The Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University

We're kidding, of course (although we did get that question once).  I think you are on the wrong part of the Peabody web site. The Peabody Institute includes two music schools: The Conservatory, and the Preparatory. The Conservatory is a degree granting college, so it is not a place for those just beginning their studies. The Preparatory is best described as a community music school. It does not grant college credit for classes, ensembles, or lessons. However, it does deal with all age groups and all levels of development. [click here] to jump to the Preparatory's section of this web site.

If I said 564 it probably would not tell you what you want to know. Mostly we get asked this question when someone wants to know their likelihood of being accepted, and that is covered elsewhere on our web site. Before giving you a link to it, it might help for you to know that Peabody does not use quotas in the admission process. One excellent school we know admits exactly one wind section each year—offering admission to exactly four French horns, and putting the others on a waiting list. We don't like wait lists when we can avoid it, so we do things differently. Our statistics tell us that about one of every two French horns we accept will come to our school, so we feel quite okay about accepting eight (assuming, of course that they are highly qualified), if we need to enroll four. The four who elect to come will be the ones who want to be at Peabody, and that is good for the community here.

In the larger view, Peabody needs to be a certain size to function properly. It must also be balanced in light of our ensembles and facilities. If the number of students in one major gets too large, the faculty schedules tend to overflow, and the faculty will "raise the bar" for entrance the following year. We are fortunate that in most majors, the school is nicely balanced, and we are able to accept every acceptable candidate.

We don't exactly have a yes/no standard for grades or SAT scores. There are too many variables, like finding a low Verbal SAT from an international student who has only been in the U.S. for a year, and for whom English is a new language. In the admissions office, we don't make judgments about academics. Instead, we route the application folders to appropriate administrators, depending on what we see. Here is how it works:

For undergraduates we look for a 3.0 GPA, and for SAT scores of 530 verbal, 480 math. Anything below that goes to the Dean of Academic Affairs for evaluation. In practice, we rarely reject anyone for purely academic reasons. However, we need to take care to reject students unlikely to do well in the academic side of their programs. Problems with math and/or science are not much of an issue for Peabody since it is not necessary to take those kinds of subjects to get a performance degree here. On the other hand, those who have had really bad problems with humanities courses (English, History, etc.) will likely be rejected since courses needing similar study skills are part of the curriculum. Attendance is considered part of the picture, as is the faculty assessment of your performance level. If the Dean of Academic Affairs feels the applicant should be rejected, the application is brought before the Admissions Committee for discussion before a final decision is made. This is a very serious business. Fortunately, we reject fewer than a dozen applicants a year for strictly academic reasons.

Admission to a Master of Music program requires an undergrad GPA of 3.0 exclusive of performance credits. Sometimes we let things slide a tenth of a point or two if we have an otherwise strong student and performer. If we hear a strong performer with a dismal undergraduate record, we might suggest the Graduate Performance Diploma program as an alternative.

Peabody has an extensive music theory program, so undergraduates can enter the school with little or no formal training in that subject. Still, it is in the applicant’s best interest to enter the Conservatory with a working knowledge of music fundamentals, including scales, intervals, and the notation of rhythm. For this reason, we give a music theory fundamentals test to those who audition on campus. There is a second test available as an option for those who are looking for advanced placement once you are enrolled in the Conservatory. A weak background in music theory does not necessarily preclude admission to the Conservatory; however, the music theory fundamentals test in conjunction with the eartraining test gives us a better picture of your overall musicianship skills and informs our admissions decisions. All undergraduate applicants are required to take both the music theory fundamentals test and the eartraining test while they are on campus for their audition.

Life is easier in the first year of Peabody if students know music theory fundamentals. Students who do not show mastery of fundamentals will be required to take a special lab along with Theory I.   Detailed information, along with sample tests, are available on the Music Theory Page of this web site.

Note for those who have taken the AP Theory Test: We accept AP credits in most academic subjects if you earned a four or five on the test. However, we do not accept AP credits in music theory. Peabody offers courses on several levels for first-year study, so we need to get a more finely tuned "reading" on your level of development in order to arrive at an accurate placement.

Graduate students are assumed to have a theory background, so the graduate level placement tests are diagnostic—meaning that the results help us place (or exempt) you from review classes that will meet your needs. Occasionally test results come into play in making accept/reject decisions. If an applicant needs more theory study than can be accomplished during the normal (usually two year) curriculum, we cannot in good conscience accept him or her. The good news is that the vast majority of our graduate applicants (even those who have been out of school for a while) test within range of our review courses.

Students sometimes decide to apply to Peabody as a result of meeting one of our faculty members at a master class, or at a convention. On the other hand, our admissions process is not dependent on such things, so your chances of acceptance are the same either way.