Yes! All prospective music majors and minors, including Music Industry students, must audition on an instrument or voice to be admitted to an applied studio. Interested in Music Industry but don’t have a traditional music background? That’s okay! We encourage you to talk with your school’s music teacher and explore private instrument or voice lessons in your hometown before auditioning. Guitar can be a great starting point for beginners. Review the audition requirements for your chosen instrument or voice, and contact us at GSMAuditions@okstate.edu for guidance.

No! You do not need to submit a prescreening recording before scheduling your audition.

If you are unable to attend any of the in-person audition dates, please email us at GSMAuditions@okstate.edu as soon as possible. We will try to work with you to schedule an audition at a later time with the music faculty. You can also submit a video audition. Please be aware that your audition must be completed by February 28 to be considered for a scholarship or out-of-state waivers.

A smartphone is perfectly acceptable. Your recording does not need to be professionally produced, but it must allow faculty to clearly hear your instrument/voice and accompaniment and see your physical approach to playing/singing. Ensure your video captures a clear, full-body frame, allowing for detailed views of essential aspects such as the embouchure, hands, and face for woodwind and brass players, or the head, hands, and feet for pianists. Failure to follow these guidelines may result in rejection of your audition submission.

Recording Space and Camera

• Record in a quiet, well-lit space with a clean, uncluttered background.
• Place the camera 6-10 feet away at approximately chest or eye level.
• Frame yourself from approximately the waist/knees to slightly above your head.
• Record horizontally and keep the camera stationary.

Audio

• Both instrument/voice and accompaniment must be clearly audible throughout the recording.
• Record in a space without excessive echo or background noise.
• Make a short test and listen to it before submitting.
• Avoid distortion or audio effects such as autotune, pitch correction, or reverb.

Performance

• At the beginning of the recording, state your name and identify the piece(s) you will perform.
• Please be sure to include full takes of pieces, as detailed in the repertoire list.
• For voice, all repertoire must be fully memorized and maintain an engaged, forward gaze rather than looking down or away.
• Treat the recording as a live audition and perform with confidence and commitment.
• Do not edit multiple takes together. Submit a continuous performance of each selection.

Professional Presentation

• Dress appropriately for an audition; avoid distracting patterns or logos.
• Remove distracting people, pets, or objects from the recording space.

If you have questions about your video audition, please contact GSMAuditions@okstate.edu. For information regarding video submission for pianists, please contact the the piano area coordinator, Prof. Heather Lanners at heather.lanners@okstate.edu.

Cowboy Marching Band

Videos should be 3-5 minutes in length for those auditioning only for the Cowboy Marching Band. Your audition should demonstrate both lyrical and technical abilities as a player. Some appropriate suggestions, but not requirements, may include regional or state audition music, études, band music, or solo and ensemble repertoire. OSU Drumline Auditions, please click here.

Video Format

To share your video audition with us, please upload it to YouTube and set the video privacy to "unlisted" (not "public" or "private"). Then, email us the link to your video, and our music faculty will review your submission. We look forward to seeing your performance!When you begin your video, please clearly state:

• Your full name
• Where you are from (example - Pistol Pete High School, Stillwater, Oklahoma)
• Why you are interested in music and/or the Cowboy Marching Band/OSU Symphony Orchestra
• What piece(s) you will be playing

Submit your Audition Video

For spring 2027 auditions, the following instrument/music areas have limited audition dates:

Strings auditions will only occur on February 6 and 27 from 10am to Noon.

Piano auditions will only occur on Saturday, February 6 after the High School Piano Competition.

Non-major/minor Percussion Auditions for OSU Drumline, please click here.

• Instrumental performance auditionees must bring their own instrument to their audition, with the exception of the piano and drumset.

• All vocal performance auditionees must bring their cleanly copied music, hole-punched and placed in a binder. More information from the vocal area can be found here.

• Composition applicants should bring their portfolio of work and be prepared to leave a hard copy with Dr. Karâca or provide a link to view all work online.

• Bring a relaxed and positive attitude! You got this!

Dress to impress, but don’t feel compelled to buy a new outfit! Choose something polished and comfortable that allows you to perform your best. The best thing you can bring is confidence!

• You can check in anytime between 9:30am and 4:00pm.

• There are practice rooms available on the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd floors to warm up.

• Auditions are about 10 to 20 minutes long, depending on your instrument or area. Graduate auditions can be 30-45 minutes long.

• Music Majors and Minors can take their Music Theory Placement Exam before or after your scheduled audition time. Allow yourself at least 30 minutes to complete your exam.

• Vocalists should be prepared to sight read after their audition.

