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SOAS University of London

London , England ,United Kingdom

Research Degrees (PhD) Music

Staff and students of the Department of Music pursue research on a wide range of subjects, mainly but not exclusively focused on the music of Asia and Africa. Staff have regional interests in the music of East and Central Asia (Harris), Indonesia and Thailand (Gray), India and Pakistan (Williams), the Islamic Middle East and Jewish world (Webster-Kogen), West Africa and Cuba (Durán) and South and East Africa (Impey). However research is not limited to these areas: projects have been undertaken on American jazz, and on Caribbean, Mediterranean and Eastern European music, for example. Staff often have research interests in issues that cross regional boundaries; see the Department Staff page for a summary of their interests, and select the name of a lecturer for further details of their individual research specialisms and activities.

Whatever its regional origin, music is studied as a cultural phenomenon, and also from analytical and historical perspectives. Instrumental and vocal, sacred and secular, art and popular, traditional and modern musical forms are all of equal interest. Research methods employed include fieldwork, interview, archive research, recording and filming, performance, transcription and analysis, and composition.

Intakes

  • Sep

Application Processing Time in Days: 40

Minimum English Language Requirements

English Level Description IELTS (1.0 -9.0) TOEFL IBT (0-120) TOEFL CBT (0-300) PTE (10-90)
Expert 9 120 297-300 86-90
Very Good 8.5 115-119 280-293 83-86
Very Good 8 110-114 270-280 79-83
Good 7.5 102-109 253-267 73-79
Good 7 94-101 240-253 65-73
Competent 6.5 79-93 213-233 58-65
Competent 6 60-78 170-210 50-58
Modest 5.5 46-59 133-210 43-50
Modest 5 35-45 107-133 36-43
Limited 4 32-34 97-103 30-36
Extremely Limited < 4 < 31 < 93 < 30

Job Opportunity Potential

We offer the following services to all full-time and part-time SOAS students on an on campus course:

  • Access to jobs, internships and volunteering opportunities through our careers management system, CareersZONE.
  • One-to-one careers advice on how to decide on a career path, as well as information and advice on the application process, including CVs, cover letters and application forms.
  • Practice Interviews to help students prepare their upcoming recruitment process, including assessment centres
  • A large selection of SOAS-specific events such as Careers Fairs, Alumni Workshops and Skills Sessions throughout the academic year
  • Assistance with navigating our virtual careers information resources on MySOAS Student
  • Provide information resources, including books, on further study, jobs, internships and volunteering.
  • Access to SOAS Connect, our eMentoring platform designed to help connect SOAS alumni and students around the world for peer-to-peer careers advice and guidance

PSW Opportunity

Psw 2 yrs

Admission Requirement / Eligibility Criteria

The School's minimum entry requirement for applying for the PhD and VRS programmes is a good UK Master's degree (or overseas equivalent), which is generally in a relevant area to the programme you are applying to. In some cases prior knowledge of a language may be necessary or advisable. 

IELTS Academic/for UKVI/ Indicator - 7.0 6.5 in each subscore (7.0 in Writing)

PTE Academic - 70

TOEFL - 105

IELCA Academic - 40