Applications for the Graduate Conducting Program are due by December 1.
Graduate Conducting Program Application
Important Dates and Deadlines
Photo by Aya Rebai '24

Important Dates and Deadlines

  • December 1: Application deadline
  • Mid-December: Applicants are notified of prescreening results via their Application Portal
  • End of February, beginning of March: Final auditions at Bard College and in New York City
  • March 1: Financial Aid Application deadline
  • Mid-March: Final admissions decisions and financial aid packages released
  • April 15: Enrollment deadline

Requirements for All Applicants

A completed application will contain the following materials, uploaded to your online application by December 1. Application requirements are the same for choral and orchestral conducting.
Audition Requirements →

  • Résumé
    Please upload a musical resume describing your performance experience. This document must be in English.

    Please include information such as:
    • Educational history
    • Musical awards and honors, including dates
    • Solo and chamber music performance experience
    • Master classes and music festival participation, include dates
  • Prescreening
    Prescreening requirements may be found below. Only video recordings will be accepted.
    Audition Requirements

    Although Slate does support media files as large as 2 GB, please be advised that larger files will take longer to upload from your Internet connection and may stall if you are on a wireless connection or one that cannot sustain a connection for the necessary period of time. Uploaded documents may contain no more than 75 pages.
  • Academic Materials
    1. Two letters of recommendation. When prompted in the application, please enter the recommender’s name and email address. The recommender will receive an email with instructions on how to submit the recommendation online.
    2. All academic transcripts from schools attended. Transcripts may be emailed from the institution directly to [email protected].

Letters of Recommendation and Transcripts

These may be sent electronically to [email protected]. 

International Applicants: English Proficiency

In addition to the first-year application requirements, non-native speakers of English must demonstrate proficiency in English. They should take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).* TOEFL scores should be sent to the Graduate Conducting Program by the Educational Testing Service. The Bard College school code is 2037. A minimum score of 600 on the paper-based test (PBT) or 100 on the internet-based test (iBT) is recommended for admission. We also accept the IELTS in place of the TOEFL, with a band score of no less than seven, or the Duolingo Test with a total score of no less than 120. Students should only request results to be sent electronically to Bard College directly from TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo English Test, and not physical documents to be mailed.

Other evidence of English-language proficiency will be accepted only with the approval of the Graduate Admission Committee. An application is considered incomplete and cannot be acted upon until the English proficiency score is received. The deadline for English proficiency score submissions is December 1. 

*Students who have spent the majority of their secondary education in an English-medium program may be eligible for a waiver of the language testing requirement.