MMus/MA Performance & Musicology

Tuition Fees

For academic year 2025/26:

• Home: £13,308
• International: £28,401

Please note these fees are subject to change.

Funding & Scholarships

You can find out about the funding and scholarships available for studying at RCS by visiting our dedicated page:

Funding & Scholarships

Cost of Living & Programme Costs

In addition to tuition fees, it is estimated that you will need between £11,200 and £15,300 per year to live in Glasgow, plus programme costs. Much will depend on your lifestyle and whether your course runs for three or four terms. 

Programmes within the School of Music have a range of associated costs related to the specific activities required and advised by the programme team. You can find an indication of these costs below: 

School of Music Programme Costs 

Apply via UCAS Conservatoires

Applications are made through UCAS Conservatoires website. The UCAS Conservatoires application system is separate from the main UCAS undergraduate application system. You can read our guidance about using UCAS Conservatoires on our dedicated How to Apply page. 

Applicants will also be required to create an Acceptd account when they apply, which will be used for scheduling auditions.

We do not offer deferred entry. If you wish to commence in 2027, you must apply next year.

The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland institution code is R58. You will also require the following programmes codes to apply: MMus Performance and Musicology – 813F OR MA Performance and Musicology – 814F

The closing date for UK applications is 2 October 2025, and for International applications is 1 December 2025.  If you submit your application after this date, we cannot guarantee that your application will be reviewed by the audition panel. If you do want to submit a late application, you must contact admissions@rcs.ac.uk in the first instance to check we are accepting late applications

Application/Audition fees

There is a UCAS Conservatoires application fee of £28.95. In addition to the application fee, each conservatoire charges an audition assessment administration fee. The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland charges an audition assessment administration fee of £65 for this programme.

We recognise that auditioning and interviewing for conservatoires, drama and ballet schools can be costly. The audition assessment administration fee charge allows us to offer a thorough and positive experience to all applicants and we encourage you to get in touch to ask the panel questions and find out more about the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland to see if it is the best place for you.

Selection process

Applicants are selected first and foremost based on merit and potential. However, due attention is also paid to the range of Principal Studies accepted to ensure the optimum experience for each student and to sustain the critical mass required for curricular activities.

Please note that the Conservatoire is obliged to offer one audition date per application. If you are unable to submit your application/audition recording by the deadline date above, you must email us immediately stating the reason. If your audition recording is delayed, there is a risk that places will already have been taken and your application may not be considered.

Audition Information

In-person auditions are planned to take place at various locations across the world. Should you apply on time, an audition time slot will be sent to you via Acceptd. You must create an Acceptd account regardless of your audition location.

The RCS audition panel in Glasgow will consist of a relevant departmental staff member and the Head of Department. Our international auditions will consist of one panel member that may not be from the department you are auditioning for, and will also be recorded for review by the relevant department.

All in-person auditions will be given a twenty-minute warm up slot prior to their audition.

All applicants will need to provide their own instruments (except piano). Applicants auditioning overseas will also need to provide their own pianist where relevant.

There is no separate audition process for our Scholarship awards. You will be considered as part of the audition process.

Audition Repertoire

Audition repertoire requirements depend on which principal study you are applying for. You can find this information on the individual postgraduate department pages in the ‘How to Apply’ section:

• Brass
• Guitar & Harp
• Keyboard
• Strings
• Timpani & Percussion
• Vocal Performance
• Woodwind

Audition Dates

• Glasgow: 3-7 November 2025
• Qingdao, November 2025, The Yehudi Menuhin School Qingdao (specific dates to be confirmed)
• Seoul, 29 November 2025, Rene Music Hall
• Singapore, 17 & 18 January 2026, Location TBC
• Los Angeles, 24 & 25 January 2026, Location TBC
• Chicago, 27 & 28 January 2026, Location TBC
• New York, 30 & 31 January 2026, Location TBC
• Toronto, January 2026, Location TBC (specific audition dates to be confirmed)

Please note, our locations are subject to change at short notice. If you choose a location that becomes unavailable we will be in touch to offer an alternative, likely a recorded submission.

Overseas Applicants

We are operating a pre-screening process for all international applicants. Applicants wishing to audition overseas are required to submit a video audition as the first round of the assessment process (those applying to audition in-person in Glasgow are not required to submit a pre-screening video).

All videos must be submitted to your Acceptd account before the deadlines listed below. There is no set repertoire for the pre-screening round, and you are welcome to perform different repertoire should you be successfully offered a live audition.

All pre-screening submissions must contain a spoken introduction in English.

In your pre-screening recording, please tell us:

• Your name
• A bit about your musical background and training you’ve had until now
• Your musical ambitions
• Your reasons for applying to the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

This video should be 3 to 5 minutes long and separate to your performance video.

Pre-Screening Deadlines

For in-person auditions being held in Qingdao and Seoul:

• UCAS Conservatoire applications and Acceptd submissions must be submitted by the deadline of 2 October 2025

For in-person auditions being held in Singapore, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and Toronto:

• UCAS Conservatoire applications and Acceptd submissions must be submitted by the deadline of 1 December 2025

All keyboard applicants who will not attend the in-person auditions in the US or Canada MUST submit their application by the 2 October 2025.

If successfully offered a live in-person audition at one of our overseas locations, then applicants applying from that country will be expected to attend in person. We strongly encourage people to attend in person to be able to meet some of our staff members face to face and ask questions about our programmes, and life at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Please note that some departments may have additional requirements needed at audition, please check the relevant department page for more information.

Please note for live auditions, we cannot guarantee that a member of our teaching staff for your specific discipline will be on the panel.  

If you have chosen to audition live in-person, but due to extenuating circumstances your situation changes, you must contact us immediately after submitting your application so we can confirm if alternative arrangements are possible. This will be completed on a case-by-case basis.

If you are unable to attend a live audition, then we offer a recorded submission option. Recorded submissions will go through the same pre-screening process, and applicants may be invited to a live online audition at the discretion of the relevant Head of Department. You may be asked to perform additional repertoire or complete a small aural task as part of this process. If you are recalled, further details and meeting links will be sent to you.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about the audition process for your relevant location, you can contact us at the following:

• Glasgow: auditions@rcs.ac.uk
• Qingdao: chinaauditions@rcs.ac.uk
• Seoul: koreaauditions@rcs.ac.uk
• Singapore: hello@rcs.ac.uk
• LA / Chicago / NYC: usaauditions@rcs.ac.uk
• Toronto: canadaauditions@rcs.ac.uk

References

It is your responsibility to ask two separate referees to write references and ensure that these are sent to RCS.

The references must be written by two different people and we will not accept references from family, other relatives or close friends. You can submit your UCAS Conservatoires application form and send your references at a later date, but they must be received prior to your audition date.

UCAS Conservatoires provides reference forms for you to download and send to your referees for completion.

Policy

We have a number of policies and pages which you should read when applying to study at the Royal Conservatoire:

• Admissions Policy
• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
• Support for Disabled Students