Courses are based around individual tuition, practical training, and frequent opportunities to perform. UCAS Conservatoires is the application service for performance-based courses in the UK – both at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
The different conservatoires
Each conservatoire has its own strengths and specialisms, so it’s important to research all of them to find the right fit for you. For example, although all conservatoires offer music courses, only two offer drama courses, and some offer subjects like film and production. To help decide, research what graduates from each conservatoire have gone on to do, to see if this fits with your aspirations.
The conservatoires in the UCAS Conservatoires scheme are:
- Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
- Leeds Conservatoire
- Royal Academy of Music
- Royal College of Music
- Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
- Royal Northern College of Music
- Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama
- Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance
- LAMDA (London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art)
Other conservatoires may operate outside the UCAS Conservatoire scheme. and you may have to apply to them direct or through the UCAS Undergraduate scheme. If the conservatoire is not listed above, check with them to find out more about their admissions process.
Studying at a conservatoire
All courses at conservatoires have a strong vocational, performance orientation, and course structures are reflective of the industry. This means graduates from conservatoires will be accustomed to the ways of working, hours, and expectations of the industry they are going to work in, as they will have practised this throughout their course.
Instead of a limited number of contact hours per week at a university, conservatoire students often work a 09:00 to 17:00, Monday to Friday routine. Performances and workshops are mostly held in the evenings and at weekends. On top of this, students are expected to practise extensively in their own time.
As conservatoire study is performance-centred, the year is broken down into a block of academic weeks, followed by a block of performance weeks.
How to choose a course
After getting started with what to study, entry requirements and application deadlines, you might still find a large number of courses to choose from around the country.
Browsing through the search tool might give you inspiration, or you can read our tips on choosing between similar courses and conservatoires, and visit a conservatoire to see what it’s like.
Search for conservatoire courses
Tips on how to choose a course
The staff
All teaching staff at conservatoires are working professionals. There is a strong emphasis on one-to-one tuition, alongside group work and performances.
Professional musicians teach at conservatoires as part of their portfolios, and many teach at more than one conservatoire. At postgraduate level, students can choose to study under a particular tutor because of their reputation and distinction in their field. A particular tutor can be a main driving factor for choosing to study at a particular conservatoire.