Cleveland Institute of Music

The Cleveland Institute of Music is an independent, international music conservatory located in the University Circle district of Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is led by President Joel Smirnoff. The Institute was founded in 1920, with the composer Ernest Bloch as director. Annual enrollment at the conservatory (including new and returning students) is between 400 and 450 students with approximately 1,500 students enrolled in the preparatory and continuing education programs at any given time. Between 1,000 and 1,200 prospective students apply to the conservatory annually for the (approximately) 150 openings available for fall enrollment. Typically, 60-70 freshmen are enrolled each fall; 81% of entering freshman graduate within five years. Members of The Cleveland Orchestra are connected to the Cleveland Institute of Music as members of the CIM faculty (see Shared Members), alumni of the conservatory or preparatory programs, or both. Through a cooperative arrangement with Case Western Reserve University, CIM students have full access to university courses and facilities. They can pursue a degree both at CIM and Case Western Reserve, if they are accepted to both institutions. CIM has a retention rate of 82%. CIM undergraduate students go on to be accepted to graduate programs at schools that include the Juilliard School, Eastman School of Music and Rice University, and CIM graduates have accepted positions with the orchestras in the United States and around the world, including The Cleveland Orchestra, The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the Kansas City Symphony and others.