Music with Political Studies

Music with political studies is an unusual pairing that offers a genuinely rich intellectual combination. Music is an art form whose study spans the technical, the historical, the sociological, and the philosophical, engaging with questions about what music is, how it is made, what it does to individuals and communities, and how it functions within the political and economic structures of the societies that produce it. Political studies asks how power is organised, how societies govern themselves, and what the conditions of justice and democratic life require.

The two disciplines speak to each other in ways that reward serious engagement: music has always been political, and politics has always had a cultural dimension.

The three-year full-time Music with Political Studies programme at Royal Holloway, University of London draws on expertise spanning traditional, modern, and world music. Through studying musical texts, practices, cultures, and institutions you will explore issues in history, sociology, ethnology, and philosophy across an exceptional geographical and chronological range. You will also gain practical skills in composition, music technology, and performance, ensuring that your academic engagement with music is grounded in what it actually means to make and hear it.

A sandwich year, year abroad, and work placement options provide professional and international experience within the degree structure.

With a typical entry tariff of 120 points, the programme is accessible and intellectually wide-ranging. Graduates pursue careers in arts administration, cultural policy, broadcasting, journalism, music education, political research, the civil service, and the creative industries, as well as going on to postgraduate study in music, politics, or cultural studies.