Who hasn't heard of the Beatles? The band comprising John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr is perhaps the most influential of all time. 

Their music was path-breaking that defied prevalent norms and was inspired by varying music styles like ballads, Indian classical music, hard rock, and traditional pop.

The Beatles were so refreshingly different that they became a rage and are the best-selling artists of all time. So it's but natural that Liverpool, where the group originated, should offer a Master's program on the Beatles' music.

Liverpool Hope University in the UK started the course in 2009. This 2-year MA program on the Beatles' music is a unique offering available nowhere else in the whole world. Mike Brocken is the founder and leader of the Beatles Master of Arts course at the University.

Such a study program in music will surely attract you if you are associated with:

• Popular Music Studies
• Cultural Studies
• Social Anthropology
• Gender Studies
• Musicology
  

Overview of the Program

‍The program aims to explore how the Beatles' music influenced people by how they related to the music as audiences and their identities, ethnicities, etc. 

Music will be enquired into for its role socially by focusing on music's contribution to forming identities, aesthetics, values, performance, and how popular music evokes responses.

The Beatles' music will get used as a case study to understand better popular music's evolution and how it has transformed over the last 50 years. 

Liverpool, the city from where the Beatles made their appearance, will also be studied. The underlying meaning of popular music will get examined with Beatle's material as a reference. 

Students will also explore how the Beatles influenced people, their culture, customs, habits, etc., and how the tourist industry has taken advantage of the Beatles to make Liverpool a popular tourist destination.

From September 2021, the program will reframe and extend the contemporary discourse. It will go beyond musicological and historical discourse, making it a broader and robust 21-st century context. For module details, go here.

The Admission Requirements:

• A 2:1 undergraduate degree or higher (or equivalent). It should be in any discipline and/or relevant work experience.
• A written piece of work (Applicants with a non-traditional background) of 3,000 words (approximately) on "Discuss the Beatles' influence on Liverpool City and its music heritage."
• Undergraduate degree work and transcript of MAs (For International Students).
• ‍IELTS6.5/TOEFL paper-based 560/TOEFL iBT83 is mandatory for students whose first language isn't English
  

Fees:

The fees of the course vary if you are a citizen of the UK or an international student. For a student living in the UK, this course's fee is £9,000 ($12,394). For international students, this course's fee is £18,900 ($26,027). 

Scholarships:

‍Five International Postgraduate Scholarships are accessible every year based on merit. Past social and community participation and commitment to make a difference socially and economically are necessary for the scholarship that may cover half the tuition cost.

Notable alumni:

‍Mary-Lu Zahalan-Kennedy from Canada was the first to accept her degree from the University. She is a member of a select group of popular music experts and an internationally sought-after group of scholars of popular music studies who offer fresh and thought-provoking insights into the discipline of musicology.