eGo applicant portal
Applicants who have already submitted their application can track the progress of their application, update their contact details, view details about their audition/interview, and access information about their course.
Access eGo here
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Re-Application
The School does not accept applications for a repeat audition for the same year of entry.
Applicants will be permitted to audition for the BA and/or MA acting programmes on no more than three occasions in total. If an applicant is unsuccessful in gaining a place after three auditions, a fourth audition will not be offered under any circumstances.
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Applicants with a Disability
The School encourages applications from students with a disability or a specific learning difficulty. Nearly 10% of our student population fall into this category. If you would like to find out if the School’s support and environment are appropriate for you, you can contact the Student Affairs Department in confidence. Please see our Disability Support page for more details of what we can offer.
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Transfer Applications / Entry with Advanced Standing
Music applicants who meet the general programme entry requirements and additionally can demonstrate advanced standing through relevant prior study within a higher education institution and/or professional experience may be considered for direct entry into Year 2 of the BMus, Guildhall Artist Masters, and Artist Diploma programmes. Exceptionally, direct entry into Year 3 of the BMus programme may be permitted. Direct entry is not permitted for any other programmes.
Applicants wishing to apply for direct entry to the second or third year of the BMus programme are given ‘year of entry’ options on the online application form.
The audition panel will decide whether you are at the appropriate level from a performance standpoint and then our Academic Studies team will assess your suitability of advanced standing from an academic point of view. Applicants wishing to transfer from another university must seek written permission to audition from their current institution before applying. Applicants for direct entry that are not transferring from another institution will be required to complete a set of additional academic tasks and pay an additional assessment fee (please see our Fees & Funding page for more details).
For direct entry into the Guildhall Artist Masters or Artist Diploma programme please raise this at the time of audition; you may be required to submit additional evidence.
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Non Standard Entry
In exceptional circumstances, and subject to the approval of the relevant Programme Board, candidates whose abilities match the standards required for entry to a programme but who do not meet the standard academic entry criteria may still be considered. These applicants would be expected to provide alternative evidence of their ability to benefit from the programme.
Applicants for postgraduate Music programmes who will not have achieved a Bachelor of Music (Hons) qualification prior to entry should submit a detailed professional and academic CV with their application.
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Age at Entry
The School has a policy for the admission and support for students under the age of 18. Any student who has not yet reached the age of 18 on the first day of term will be admitted under this policy.
In order to be able to manage the long hours, intensive nature of the curriculum, and the adult content of the curriculum applicants for the BA Acting programme should normally have reached the age of 18 by the first day of the programme.
There is no upper age limit for applicants.
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Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and Criminal Convictions
As a condition of offer, all Leadership and Music Therapy applicants must submit a satisfactory DBS check (formerly CRB disclosure) by the start of the programme. Information on applying for a DBS check will be sent to these applicants before the start of term.
The Guildhall School has a policy about Safeguarding the Welfare of Children which includes the process relating to admission of students with previous relevant criminal convictions. A previous criminal conviction will not normally debar the offer of a place unless issues relating to the nature of the programme or security of the School community apply. To help the Guildhall School reduce the risk of harm or injury to their students all applicants must let us know if they have any unspent criminal convictions.
If you disclose that you have a criminal conviction you will be contacted in confidence by the Assistant Registrar (Admissions & Enrolment) and the implications and subsequent process will be explained in full. Offers of a place may be made but would be subject to engaging in the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checking process (formerly CRB).
Spent convictions are defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. For more information about our policy, please contact the Assistant Registrar (Admissions & Enrolment) at registry@gsmd.ac.uk
More information on the DBS checks can be found on the Gov.uk website.
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Consent to Share Information
The Guildhall School is bound by the Data Protection Act, meaning that we cannot discuss details of your application with anyone else unless you give your permission. When you apply you will be given a unique Reference Number to refer to in future correspondence. Undergraduate and Postgraduate applicants will also be able to set a ‘Memorable Word’ via eGo once they have completed their application to provide an extra level of security. If you provide your Application Reference Number and Memorable Word to a friend/relation/agent they may contact the School on your behalf otherwise we will refuse permission. If you have not yet received a Reference Number then sufficient details of your record will be required.
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References
If you are applying to one of the following programmes, your referees should be made aware that they will be contacted when the application is submitted and their references will be required within two weeks of the request:
If you already have the reference document, please enter your own email address rather than your referee's address so you can upload the document yourself when the reference request email is sent.
Not all programmes require references at application stage. If your programme is not listed above, the online application form will only ask you to provide the contact details of two referees. Your referees may then be contacted at a later stage in the admissions process, but they will not be asked to supply references before your audition/interview.
You should choose suitable people to act as your referees and you should have discussed this with them before supplying their email addresses in the application form. Please provide your referee with information about the programme you are applying for so they can comment on your suitability.
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Information for Referees
If you have given consent to an applicant to name you as a referee, they will need to provide your contact details on their application form. If the applicant is applying for one of the courses listed in the ‘References’ section above, you should receive an automatic email from the Guildhall School when the application is submitted. We ask that you provide a reference within two weeks of the request. Please note that we operate an open reference policy and the applicant may view their reference.
The Guildhall School does not require references to be in a specific format but if you have not yet written a reference for the applicant, you may wish to use this reference template. Please note, this is not a requirement; it has been provided for your convenience only.
The reference request email will provide you with a link that can be used to upload your reference directly to the applicant’s online application. Please note, these request emails are unique to each referee so should not reused or passed to colleagues, as the first reference uploaded will be overwritten.
