Financial Aid
MUSIC SCHOLARSHIPS
All are invited! Music Scholarships are talent-based awards, open to all students regardless of major!
| Music Scholarships are talent-based awards, open to all students regardless of major, and are awarded through an audition before MVNU music faculty. Scholarship awards range from approximately $650-$3,500 for one academic year and are available for voice, piano, guitar, most wind and string instruments, percussion, organ and composition. Each year, one or more music performance scholarships of $5,000 will be awarded to students who declare as a music major. All prospective students considering music as a major should audition for consideration. |
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Candidates must complete a music scholarship application and have a music instructor complete a recommendation form, both located at the bottom of this page. |
Learn more about our music program.
You can audition in three ways:
Music Visit Day — Nov. 3, 2025 or Jan. 10, 2026
(Day includes audition, class visits, lunch with faculty, campus tour and more.)
Scholarship Audition Days — Dec. 12, 2025 or Feb. 14, 2026
(Scholarship Application must be completed to register for the day.)
Recorded Auditions
Applicants may audition in-person on the dates indicated or submit a recorded audition in place of the in-person audition. Recorded auditions are due no later than Dec. 10, 2025 in the fall and Feb. 11, 2026 in the spring.
Please contact Dr. John Packard john.packard@mvnu.edu for additional details and questions.
Deadlines:
Priority consideration will be given to auditions that are completed by Dec. 12, 2025. The deadline for scholarship consideration for the Spring is Feb. 14, 2026.
AUDITION INFORMATION
- Participation awards (up to $1,000) only require the student to participate in one of the MVNU Music Department ensembles such as band or choir.
- Performance awards (up to $3,500) require the student to study privately at MVNU on the instrument (or voice) on which they auditioned and register for one of the MVNU Music Department ensembles.
- All music scholarships are renewable each year as long as the student continues to meet the above requirements and maintains a good academic standing.
- Candidates will audition in their major applied area (voice, keyboard, strings, woodwinds, brass, percussion, composition). Students may not audition in more than one area without prior approval by Dr. John Packard. If approved, separate applications and recommendation forms must be submitted for both auditions.
- The Music Faculty strongly recommends that you prepare two selections or movements from different style periods for the audition, i.e. Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Twentieth Century. Instrumentalists may prepare only one selection if it demonstrates both lyrical and technical aspects of musicianship. A good source of appropriate literature is the OMEA Solo & Ensemble Contest list.
- Audition material does not have to be memorized. Copies are not needed for the judges.
- Applicants are encouraged to audition in person, but recorded auditions are also welcome. DVD recordings or YouTube links are preferred methods for recorded auditions. DVD recordings may be sent to the address on the application and audio files/links may be emailed to Dr. John Packard. Music repertoire should be selected based on the aforementioned guidelines and care should be taken to produce the highest quality recording possible. Students submitting recorded auditions should first complete and submit the application and should also have a music instructor complete and submit the recommendation form.
- If you have questions regarding the music program or music scholarships at Mount Vernon Nazarene University, please contact by phone or email Tressa Daley, Music Department Secretary, at (740) 392-6868 ext. 3000, or Dr. John Packard, Music Department Chair, at ext. 3001. Scholarship auditions are held in the R.R. Hodges Chapel / Fine Arts Building.
APPLICATION INFORMATION
- Candidates must complete a music scholarship application. It may be completed online by clicking the link below:
Candidates must have a music instructor complete a recommendation form. The student should give the instructor the web address to complete the online form. Or the form may be printed by the student or instructor, completed by the instructor, and mailed by the student or instructor to the address below.
- Recommendation Form (online)
- Recommendation Form (PDF)
Mail to:
Attention: Tressa Daley
Mount Vernon Nazarene University
800 Martinsburg Road
Mount Vernon, OH 43050
FOR MORE INFO
John Packard
John.packard@mvnu.edu
740-397-9000 ext. 3001
Tressa Daley
tressa.daley@mvnu.edu
740-397-9000 ext. 3000