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Musical Theatre BA(Hons)

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Start Dates

21 September 2026

Duration

3 years full-time 4 years inc. placement year

UCAS Tariff

120-104


Recent Awards For Excellence

Ofsted outstanding provider logo Performing Arts - QS 2025
Find out more about these awards
About this course

Overview

Why choose Huddersfield for this course?

  • Receive expert tuition in singing, acting, and movement, with one-to-one guidance from experienced staff
  • Perform regularly in public productions, developing confidence and stage experience
  • Gain career-focused support through modules like Creative Futures and exposure to industry professionals

Our Musical Theatre BA(Hons) course is a practice-based, performance-focused degree designed for students aiming to become professional musical theatre performers. You’ll receive individual vocal training from expert tutors, alongside acting and movement coaching from our experienced teaching team, helping you develop a strong, versatile skill set for the stage.

You’ll investigate how musicals are constructed, learning to think critically about text, character, and form, while exploring how to integrate singing, movement, and acting to create compelling performances. The course offers three years of dedicated performance, rehearsal, and creative development, enabling you to develop your artistry and craft your unique performance identity.

Huddersfield provides an inspiring and supportive environment: Music at Huddersfield is ranked 8th in the UK (Daily Mail University Guide 2026), the School has won the Queen’s Anniversary Prize for its world-leading work promoting contemporary music internationally, and the Performing Arts are ranked 37th in the world (QS World University Subject Rankings 2025).

You’ll benefit from state-of-the-art facilities, including rehearsal spaces, studios, concert halls, and specialist equipment, all of which are available for open-access practice outside of teaching. Collaboration across the Performing Arts suite enriches your learning and expands your creative opportunities.

Throughout the course, you’ll perform in public showcases, termly productions, and full-scale musicals, gaining practical experience in a professional context. The Creative Futures module supports your career development, offering guidance on entering the industry and creating professional opportunities. Visiting professionals, residencies, and masterclasses from leading performers and companies further enhance your learning.

Graduates leave with the skills and confidence to pursue careers as musical theatre performers, solo artists, ensemble members, or to explore related pathways in acting, voice, choreography, and creative performance industries.

Who can apply?

Entry Requirements

BBB-BCC at A Level.
120-104 UCAS tariff points from a combination of Level 3 qualifications.
Merit at T Level.
DMM-MMM in BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma.
Merit in UAL Level 3 Extended Diploma.
Merit in RSL Level 3 Extended Diploma.
Access to Higher Education Diploma with 45 Level 3 credits at Merit or above.
120-104 UCAS tariff points from International Baccalaureate qualifications.


If your first language is not English, you will need to meet the minimum requirements of an English Language qualification. The minimum of IELTS 6.0 overall with no element lower than 5.5, or equivalent. Read more about the University’s entry requirements for students outside of the UK on our International Entry Requirements page.

Other suitable experience or qualifications will be considered. For further information please see the University's minimum entry requirements.

If you do not have the appropriate qualifications for direct entry to this degree you may be able to apply to our Music and Performing Arts Foundation Pathway Degree.

What will you learn?

Course Details

You’ll have the opportunity to explore the ways in which a play script can form the basis for a live theatre production through working together as a company to stage a short text. Training in acting, voice, and the physical can be explored through the challenge of staging the work.

You will undertake a foundational training in approaches to making live performance. You will explore workshop practice, including aspects of performance training, as well as a range of techniques and starting points for creating work. The nature of group and individual creativity will be addressed, and you will engage in at least one major collaborative public performance project. You will keep logbooks and undertake contextual research and analysis.

You’ll work one-on-one with an instrumental or vocal tutor throughout the year to strengthen your technical skills and deepen your musical understanding. This will prepare you for both solo and group performances in Year 2 and 3. Alongside regular assessment and feedback from your specialist tutor, you’ll explore improvisation in a small group setting and create a solo recital (live or recorded) as part of your assessment.

You will gain hands-on experience of a variety of key musical skills: improvisation; aural awareness; ensemble performance; and evaluating your own and others' performances. A wide range of styles and genres will be explored, and you will work with musicians relevant to your specialism as a pop, classical, or jazz performer.

