Online DMA Music Education Courses

The Online Doctor of Musical Arts in Music Education is a professional degree for individuals committed to leadership in music education policy and practice in a variety of settings both in and outside of schools. This program does not result in licensure.

The degree program consists of two components: coursework including three competency milestones, and a project-based dissertation. Students must complete a minimum of 48 term units with grades no lower than B– and a minimum cumulative GPA no lower than 3.0 in graduate-level coursework. All degree requirements are possible to fulfill in two to three years, and must be completed within five years of the date of matriculation. Students are allowed to transfer up to 8.0 units of external coursework, pending faculty review for equivalency, for courses completed within five years of matriculation to the DMA program. Please see also the College of Fine Arts policies for graduate students, which apply to this program.

A new cohort of students is admitted each fall. Cohort members progress through coursework together and have the option to register for on-campus summer intensives, as an alternative, or in addition to online music education electives. Students may elect to take additional electives beyond those required; however, this may extend the program beyond two years. They also interact with other music education graduate students as part of an international community of scholar/practitioners.

Program of Study

Every student must satisfactorily complete a minimum of 48 term units, distributed as follows:

Required Music Education Core (28 total units) 
CFA ME 704 Introduction to Music Education Research (4 units)
CFA ME 741 History and Philosophy of Music Education (4 units)
CFA ME 742 Introduction to Theories in Music Education (4 units)
CFA ME 840 Contemporary Issues in Music Education (4 units)
CFA ME 750 Theoretical and Cultural Applications in the Music Classroom (4 units) 
CFA ME 845 Professional Presentation in Music Education (4 units) 
CFA ME 846 Professional Writing in Music Education (4 units) 

Approved Music Education Electives (8 total units)

Project Dissertation (12 total units)
CFA ME 997 Project Dissertation 1 (4 units)
CFA ME 998 Project Dissertation 2 (4 units)
CFA ME 999 Project Dissertation 3 (4 units)

Language Requirements

Music education majors develop proficiency in appropriate research theories and approaches in lieu of foreign languages.

Competency Milestones

There are three competency milestones for this degree: music education, music history, and music theory. Students satisfy two competency milestones—one for music history and one for music theory—through successful completion of the final project in CFA ME 750, “Theoretical and Cultural Applications in the Music Classroom.” Students satisfy the music education competency milestone through the successful completion of three components. Two components—a professional quality conference presentation proposal and a professional conference presentation—are completed in CFA ME 845, “Professional Presentation in Music Education.” The final component—a publishable quality professional article—is completed in CFA ME 846 “Professional Writing in Music Education.”

Project Dissertation 1

Students create a project prospectus under the direction of their dissertation facilitator supervisor and a full-time faculty 2^nd reader. The prospectus is an oral presentation in which the candidate presents the proposed topic, purpose, scope, design, intended audience, and practical significance of the project dissertation.

Dissertation Prospectus & Workshop

Near the end of the Project Dissertation 1 course, DMA students attend a full-day Dissertation Prospectus & Workshop. Students have the choice to attend in person or virtually depending upon their preference. At the Dissertation Prospectus & Workshop gathering, students will present their prospectus to their dissertation committee for feedback. The committee is comprised of the dissertation facilitator supervisor, a full-time faculty 2^nd reader, and a full-time faculty 3^rd reader.

Students also engage with faculty and peers in workshops and meetings structured to help them design a timeline, work plan, and assessment criteria for their project dissertation. The timeline and work plan inform the completion trajectory for the Dissertation 2 and 3 courses, and the assessment criteria are used to evaluate the final project dissertation.  

DMA students will become candidates upon successful completion of all coursework, milestones, and the Project Dissertation 1 coursework including the presentation of the prospectus, timeline, work plan, and assessment criteria.

Prospectus Dissertation 2 & 3

DMA candidates follow the timeline to complete their work plan under the direction of the dissertation facilitator supervisor and the full-time faculty 2^nd reader. 

Prospectus Dissertation Final Presentation

The committee reviews written, audio, video, or artifact components of the project dissertation prior to the final presentation. The final oral presentation takes place during the final two weeks of the Project Dissertation 3 course. The DMA candidate must make any revisions suggested at the project dissertation presentation and archive the final, approved document, audio, video, or artifact components as outlined by the Boston University Libraries Guide for Writers of Theses & Dissertations, by the specified due date in order to graduate.

Additional Information

This program is designed for educators who wish to earn their degree while working. The plan of study is set up for students to take one 4-unit intensive course at a time. The curriculum is designed to allow students to focus on their proposed project dissertation topic throughout coursework via courses that both scaffold learning and develop competencies toward the successful completion of the project dissertation.