Scholarships

Scholarships for Aspire: Five-Week Music Performance Intensive

Berklee offers a variety of full and partial merit-based scholarships for students attending Aspire: Five-Week Music Performance Intensive, with most awards ranging from $1,000 to $3,000. Scholarships are not available for the other summer programs.

Submit early for the strongest scholarship consideration and access to top awards.

Scholarship Timelines

Round	What You’re Considered For	Submission Deadline	Decision Timing
Early Consideration (Workshop-Eligible)	Aspire Scholarship (Round 1), Berklee Ensemble Excellence Award, Jazz Workshop, Arif Mardin Music Fellowship	March 1, 11:59 PM ET	By April 8
Final Consideration	Aspire Scholarship (Round 2), Berklee Ensemble Excellence Award	April 1, 11:59 PM ET	By May 2

Submissions received by March 1 are given first funding priority. Jazz Workshop and the Arif Mardin Music Fellowship accept submissions only in the early round.

How to Apply

Using the Aspire: Five-Week Class Placement and Scholarship Video Submission Form, you’ll give our faculty everything they need to place you in the perfect classes and evaluate you for scholarships in one simple step. Your videos help us understand your style, strengths, and artistic potential so we can build your ideal Aspire experience.

Complete your registration for the Aspire: Five-Week Music Performance Intensive at berklee.edu/apply, including payment of the $50 registration fee.
Review the scholarship types and requirements below to determine which scholarship is the best fit for you.
Visit the Next Steps tab of your berklee.edu/apply account and complete your Aspire: Five-Week Class Placement and Scholarship Video Submission Form. Only one scholarship submission is permitted.

Available Scholarships

Aspire Scholarship

The Aspire Scholarship highlights students who show strong musical ability and promise in any style. It is awarded to those who demonstrate commitment to their craft and the potential for significant artistic growth.

Aspire Scholarship Award Amount: $1,000–$3,000

Aspire Scholarship submissions can either be submitted by the Early Consideration deadline (March 1) or the Final Consideration deadline (April 1). Any submissions received on or after April 2 will be considered Class Placement Submissions only.

Berklee Ensemble Excellence Award

The Berklee Ensemble Excellence Award is Aspire’s premier full-tuition scholarship, awarded to a small number of exceptional students each year. Recipients will be placed together in dedicated Aspire Featured Ensembles for the duration of the program, offering a focused, high-level collaborative experience under the mentorship of Berklee faculty, with a featured performance in the final week of the program.

Berklee Ensemble Excellence Award Amount: Full tuition (housing not included)

Berklee Ensemble Excellence Award submissions can either be submitted by the Early Consideration deadline (March 1) or the Final Consideration deadline (April 1). Any submissions received on or after April 2 will be considered Class Placement Submissions only.

Jazz Workshop Scholarship

Led by Grammy Award–winning drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, this scholarship invites top jazz performers to immerse themselves in small-group performance, improvisation, and composition.

Jazz Workshop Award Amount: Full tuition, on-campus housing, and a meal plan

Jazz Workshop submissions must be completed by the Early Consideration deadline (March 1). Any submissions received on or after March 2 will be considered for general Aspire Scholarships, or the Berklee Ensemble Excellence Award.

Arif Mardin Music Fellowship

In honor of Berklee alum Arif Mardin ’61, this fellowship supports selected students of Turkish nationality to attend Aspire: Five-Week.

Arif Mardin Music Fellowship Award Amount: Full tuition, on-campus housing, and a meal plan

Arif Mardin Music Fellowship submissions must be completed by the Early Consideration deadline (March 1). Any submissions received on or after March 2 will be considered for general Aspire Scholarships, or the Berklee Ensemble Excellence Award.

Submission Guidelines

For the Jazz Workshop Scholarship:

Please submit three videos and your artist snapshot, following the guidelines below:

General Video Guidelines:

Link Access: Links should be viewable online. Please be sure that the privacy settings for each link are set so that anyone with the link can view.

a video of you performing a fast/up-tempo piece (roughly 130 BPM or faster), with a swing feel.
a video of you performing a medium-tempo piece (roughly between 110-130 BPM), with a swing feel.
a video of you performing an odd-metered piece with an even eighth-note feel.

