Graded exams in dance
Fourteen awarding organisations offer graded dance exams, covering ballet, tap, freestyle, modern jazz, ballroom, Spanish and contemporary. Thirteen of them award in dance and nothing else.
What a graded dance exam covers
Dance grades span ballet, tap, freestyle, modern jazz, ballroom, Spanish and contemporary, graded step by step from beginner upwards.
Dance is the specialist discipline of the four. Where music and musical theatre are examined by broad boards, thirteen of the fourteen organisations here were founded for dance alone, several of them more than a century ago. It is also the only discipline with vocational grades running alongside the standard progression.
Vocational grades, and where they sit
- Dance is the only art form with vocational grades beside the standard ones. Intermediate Foundation sits at Level 2 of the Regulated Qualifications Framework, Intermediate and Advanced Foundation at Level 3, and Advanced 1 and 2 at Level 4.
The 14 organisations awarding graded dance
Each sets its own syllabuses and appoints its own examiners. Contact them directly for syllabuses, entry, fees, dates and results.
All fourteen, alphabetically
Founded 1892 to 2003
bbodance
Ensign House, Juniper Drive, Battersea Reach, London SW18 1TA
British Association of Teachers of Dancing (BATD)
Pavilion 8 Upper Level, Watermark Business Park, 315 Govan Road, Glasgow G51 2SE
British Theatre Dance Association (BTDA)
The International Arts Centre, Garden Street, Leicester LE1 3UA
Graded Qualifications Alliance (GQAL)
The International Arts Centre, Garden Street, Leicester LE1 3UA
Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD)
Imperial House, 22/26 Paul Street, London EC2A 4QE
International Dance Teachers' Association (IDTA)
International House, 76 Bennett Road, Brighton BN2 5JL
National Association of Teachers of Dancing (NATD)
National House, Turnfields Court, Thatcham, Berkshire RG19 4PT
Professional Teachers of Dancing (PTD)
The Studios, Morecombelake, Dorset DT6 6DY
Royal Academy of Dance (RAD)
36 Battersea Square, London SW11 3RA
RSL Awards
Harlequin House, 7 High Street, Teddington TW11 8EE
Russian Ballet Society (RBS)
20 Campion Court, Essex Road, Stevenage SG1 3EY
Scottish Dance Teachers' Alliance (SDTA)
101 Park Road, Glasgow G4 9JE
United Kingdom Alliance (UKA)
Centenary House, 38/40 Station Road, Blackpool FY4 1EU
United Teachers of Dance (UTD)
58a High Street, Coleshill, West Midlands B46 1AZ
Looking for a different discipline?
The same graded structure runs through all four performing arts. Twenty organisations award them between them.
Every exam question belongs to an awarding organisation
Syllabuses, entry, fees, dates and results are set by each organisation, not by CDMT. Pick one above and go direct.