Suggestions of Colleges or Universities for non-music majors who want to continue music education and perform?

College Search & Selection
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My son is looking for a school that has opportunities for him to explore interests ranging from Chemistry to Comp Sci to Econ. Being able to continue his music education (not as a major) and having opportunities to perform (Guitar - contemporary and Rock) is very important to him.

He has done fairly well (unweighted GPA ~3.7 and SAT 1530) at a small (350) high school known for having a very rigorous curriculum.

He is not “brand sensitive” nor particularly interested in Ivy league schools, although several of his peers will probably attend those kinds of schools. He thinks that Ivies would probably be reach schools for him anyway since he is light on extra-curriculars except for music and there are probably many kids with higher grades and thicker academic resumes.

He prefers not to be in a place with a predominance of far right or far left politics, emphasis on religion or dominating greek life.

He is a city kid having grown up living in downtown Boston, using the subway and bus systems to get around to friends in Cambridge, and other nearby suburbs, but also likes being in nature. His preference for setting would be at least a large town within a reasonable distance of a city so the combination of school and town communities would have a some opportunities for music and other things to do outside of studying. Being able to get out to nature within driving distance would be a bonus.

He has grown up with a very ethnically diverse friend group (in our neighborhood and at school) and wants a a place where he has a chance to meet people from many backgrounds. He speaks almost fluent Spanish. Our family is Greek-Canadian (1st Gen in the US) and Italian (3rd Gen in the US)

Because he wants to try a bunch of different things that were not available in his small school and wants to make sure there are enough kids to find a couple of friend groups and people to play music with, he is looking at schools with around 4,000 to 10,000 undergraduates.

The list is still in development, but kind of all over the place. Several of these are definitely reaches:

Rice (mom is alum)
University of Rochester
Northwestern Univ
Elon
Carnegie Mellon
Northeastern
UMass Amhearst - Honors?
Emory
Tulane
University of Vermont
University of Chicago - has sent many pounds of brochures to him, but seems like a reach to me.
Loyola Univ - Chicago ?
Wake Forest
Case Western

McGill in Canada (his mom/my wife is Canadian)

Any suggestions to add or delete from this list would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

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A number of these schools are on my son’s list too :slight_smile: He’s also a non-music stem major looking to continue music. Sounds like your list is right on target!

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If Tulane is there, consider Loyola New Orleans as a safety. It’s smaller but shares the neighborhood and some student opportunities with Tulane.

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I have to look for it but this exact thread exists from a month ago. I remember it included oberlin and Lawrence. Will find it tonight and link it.

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See if this is relevant

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Lawrence is a great college but will lack the true diversity and close to urban areas op is looking for.

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Honestly. Didn’t read her full question. Just seemed similar to the other I attached at quick glance. And I looked up the school and it stuck with me. Sorry about that but hopefully there’s some good, relevant ones in the chain I linked.

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Ok. Read the OP question and other chain. I see the 3.7 having the top schools out but with the strong ACT Lehigh (close to the Poconos), Rochester (Finger Lakes) and U Miami might be worth a look. Indiana as well …bigger but great music school and other majors. And great town.

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One more list. Took Ithaca…again fingerlakes, Butler and Vandy off this list. Lots of nature. And college town or city.

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This student is a guitar student. The opportunities for performance at colleges is not as plentiful as for band or orchestral instruments.

BUT…here is what I would suggest. Have him contact the chairperson of the music department to see what opportunities there might be on campus for a guitar player. Your son should look to see if there is a guitar teacher listed in the faculty. Contact that person as well. See what is available.

You have Elon on your list. First, we didn’t think it was near anything. Second…unless something has changed, their ensembles and lessons are for music majors only…but do contact and ask. Things do change. My kid interviewed there as an oboe player and she was told point blank in 2005 that there were NO performance ops or lessons for non-majors on campus.

If there is guitar faculty, that person might also be able to give info about off campus opportunities (my kid played in a number of civic theater pit bands while in college, for example).

So…reach out to the music departments at these schools and see what they have to say!

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Good range of schools. I’d say UVM almost certainly honors. UMass good shot for honors unless selecting Comp-sci or other highly selective majors.

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I don’t think he needs a school that large to get the academic offerings he wants…

Does he want schools that are not in Boston. Cambridge, Medford? (Berklee would be a resource and Tufts might be a good option. Good music dept,)

The tricky thing here is contemporary and rock guitar. Classical and jazz are easier to find.

In some cases, at schools with a BM program (conservatories and schools of music), the BM students may get the best teachers and performance opportunities. As you can see, there are exceptions.

Schools with contemporary/rock performance would include Miami Frost, USC Thornton, UMass Lowell. Berklee (double degree with Harvard). Whether he majors or not, he might have access to teachers.

