Life isn’t an audition.

Any music school can make you a better player. Our interconnected courses are built to transform you intellectually, artistically, professionally, and individually. You’ll understand the roots of your music, freeing you to take it somewhere new. You’ll see how your training broadens your options, rather than narrowing them. You'll find your voice. And you'll enter the world with the same confidence you bring to the stage.

The Professional Studies Certificate is a one-year, non-degree program that provides advanced, focused studies for young artists in the pre-professional stages of their careers. It helps students prepare for major competitions, auditions, and performance careers by emphasizing individual instruction and performance opportunities. With the exception of private lessons, the curriculum is designed by the student in consultation with his or her major teacher, in accordance with the student's specific career goals. This affords time for intense personal study and the freedom to choose electives, ensembles, and independent study projects directly related to professional goals.

Available to students with a completed bachelor’s degree.

If a student in select Professional Studies Certificate programs wishes to stay an additional year at the Conservatory, they may petition to the Admission Committee to switch to the Advanced Certificate program after completing their first semester as a Professional Studies Certificate student, providing an additional year of studies at the Conservatory.

Required Courses

Curriculum: Professional Studies Certificate in Guitar Performance
Credit total: 24