Advanced Professional Practice Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama

Overview

It’s aimed at students who have completed a master’s course in performance or composition at a conservatoire and then seek a final, additional period of specialist training before entering their chosen profession.

You can study any of these areas as part of your course:

• Brass
• Guitar
• Harp
• Keyboard
• Percussion
• Strings
• Woodwind
• Conducting
• Composition
• Singing

At the outset, you’ll establish a detailed professional training plan that will guide your subsequent 10 months with us. It’s a flexible document that reflects your creative ambitions and the activities and practical experiences you need to participate in here to fulfil them.

Informed by your training plan, you’ll then work with senior staff to devise the teaching and learning methods for your course. Typically, you’ll receive up to 40 hours of specialist, individual tuition from professional musicians throughout your study. And you’ll balance that with a significant amount of work-based training and performance opportunities, as well as regular tutorial support from a mentor.

Aside from your practical training, you’ll also have classes in areas that focus on employability and your health as a musician.

This rigorous training programme, set in an inspiring conservatoire setting, will enhance your confidence, stylistic awareness and artistic abilities, preparing you for a career in today’s music industry.

International opportunities

The College participates in the unique Welsh Government-funded international mobility scheme, Taith, which supports international student projects. The funding provides a bursary for RWCMD students towards travel and subsistence costs for projects in partner institutions, ranging from 2 weeks to a full academic year. These periods abroad can take the following forms:

• 2 week intensive project
• 2-6 week (or longer) traineeship or work placement
• 6-weeks / term / semester / year study abroad (depending on course possibilities)
• Summer school funding (minimum 14 days duration)

Opportunities are being developed continuously, and students are encouraged to put their own ideas forward on a regular basis. Often, these activities can be credited as part of the RWCMD course. There is additional supporting funding available for disadvantaged students, to encourage the fullest possible participation in this ground-breaking Welsh scheme.