Only at the BTU and in Cottbus: with a university co-op programme leading to a Bachelor of Music

The Mayor of Cottbus, Tobias Schick, and the Vice-President for Academic Affairs at BTU, Prof. Dr. Peer Schmidt, signed the contract to seal the cooperation at the Cottbus Conservatory on 4 November 2025. The new dual degree programme was developed in collaboration between the university's Institute of Instrumental and Vocal Performance and Teaching, which is based in Cottbus-Sachsendorf, and the Cottbus Conservatory.

The programme is scheduled to start in the winter semester 2026/27, with the city initially providing two practical placements for dual students of Instrumental and Vocal Performance and Teaching in a pilot project. In view of the high demand for specialists in music schools to ensure the musical education of children and young people, a high level of interest in this programme is also expected beyond Cottbus and the region. At the interface of art, pedagogy and science, the university and practice partners would like to prudently meet the current social and cultural challenges with the new dual programme and pave an attractive path for young adults into a socially responsible and artistically and pedagogically demanding professional environment.

The Lord Mayor of the City of Cottbus Tobias Schick:
"With the new dual study programme, we are seizing an opportunity offered by our boomtown: An excellent conservatory in the local neighbourhood of the matching institute at the BTU. This proximity results in synergies that can be very useful for the recruitment of young Music Pedagogy talent in our city. We hope that other municipalities in Lusatia will follow this new path in order to bind the teaching staff of the future to their music schools at an early stage."

Vice-President for Academic Affairs at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg
Prof. Dr Peer Schmidt:
"We have long been an established partner for co-op programmes, with over 100 students starting their co-op studies at BTU every year. We were able to make very good use of this expertise in the development of the innovative Bachelor of Music programme. We are very pleased that we are now able to create Germany's first dual study programme in the field of Instrumental and Vocal Performance and Teaching with a committed practice partner."

The head of the Instrumental and Vocal Performance and Teaching study programme
Prof. Dr Gregor Fuhrmann:
"It takes courage and trust to embark on a new path together. As the first practical partner at our side, Cottbus City Council is making a committed contribution to a responsible and future-orientated approach to the current challenges of music education. Our goal is to write a small success story together with the new study model and to win over numerous music schools in the region for further cooperation beyond the city limits."

About the co-op programme with practical placement in Instrumental and Vocal Performance and Teaching
In the eight-semester Bachelor's degree programme in Instrumental and Vocal Performance and Teaching at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg, students develop their musical skills and combine them with pedagogical know-how in order to inspire people to make music in the long term. They receive artistic training in their main and secondary instrument or in Singing and at the same time learn to pass on their skills and knowledge in an understandable, motivating and creative way - both in individual lessons and in groups. The disciplines on offer are Classical Music, Jazz/Rock/Pop and Elementary Music Pedagogy.

There are two places of learning. At the music school learning location, the practice-oriented course content such as rehearsal practice, work shadowing, ensemble music, administration/organisation, teaching practice, group and ensemble leadership are completed on a fixed day of the week for the entire duration of the course. During the lecture period at the university, the dual students attend the BTU Cottbus-Sachsendorf campus together with the general students in order to receive their artistic tuition, participate in ensembles and complete the basic theoretical seminars.

The advantages of the co-op programme include the close connection between theory and practice. It also offers a monthly income and therefore financial independence.

Prerequisites for admission to the programme are a general higher education entrance qualification, a study contract with a BTU cooperation partner and passing an aptitude test.
Students are awarded a Bachelor of Music (B.Mus.)  degree.

Graduates are primarily qualified to work in music schools, but can also work in independent music projects, in the field of cultural education, in associations or as independent instrumental and vocal teachers.

Further information on the co-op programme in Instrumental and Vocal Performance and Teaching:
https://www.b-tu.de/duales-studium/studienangebote/instrumental-und-gesangspaedagogik