Scholarship Information

Music Merit Scholarships

Blair awards merit scholarships to selected Blair applicants based on an excellent audition and the partnership of excellent academic application materials. There is no additional essay requirement or additional application for music merit scholarships; Blair applicants who pass prescreening and enter the audition process are automatically considered for a merit scholarship nomination, based on the above criteria.

Blair Community Scholars Program

The Community Scholars Program promotes social engagement in the musical arts and harnesses the power of music to build community connections. The program covers students’ full cost of attendance, including the unique needs of music students such as instrument and voice maintenance, travel directly related to their education, and audition costs during Blair undergraduate studies (for example, graduate school or summer program auditions.)

In addition to meeting the full cost of attendance at Vanderbilt University (tuition, room, board, fees), the program provides each Community Scholar up to $6,000 per summer (over three summers) for supplemental study (music festivals, research, relevant professional development) and additional support of up to $5,000 for an immersive capstone project.

Community Scholars are selected from admitted Blair students based on their commitment to civic-minded service, fostering appreciation of the arts, cultivating new audiences for the arts, and strengthening public arts education. Eligible applicants must also demonstrate financial need. Entering cohorts form meaningful relationships with peer and faculty mentors throughout each academic year.

In Nashville, across the state, and in the students’ home communities wherever they are, Community Scholars use the power of music to build bridges with under-resourced populations and to deepen human connections.

Application and Selection

• The Community Scholars Program application is strongly encouraged; preference is given to those who apply. Applicants apply via MyAppVU after submitting the admission application. Community Scholars Program applications for prospective first-year students must be submitted electronically via the MyAppVU account by December 1, 2025.
• Currently enrolled students (first-year only) may apply for 2025-2026 and must submit the online Community Scholars Program Application which will become available mid-January 2025. Please note that priority consideration is given to prospective Blair applicants; scholarship funding for currently enrolled student applicants is limited.
• Eligible applicants must also demonstrate financial need.

Requirements

Each Community Scholar must:

• maintain enrollment as a full-time student in an approved undergraduate major at the Blair School of Music.
• maintain a 3.0 minimum GPA.
• complete one capstone immersive project after the sophomore or junior year. (The project may be independent or connected to a course.)

In the first year of the Community Scholars Program, scholars will focus primarily on engaging with the W.O. Smith Music School to learn and develop skills to bring into their future experiences. W.O. Smith is a longtime partner that is eager to work with volunteers, and our scholars will have the opportunity to give lessons to underserved students, provide service activities for the organization, and learn various aspects of running a non-profit. The cohort will meet regularly with a faculty mentor to reflect on experiences, learn pedagogical and operations skills, and discuss ways to engage ethically and responsibly within the community. This first year offers various experiences with a trusted partner organization, and students will work towards more independent projects in subsequent years of the program. Within the first semester, the cohort will also plan a community service project that they will launch in their second semester, preparing them for their individual capstone project as upper division scholars.