Entry auditions… questions… here are our answers to the questions we are asked the most frequently. To help us improve our service and keep our website up-to-date, please don’t hesitate to send us your questions at the following address: concours@cnsmd-lyon.fr
Admission to the LYON CNSMD is by audition. For some courses (writing techniques and composition) preliminary selection is based on the candidate’s written application. Audition sessions are not open to the public.
There are no formal academic requirements for entry at undergraduate level but candidates who already hold a DNSPM, a bachelor’s or master’s degree in the specialisation concerned will not be permitted to apply to study in the same area.
For all master’s specialisations taught at the LYON CNSMD, candidates can only be admitted if they already hold a DNSPM or a bachelor’s degree (or a qualification from an institution in France or abroad which is recognised as being equivalent to a bachelor’s degree) in the specialisation concerned.
Preliminary selection at master’s level is based on the candidate’s written application. Successful candidates are admitted after taking an audition in their main specialisation and attending an interview with the panel of examiners.
Doctorate-level programmes are open to candidates who hold either a master’s degree or a master’s level qualification.
For music studies at undergraduate (DNSPM), master’s and doctorate levels (Artist Diploma) the age limits for applicants are as follows: minimum 16, maximum 30 (on 1st October in the year the audition is taken).
For dance studies:
Requests for any of these conditions to be waived should be addressed to the Director of Choreographic Studies. There are no age limits for music teacher-training courses or the ‘research and practice’ doctorate programme.
The dates differ from one specialisation to another and can also vary from year to year. The deadlines for applications and the audition dates are announced on the website every year: (mettre page calendrier en lien)..
All requests for application forms are made online via our website:
Requests received after the deadline will not be accepted.
Application forms (PDF files) are sent to all candidates by e-mail. The candidate must print out the documents and return them before the deadline.
Yes.
There are three possibilities: cheque, bank transfer and cash. Payment in instalments is not possible.
French students benefitting from a state maintenance grant are given a 50% reduction (on presentation of the official document showing that they have been awarded a grant for the current year)
For dance courses there is a two-day training period of lessons in classical and contemporary dance with CNSMD teachers.
The preliminary round is held on the third day and consists of lessons before a panel of examiners in both classical and contemporary dance.
The entry audition as such consists of two phases:
Audition sessions are not open to the public.
For music courses undergraduate auditions consist of two phases:
For admission at master’s and doctorate levels the preliminary round is based on the candidate’s written application.
Candidates who get through the preliminary selection process must perform a set programme specific to each specialisation (or a free-choice programme) details of which are posted on the website.
Candidats should wear close-fitting clothes with ballet tights or shorts.
The requirements for the preliminary round and entry auditions are published on the day pre-registration opens on the website.
All students admitted to undergraduate courses are registered in the first semester of the first year.
This said, the director can validate credits (ECTS) obtained by the student at a higher education institution in France or abroad, provided that the teaching staff are in agreement.
A committee called ‘Validation des Acquis Antérieurs’ (Validation of Previous Learning) determines exactly what can be recognised by the CNSMD after the students have been interviewed by the Director of Music Studies.
Various test results can also be validated, giving the student a certain number of credits automatically. This in turn means that student will not have to validate as many subjects at the CNSMD.
Students must pay annual fees of €426, €23 for access to the media resources centre and if necessary, the student social security fee of €203, making a total cost of €652 (2011/2012 figures).
Each level is different:
Direct entry to master’s courses is permitted under certain conditions. The candidate must hold a bachelor’s level qualification in the required specialisation, must be aged less than 30 and must present a certificate of competence in French at B1 level if he or she is not a citizen of a French-speaking country.
Yes. CNSMD students can benefit from reduced student rates and claim various advantages available to students, such as the state-subsidised housing provided by the CROUS (state student services organisation).
The dates are different for musicians and dancers. The Youth Ballet (4th year of dance studies) are the first to go back, at the end of August. The other dancers start the following week, on about 10th September and for musicians term usually begins on the last Monday in September.
An international student can apply in the same way as a French student. However, students admitted to an undergraduate course who are not citizens of French-speaking countries must prove their competence in French on arrival at the conservatory at the beginning of term by means of an official certificate indicating a level of at least A2.
Candidates for master’s courses who are not citizens of French-speaking countries must submit a certificate of French language competence with their application. The certificate, which be issued by an institution officially recognised by the French government, should indicate a level of at least B1.
Levels A2 and B1 are those of the Common European Framework reference scale defined by the Council of Europe.
Level B1 signifies that the student is beginning to be autonomous, is able to deal with most familiar situations and can express and justify an opinion in French.
The certificate must be issued by an institution officially recognised by the French government (e.g. the Alliance Française).
It is possible to apply from the age of 15 for classical dance course and from 16 for music courses. Candidates younger than these ages should send a request for the age limit to be waived to the director.
This happens frequently for auditions for dance courses, which take place at the end of June and/or the beginning of July. The LYON CNSMD auditions cannot be modified under any circumstances. The only thing the candidate can do is try and get the school authorities to modify their exam dates. The student should support his or her request by supplying a copy of the invitation to the audition.
For dance candidates it is normally possible to obtain permission to miss the training course by sending an explanatory letter, backed with appropriate documents, to the administration of the dance department. However, all candidates must attend the preliminary round of auditions.
There are no special integrated joint courses leading to a special section of the baccalauréat. For dance students the Lycée Juliette Récamier nevertheless arranges special extra tuition for the dance option of the literary baccalauréat, and the Lycée Saint-Exupéry will arrange for students enrolled at the LYON CNSMD to benefit from a timetable in which all lessons are blocked on a certain number of (complete) half days. It should be borne in mind that studies at the LYON CNSMD are full-time and attendance at classes is mandatory.
Written parental permission must be obtained for under-age students to attend cultural events, even if they take place in the evening. In fact regular attendance at cultural events is highly recommended.
The CNSMD cannot organise housing during auditions. Candidates must make their own arrangements.
Requests can be made for a room in the residence at the CNSMD. In order to do so, successful students should ask the housing office for an application form as soon as they have been accepted. The housing committee meets at the end of September to allocate rooms.
Students applying for a state maintenance grant can request a room in a university student residence when making his or her application to the CROUS. (lien vers CROUS)
Orgaisations like the youth information centre called the CRIJ (Centre Ressources Information Jeunesse) can provide information and help students find accommodation (http://www.lokaviz.fr/).
The candidate can express the wish to study with a particular teacher in his or her application. This said, the final decision rests with the director, who allocates the available places after consulting all the teachers of the specialisation.
Not for the moment
Teachers’ personal contact details are not divulged to candidates. Candidates can nevertheless write to a teacher at the address of the conservatory, and the letter will be forwarded to the teacher concerned.
Reception will tell you which office you need to report to.