Your Artist Snapshot (750 characters or less)

Use your artist snapshot to briefly share on two key areas:

Video Description: In two to three sentences total, tell us more about your performance selections—what styles you selected and/or why you chose them.
Achievements: In one to two sentences, tell us about any musical or academic achievements that have shaped who you are as an artist, or that you’re most proud of.

For the Aspire Scholarship, the Berklee Ensemble Excellence Award, and the Arif Mardin Music Fellowship:

Please submit two to three videos and your artist snapshot, following the guidelines below:

General Video Guidelines:

Link Access: Links should be viewable online. Please be sure that the privacy settings for each link are set so that anyone with the link can view.

Please submit a video of you performing a piece that shows us your best work.
Please submit a video of you performing a piece that showcases your improvisational ability.
Please submit a video of you performing a technical demonstration on your primary instrument. (Optional, based on guidelines below)

Please follow the guidelines for your instrument:

Woodwinds, Brass, Strings: A technical exercise video submission is not required for scholarship consideration or class placement.

Electronic Digital Instrument (EDI): A technical exercise video submission is not required for scholarship consideration or class placement.

Guitar & Piano: Submit a video of you comping. If you choose not to submit a technical exercise, you will automatically be placed in the lowest level of your technical lab.

Bass: Submit a video of you demonstrating bassline construction. If you choose not to submit a technical exercise, you will automatically be placed in the lowest level of your technical lab.

Singer-Songwriter: Submit a technical video that matches your primary instrument (e.g., vocal, guitar, piano, etc).

Voice & Percussion: Submit a short video of scales, arpeggios, or an exercise you use often in warm-up or in practice. Please do not use a band or play-along track for this video submission. If you choose not to submit a technical exercise, you will automatically be placed in the lowest level of your technical lab.

Your Artistic Snapshot (750 characters or less)

Use your artistic snapshot to briefly share on two key areas:

Video Description: In two to three sentences total, tell us more about your performance selections—what styles you selected and/or why you chose them.

Achievements: In one to two sentences, tell us about any musical or academic achievements that have shaped who you are as an artist, or that you’re most proud of.

EDI Applicants ONLY: If you are an Electronic Digital Instrument (EDI) applicant, you must also include a description of the musical ideas, software/hardware used, and creative intent behind your submitted performances.

Recording Tips

Home, live, or studio recordings are permitted; audio clarity matters more than video quality.
Please be sure that your video links remain viewable to anyone with the link; if students are concerned about copyright issues with YouTube, Google Drive or Dropbox are comparable platforms.
Original compositions are accepted, but only one of your performance videos may be an original composition.
Keep within the requested lengths and styles for each scholarship.
- If you choose to submit a video longer than two to three minutes, be prepared that adjudicators may not review beyond the three-minute mark.
- Your video should be no more than one year old.
- Please submit videos in the style choice you wish to focus on during the program
Absolutely no editing or overdubbing of performance videos.
Accompaniment required for performance videos; play-along tracks must exclude your instrument.
Your artist snapshot has a 750-character maximum, including spaces. Please keep in mind that this is not a formal essay, but a way for you to quickly highlight what makes you unique as an artist.

If you’re unsure what to record for your class placement or scholarship videos, here are a few ideas to help you get started:

A song from a well-known artist or band demonstrating the style choice you wish to focus on during the program (jazz, pop-rock, funk/fusion, pop/R&B)
A jazz tune, standard, or blues song (in this case, a featured improvisation is strongly suggested)
A piece from your repertoire or a movement, sonata, concerto, or étude
A transcription of a well-known artist’s solo
An original song or composition (If you submit one original, the second piece must follow one of the suggestions listed above)

Scholarship Policies

You must register for Aspire: Five-Week to be eligible to apply.
Scholarship application materials must be submitted via the scholarship application on the Next Steps tab of your berklee.edu/apply account after you register for the program. Scholarship application materials cannot be submitted via email.
Additional submission materials (including letters of recommendation) will not be accepted or reviewed.
You cannot edit your scholarship application after it has been submitted. Please ensure your application materials adhere to the requirements and guidelines prior to submitting your scholarship application.
Scholarship awards from Berklee cannot be combined; there is a maximum of one award per person.
All scholarship decisions are final and cannot be appealed. Our team is unable to provide specific feedback about any submitted supplemental materials.
There is no federal aid for this program. Scholarships are merit-based.