• If you'd like a campus tour, contact Campus Tours to schedule.

The Greenwood School of Music primarily offers on-campus auditions for fall 2027 admission. This modality is subject to change based on inclement weather. For those unable to audition on campus, we offer a video submission option.

As with all other universities in the United States, for full acceptance to OSU, all international applicants must meet or exceed a minimum English language proficiency exam score. The minimum scores for undergraduate admission are a TOEFL IBT score of 61, an IELTS score of 5.5, or a PTE Academic Score of 46. Master of Music students must meet the OSU Graduate College minimum scores of 79 TOEFL or 6.5 IELTS.

International students are not only eligible for undergraduate scholarship funds or graduate assistantships, but may also be awarded generous Non-Resident Tuition Waivers that lower tuition costs by over 60 percent. The awarding of such financial aid is based primarily on the quality of each student’s live or video audition, assuming the auditioning student has been fully accepted through the university admissions process.

For more information, visit the International Studies sites for undergraduate studies and Graduate College.

Yes! High school seniors participating in the OSU High School Piano Competition may elect to have their competition performance serve as their college audition. Students interested auditioning at GSM on Saturday, February 6, 2027must also fill out an audition request form listed above in the How to Audition for the Greenwood School of Music Step-By-Step section. More information about the OSU High School Piano Competition can be found here:

OSU HIGH SCHOOL PIANO COMPETITION

Click here to watch a video on how to audition for the Cowboy Marching Band

All first-round auditions for percussionists wanting to gain membership in the OSU Drumline will do their first audition via YouTube (or other video submission). Videos must be sent to percussion@okstate.edu by April 1, 2027.

Audition material and helpful videos

After the first-round videos have been reviewed, live auditions will occur at the Oklahoma State University campus.

Questions? Reach out to Professor Wayne Bovenschen at wayne.bovenschen@okstate.edu

This exam has been designed to meet the needs of music students at several levels, from entering freshmen music majors to transfer students and graduate students. It is in the student’s best interest to be placed into the appropriate level of music theory studies.

It is our goal that you succeed at your music studies at Greenwood School of Music. We want you to be placed into the classes that will benefit you the most. There is no advantage to being placed into a class that is too advanced, if you fail and fall behind in your degree plan. There is also no advantage to being placed into a class that you do not need.

This is a “placement exam.” It is designed to measure your knowledge and skills on a typical day. You should not cram for this exam. If you don’t know the answer to a question, skip it and move on to the next one. The more that can be determined about what you know and what you don’t know, the better the recommendation that can be made to your advisor.

After the exam, a recommendation will be sent to all music advisors, regarding which courses a student should enroll. Students will meet with an advisor to discuss their degree plan and begin scheduling their classes for the upcoming semester.

We highly recommend studying and not cramming for the Music Theory Placement Exam. Students can study for their exam by signing up for a free account on uTheory.com.

Sign up for a free uTheory account

For priority scholarship consideration, undergraduate students must complete their audition (in-person or video) by February 28. Your audition serves as your “application” for all music department scholarships.

If you play multiple instruments or also sing, we recommend auditioning in every area you’re interested in - you never know where scholarship opportunities might come from! For example, if you play trombone, consider auditioning for both the applied professor and the jazz professor.

Scholarship and grant information can be found here:

Scholarship Information

Music Department Scholarships & Awards

Out-of-state tuition waivers are limited and competitive. The number available to the Greenwood School of Music can vary from year to year and is not guaranteed. We award these waivers to students who demonstrate exceptional musical talent through their auditions.

For priority consideration, complete your in-person audition or submit your video audition before March 1.

Ensembles are open to ALL OSU students regardless of major. Each ensemble is made of music and non-music majors. The ensembles are solely decided upon ability and auditions are required. Auditions for ensembles (except for Cowboy Marching Band and OSU Drumline) are held the week before the fall and spring semester commences. More information can be found here:

ENSEMBLE INFORMATION

Our spring auditions are for admission to a music degree program and consideration for music scholarships and tuition waivers. Complete the Audition Request Form only if you plan to major or minor in music or participate in the Cowboy Marching Band, OSU Symphony Orchestra (strings only), OSU Choirs, or OSU Drumline.  

If you want to participate in OSU Concert Bands, OSU Symphony Orchestra on a non-string instrument, or OSU Jazz ensembles without majoring or minoring in music, you do not need to complete the Audition Request Form. These ensembles hold placement auditions before classes begin in the fall to determine ensemble membership and placement.

We’ll update our Ensembles page in late summer with placement audition dates, requirements, and instructions.

No worries! Email us or give us a call at (405) 744-8999. We'd love to help you out!