DANCE
at Meredith College

As a dance major, minor, or co-curricular student at Meredith, you’ll have opportunities to perform and choreograph as early as your freshman year, travel to conferences, and study with guest artists. Learn to shape your life in dance based on your unique strengths and talents.

“Meredith College does an exceptional job making sure students learn as much as they can about any field they want to explore. I love dance and I love education. At Meredith, I was able to deeply explore both fields.”

Our Dance Program

Meredith Studio Dance Students.

As part of Meredith’s dance program, you will be part of a collaborative environment for conducting artistic scholarship, developing technical, creative, and critical skills within a liberal arts curriculum, and exploring personal expression. The program not only offers a major in dance, but you can also pursue a K-12 Licensure to teach dance and a Professional Performance Certificate. All Meredith students may take dance classes and participate in our companies and performances. 

You will be given unique opportunities to study with renowned guest teachers and choreographers each year. As a dance major, you will also have opportunities to perform in productions, where you gain real-world experience that will make you stand out in the field.

There is no audition to enter the Dance Program as a major, minor, or co-curricular student. Several of our companies do hold auditions. There are two dance interest days each year for High School Seniors to take class with faculty, students, and alumnae and to receive feedback about class and company placement. The dates are on our Current Season page. You may also arrange a visit that includes taking class with us by emailing finleyc@meredith.edu.

Dance Major Programs

Students earning a major in dance are required to complete 47 total credit hours, which include 32 hours of core dance courses and 15 hours of electives. Students must also present a Senior Portfolio showcasing their work during their time as a dance major. Contact finleyc@meredith.edu to find out if your current community college courses might count in the dance major. 

Dance major course descriptions

Undergraduate course catalog

Students earning a major in dance with a concentration in dance education and K-12 license are required to complete 84 total credit hours, which include 32 hours of core dance courses and 52 hours of required courses. Students must be admitted to the teacher education program to enroll.

Dance major course descriptions

Undergraduate course catalog

Students earning a dance major with a concentration in private studio teaching are required to complete 63 total credit hours, which include 32 hours of core dance courses and 22 hours of required courses, and six hours of electives. 

Dance major course descriptions

Undergraduate course catalog

Students earning a dance minor are required to complete 19 total credit hours, which include four hours of required courses, three hours in the theory of dance, three hours of choreography and performance in dance, six hours in dance technique, and three hours in electives. 

Dance major course descriptions

Undergraduate course catalog

Students currently enrolled in a BA program with a declared major in dance, music, or theatre are eligible to apply for enrollment in the professional performance certificate program. An audition or portfolio review is required. Students are required to complete 10 hours of technique credits and 10 hours of elective credits.

Dance major course descriptions

Undergraduate course catalog

Why study dance at Meredith?

  • The dance program offers a major in dance, a K-12 Licensure to teach dance, and a Professional Performance Certificate.
  • Meredith’s dance program uses StrongPoints® to help students enter the workforce as dancers who know how to make important financial decisions and plan for their future.
    • “Through StrongPoints®, our students are not only thinking about dance but about themselves, the world, and how it relates.” – Carol Finley, Professor of Dance
  • Students learn in a number of facilities , including
    • Jones Auditorium 
    • Studio Theatre 
    • Weatherspoon Gym
  • Thanks to Meredith’s location in arts-rich Raleigh, dance students have completed internships with organizations and dance studios such as 
    • The American Dance Festival, Durham, N.C.
    • Apex Performing Arts, Apex, N.C.
    • Black Box Dance, Raleigh, N.C. 
    • NC Dance Institute, Raleigh N.C.
    • Wake County Public Schools
    • Walt Disney World, Orlando, Fla.
  • Dance students participate in the American College Dance Association annually, where they attend master classes and present work for adjudication.
  • There are numerous choreography, performance, and dance community opportunities for students. Some of these opportunities include student groups such as
    • DanceWorks
    • F.I.R.E. (Fierce, International, Rhythmic, Experience)
    • Meredith Angels Dance Team (MADT)
    • Meredith College Dance Crew (MCDC)
    • Meredith Dance Theatre (MDT)
    • Meredith Improv
    • Meredith Jazz and Tap Company (MJTCo)
    • Meredith Dance Association (MDA)
  • Examples of student success include Monica Rivera, ’18, who has a passion for dance, education, and social justice. While at Meredith, she spent much of her time dedicated to the dance program, where she volunteered to help at recruitment events, performed, choreographed, and stage-managed dance productions, and helped coordinate Meredith’s High School Day of Dance. She now uses her dance education platform to empower students in the San Francisco Unified School District.

What Can You Do With a Dance Degree?

Students who study dance education or private studio teaching have high placement rates for full-time work in public schools and private studios. Many of our students choose to combine their training in dance with the study of other fields, such as business, communication, and psychology. Such programs of study are excellent preparation for graduate programs, using dance in psychological, community, or medical applications, and starting small businesses.

  • Potential jobs for graduates majoring in dance: choreographer, dance teacher, dance therapist, arts administrator, community arts worker, performer, and more.
  • Graduates of Meredith perform with regional dance companies, are employed within public school systems, own their own dance studios, and more.
  • Meredith graduates have attended graduate school for dance at schools such as East Carolina University, UNC-Greensboro, SUNY Brockport, and The Ohio State University.
Students in a dance performance.

Wings student Vaune Blalock, ’20, came to Meredith with over 30 years of dance experience and a host of accolades, to which she has added a Bachelor of Arts with a major in dance from Meredith College.

Videos About Meredith’s Dance Program

Dance News and Events

Meredith College welcomed more than 350 students to “share, learn, and celebrate dance” as part of High School Day of Dance. This event, held on campus on November 3, was sponsored by the Meredith College Dance Program.

The American Dance Festival in association with Meredith College presents Les Ballets Afrik on Thursday, September 14, and Friday, September 15, 2023, at 7:30 p.m. The performances will be held in Jones Auditorium on the Meredith College campus. ADF’s presentation of Les Ballet Afrik is supported by the United Arts Council of Raleigh and Wake County.

Contact Information
Carol Finley
Department Chair of Dance & Theatre
8 Weatherspoon
(919) 760-8015
finleyc@meredith.edu

For rental inquiries please contact events@meredith.edu

Dance & Theatre Department

School of Arts & Humanities »

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