<p>PianoEMT - what part of Canada do you live in? If you don’t have much money for travel you may want to look at schools which are closer to you, or easier/cheaper to get to. If I were you I’d drop Curtis from your list - they only accept 1-2 students per year, and they usually have years of experience and a long resume. I’ve never heard of Youngstown so can’t say anything about the program.</p>
<p>I think you and your father really need to sit down and talk about how much he’ll pay for your schooling. It may be that you should really stay within the Canadian system for undergrad - because of finances. McGill is a top composition program - but very competitive. I’m sure there are alternatives, such as Toronto, which could suit you well at this time. Canada has a number of exciting young composers and ensembles. I don’t think you should feel compelled to come to the US for undergrad. </p>
<p>Your grades are going to be a problem for admission to many of the American colleges with well known composition programs. They wouldn’t matter, however, if you apply to a conservatory. You might look at Eastman. And Lawrence University’s conservatory.</p>
<p>One school you might consider which could be close to where you live (depending!) is Grand Valley State in Michigan. It is an under the radar school with a lively new music scene (i.e. they like contemporary American music.) Perhaps they have merit money for good SAT scores.</p>
<p>As for auditioning - many composition programs will allow you to skype an interview if you cannot afford to travel. Or do a regional audition on an instrument, if they require one - which they don’t all do. Some composition programs don’t even require either an interview nor an audition.</p>
<p>As for having works in different styles to submit with your application - I think it’s more useful to have live recordings of pieces with different instrumentation.</p>
<p>Good Luck!</p>