If you have any problems with the online system you can simply post or email the reference to:
Registry (5th Floor Milton Court)
Guildhall School of Music & Drama
Silk Street, Barbican
London, EC2Y 8DT
Email: registry@gsmd.ac.uk
Please ensure your details and the applicant's details are marked clearly so the reference can be matched to the applicant’s record.
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Supplementary Material
Postage:
In no circumstances should candidates send recorded materials or applications directly to individual professors. They should be sent to:
Music & PG Cert Performance Teaching:
Antoine Kaiserman, Deputy Head of Music Administration
Music Office, Guildhall School of Music & Drama,
Silk Street, Barbican,
London, EC2Y 8DT
Acting & Production Arts & Creative Learning:
Lynne Buckley, Deputy Head of Production Arts and Drama Administration (Admissions)
Guildhall School of Music & Drama,
Silk Street, Barbican,
London, EC2Y 8DT
Research:
Research Coordinator
Guildhall School of Music & Drama,
Silk Street, Barbican,
London, EC2Y 8DT
Applicants sending additional documentation from overseas should ensure that for Customs purposes they indicate that they will pay any import tax charged.
Recorded Material
Recorded material for the Music Department can be submitted as an online download, streaming links or on DVD. Online links accompanying a posted portfolio should be clearly printed within the portfolio. Before submitting your recording please ensure that it is accessible and playable and that you are satisfied with the quality. Recordings should be undedited and any hard copy materials should be clearly labelled with your name and applicant number. Unfortunately recorded material is non-returnable.
Music applicants wishing to submit their recordings in another format will need prior approval and should contact Antoine Kaiserman music_applications@gsmd.ac.uk in the first instance.
Applicants for the BA in Performance & Creative Enterprise should contact pace_applications@gsmd.ac.uk if they have any questions about submitting the electronic portfolio. Please also see the Programme-Specific Supplementary Material section below.
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Programme-Specific Supplementary Material
Music
- Composition: BMus, Guildhall Artist Masters
In addition to making an application by the deadline, Composition applicants will be required to upload three contrasting compositions to the online applications system upon completion of their application form. Scores should be provided in PDF format (Sibelius/Finale files are NOT accepted). Where possible, recordings of the scores submitted should also be included as online links on the score or as a separate document (any freely accessible online service is acceptable). In no circumstances will a recording of a purely instrumental work be accepted without a score, but purely electronic pieces may be accompanied by a short textual commentary. Please note that only candidates whose scores are of an appropriate standard will be invited to interview.
- MA Opera Making & Writing (Composition pathway)
Applicants to the composition pathway will be expected to submit a portfolio of three compositions (with recordings) in the same manner as for BMus/Guildhall Artist applicants described above. At least one submitted composition should be for voice and instrument(s) and the portfolio will be expected to evidence a good general level of creative engagement with opera and theatre. All applicants will also need to submit personal statement (500-1000 words), which outlines their creative engagement with contemporary opera and the motivation that informs their application. All supporting material must be received by the application deadline. Please note that only candidates whose overall application is of an appropriate standard will be invited to audition
- MA Opera Making & Writing (Writing pathway)
Applicants for the writer pathway will be expected to upload a portfolio of writing – 15 poems or 5000 words of prose, or dramatic script (up to 30 pages) – and the portfolio will be expected to evidence a good general level of creative engagement with opera and theatre. The application process for the writing students will be managed by the Guildhall School’s Professor of Writing in conjunction with the Programme Director. All applicants will also need to submit personal statement (500-1000 words), which outlines their creative engagement with contemporary opera and the motivation that informs their application. All supporting material must be received by the application deadline. Please note that only candidates whose overall application is of an appropriate standard will be invited to audition.
- Electronic Music: BMus
In addition to making an application by the deadline, Electronic Music applicants are required to submit a recording of their own studio work and a résumé of their own electronic experience at least one week in advance of their audition. Both the recording and its case should be clearly labelled with the applicant’s name and online reference number.
- Artist Diploma (All pathways)
Applicants who are successful in the live audition round will be required to submit the below(you will be contacted following your audition):
- an up-to-date Artistic CV
- a recent recording (made within the last year). Please see information on Recorded Material above.
These items will be reviewed by the Artist Diploma Panel as part of the second round of consideration.
Production Arts
- BA Production Arts & BA Video Design for Live Performance
In addition to making an application by the deadline, applicants should prepare a portfolio of work relevant to their chosen pathway. Detailed information will be sent to applicants in advance of their interview.
- MA Collaborative Theatre Production and Design
In addition to making an application by the deadline, applicants should send a portfolio that demonstrates previous work related to their area of interest. This material should be securely bound and marked clearly with the applicant’s name. All supporting material must be received by the application deadline.
CREATIVE LEARNING
- BA Performance and Creative Enterprise
In addition to making an application by the deadline, applicants should submit an electronic portfolio to pace_applications@gsmd.ac.uk. This should include:
- A ‘summary’ document that outlining the contents of the portfolio, i.e. a short description of each item. Works-in-progress are welcome.
- Examples of work that best represents the candidate’s skills and interests. Depending on the art form, this might include: writing, poems, stories, lyrics, scripts / audio files / video files / picture files
- Descriptions of projects in which they have participated
- A document with links to other websites, e.g. Tumblr, Vimeo, SoundCloud etc.
RESEARCH
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All Other Material
Unless specifically requested, any other additional documentation such as covering letters, CVs, transcripts or extended personal statements are unnecessary and not required at the initial application stage. We will contact you if we require further information at a later point.
Please review your application before submission to ensure you have included all relevant information. We cannot guarantee that any additional information sent after the application has been submitted will be considered as part of the admissions process.
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