Non-Major Offerings

Loved Music in High School? Keep the Music Going at OU!

Find your musical home at the Oakland University School of Music, Theatre and Dance (SMTD)! Whether you’re studying business, engineering or anything in between, we offer incredible musical opportunities for students of all majors.

Join an ensemble, take music classes or explore a minor. Plus, many of our courses help you fulfill General Education (GE) requirements!

Make Music With Us: Join an Ensemble

No audition needed for many of our ensembles—just sign up! If you register for an ensemble (auditioned or non-auditioned), we’ll send you all the details before the semester starts including audition info for auditioned groups.

The following ensembles satisfy the GE Arts requirement when taken for 1 credit for three semesters:

• MUE 3000 University Chorus (no audition required)
• MUE 3003 Oakland Chorale (auditioned)
• MUE 3018 Chamber Orchestra (strings only, instructor permission required)
• MUE 3028 Symphonic Band (no audition required)
• MUE 3030 Wind Symphony (auditioned)

More Ensemble Opportunities

No audition required:

• MUE 3032 Golden Grizzlies Band (for athletics)
• MUE 4040 Jazz Band
• MUE 4045 African Ensemble
• MUE 4046 Steel Band

Auditioned:

• MUE 4015 Oakland Jazz Singers
• MUE 4020 Oakland Symphony
• MUE 4035 Grizzly Brass Band
• MUE 4040 Oakland University Jazz Band
• MUE 4042 Creative Jazz Ensemble

Discover Music: Classes for Non-Majors

Explore your love for music while earning credits! The following courses satisfy the GE Arts requirement:

• MUS 1000 Introduction to Music
• MUS 1001 What’s On Your Playlist? Music Listening and the Self
• MUS 1002 Exploring Technology in Music
• MUS 1005 Foundations of Rock (also satisfies GE US Diversity)
• MUS 1006 Exploring Film Music
• MUS 1007 Exploring Jazz (also satisfies GE US Diversity)
• MUS 1010 Exploring African Music (satisfies GE Arts OR Global Perspectives)
• MUS 1011 Exploring Caribbean Music
• MUS 1012 Exploring Indian Music
• MUS 1014 Exploring Hip Hop Music

Other GE requirements:

• MUS 1003 Music Culture & Western Civilization (satisfies GE Western Civ)
• MUS 1017 Exploring Music of Latin America (satisfies GE Global Perspectives)

Additional music courses for non-majors:

• MUS 1100 Vocal Technique for Non-Majors
• MUS 1101 Beginning Piano for Non-Majors
• MUS 1103 Beginning Guitar for Non-Majors
• MUS 1104 Intermediate Guitar for Non-Majors
• MUS 3018 The Business of Music

Consider a Minor in Music

If you have a passion for music, why not explore a minor? Our non-auditioned minors include:

• Liberal Arts Music Minor
• Music Technology Liberal Arts Minor

Auditioned minors:

• Jazz Studies Minor
• Music Theory Minor (open to music majors only)
• World Music Minor
• Music Technology Minor

Don’t Miss a Performance!

Join us for exciting music, theatre and dance performances throughout the year. Many events are free and OU students can enjoy discounted ticket prices. Check out the performance schedule here and purchase tickets to support your peers and experience the vibrant arts community on campus.

For more information, contact us at [email protected]!

The School of Music, Theatre and Dance offers many opportunities for students who are not SMTD majors to continue their performing arts experiences and education.

The dance program offers a minor in dance which can be combined with any other degree. This offers students an opportunity to keep a special kind of balance in their life, both while at college and later in their career. And many employers appreciate the self-motivation and self-discipline implied by performance training. The minors can also be successfully combined with other OU programs to fulfill the requirements of OU’s Integrative Studies degree, the BIS, which, with an adviser’s help, allows students to custom design their own combinations of study disciplines, read more about Integrative Studies.

The dance ensemble Oakland Dance Theatre (ODT) is open to all Oakland students through auditions in the first week of school in September.

In addition, many MTD courses help non-majors fulfill their General Education requirements.