ASTA Certificate Advancement Program (ASTACAP)

ASTACAP Online

Having established robust pedagogy and student learning benefits over 15 years of ongoing live examinations, the ASTACAP Program online presence is an important part of our mission.

The non-competitive philosophy, skill-based goals, and flexible curriculum and repertoire are the center of the ASTACAP Program. This is consistent no matter how one takes the examination. Find more details in the ASTACAP Handbook.

Virtual opportunity for your students to receive recognition for their hard work this year


In light of the current situation, ASTA is doing what we can to support our teachers and students. The June ASTACAP online program will be FREE for ASTA member teachers to submit their students’ performances for feedback from nationally renowned adjudicators. Students who successfully complete their performance will receive a certificate of recognition.
 
The online portal will be open June 1 – June 30, 2020. In preparation, please take a minute to review the program details below, including instrument-specific level requirements for your students to participate.

Please note: Space is limited, so get ready now to submit student performances as soon as the portal opens June 1, 2020.

You must be a current ASTA member to participate in the ASTACAP program. Learn more about joining or renewing your membership here.

Benefits of the online ASTA Certificate Advancement Program

  • Virtual opportunity to recognize your students' hard work this year with end-of-the-year studio recitals no longer an option.
  • Receive written feedback from nationally recognized adjudicators for scales, etudes, and repertoire.
  • Students who successfully complete their performance will receive a certificate of recognition.
  • Submit performances for evaluation for a wide range of levels to fit any playing ability (foundation to level 10).
  • Ability to submit a performance for comments only (no certificate) during the June 2020 program period if your student meets at least 75% of a level's requirement.
  • Member access to the full ASTACAP Handbook, which includes a breakdown of all ASTACAP level requirements, sample repertoire lists, and tips for submitting online performances.

How to apply:

  • The ASTACAP online portal will be open from June 1 to June 30, 2020, for submissions.
  • You must be a current ASTA member to submit applications for your students.
  • We are waiving ASTACAP online fees in June 2020 for ASTA members.
  • Before applying, please review the ASTACAP program information here for the performance options for your student's ability. See the tips below for submitting a successful performance. 
  • The program platform supports the following video formats: mpeg, mpg, mp4, ogg, mov, avi, wmv, m4v, vob.
  • The link to apply: https://app.getacceptd.com/asta

Tips for submitting a successful online performance:

  • Check the ASTACAP level requirements carefully to ensure that your student has all requirements prepared. Level requirements can be found here.
  • NEW for the June 2020 program period: If your student does not have all items (required scales, etudes, or repertoire) prepared for a certain level, you can submit their performance for "comments only" (they must have at least 75% of the requirements). Submitting for comments only can be selected at the end of the ASTACAP submission page. No ASTACAP certificate will be awarded for comments-only submissions.
  • When recording your student's performance, please treat it like an audition tape. Be mindful of any background noise or distracting items in the room. If your student is performing from memory, your video should clearly show a room with no music stand or the music stand should be clearly facing away from the student with no music on it.
  • You will be recording 3 separate videos. One for scales, one for etudes, and one for the repertoire selection (if your ASTACAP level requires more than one piece, you will need to record one video for each piece). Videos must be recorded back-to-back, as if they were being recorded in a live setting. No edits may be made to the videos.
  • Teachers, as the ASTA member, should submit all student performances.
  • Completed adjudication forms and ASTACAP certificates for successful completion of an ASTACAP level will be mailed to teachers for distribution by the end of July.
If you have any questions, please contact us at asta@astastrings.org or 703-279-2113.

The ASTACAP online portal will open again in November 2020. To participate in ASTACAP throughout the year, check with your state chapter for dates of in-person exams.

ASTA partners with Acceptd to collect applications for ASTACAP. Acceptd's mission is to enrich the lives of artists by connecting them with the opportunities that matter most to them. To achieve this mission, Acceptd helps streamline the application and audition process for arts organizations around the world.