Music Scholarships | Loras College | Financial Aid

Continue to Share Your Talents

Loras offers two music scholarships. Audition for vocal and instrumental scholarships and be awarded up to $3,000. Recipients must participate in vocal or instrumental ensembles annually to maintain their award. Auditions are submitted electronically and reviewed upon submission.

Get in Touch

Contact your admission representative, email our Office of Admission, or call 563.588.7236.

St. Cecilia Music Scholarship

This scholarship is open to all majors and provides instant membership in a creative, contributing community on campus. Students participating in liturgical music ministry are eligible for a scholarship to cover their applied lesson fee.

Vocal Audition Criteria

Sing two solo pieces, or excerpts of solo pieces, in contrasting styles. Examples may be an art song and a musical theater solo. These should be chosen from the solo repertoire for voice type and should not be choral pieces. Each piece or excerpt should be approximately 2 to 5 minutes in length. Accompaniment is recommended but not required.
Sing the following scales:
- Major scale in one octave. Singing on solfege or scale degrees (i.e. Do, Re, Mi, etc. or 1, 2, 3, etc.) is recommended but not required.
- Harmonic minor scale in either La- or Do-based minor
Informal conversation with music faculty member.

Scholarship Recipients Must

Participate in one of Loras’ credited musical ensembles
Demonstrate adequate musical progress
Maintain a minimum 2.8 GPA

Fr. Wilkie Liturgical Music Scholarship

This scholarship pays applied lesson fees for all instrumentalists and vocalists who participate in liturgical music ministry regardless of their intended major.

Instrumental Audition Criteria

Play two contrasting solo pieces or excerpts of solo pieces. These should be chosen from the solo repertoire for your instrument and should not be ensemble pieces. Each piece or excerpt should be approximately 2 to 5 minutes in length. Accompaniment is recommended but not required.
Play the following scales:
- Major scales on F (2 octaves), C (one octave), G (2 octaves), and D-flat (one octave)
- Harmonic minor scales (one octave only) on d, a, e, and b-flat
- A full-range Chromatic scale is recommended but not required.
Informal conversation with music faculty member.

Scholarship Recipients Must

Participate in two campus liturgies/celebrations each semester
Participate in applied lessons with faculty
Demonstrate adequate musical progress
Maintain character values in accordance with Loras’ Catholic identity
Maintain a minimum 2.8 GPA

Application Process

Admitted students may apply through the scholarship application found on your student status page.

Complete the FAFSA and send it to Loras College (Code 001873).
Submit an audition video following the scholarship criteria above.
Within the application, schedule an informal conversation with a music faculty member.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use an accompanist in my recorded audition?

Yes! We recommend that you send an accompanying video. However, accompaniment is not required.

What if my application is submitted, but my video audition isn’t?

Your scholarship application is incomplete until we receive your video. Unfortunately, we cannot award your scholarship until the video is submitted.

Will there be a personal interview?

We will have interviews in the days following each submission. Watch out for an email from us with scheduling information.

Can I submit an instrumental and a vocal audition?

Yes! However, you can only receive one scholarship, so it may be a good idea to submit both.

Can I submit a single or multiple videos?

You can submit your solo pieces/excerpts and scales together or separately. Just be sure to name your file(s) following the instructions.