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Leeds College of Music

UCAS Code: L31

Location: Leeds, north of England Show on Map

Site: Single site in city centre

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Specialist college, specialising in education and training of musicians, music teachers and associated technologists.

Student Population

Total Students:	690
Undergraduates:	96%
Postgraduates:	4%
FE Students:	0%

Undergraduates

Total undergraduates:	660
Male:	75%
Female:	25%
Full Time:	100%
Mature on Entry:	15%
UK Students:	96%
State school entry:	90%

Teaching Staff

52 full-time, 180 part-time.

Broad study areas

Music (including jazz, classical music and popular music); music production (music production for film and TV, commercial music production and recording).

Freshers

Admission Information:	UCAS tariff used. Also auditions for most performance courses.
Points on Entry (Mean):	287
Drop Out Rate:	6%
Accommodation:	Most first years housed.

Institution

Founded:	1966
Site:	Purpose-built building in Leeds city centre
How to get there:	Leeds very accessible by road (M1 and M62), by national coach services, by rail (2 hours from London Kings Cross), and by air (Leeds/Bradford airport 8 miles from city centre; Manchester airport just over 1 hour). College close to coach and train stations.
Special features:	Artists-in-residence Dennis Rollins (jazz trombonist) and David Greed (Opera North).

Student services & facilities

Student advice & services:	2 student counsellors; advisers for funding, careers and 2 for welfare; SU liaison officer; equality & diversity officer.
Amenities:	College bar; all the amenities of Leeds.
Sporting facilities:	None on campus; use of gym and swimming pool nearby. Rugby league and union teams
Accommodation:	190 ensuite rooms in flats next to college; rent from £108−£121 per week (incl utilities, broadband and contents insurance), 42 week contract. Plenty of privately-owned accommodation available, rents approx £67+ pw for room in shared, self-catering house. College uses Unipol bureau.

Study opportunities & careers

Library & information services:	36,000 volumes, 55 periodicals; 60 study places. IT and library services converged. Annual expenditure £42 pa spent for each student (FTE). 15 workstations with access to library, 60 to internet. IT facilities open 11 hours/day; IT support from technician 8 hours/day. Introduction to library, its catalogue and specialist software for all new students. Specialist collection: jazz archive.
Other learning resources:	Virtual learning environment; recital room (regular recitals); state-of-the-art 350-seat performance space; 9 fully-upgraded recording studios.
Careers:	Information and advice service; placement service for some courses. Main employment areas are teaching, performance, music sales.

Money

Living expenses budget:	Minimum budget of £6000−£7000 pa (excluding tuition fees) recommended by college.
Term-time work:	College allows term-time work for full-time students (12 hours/week maximum recommended).
Financial help:	Bursaries of £2000 for students whose family income is up to £25k pa, or of £1500 where family income is £25k−£42.6k pa. Variety of scholarships awarded on merit, ranging from £3000 in Year 1 to £9000 pa, open to students whose family income is up to £18k pa, those studying specified instruments, to purchase a trombone etc. £20,000 government funds, some 71 students helped (awards £100−£500; average £300).
University tuition fees:	Home students pay £9000 pa for first degrees. International students paid £10,930 pa.

Courses

Academic features:

Courses in jazz, popular music, classical music, music production; foundation degrees in music production (commercial music and for film and television).

Awarding body:

Open University

Main undergraduate awards:

BA, FD

Length of courses:

3 years; 2 years (FD).

Main subjects offered:

Film Music
Jazz
Music
Music Technology
Music Theatre
Performance Arts
Popular Music

Student view

Danielle Le Cuirot, Student Union Communications Officer (3rd year, BA Popular Music Studies)

Living

What's it like as a place to live? Friendly. Everything you need is within walking distance and it's not hard to find your way around

How's the student accommodation?University accommodation is farly expensive but well located. Private housing is cheap but not necessarily great quality.

What's the student population like? Very high, friendly with diverse backgrounds, bringing people in from all around the UK and internationally.

How do students and locals get on?Locals are friendly but a clear division can be seen between locals and students when it comes to areas each group will spend time, venues groups go to socialise, areas students live in and areas locals live in.

Studying

What's it like as a place to study?All courses become more flexible over time and students specialise towards the end of their degree. Facilities are good but there tends to be a shortage during the lead up to assessments/exams/auditions.

What are the teaching staff like?Teaching staff are friendly, helpful and take an interest in their students. Guest speakers are frequent and beneficial.

Socialising

What are student societies like? There are several societies for sport, plus a Christian Union and LGBT Scociety. There is a Student Union in college run by the students with the help of a part-time liaison officer. They organise a good range of gigs and parties through the year including Freshers Week, Halloween, Christmas and end of year ball.

What's a typical night out?Leeds has a great nightlife. You can choose from pubbing, clubbing, gigs, restaurants, bars and much more.

And how much does it cost? Many venues are free or only a few pounds entry, unless you go to a popular club or gig where it will be more.

How can you get home safely?There are a number of taxi services and several late night bus routes. Most areas of Leeds are well lit and relatively safe but it's always best not to go out alone late at night.

Money

Is it an expensive place to live? It is not an expensive place to live and there is a local market nearby which helps keep expenses down.

Average price of a pint? £2.50.

And the price of a takeaway? £5.

What's the part-time work situation? College is very helpful for students looking for work or having financial issues. There are jobs available mainly in theatres, bars and shops.

Summary

What's the best feature about the place? The shopping and the nightlife; and, within college, the community atmosphere.

And the worst? Being at a music college, you're surrounded by music and other musicians all day, every day, whereas at a university you meet people with completely different interests.

And to sum it all up? Leeds College of Music is a friendly, vibrant place to study and its location makes it perfect for gaining experience in the live music scene.

Past Students

Chris 'Snake' Davis (sax player, M People, Lisa Stansfield), Alan Barnes (jazz saxophonist), Andrew Colman (Young Jazz Musician of the Year 1999), Matthew Bourne (BBC Radio Jazz Innovation award 2002), Damon Gough (aka Badly Drawn Boy).