Music is my passion and a scholarship at SOAS made studying it possible

The SOAS John Loiello Scholarship gave Julia Ammon the opportunity to move from the United States to pursue her passion for music at SOAS.

A scholarship can open doors to new possibilities, allowing people to follow their passions. For Julia Ammon, the SOAS John Loiello scholarship has allowed her to move from the USA to live in London and study MA Music with an ethnomusicology-focused programme. We asked Julia how her time studying has been and how transformative the scholarship has been. 

Music was always an early passion of mine

I spent my entire childhood in Pittsburgh and remained there for my undergraduate studies in Music Education at a local school called Duquesne University. I grew up surrounded by musicians and music lovers, so it became a passion of mine early on. 

My parents also instilled in me an appreciation of music, food, and media from all around the world, which I believe was what eventually made me wish to travel the world and possibly live abroad.

While at SOAS, I studied ethnomusicology for my MA Music degree. I chose this subject because I have always been fascinated by cultures and music from all around the world, but was never presented with an opportunity to partake in an in-depth study of such subjects. 

I chose SOAS not only because it offered an ethnomusicology-focused music program, but because the university specialises in Asian and African studies (which was great because I wanted to research traditional Korean music and Korean popular music). 

Another reason I chose SOAS was because I admired how the university is physically located in the centre of a culturally diverse city, hence offering a multitude of cultural opportunities that I would not receive in my hometown.

My scholarship has been life-changing 

I received the SOAS John Loiello scholarship, which covers my tuition and housing in full. Receiving this scholarship was quite literally the deciding factor in being able to attend SOAS. Without the scholarship, I would not have been able to afford coming here. 

I will continue teaching music and use the knowledge and experiences I have gained at SOAS to offer children a well-rounded music education.

SOAS has opened doors to other possible avenues of study. I have been debating pursuing a PhD because my classes have introduced me to so many fascinating subjects that I wish to possibly study further, but I know for certain that I will have to wait and save up money before doing so. In the meantime, I will continue teaching music and use the knowledge and experiences I have gained at SOAS to offer children a well-rounded music education.

My favourite memory while studying at SOAS has collectively been all the memories I have made with my friends and classmates. It has been truly amazing getting to know people from all around the world and hearing about their life experiences!

Advice to my younger self

If I could give a younger version of myself advice, I would remind her to keep working hard and dreaming about what’s seemingly impossible because she will achieve those impossible dreams one day.