Choral and organ awards
The Choirs
There are three choral foundations (Christ Church, Magdalen College and New College) which sing daily services during Full Term (Christ Church sings for longer terms including Christmas and Easter). These three choirs and several of the mixed-voice choirs enjoy an international reputation, and have busy schedules of concert performances, tours, recordings, and broadcasts. The choral foundation choirs comprise boy trebles (educated at the college schools) and adult voices. At Christ Church and New College there are between six and eight ‘lay clerks’ (i.e. paid singers) and six to eight choral scholars (or ‘academical clerks’). At Magdalen College, there are up to three lay clerks and nine choral scholars. There are specific vacancies for altos, tenors, and basses (including baritones). The musical directors of the choral foundations and several of the mixed-voice choirs are senior members of the University. Among the mixed-voice choirs, Queen’s, Merton, and Exeter sing three services a week in term-time, and most of the other mixed-voice choirs sing one or two services at week. At Worcester College there are boy trebles, in addition to sopranos. At all colleges, except the choral foundations, choral awards are offered to sopranos, altos, tenors and basses.
Many other colleges offer opportunities to sing in their college choirs, but do not participate in the choral awards scheme. Please see individual college websites for details.
The Choral Scholars
If you are appointed to a choral award you will sing in the college’s chapel choir under the direction of the director of music or organ scholar. There is a financial award, which is supplemented in some colleges by additional payments and fees for special events. Many colleges help pay for singing lessons.
You can find out more by visiting the individual college websites, and by consulting the document ‘College Organ & Choral Scholarship Details 2021-22’, under ‘related documents’ at https://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/applying-to-oxford/choral-and-organ-awards/choral-awards
How to apply
There are two parts to the entry procedure – the choral audition (in September) and the academic interview (in December – as part of the UCAS admissions process). The audition is to assess your vocal and musical aptitude, while for the academic interview you will join all the other candidates competing for places at Oxford. There are two separate application forms: a choral application form and the UCAS form. If you click on the link below you will also find there detailed instructions about the choral application form – its completion, on the choice of college, and the audition. You should submit it by noon on 1 September. A few days after the choral audition you will receive a letter telling you whether you have reached a standard to be considered for a choral award. Of course, this refers only to the choral award – since there has been no academic interview at this stage. UCAS forms should then be submitted. The closing date is 15 October. It is only after the full admission procedure and academic interview in December that you will hear whether you have been offered a choral award.
To apply for a choral award, please click on the 'Apply for choral awards' tab above.
The choral audition
For choral singers a quick ear and an aptitude for sight-reading are both important, especially in choirs that perform a large repertory. These skills need to be developed as much as the voice and vocal technique. They can be improved with steady work. Organists and tutors are aware that a candidate may have been singing for a relatively short period, and will take this into account. When you choose a piece to perform at the audition it is important to bear in mind range and technique. Select music that displays your vocal and musical capabilities to the full, without going beyond what your technique can support. You do not have to perform sacred music. Remember a successful audition does not automatically mean that a choral award will be offered; this will depend upon the strength of competition from other candidates. You have to gain a place in open competition with others applying for the same honours degree course. Please consult the organist or music tutor of colleges offering choral awards for further advice.
Choral award application form 2025/26 entry
The choral award application form consists of three sections: your personal details, your school details, and your college preferences. In addition to submitting this form, you must also submit one reference. Please read the introductory information carefully before completing the form.
The form requires a lot of mandatory information, and you will not be able to edit these details once you have submitted them. We advise you, therefore, to save your entry elsewhere (e.g. in a Word document), and to check the information you have entered carefully before clicking Submit.
If you have queries about completing this form, please contact us by email (academic.admin@music.ox.ac.uk) before submitting.
Please note:
- Candidates cannot apply for admission to both Oxford and Cambridge. If you apply for a choral award at Oxford you cannot also make an application to Cambridge.
- A choral scholarship can be held only at the college where one holds an academic place.
Section 1: Personal Information
Please complete all your personal details. Please ensure in particular that your contact details are entered carefully and that you provide an alternative phone number (which can be a parent/guardian’s number).
Section 2: Your school information
Please complete details of your schooling, even if you are applying post-qualification.
Section 3: Choral award application Information
The third section of the application form allows you to nominate up to ten preferences of college. This grid shows which colleges are offering choral awards for 2025 and 2026 entry, and for which particular voices (if applicable).