The aim of this module is to allow you to participate in and analyse a process leading to a performance or performance-related event (installation, series of workshops, etc) and also to study in detail the text or material which forms the basis for the work. You will contribute in one or more roles within a creative process which will be staff initiated and/or directed, developing and extending your own skills and knowledge.  Typical examples might include: a Renaissance text, a devised performance, a contemporary playtext, a filmed performance, a piece of live/performance art, or a series of Applied Theatre workshops. You will document the process in detail using analysis and reflection. Research and discussion will form an integral part of each process, and Academic Skills and PDP reflections will be embedded in the curriculum.

You’ll have the opportunity to undertake a training project in one of a range of theatre skill areas, such as directing, performing, physical theatre, technical theatre, or workshop facilitation. A programme of training will help to prepare you to undertake an independent project which demonstrates your skills and understandings.

Throughout the year, you’ll work one-on-one with your instrumental or vocal tutor to develop your technical skills and musical insight. This will prepare you for a solo performance recital (live or recorded, where you’ll showcase your progress in musicianship, communication, and technical ability.

You will choose one practical option from an array of ensembles, bands, and approaches to performance. Options typically range from conducting, music theatre, and improvisation through to groups like orchestra, big band, brass band, classical and pop choirs, and a huge variety of pop, rock, soul, funk, and folk bands. Specialist performance tutors will coach you towards assessed performances that are open to the public.

The placement year is your chance to gain hands-on experience and build on the skills you’ve developed in your first two years of study. You’ll spend up to 48 weeks (minimum 36 weeks) in a graduate-level role, sharpening your professional skills, exploring career options, and boosting your future job prospects. During your placement, you'll reflect on your performance, develop real-world skills, and learn to approach your role with a critical eye. Your placement will be monitored, and you’ll be assessed on your achievements, setting you up for success in your final year and beyond.

The Portfolio Sandwich Year module provides a flexible and tailored approach to professional development. It allows you to create a customised portfolio of graduate-level opportunities if your career aspirations don’t align with a traditional sandwich year placement. This module will help you develop a diverse and adaptable skillset, build professional networks, and enhance your career readiness through a mix of structured and self-directed activities.

You will contribute your artistic skills to the preparation of a staff-led performance , developing and extending your own skills and knowledge. You will document the process and share the results of your analysis through reflective reports. The project will be rooted in an area of staff research and teaching expertise, and its initial focus will be staff initiated. Typical examples might include: contemporary or classical texts; musical theatre; a filmed performance; a piece of devised work. Although the performance may be staff directed, you will be expected to take clear responsibility and initiative for co-ordinating different aspects of the process and/or for running sessions.

The Final Year Project is an opportunity to demonstrate practical skills in a significant theatre or performance role. Building on skills developed through earlier study, you will be able to negotiate a practical project that may focus on performing, directing, applied theatre practice, writing or technical and production skills. With input from a supervisor, you will then be asked to work largely independently to deliver the agreed project. Many of the practical projects appear in the Department’s annual Common Grounds Festival.

This module will help you imagine and plan for your future. Whether you want to be an actor, director, film-maker, producer, technician, or teacher, or to do something outside the creative industries, you will need to find the right context in which to work with others and develop your practice. In this module you will reflect critically on your current work and investigate potential employment opportunities, thinking about where you may want to take your career. You will conduct research into a specific industry and/or cultural context that matters to you, learning about what others are doing and imagining what you might contribute.

You will choose one practical option from an array of ensembles, bands, and approaches to performance. Options typically range from conducting, music theatre, and improvisation through to groups like orchestra, big band, brass band, classical and pop choirs, and a huge variety of pop, rock, soul, funk, and folk bands. Specialist performance tutors will coach you towards assessed performances that are open to the public.

Teaching and Assessment

Discover what to expect from your tutor contact time, assessment methods, and feedback process.

Global Professional Award

At Huddersfield, you’ll study the award-winning Global Professional Award (GPA) alongside your degree* — so you’re ready for the career you want, whatever subject you choose.

Interested in a placement?

