Doctor of Musical Arts

The Doctor of Musical Arts degree (D.M.A., or A.Mus.D.), like other doctorates, is an academic degree of the highest level. The D.M.A. is intended for musicians who wish to combine the highest attainments in their major area with proven accomplishment in theoretical studies, and in musicology.

A candidate for the D.M.A. degree must be a capable artist and practitioner that demonstrates intellectual attributes of a high order.

The D.M.A. program is generally designed to prepare students to be artist-performers and conductors in either university settings, or in the professional arena.

While the Ph.D. is the most common doctoral degree, and even often (mis)understood to be synonymous with the term “doctorate,” the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) recognize numerous doctoral degrees as equivalent, and do not discriminate between them.

A list of doctoral degree designations can be found at: doctorate.