Exchanges: Thornton Students

The USC Thornton School of Music, in cooperation with institutional partners abroad, is offering opportunities to study overseas for one semester (fall or spring). In each exchange, a USC Thornton student will study at an overseas school, while a student from the same institution will study at USC Thornton.

Thornton students who are selected to participate in this exchange program will be immersed in a unique artistic environment, learning with the students and faculty of the overseas host institution. An individualized course plan will be created for each participating student from the course offerings available at the host institution for the specific semester of study. In general, the coursework taken at the host institution will be similar to what would have been taken during the same semester at USC Thornton and the coursework completed overseas will be transferable for credit toward the student’s USC degree through a pre-approval process guided by the students USC Thornton advisor.

Alumni of the USC Thornton International Exchange program may also have the opportunity to become USC Global Scholars, a special designation celebrating outstanding global engagement.

Partner Institutions

Amsterdam Conservatory Amsterdam, Netherlands

CODARTS, University of the Arts Rotterdam, Netherlands

CNSMD Lyon Lyon, France

CNSMD Paris Paris, France

Norwegian Academy of Music Oslo, Norway

Royal Northern College of Music Manchester, England

Sibelius Academy of the University of the Arts Helsinki, Finland

Eligibility

Undergraduate students currently enrolled at USC Thornton are eligible to apply for participation in the exchange program, if they will still be an undergraduate Thornton student during the coming academic year.

Costs

Students register and pay the standard tuition at USC Thornton during the semester of exchange. Students are responsible for making all necessary arrangements and paying all necessary costs associated with:

• Room & Board
• Transportation (including travel to and from the host institution, as well as ground transportation for the duration of stay at the host institution)
• Medical Expenses & Medical Insurance (Students must meet the medical insurance requirements of both USC Thornton and the host institution for the full study period.)
• Books & Supplies
• Personal & Miscellaneous Expenses (including clothing appropriate to the climate of the host institution)
• Passport & Visa Costs

Any merit-based or need-based financial aid being received by Thornton students will apply toward the exchange program. Most financial aid (including scholarships, grants, loans, and tuition assistance benefits) is transferable to approved USC international exchange programs. However, the amount of aid will be adjusted based on program-specific costs, as projected on a program-by-program basis. Some types of financial aid may be reduced if the overseas program expenses are projected to be less than the projected cost of one semester of on-campus study at USC.

Language Requirements

At CNSMD Lyon and the Paris Conservatory, Thornton students will need to be proficient in French. We expect at least an A2 level of French and ideally a B1 level of French. At all other host institutions, Thornton students will be able to pursue their studies in English.

Selection Process

Students will be selected to participate in the exchange program according to the following process.

1. Apply at USC Thornton: Students apply for consideration by USC Thornton according to guidelines set by the school. These guidelines will include (but not be limited to) the following:

• Online pre-selection application for review by the USC Thornton faculty (a specific link to this online application will be provided to eligible students when it is available)
• Application fee of approximately $25, payable by credit card, charged at the time of submission
• Letter of Motivation consisting of one or two pages that describe the reasons why you are interested in participating in the exchange program
• Résumé or Curriculum Vitae, including musical, professional, and academic experience
• Academic Transcript (unofficial PDF of the “Completed Course Summary” from the OASIS system will be acceptable)
• Copy of a valid passport (PDF format)

Thornton students will be notified via email when the online pre-selection application is available for any given year. This notification will usually be issued sometime before winter recess and will include a link to the online pre-selection application.

2. Pre-Selection by USC Thornton: The faculty of USC Thornton screens applicants and selects a small pool of students to be considered for final selection by the host institution.

3. Apply to Host Institution: The students pre-selected by USC Thornton submit a new application to the host institution according to guidelines set by the host institution. An application fee may be required. Specific guidelines will be provided to the pre-selected students through the international exchange coordinator at USC Thornton. This application is generally submitted online and will require materials that could take time to prepare, including:

• Media uploads of the applicant’s artistic work.
• Letter of motivation, describing the reasons why the student is interested in participating in the exchange program.
• Résumé or curriculum vitae, which should list the student’s musical, professional, and academic experience.
• Learning agreement, including the courses at the host institution that the visiting student would propose to take during their time of study if selected for the exchange program.
• Transcript of academic work completed to date at USC Thornton.
• Copy of a valid passport.

4. Final Selection by Host Institution: The host institution makes the final selection based on the materials submitted by students who were pre-selected by USC Thornton. Video interviews for assessment of language proficiency will be arranged during this stage of the process if needed.

5. Notification: Students are notified of the final selection and are advised by the host institution regarding how to obtain the necessary visa and make other important preparations.

Timeline

Contact

Questions regarding Thornton International Exchange Programs can be directed to music.intl@usc.edu.