All DMA students at USC Thornton are required to complete the Basic DMA Curriculum, which consists of a variety of coursework totaling 20 units. Courses that you completed as part of your Master’s Degree may be considered for transfer credit to be counted toward the Basic DMA Curriculum, but note that the classes from your master’s degree must be very similar to what is expected of your DMA degree program at USC. The appropriate USC Thornton faculty must evaluate your Master’s-level coursework in order to determine what, if any, of that coursework can be approved for credit toward your USC Thornton DMA degree.
To request consideration of transfer credit toward your Basic DMA Curriculum, please complete this request form. Review the details below to ensure that you submit all necessary documentation in order to consider your transfer credit request.
If you are considering transfer credit, please note that transfer Credit is accepted for the following requirements listed below. In preparation for the review process, please collect all necessary syllabi and any additional items as detailed below:
MUCO 501 Introduction to the Analysis of Tonal Music
Survey of common practice period (1650 – 1900) approaches to phrase design, tonal organization and type-forms (binary, ternary, rondo, sonata). NOTE: Along with the exact syllabus for this class, you must also provide examples of your associated class work.
MUCO 502 Introduction to the Analysis of Post-Tonal Music
Introductory survey of 20th/21st Century approaches to the organization of pitch (serial, modal, extended tonal, etc.), rhythm, texture and form. NOTE: Along with the exact syllabus for this class, you must also provide examples of your associated class work.
MTAL 505 Teaching and Learning Music
Studies of the latest resources concerning the teaching and learning of music so that musicians can function more effectively as both teachers and performers. NOTE: Along with the exact syllabus for this class, you must also provide examples of your associated class work.
MUHL 570 Research Materials and Techniques
Introduction to music research, information science and technical writing.
MUHL Electives (graduate-level Music History courses in a variety of topics)
Three graduate-level Music History electives are required in the Basic DMA Curriculum, all of which can be potentially fulfilled through
coursework completed for the Master’s Degree. (Examples include the following USC Thornton courses: MUHL 575: Music of the Baroque Era, MUHL 588: Special Studies in Music Since 1900.
For each Master’s-level course being evaluated, you must submit the official course syllabus distributed to you from the same semester the course was taken. In some cases, you may also need a transcript showing the grades earned in these courses. If an earned grade is not posted on your transcripts for a recent semester, we may need to revisit your request at a later time.
If there are other courses that you would like to have considered for transfer credit, that will be discussed when we meet in person in the fall.
If you are requesting a substitution for MTAL 505 Teaching and Learning Music, MUCO 501 Introduction to the Analysis of Tonal Music, and/or MUCO 502 Introduction to the Analysis of Post-Tonal Music, be certain to include papers and/or other assignments you completed as part of the class curriculum that you wish to have reviewed. The faculty often want to see your actual past work when evaluating transfer credit requests. If you do not include class work for these three classes, your request will not be reviewed by the faculty.
Incomplete or incorrect requests may not be considered for immediate review, so be sure that your requests are complete and prepared according to the instructions provided. As described earlier, to request consideration of transfer credit toward your Basic DMA Curriculum, please complete this request form.
We will do our best to review your materials before you start DMA classes in the fall, but this is not guaranteed. Regardless of a finalized decision, having your substitution material submitted to us ahead of time will help you and your advisor better plan your first year classes.