Get Music Scholarships for College

Students really into their music studies or instruments may have particularly good scholarship opportunities when it comes to college. In this realm there are a diversity of programs, levels of competitiveness and variety of musical opportunities available.

Types of music programs include:

  • Music performance
  • Music composition
  • Musicology
  • Various professional programs

Scholarships through the BMI Foundation are a veritable laundry list of excellent free funding opportunities for music students and practicing professionals, alike. Here is a cornucopia that includes the interests of student musicologists, songwriters, jazz musicians, as well as student performers and composers in Latin and World genres:

  • Woody Guthrie Fellowships award $2,500 prizes to candidates in the throes of musical research with emphasis on Guthrie’s musical influence.
  • John Lennon Scholarship program is open to music composition students at a “select” group of colleges and universities as stipulated by the program. The awards are handed out to students who most embody Lennon’s songwriting and musical values.
  • Charlie Parker Jazz Composition Prize goes to a jazz musician with the most remarkable new composition, in the spirit of Charlie Parker.
  • Lionel Newman Conducting Scholarship—exclusively aims to provide funds for emerging new conductors eager to work with the Los Angeles Young Musicians Foundation Debut Orchestra. Many of these scholarship recipients have moved onto dynamic careers conducting leading orchestras.

The Young Music Foundation is committed to helping encourage and support the passion and growth of young musicians, especially those in the Santa Barbara, CA region. Besides the signature YMF scholarship—awards to local and exceptionally talented musicians to cover costs related to music instruction—the organization partners with various other sponsors to extend even more generous student scholarships:

  • By far one of the most competitive is the YMF/ASCAP Leiber and Stoller scholarship. This $10,000 award is annually given to an exceptional graduating high school student pursuing music at the college or university level.
  • YMF/Ottman Fund for Diversity embraces disadvantaged students primarily from ethnic backgrounds. This award goes to provide financial sustenance for their music studies, specifically private music instruction.

Are you a student of operatic performance? The Opera Foundation offers 3 annual scholarships to early career operatic students. Candidates must participate in NYC auditions. At stake: 3 chance of a lifetime opportunities for 10-month residencies with the Deutsche Oper Berlin or Teatro Regio Torino. Awards include $16,000 cash stipend for the 10-month experience, plus air fare to and from Germany or Italy.

The above are but a few of the types of sources from which you may seek music scholarships, as well as types of music students for whom scholarships are provided.