But USC Thornton undergrad guitar is classical. Their contemporary performance guitar is grad level Studio Guitar | USC Thornton School of Music But that might mean teachers are available.

Look at University of Denver guitar Studios/Departments | Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences (du.edu)

Wesleyan is an excellent option: About the Major, Musics - Wesleyan University Here is the guitar instructor, can’t tell if he is classical Cem Duruoz - Faculty, Wesleyan University

Princeton is a reach but I think Steve Mackey plays electric guitar.

Hartt at the U. of Hartford has a well-known guitar program that includes electric Guitar | University of Hartford

Ithaca has a program for those who want to combine music and another field Music in Combination with an Outside Field (B.M.) | Majors and Minors | Ithaca College

But again, Ithaca has jazz studies and classical guitar Pablo Cohen | Ithaca College

Loyola has classical and jazz too Guitar | Music and Media (loyno.edu) NYU has jazz Jazz Studies | NYU Steinhardt

So you can see it is harder to find contemporary/rock.

One strategy might be to apply to colleges he would like regardless of music, and ask admissions or the music dept. about a teacher in the area (one school offered to help us find a teacher) or be near a city or area with a teacher and chances to gig.

Bennington is very small but used to have a well-known guitar teacher, It looks like they have contemporary guitar Modern Guitar – Bennington College Curriculum Fall 2021

LAC’s might find a teacher and would have students playing together. But maybe he is right to try to find a school large enough and urban enough to fulfill his needs.

One other thing: he can do a music supplement with recording/video, music resume and letters of recommendation if his music is a major EC and he has talent. Music depts. at schools like Harvard have become much more diverse, or at least they are trying. Many have found that music has a pretty major benefit in applications, even to reach schools.

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St Olaf might work - near nature (lots of kayaking, snow shoeing, nordic skiing…) and within easy access to the Twin Cities (it’s located in a college town that’s 40-45mn South of the Twin Cities), have lots of opportunities to perform – even for guitar: there are so many musicians that forming bands isn’t difficult-, no Greek life, emphasis on civility/civil discourse, ~3,500 students, roughly 1/3 of whom are serious musicians although most aren’t music majors and thus pick the college for the combination of strong academics and strong music offerings for nonmajors.

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St. Olaf does not appear to have classical guitar let alone contemporary or rock. Did you find reference to guitar on the site?

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No, but I know several young guitarists who not only were able to take lessons but joined/started bands; apparently there’s a place for them to perform on campus and also in downtown Northfield. (I didnt check but I assume they wouldn’t have made it up.) OP should email the music dept about lesson availability and ask Admissions to be put in touch with current students in contemporary bands.

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I would think students form bands in almost every school and that the music dept. at St. Olaf and other classically-oriented programs would not be relevant. (Were the lessons through the music dept.? )Even at Bennington, with its very small student body, I believe there are students playing contemporary/rock.

Depending on the level of commitment this student wants, I think he should either look for a 1) school that offers contemporary/popular rock (Berklee, Frost, UMass Lowell etc.), OR any school near a city or location with a good teacher, OR any school where students informally or through extracurriculars, form bands or gig. These latter options apply to A LOT of schools.

For many of those choices, he can decide based on other factors besides music. including, size, location, diversity of courses possible, diversity of student body, “vibe.” If the opportunity to explore academically is important, then schools like Brown, Amherst, Bennington others with “free curricula” meaning no gen eds. Though sometimes good gen ed classes do provide exposure to other areas of study.

Again, I don’t think it has to be a very large school but perhaps that is his preference. For the Boston area I would suggest Tufts versus Northeastern.

Some of the schools on the list have BM programs. Is that intentional?

ps some reachy schools have revamped curricula and may offer more classes or performance n non-classical areas…not sure about others. Wesleyan and Princeton maybe,

I would look at U. of Hartford/Hartt and explore U. of Denver maybe too.

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Formal lessons with music faculty.

I do think there’s a difference between colleges with a lot of good musicians and colleges where music is uncommon, even if most colleges will have students that form bands - but no data on this! :slight_smile:

This student specifically doesn’t want to major in music so non-conservatory environments would be important.
I agree that generally non conservatory students have a harder time getting lessons with conservatory instructors since (reasonably) their time needs to focus on the conservatory students.

UDenver sounds like a good option for a safety.

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Sorry to continue this tangent but I am interested for others as well. MYOS1634 did these students have lessons at St. Olaf in classical or jazz, or contemporary/rock? Electric guitars?

All in all, getting the academics, academic exploration and most of all access to lessons in contemporary/rock may require some deep delving not only into the schools but the environment where teachers may be found, in and out of the school itself.

I do know a student who went to Tufts and took lessons with a Berklee teacher. But this student is from Boston so may want to get out :slight_smile: Hope he can find equivalent situations!

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