Inchwise Education · Research
Guides and Writing
Admissions guides to the four UK conservatoires and the four English specialist music schools, in English and Chinese, with every figure sourced and dated. Plus two continuing columns — one on music education and educational mobility, one on the British classroom from inside it.
Frequently asked questions · 中文版
Dates and deadlines
What the institutions themselves publish about the current application cycle, with every unpublished item stated.
UK music admissions dates for September 2027 entry
Opening dates, deadlines, audition periods, recording deadlines and fees published by fourteen specialist music schools, conservatoire junior departments and undergraduate conservatoires. Checked 11 October 2026.
Applying to a UK conservatoire
Undergraduate entry at the Royal College of Music, the Royal Academy of Music, the Guildhall School and the Royal Northern College of Music: audition requirements and repertoire, overseas audition centres in mainland China and Hong Kong, English language requirements, application fees, international tuition for 2027–28, and which scholarships an overseas audition forfeits.
The four undergraduate conservatoires compared
RCM, RAM, Guildhall and RNCM side by side: application routes, academic and English requirements, overseas audition cities and discipline restrictions, 2027-entry deadlines, fees and how scholarships are decided.
Royal College of Music
Auditions in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong; scholarships assessed automatically at audition; IELTS 5.5 at undergraduate level. The ABRSM award — full tuition plus £5,000 a year — requires auditioning in London, so an overseas centre forfeits it.
Royal Academy of Music
Entry requirements, audition repertoire and the funding routes open to an international undergraduate, with the figures published for 2026–27.
Guildhall School of Music and Drama
What the Barbican conservatoire asks for at audition, how its overseas centres work, and what it costs.
Royal Northern College of Music
The widest mainland China audition coverage of the four — Beijing, Qingdao, Shanghai and Shenzhen, plus Hong Kong — and the lowest application fee, at £114.50.
Applying to a junior department
Six English conservatoires and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland run a junior department. The Royal Welsh College discontinued weekly junior provision in September 2024.
UK conservatoire junior departments
Entry ages, 2026/27 fees of £2,760 to £5,188, audition dates, and the residence condition attached to Department for Education funding.
Royal College of Music Junior Department
Ages 8 to 18, Grade 5 by the age of 11, £5,188 a year for 2026-27, a video first round and an in-person recall.
Junior Guildhall
Ages 8 to 18, Grade 5 distinction at 10 and Grade 8 distinction by 16, £4,359 a year for 2026/27, applications closing 11.59pm on 1 March 2027.
Junior Trinity
Ages 10 to 19, at least Grade 5 on the first study, £4,212 a year for 2026-27, in-person auditions in March and April.
Junior Academy (Royal Academy of Music)
From age 12, ABRSM Grade 6–7 distinction as a stated guide, £4,245 a year for 2026-27, a video first round and a live recall; 2027 dates not yet published.
Junior RNCM
Ages 8 to 18, Grade 5 with distinction as a rough guide, Year 12 the last entry point, £4,751 a year for 2025-26 and no later fee published.
Junior Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
Ages eight to 18 across 30 Saturdays, entry by audition with no stated grade level, auditions mainly in April and May; no junior fee published.
RCS Junior Conservatoire
Ages 11 to 18 in Glasgow, no minimum grade requirement, from £2,760 for 30 weeks in 2026-27, 2027-28 applications opening 27 October 2026.
The Music and Dance Scheme
The eight specialist schools and twelve music Centres for Advanced Training, the two-year and three-year residence conditions, and the 2026/27 contribution scales.
Applying to a specialist music school
England has four specialist music schools taking pupils from primary age: the Yehudi Menuhin School, the Purcell School, Chetham’s School of Music and Wells Cathedral School. Each guide covers audition requirements, fees, what the government’s Music and Dance Scheme (MDS) bursary covers, boarding, and what an international family has to arrange.
The four specialist music schools compared
Menuhin, Purcell, Chetham’s and Wells side by side: roll, age range, instruments accepted as a first study, 2026–27 fees with and without VAT, Music and Dance Scheme funding, and what each school does not publish.
The Yehudi Menuhin School
Entry from age 8 to 19, about 90 pupils in total. Audition requirements, what the Music and Dance Scheme covers, and boarding.
The Purcell School
Entry ages 11 to 18 in Bushey, Hertfordshire. Audition, academic provision alongside the instrument, and fees.
Chetham's School of Music
The largest of the four, in Manchester, with entry from Year 9. Audition, fees and finance.
Wells Cathedral School
Specialist music places from 8 to 18 inside a full cathedral school in Somerset.
Dr Xiaoyun Peng · 彭曉芸專欄
Music education pathways, educational mobility, attention and screens, bilingual children, and philosophy in the age of AI. Written in Chinese, with an English abstract on each piece. Read the column.
Dr Zhihao Yan · 顏志豪專欄
The English classroom reported from inside it: philosophy for children, special educational needs, school trips, teacher training and what a British primary day actually looks like. Written in Chinese, with an English abstract on each piece. Read the column.
Published record
Press coverage, bylined articles, books and academic invitations for both directors, 2007–2026, with dates and links — In the Press.
Last updated: September 2026.