Key: S=Soprano, A=Alto, T=Tenor, B=Bass
|
|
2025 |
2026 |
|
Brasenose1 |
2S, 2A, 2T, 2B |
2S, 2A, 2T, 2B |
|
Christ Church |
1A, 2T, 1B |
1A, 2T, 1B |
|
Exeter |
8 in total |
8 in total |
|
Harris Manchester1 |
4 in total |
4 in total |
|
Keble |
8 in total |
8 in total |
|
Magdalen |
2A, 2T, 1B |
2A, 2T, 3B |
|
Merton |
8 in total |
8 in total |
|
New |
1A, 2T, 1B |
1A, 2B |
|
Oriel |
6 in total |
6 in total |
|
Pembroke |
2S, 2A, 2T, 2B |
2S, 2A, 2T, 2B |
|
Queen’s |
8 in total |
8 in total |
|
St Edmund Hall1 |
8 in total |
8 in total |
|
St Peter’s |
8 in total |
8 in total |
|
Somerville |
8 in total |
8 in total |
|
University |
6 in total |
6 in total |
|
Worcester |
12 in total |
12 in total |
1 Brasenose and St Edmund Hall do not accept candidates to read Music. Awards at Harris Manchester are available only to those over the age of 21 at the start of their course.
You may like to print this grid to plan your order of preferences.
You should first check that the college preferences you are naming all offer the subject you intend to study. You can find which colleges offer your proposed course here.
Use the dot matrix to show your preference of colleges. You can also indicate if you are willing to be considered by other colleges beyond your list of preferences.
Supporting material
Reference
In addition to completing this online application form, your application must be supported by a report on your abilities as a singer, completed in confidence. This report may be from (for example) your director of music, choir director, or singing teacher. The report may be from one such person, but incorporate material from one or more other suitably qualified people.
It is your responsibility to ensure that the person writing the reference knows the arrangements and deadline for submission of the reference. We do not require an academic reference at this point: this is only required in connection with your UCAS application to Oxford.
Your referee can submit the reference by email: as an attachment, in either doc or pdf format, to the admissions officer at your first-choice college of preference. We encourage you to submit by email, but the reference can if necessary be posted. Email and postal addresses for colleges can be found on the college pages.
Please ensure that emails and attachment file names clearly indicate your name.
The deadline for completing this form is 1 September 2024.
The deadline for receipt of the reference is 15 September 2024.
Please note that you should receive an immediate automatic acknowledgement of receipt by email. If you do not receive an automatic acknowledgement, please email academic.admin@music.ox.ac.uk. We will also email you within a few days of the deadline (at the latest), once we have processed all applications received on time.
You should monitor your inbox and spam folders to ensure that you do not miss correspondence from us in early September, but please do not worry if you have not heard from us before then.
Organ scholars are students (usually undergraduates) who direct or assist with the music in a college chapel. The nature and scope of the responsibilities varies from college to college: you could be working with an experienced choral director as organist and/or assistant conductor of a choir that sings several times a week, or you could be recruiting your own team of singers and working directly with your college chaplain to organise music in one or two services per week. There is huge variety, so it’s worth giving thought to how your application matches the duties and responsibilities you find most attractive. All organ scholars study toward a degree alongside their organ scholarship; many read Music, but other subjects are also available (and some colleges offer an organ scholarship but do not accept Music students).
In a number of colleges, the organ scholar also acts as an organiser of general musical activity. All organ scholars earn a modest fee, but in most colleges this is supplemented by free organ tuition.
In some colleges the organ scholar is effectively in charge of chapel music, and works with the college chaplain to plan and execute services. In these colleges, duties range from one to three services per week. Elsewhere, the organ scholar assists a professional Director of Music: in this group, the range of commitment varies widely from two services a week to nearly daily commitment at the choral foundations (Christ Church, Magdalen and New College).
All organ scholars benefit from the programme of activities organised by the Betts Centre for Organ Studies.
Organ award application form 2025/26 entry
The organ award application form consists of three sections: your personal details, your school details, and your college preferences. In addition to submitting this form, you must also submit one reference. Please read the introductory information carefully before completing the form.
The form requires a lot of mandatory information, and you will not be able to edit these details once you have submitted them. We advise you, therefore, to save your entry elsewhere (e.g. in a Word document), and to check the information you have entered carefully before clicking Submit.
If you have queries about completing this form, please contact us by email (academic.admin@music.ox.ac.uk) before submitting.
Section 1: Personal Information
Please complete all your personal details. Please ensure in particular that your contact details are entered carefully and that you provide an alternative phone number (which can be a parent/guardian’s number).
