After completing the bulk of their coursework, PhD students spend two semesters defining their field of expertise and preparing a dissertation prospectus, which they defend in the Special Field Exam at the end of the third year. Recent dissertations include:
All graduate students are expected to teach in the music history curriculum for at least two years during their enrollment at Eastman. The department views graduate teaching as co-curricular preparation for a career in musicology and as a key arena for professional development and mentoring. Students normally begin assuming teaching responsibilities in their second year. At first, they work alongside faculty members by assisting with music history courses; in subsequent years, they often teach independent courses of their own design. As the musicology faculty offers courses at many levels—serving the BM, BA, MM, and DMA curricula—Eastman PhDs enter the marketplace with extensive and varied teaching experience. Graduate students also serve as teaching assistants at the University of Rochester for intensive surveys of music history offered by the College Music Department.
Many Eastman students graduating with advanced degrees in Musicology have stayed in academia and hold key teaching and research posts at universities around the world. Others have explored a wide variety of careers, as opportunities in Musicology—and in the Humanities more generally—continue to expand. Sorting through resources for job prospects and fellowships can be difficult, especially in the midst of existing work in residency as a student. The University’s Greene Center for Career Education and Connections offers a variety of resources and career counseling for humanities-centered PhD students. The Center further lists events that are open to all graduate students on various career topics. Additional resources:
Eastman Musicology PhDs are working in universities and colleges across North America, as well as for institutions such as the Toronto Oratory and AmeriCorps. Places of employment include the University of Chicago, the University of Miami, UCLA, the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Rutgers, Notre Dame, Dickinson, Franklin and Marshall, University of Arkansas, University of Kansas, Brigham Young, University of New Hampshire, North Carolina School of the Arts, Oxford College of Emory University, Bowling Green State University, Western Michigan University, Nazareth College, University of Ottawa, University of Toronto, Mount Allison University, and the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
