Propel Pathway
The Propel Pathway is a pilot project that will provide some applicants and prospective applicants, from low-income households, with up to 20 hours of targeted tuition and support to prepare them for study.
Propel Pathway is supported by Purposeful Ventures.
What is the Propel Pathway?
The School will run the Propel Pathway in the Music department, as a pilot for 2026. Two versions of the Pathway will run.
Pre-application Propel: designed for eligible students in year 12 (or equivalent) who intend to apply to Guildhall School for September 2027 entry.
Post-application Propel: designed for eligible undergraduate applicants for September 2026 entry, who are not quite ready for a conditional offer, but who have the potential to become entry-ready with targeted tuition and support.
Please check the relevant section below to find out more about each Propel Pathway.
Pre-application Propel
Applicants must be:
- UK-domiciled (meaning you live permanently in the UK and are a UK national, or have leave to remain)
- Current year 12 pupil (or equivalent stage of education)
- State-educated for the entirety of their education
- Living in a household with an annual income below £35,000, and/or in receipt of Free School Meals
- Intending to apply for the BMus programme in the Strings, WBP, Vocal or Keyboard departments for entry in September 2027
- Up to 20 hours of targeted tuition and support with Guildhall tutors, or multiple tutors depending on need, and Music department staff, preparing you for the Guildhall undergraduate audition process in 2026.
- Tuition will largely take place online, but travel bursaries are available for up to two in-person sessions at the School.
- Access to Guildhall School concerts and events, both in-person and online.
There are six places available on pre-application Propel. You can apply from anywhere in the UK.
Applications can be submitted HERE. The application form will close at midday on 3rd November 2025.
Applications will be assessed for eligibility. Eligible applicants will be invited to submit an audition video via a freely available service (e.g. Youtube or Vimeo), to be assessed by the Music department. The applicant should play/perform two contrasting pieces in their audition video.*
Successful applicants will be invited to join the Propel Pathway no later than early January 2026.
*For more information about the audition video please refer to the document below.
Propel Audition Guidance.pdf
Participants will be invited to apply to Guildhall School via the Supported Application Scheme for 2027 entry.
They will be provided a written report of their progress, which will include actionable ongoing guidance on how they can prepare for the audition process.
If we receive more applications than we have places for, the Music department will consider and prioritise the following:
- Potential demonstrated in the audition tape, prioritising those with the promise to improve
- Representation across all participating departments, ensuring at least one per department where possible
- Instruments that are high priority for the School and that may have scholarship support attached
- Applicants that have an IMD Q1 or Q2 postcode or who have flagged they receive Free School Meals.
- The level of tuition and support an applicant has previously received, prioritising those who have experienced less support and who will most benefit from the opportunity
- The written statements in the Propel applications, considering the applicants’ reasons for applying
Post-application Propel
Applicants must be:
- UK-domiciled (home-fundable)
- State-educated for the entirety of their education
- Current applicant to the School’s BMus programme in the Strings, WBP, Vocal or Keyboard departments
- Living in a household with an annual income below £35,000, and/or a recipient of Free School Meals
- Assessed by their undergraduate audition panel as not quite ready for a conditional offer, and made a reserve offer
- Up to 20 hours of targeted tuition with a Guildhall tutor, or multiple tutors depending on need, to support you to meet the standard of entry for our undergraduate programmes by summer 2026.
- Tuition will largely take place online, but travel bursaries are available for up to two in-person sessions at the School.
- Access to Guildhall School concerts and events, both in-person and online.
There are six places available on post-application Propel.
Candidates will apply for- and audition for- the school in the standard way. For candidates who are issued with a ‘reserve’ offer following audition, the Access and Participation team will review the information declared on the application form. They will reach out to all reserve offer holders who indicate that they are UK-domiciled and have been state educated for the entirety of their education.
These candidates will be asked to provide further information about household income and invited to apply to Propel if they meet the criteria. Applicants must provide evidence to support their application.
Candidates will apply to post-application Propel via an online application form, the link for which will be exclusively available in the email from the Access and Participation team.
Applications will open in November 2025 and will close at midday on 12th January 2026.
If we receive more applications than we have places for, the Music department will consider and prioritise the following:
- Representation across all participating departments, ensuring at least one per department where possible
- Instruments that are high priority for the School and that may have scholarship support attached
- Applicants that have an IMD Q1 or Q2 postcode or who have flagged they receive Free School Meals on their undergraduate application
- The level of tuition and support a candidate has previously received, prioritising those who have experienced less support, and who have the potential to make the most progress through receiving targeted tuition
- The written statements in the Propel applications, considering the applicants’ reasons for applying
At the end of the tuition (approx. June 2026) post-application Propel participants will re-audition, to determine the progression that they have made. Their tutor(s) will also provide a written statement of their progress.
If sufficient progress has been made, and the panel and tutor(s) determine that the participant is ready for study, their reserve offer will be upgraded to a firm offer for September 2026 entry.
If the participant is still not ready for undergraduate study, they will be provided with actionable feedback and will be invited to reapply to Guildhall School via the Supported Application Scheme for 2027 entry, should they wish to.
Further information
Participation in either iteration of the Propel Pathway does not guarantee entry to Guildhall School’s degree programmes.
Up to 20 hours of tuition and support are available. The participant will be required to manage their time and liaise with relevant staff to ensure their tuition is booked in within the allocated time frame.
Only applicants/prospective applicants to the Strings, Vocal, Keyboard and Wind, Brass and Percussion departments are eligible for the Propel Pathway.
The content of the tuition and support will be at the discretion of the Music department and tailored to the specific needs of the participant. Participants may be allocated more than one tutor depending on their requirements.
Time spent on Propel may include, but is not limited to, visits to the School, guidance on repertoire, music theory and aural skill support, short courses where it is deemed to be helpful, alongside 1-1 tuition with the relevant department.
Guildhall School tutors will liaise with the participant's current music tutor(s) throughout the project to ensure consistency in support.
Participants are expected to adhere to the evaluation requirements of the project.
Should Guildhall School find that a participant is no longer eligible for the support, their tuition will cease immediately.
The Propel Pathway is supported by Purposeful Ventures as part of their Music & Arts portfolio. You can find out more about the work of Purposeful Ventures HERE.