Section 2: Your school information
Please complete details of your schooling, even if you are applying post-qualification.
Section 3: Organ award application Information
The third section of the application form allows you to nominate all colleges currently offering an organ award in order of preference. This grid shows which colleges are offering organ awards for 2025 and 2026 entry.
|
College |
Organ awards in 2025 |
Organ awards in 2026 |
|
Balliol |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Brasenose |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Christ Church |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Corpus Christi |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Exeter |
No |
Yes |
|
Harris Manchester* |
TBC |
TBC |
|
Hertford |
No |
Yes |
|
Jesus College |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Keble |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Lady Margaret Hall |
Yes |
No |
|
Lincoln |
No |
No |
|
Magdalen |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Merton |
Yes |
Yes |
|
New College |
No |
Yes |
|
Oriel |
No |
No |
|
Pembroke |
Yes (2 places) |
No |
|
The Queen's College |
No |
Yes |
|
St Edmund Hall |
Yes |
Yes |
|
St Peter's |
Yes |
No |
|
Somerville |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Trinity |
Yes |
No |
|
University College |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Worcester |
Yes |
Yes |
*Organ Award recipients at Harris Manchester College must be 21 or over by the start date of their course.
You may like to print this grid to plan your order of preferences.
You should first check that the college preferences you are naming all offer the subject you intend to study. You can find which colleges offer your proposed course here.
Supporting material
Reference
In addition to completing this online application form, your application must be supported by a report on your abilities as an organist, completed in confidence. This report may be from (for example) your organ teacher, director of music, or choir director. The report may be from one such person, but incorporate material from one or more other suitably qualified people.
It is your responsibility to ensure that the person writing the reference knows the arrangements and deadline for submission of the reference. We do not require an academic reference at this point: this is only required in connection with your UCAS application to Oxford.
Your referee can submit the reference by email: as an attachment, in either doc or pdf format, to the admissions officer at your first-choice college of preference. We encourage you to submit by email, but the reference can if necessary be posted. Email and postal addresses for colleges can be found on the college pages.
Please ensure that emails and attachment file names clearly indicate your name.
The deadline for completing this form is 1 September 2024.
The deadline for receipt of the reference is 15 September 2024.
Please note that you should receive an immediate automatic acknowledgement of receipt by email. If you do not receive an automatic acknowledgement, please email academic.admin@music.ox.ac.uk. We will also email you within a few days of the deadline (at the latest), once we have processed all applications received on time.
You should monitor your inbox and spam folders to ensure that you do not miss correspondence from us in early September, but please do not worry if you have not heard from us before then.
Betts Centre for Organ Studies exists to support Organ Scholars at Oxford. The Betts Fellow in Organ Studies, Katharine Pardee, organises masterclasses in organ by internationally-renowned performers and teachers, catch-up classes in topics that may be of use to organ scholars, and social occasions during the academic year.
In addition, the Betts Centre for Organ Studies organises trips to the Continent once or twice a year to visit and play historic organs. These trips, generously supported by the Betts Fund, are once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to play some of the magnificent organs so often seen in pictures and heard in recordings. Not only are these study tours true eye-openers to the rich world of organ literature and music history, but they are also tremendous fun and a good way to get to know colleagues.
Choral and Organ Awards Open Day
Saturday 27th April 2024
Oxford's college chapels provide outstanding opportunities for participating in liturgical music as well as offering exceptional performance, touring and recording experience. Many colleges offer awards to singers and organists who contribute to this aspect of college life. Choral scholars are trained to a very high level through their college chapel choir and some go on to become professional singers. Toby Spence, Emma Kirkby and Robin Blaze were all Oxford choral scholars.
Organ scholars also play a crucial part in Oxford music. In some colleges, they direct the music in chapel; in others they assist professional directors. The role develops skills in choral accompanying, direction, and administration. Many Oxford organ scholars have gone on to become celebrated musicians whilst others have attained distinction elsewhere, including a Prime Minister and a Hollywood actor.
Join us on our open day to find out what's involved in being an organ or choral scholar and how you can apply! The open day includes informative talks and Q&As with current students and Directors of Music, as well as advice on how to prepare for auditions. You'll also have the opportunity to take part in choral, organ, and conducting workshops in various historic college chapels, and to join one of our college choirs for Evensong.
Under normal circumstances, you are welcome to visit the University. College grounds are usually open to prospective applicants but you can also get in touch with the college linked to your region and let them know you are coming. You may also be able to attend an event listed in our outreach calendar whilst you’re here.