Placements

Every term you are here as a student, you will have the opportunity to be onstage in front of a paying audience in a staff-led performance. We produce dramas, comedies, period shows, and musicals which means you can experience many different performance genres. You can direct your own show in year two, and create a festival performance in year three. We also have a student-run theatre company, HAT Soc, which produces multiple shows each year. Along with the Musical Theatre Society and numerous films being made in our Film School, there are numerous opportunities to perform across the three years you'll be with us.

Where could this lead you?

Your Career

Our graduates have gone on to work in the performing arts, award-winning films, television, touring theatre, teaching and running their own performance companies.
A selection of companies that have employed Huddersfield graduates in recent years include BBC One, ITV, Channel 4, Lawrence Batley Theatre, BBC 6 Music, Royal National Theatre and Point Blanc Theatre Company. Some students have chosen postgraduate study or additional vocational training in specialist areas, whilst a significant number successfully gain teaching qualifications and enter the teaching profession.*
*LinkedIn

95%
Percent of graduates from this subject area were in work or further study 15 months after graduation

* HESA Graduate Outcomes 22/23, UK Domiciled

How much will it cost?

Fees and Finance

£9,790 per year

This information is for Home students applying to study at the University of Huddersfield in the academic year 2026/27.

Please note that tuition fees for subsequent years may rise in line with inflation (RPI-X) and/or Government policy. 

From January 2027 the UK government is launching a new student funding system for people starting university education. Read more about the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE).

For detailed information please visit https://www.hud.ac.uk/study/fees/

£17,600 per year

This information is for international students applying to study at the University of Huddersfield in the academic year 2026/27.

Please note that tuition fees for subsequent years may rise in line with inflation (RPI-X) and/or Government policy. 

For detailed information please visit https://www.hud.ac.uk/international/fees-and-funding/

Home

The tuition fee for a placement year is £1000. If you go on work experience or work placement, you will need to fund your own travel and/or accommodation costs to and from the placement.  Please be aware that if your placement is outside of the UK, you will still be responsible for your travel and living expenses and may need to consider issues like health care and insurance costs.

International

The tuition fee for a placement year is £3,300. If you go on work experience or work placement, you will need to fund your own travel and/or accommodation costs to and from the placement.  Please be aware that if your placement is outside of the UK, you will still be responsible for your travel and living expenses and may need to consider issues like health care and insurance costs.

Scholarships and Bursaries

Discover what additional help you may be eligible for to support your University studies.

Tuition Fee Loans

Find out more about tuition fee loans available to eligible undergraduate students.

What’s included in your fee?

We want you to understand exactly what your fees will cover and what additional costs you may need to budget for when you decide to become a student with us.

If you have any questions about Fees and Finance, please email the Student Finance Team.

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Why Hud

Explore the unique opportunities and resources that make our institution a top choice for students seeking a well-rounded and future-focused education.

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Careers support

We know you’re coming to university to study on your chosen subject, meet new people and broaden your horizons. However, we also help you to focus on life after you have graduated to ensure that your hard work pays off and you achieve your ambition.

Find out more about careers support

Student support

At the University of Huddersfield, you’ll find support networks and services to help you get ahead in your studies and social life. Whether you study at undergraduate or postgraduate level, you’ll soon discover that you’re never far away from our dedicated staff and resources to help you to navigate through your personal student journey.

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Teaching Excellence

Great teaching is engaging and inspiring — it helps you reach your full potential and prepares you for the future. We don’t just teach well — we excel — and we have the awards and recognition to prove it.

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Inspiring Academics

Our researchers carry out world-leading work that makes a real difference to people’s lives. Staff within the Department of Media, Humanities and the Arts may teach you on this course.

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Research Excellence

You’ll be taught by staff who want to support your learning and share the latest knowledge and research.

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Accommodation

Looking for student accommodation? Huddersfield has you covered. HudLets has a variety of accommodation types to choose from, no matter what your preference. HudLets is the University’s approved accommodation service, run by Huddersfield Students’ Union.

Take a look at your options

Further Study

If you want to continue your learning beyond your undergraduate degree, there is a range of financial support available for postgraduate study, including discounts for Huddersfield graduates.

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