orchestral Conducting
•    Wind Conducting
•    Jazz
•    Graduate String Quartet
•    Marching Band
•    Music History
•    Music Education
•    Piano/Piano Pedagogy
•    Theory
•    Composition
•    Voice

Full assistantships include full tuition, health care benefits and a $12,000 stipend. Full GTAs work up to 20 hours per week in their respective areas and duties vary. Half assistantships include full tuition, health care benefits and a $6,000 stipend. Half GTAs work an average of 10 hours per week in their respective areas and duties vary. 

Service Awards provide students the opportunity to receive full or partial tuition remission for completing duties in and around the School of Music. Students with Service Awards work from 3-10 hours per week depending on the amount of the award. Some possible responsibilities may include, but are not limited to the following: monitoring the computer lab, assistant to the facilities manager for concert set-up/tear-down, librarian/stage manager for ensembles, etc. 

All graduate applicants are considered for awards. An interview may be required for some positions. The School of Music bases awards on several factors including musical talent, academic achievement and priorities in instrumentation. Awards are highly competitive. 

It is strongly recommended that all materials be submitted prior to your scheduled audition day OR by January 15 if you are a theory, composition or history applicant. 

This unique fellowship offers a graduate composition student the opportunity to earn a master of music degree in music composition while focusing on composition for voice, with a particular emphasis on dramatic vocal composition. Composers chosen to participate in this program should show both an inclination and an ability to write for the human voice. These awards honor their namesake, Moritz von Bomhard, an early School of Music faculty member who was a gifted composer, conductor, pianist and opera producer. Moritz Bomhard was responsible for virtually "creating" the Kentucky Opera in its earliest days.

Stipend

$12,000 per year, plus tuition and health care benefits. Renewal for a second year is conditional upon successful performance and progress toward a degree. Bomhard Fellows must be enrolled in the master of music degree program as composition majors and must be attending classes full time during the tenure of the award.

Deadline

January 15 (annually)

Duties

There are no duties attached to Bomhard Fellowships. Recipients are urged to participate in Opera Workshop in a capacity appropriate to their skills, vocal or otherwise.

Application

A complete application for the Bomhard Fellowship includes a letter requesting consideration for the fellowship, a Graduate School application form, two letters of recommendation, official undergraduate transcripts, a portfolio demonstrating the inclination and ability to write for the human voice, and a personal interview.

Warren Babb Award and Nelson Keyes Awards

• Scholarships offered exclusively to composition and theory majors
• Open to both undergraduates and graduate students
• May require some service duties (these will be spelled out when the award is offered)
• Partial or full tuition waiver
• May be given to the same student
• A student may repeat as recipient
• Available to first-year students
• No application required