Applicants for the undergraduate Music Education and Performance majors must audition for acceptance prior to enrollment. Bachelor of Arts applicants may apply without audition, though auditions are required for participation in studio lessons. Auditions are held in December, January, and February of the year preceding enrollment.

The $25.7 million state-of-the art music facility opened in 1999. This program offers only comprehensive slate of performance and music education degrees, from the baccalaureate through the doctorate, in North Carolina. The program includes more than 60 predominantly full-time faculty members who teach approximately 600 music majors (two-thirds undergraduate, one-third graduate). The School of Music has held continuous accreditation in North Carolina by the National Association of Schools of Music since 1938. The School of Music is home to archives/libraries for International Double Reed Society. Its Special Collections houses the largest collection of cello music in the world – more than 5,000 manuscripts and published music scores. The School hosts the largest university summer music camp in the nation.