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Do you want to pursue a unique career in music? Do you want to use your creativity and shine on the stage, or work with music artists to develop great sounds? All of that and much more is possible by getting a valuable and well-respected degree in music from the UK.

The UK is a melting pot of several paths of life, all of them being their own experts in the field they choose. A career in music is no different, the UK has produced some of the most famous music artists in the world.

In almost every university in the UK, be it London or Manchester, you will find a course on music, making it increasingly difficult for students to know which university would be best suited for enhancing their abilities and skills.

Don't worry, for your ease and convenience, we have compiled and ranked the best universities for getting a boost in your music career below.

1. British & Irish Modern Music Institute (BIMM)

At the first rank, we have the British & Irish Modern Music Institute (BIMM), an institute that was established in the year 1983 and has maintained being one of the best music institutes out there. BIMM gives a perfect blend of theory and practice while giving you the space to discover your talent and capability.

BIMM has several locations; it is situated in London, Manchester, Berlin, Birmingham, Hamburg, Brighton, Bristol, and Dublin. This makes it easier for students in different locations to achieve the best education without relocating. Of course, an international student can choose which location they want to attend, the courses or the level of education is not impacted.

Courses Offered

The courses offered by BIMM are endless and on three levels: undergraduate, postgraduate and Ph.D. level. Every level has its own courses, which are centered around an instrument you want to get skilled at, along with giving tons of variety to it.

Undergraduate level:

At undergraduate level, the courses offered are focused on enhancement and development. Every course is based on your choice of instrument, from there on you can choose which field you would like to go into.

Courses are available for composing, songwriting, production, management, business, marketing; all of them relating to music in the end. Hence, it gives students ample amount of options of what they want their career in music to look like.

Postgraduate level:

At the master's level, there are no variety of options to choose from, unlike the undergraduate level. Only one course is offered by BIMM at the postgraduate level - Popular Music Practice (MA).

Entry Requirements

Undergraduate level:

BIMM accepts applications only through UCAS. For your UCAS application, you would need to register on their website and complete the application for BIMM. They would ask you to present the following documents:

Postgraduate level:

For the MA course, you will have to directly apply to BIMM with the following documents:

Fees structure

For undergraduates

For postgraduates

2. Leeds College of Music

At the second position, we have Leeds College of Music, also known as Leeds conservatoire. Just like BIMM, Leeds's focus is solely on music. But at the same time, Leeds does something different, by providing an acting course to guide the students who have the ambition of performing at musicals.

Courses Offered

The courses offered by Leeds are plenty, and they provide an undergraduate degree as well as a postgraduate degree.

Undergraduate level:

At the undergraduate level, the courses offered are focused on developing your area of interest as well as helping you gain performance experience. There are also various courses available for foundation years, which is a sure shot fast racked route of kickstarting your music career.

Courses are available for composing, songwriting, acting, acting with music, management, production, to name a few of the many. Every course has its own mix of performance and theory.

Postgraduate level:

At the master's level, Leeds offers plenty. There is a course for every kind of music career you would want to pursue. They have courses ranging from MA in music to MA in musical theatre creatives so that students can leisurely pick the course they feel is right for them.

Entry Requirements

Undergraduate level:

For undergraduate courses, the entry requirements differ from course to course. But, in general, every course requirement is for the applicant to give an audition. The audition will be in correspond to the course you will be applying for, and some courses might interview you to assess your knowledge about the course of your choice.

Along with the audition (and possible interview), candidates must show english language test scores. Leeds accepts an IELTS score of 6.5 overall, with no less than 6.0 in every component.

Postgraduate level :

For the MA course, an additional set of documents are required which are as such:

Fees structure

For undergraduates

For postgraduates

3. Academy of Contemporary Music

Academy of Contemporary Music (ACM) has been established since 1995, and has been contributing towards the making of great music and music artists ever since then. Studying at ACM is an experience unlike no other, where you as students will get to mix academics with fun. As with the other music schools, ACM also gives a variety of courses that are unique to them.

Courses Offered

The courses offered by ACM are divided into "routes". So, you get to choose your own "route" of music, which could be anything under the sun. Similar to the previous colleges in the list, ACM also provides an undergraduate course and a postgraduate course.

Undergraduate level:

At undergraduate level, the courses offered are focused music solely. There is a production route, composing route, singer route and so on and so forth.

You will also find a foundation program as a part of several undergraduate degrees, which you can apply for if you are eligible.

Postgraduate level:

ACM does not offer a masters per se, but a diploma degree. There are four diplomas - Music Technology Diploma, Music Performance Diploma, Music Performance and Production, and Songwriting Diploma, one of which you can pursue.

Entry Requirements

Undergraduate level:

For undergraduate courses, all possible students need to have at least two Cs at A-Level (or an equivalent Level 3 qualification) and have a minimum of 64 UCAS points.

International candidates must show English language test scores as a part of their application. ACM accepts an IELTS score of 6.0 overall, with no less than 5.5 in every component.

Postgraduate level:

For the MA course, the requirements differ by the following:

Fees structure

For undergraduates

For postgraduates

4. Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts

AT the fourth position, we have the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts (or LIPA). LIPA is not just a music school, its much more than that. LIPA offers degrees and courses in all kinds of performing arts and not just music. In the past, it has been recognized by the beetle member Paul McCartney for its amazing schooling in performing arts. But since this list is focused on music, we will be only looking at the courses offered in that department.

At LIPA, the courses offered are a blend of teaching music as well business so that students know how to navigate their way in the fast-paced world of music.

Courses Offered

The courses offered by LIPA are limited to a foundation certificate course and three undergraduate courses. The foundation course can be taken as an additional course, with your undergraduate course, making it a 4-year course.

Undergraduate level:

LIPA offers three courses, which are quite general but the degrees are recognized all over the world. The three degrees areas such - ​BA (Hons) Music (Songwriting & Production), ​BA (Hons) Music (Songwriting & Performance), and ​BA (Hons) Music.

Postgraduate level:

LIPA does not offer postgraduate courses for music. Instead they offer a foundation certificate in Popular Music and Music Technology.

Entry Requirements

Undergraduate level:

LIPA requires you to have at least 96 UCAS points. Furthermore, US students can apply by submitting their high school degree, out of which one of the subjects should be music or music related.

International candidates must show english language test scores as a part of their application. ACM accepts an IELTS score of 6.0 overall, with no less than 5.5 in every component.

Fees structure

For undergraduates

5. Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance

Finally, the 5th position is secured and sealed by the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance. As it's name suggests, the school is home to students who are passionate about music and dancing. At Trinity, you get world class faculty and courses which will mold you to take on your future in music or dance.

Courses Offered

The courses offered by Trinity are on two levels - undergraduate and postgraduate. Below we will look at what they have to offer in each level.

Undergraduate level:

At undergraduate level, the courses offered are focused on a specialization. Which means that you would get a course on jazz, composition, songwriting, popular music, keyboards, strings and what not.

Postgraduate level:

At the master's level though, you will find courses of the same department as undergraduate level. They are clubbed together under a general topic of the specialization of your choice.

Entry Requirements

Undergraduate level:

All applications for undergraduate must go through a UCAS application. Other than that, Trinity Laban requires you to have:

Postgraduate level:

For the MA course, applications go through the UCAS website but the documents required are as such:

Fees structure

For undergraduates

For postgraduates



Last Updates: 4 Feb, 2021