Performance / practice doctorate · DMA
Doctor of Musical Arts
Northwestern University · Henry and Leigh Bienen School of Music · Evanston, Illinois, United States
- Official award
- Doctor of Musical ArtsDMA
- Subject
- Music PerformanceConductingOpera and Vocal Studies
- Format
- On campus
- Tuition
- $57,762per year, 2026-27
About this program
Performance-based doctorate combining artistry and scholarly study with a two-year residency.
- Department
- Henry and Leigh Bienen School of Music
- Awarding body
- Not stated on the pages we checked
Award and subject
The award is shown exactly as the institution titles it. A program belongs to a subject only through the link below: a dedicated degree, a named major, a formal concentration or a documented pathway.
- Official award
- Doctor of Musical ArtsDMA
- Award family
- DMAA Doctor of Musical Arts: a performance and practice doctorate, kept separate from the research PhD.
- Qualification level
- Performance / practice doctorate
- Qualification standing
- Academic qualificationA degree, or a certificate or diploma awarded by a degree-awarding institution within a national qualifications framework.
- Orientation
- Orientation not published
- Previous degree required
- Not published
| Subject | Relationship | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Music Performance | Named majorThe official major or program title inside a broader award. | “Courses of study leading to the Doctor of Musical Arts degree include brass, conducting, percussion, piano, strings, voice and opera, and woodwinds.”Source |
| Conducting | Named majorThe official major or program title inside a broader award. | “Courses of study leading to the Doctor of Musical Arts degree include brass, conducting, percussion, piano, strings, voice and opera, and woodwinds.”Source |
| Opera and Vocal Studies | Named majorThe official major or program title inside a broader award. | “Courses of study leading to the Doctor of Musical Arts degree include brass, conducting, percussion, piano, strings, voice and opera, and woodwinds.”Source |
Accreditation, validation and recognition
Recorded for this program and campus, with the authority’s role. Institutional accreditation, degree-awarding authority, program accreditation, professional validation and national qualification registers are different things.
No program-level accreditation or validation record has been verified yet. That does not mean none exists; check the national authority and the institution.
Study structure
- Delivery
- On campusTaught at the listed campus.
- Study mode
- Not published
- Duration
- Not published
- Intakes
- Not published
- Campus
- Northwestern University70 Arts Circle Drive, Evanston, IL 60208-2405
Teaching language
- Taught in
- English
- English
- English teaching not verifiedAn English-language website does not mean a program is taught in English.
Admissions
- Audition
- Audition requirement not published
- Portfolio
- Portfolio requirement not published
- Interview
- Not published
Research degree details
- Department
- Bienen School of Music
- Practice-based research
- Practice-based
- Residency expectations
- two-year residency
Fees and costs
Original currency is authoritative. Each price keeps its basis (per year, per credit, whole program), academic year and student category, and is never converted. Annual tuition and whole-program tuition are different figures.
| Item | Amount | Applies to | Dated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Graduate (MM and DMA) tuition, full-time enrollment (3-5 units of credit), estimated expensesTuition · mandatory | $57,762per year, 2026-27 | Graduate (MM & DMA) students | 25 October 2026Source |
No total is shown: the sources do not state a whole-program figure and the published duration and fee basis do not support a calculation.
Lesson fees, accompanists, practice-room charges, instruments, software, recording, recitals, compulsory travel and residencies are not listed by the institution on the pages we checked. Do not assume an instrument, an accompanist, software or private lessons are included.
Scholarships and funding
Funding is shown with its basis and who it is for. Competitive funding is not a guarantee.
Full-tuition scholarship, stipend and subsidized health insurance for DMA students Scholarship
Basis not stated · full-tuition scholarship, stipend, and fully subsidized health insurance
Eligibility: All DMA students
Sources and verification
Not published on the program’s source pages: duration, full-time or part-time options, intakes, audition requirement, whether a previous degree is required, accreditation or validation record.
Sources and how this was checked
Last checked 25 October 2026. Each fact carries a verbatim quote that is re-checked against the live page. Research methodology.
Sources (checked 25 October 2026)