Music Education

The School of Music is committed to providing a quality music education program that prepares pre-service music teachers to become highly qualified professionals. Earn your Bachelor of Music (BM) in Music Education or your Master of Music (MM) in Music Education at the University of Delaware!​​

The program is accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) and the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM). All University of Delaware Professional Education Programs are guided by a unified Conceptual Framework, where candidates will demonstrate a commitment to education as a scholarly profession, with the competence to create and implement learning experiences and evidence-based assessments reflecting an understanding of human development; possess the content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge that promotes and supports students' musical skill development; and have the capacity to work as partners with students, families, and other professionals in the wider community to provide supportive, safe, and caring learning environments that optimizes every learner's educational attainment in music.

The Bachelor of Music (B.M.) in Music Education is directed to those who intend to become professional musicians and music educators. The B.M. in Music Education offers both instrumental and choral/general tracks, in which students gain classroom experience through extensive, field-based teaching opportunities in elementary, middle and high schools. This program is designed specifically to provide professional training and certification for those intending to teach music in elementary or secondary schools in a public school system. The music education major may be personalized through service-learning programs, summer research, independent study, and the pursuit of a senior thesis or capstone experience.

• Graduates are eligible for certification to teach PK-12 music in all states.
• All music education majors gain 150 hours of teaching experience in elementary, middle, and high schools prior to their student teaching semester. ​
• This major can be personalized to fit the academic and professional pursuits of each student, individualized to incorporate minors, Honors Degrees, Degrees with Distinction, service learning, study abroad, and research.
• We maintain a low student-to-faculty ratio and small classes, providing access to a passionate, invested, and highly-accomplished faculty of professionally-active educators, researchers, performers, and composers.
• The study of music at Delaware is enriched by nearly 300 performances each year by faculty, students, ensembles and guest artists. Additionally, the vast musical resources of Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and New York City are easily accessible.​

Join a community of graduate students while studying with professors with expertise in songwriting, informal music learning, Music Learning Theory, musical creativity and democracy in ensembles, quantitative and qualitative research methodologies, and musical development in early childhood through adolescence.​

Master of Music (MM) in Music Education​

Student opportunities to be involved in music education leadership include membership in student chapters of National Association for Music Education (cNAfME) and American Choral Directors Association (ACDA); membership in other professional organizations related to music education; participation in the service-learning projects Beat Goes On and ProjectMUSIC Opera; teaching applied music, early childhood music, musicianship or class piano through the Community Music School; and research and independent study through the campus-wide undergraduate research or service-learning programs.

These faculty members teach music education-specific classes, such as Elementary General Music Education Methods, Secondary General Music Education Methods, Choral Methods, Instrumental Methods, and more!​

Mark Adams

Duane Cottrell

Heidi Lucas

Aimee D. Pearsall​​

​These faculty teach courses in instrumental and choral conducting, and regularly interact with music education students in large ensembles.​

Jim Ancona

Jim Anderson

Duane Cottrell

Paul D. Head

Aimee Pearsall

Lauren Reynolds

Heidi Sarver​​​