Academic requirements for European conservatories

College Majors Music Major
1

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>My daughter and I have recently started to look into European conservatories as a possibility for college, but we've run into a bit of a puzzle: So far we've found that most all European schools require the applicant to pass a European-style high school exit exam. Also, many countries in Europe have an extra year of high school that the US does not. So we need to find some sort of equivalent proof of degree that they will accept.</p>

<p>Right now my daughter is 16, a high school sophomore, attends a well-regarded precollege program on Saturdays, and homeschools her academics. She plays violin, but her musical interests are quite broad and she likes the academic aspects of music, too.</p>

<p>My question is, has anyone applied to a European school, particularly one of the German-speaking ones, from the US? And if so, what equivalent diplomas did they accept? </p>

<p>And if there are homeschoolers out there who have applied to conservatory, what did they accept as proof of a basic high school diploma? Is a GED sufficient for that part of the requirement? I would assume, of course, that they want more than that as well, like APs or something, but still, we have to start with the US high school diploma. </p>

<p>I've checked a few school websites, but the info they give is usually fairly vague, and sometimes suffers from translation problems. They tend to assume the exit exam, since apparently most countries except the US have them. But I'm sure that somehow, somewhere, someone has gone from the US to a conservatory in Europe successfully. If so, would you mind sharing your experience?</p>

<p>Also, I gather that perhaps a very few select schools such as Kronberg in Germany don't have this sort of requirement, and that there is an "exceptional ability" clause in some of the other schools. But I think they are referring to the international soloist level of talent, which is of course quite rare.</p>

<p>And yes, I do understand that going to school in Europe almost always means learning another language fluently. I figure if the motivation is there, it will happen.</p>

<p>Thanks!
Laura</p>

2

<p>My experience is the easiest thing to do is ask. Send an e-mail to the schools in question, and ask how they deal with international students in terms of high school requirements, most conservatories these days draw students from all over, so they will have heard that question a lot, I can almost guarantee it:)</p>

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<p>At least from the reported acceptances threads, only Muimui’s daughter applied for and was accepted as an undergrad at both RAM and RCM. The other continental acceptances were both Masters which is a different ballgame; WindcloudUlltra at RCM, and bratsche for Guildhall School of Music and the Norwegian Academy of Music.</p>

<p>Like musicprnt suggests, the best thing to do is to go directly to the source. In this case, an email or phone call as the websites are confusing.</p>

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<p>Does the US really not have school leaving exams? Or is that just because your daughter is home-schooled?</p>

<p>FWIW, I studied in France (graduate level, but had other intl friends in undergraduate), and high school scores were never even mentioned. Admissions were entirely based on audition and aural tests.</p>

<p>It’s probably a long way in the future, but it might be worth considering getting a BMUS in the US, and then going overseas for graduate study. It’s always nice to have a degree that’s recognised in your home country, so that you’ve got that to come back to. That would also give her time to learn the language.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

5

<p>Yes, the US does not have exit exams, although some individual schools have some sort of graduation exams - but nothing like the Abitur. In Germany, some schools (eg. Bavaria) are now limiting high school (Gymnasium - the college prep schools) to 12 years. My daughter’s class was the last year for 13 grades.</p>

<p>The colleges in Germany accept whatever your high school does, in terms of years to graduation. Your graduation diploma is enough.</p>

<p>Homeschooling is illegal in Germany, and not looked well upon. The GED may be sufficient, as it is a piece of paper, and Germans like paper. :)</p>

<p>Speaking German is of course a pre-req.</p>

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<p>Thanks for your replies, everyone! Of course I am in the process of making a list of schools and writing to them, and had started some of this before I posted. I am e-mailing the schools because of the time difference (some have very limited hours for the offices involved, so that I’d have to call at 3 a.m.), and in some cases, there was a substantial language barrier so writing was better than calling. </p>

<p>But my preliminary results were quite confusing, so I simultaneously started looking for anecdotal evidence from and American perspective here and elsewhere. Perhaps one problem was that I started with Italy, because I was traveling there anyway and know some Italian. Not enough, apparently! And the people I spoke to really had no answer for my question other than to take their exam. </p>

<p>And of course, there’s that issue with 12 or 13 years of high school, which causes some schools to want the American applicant to show a year’s worth of college credit upon application.</p>

<p>So, what I’m getting from you guys and elsewhere is that perhaps European schools in countries other than Italy are willing to take other sorts of proofs of graduation than their own country’s exam. That’s encouraging, at least, and I’ll keep looking into it.</p>

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<p>Admission to a conservatory in Germany requires a high level of talent and expertise. The academics may be part of the process, but the audition will be a huge barrier. Good luck to your daughter.</p>

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<p>Of course. And thanks!</p>

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<p>For anyone who is interested, I received a reply today from the University of Art and Music in Berlin. They said any diploma was fine. As I had mentioned the umbrella schools that homeschoolers sometimes use, they apparently had no problem with that option either. So Binx, you’re right.</p>

<p>My advice for anyone who in a similar situation is, of course, to double check. It’s not like my daughter has gotten in anywhere yet. But the university’s answer is encouraging, at least as it applies to the specific question about <em>academic</em> requirements and homeschoolers. The audition and language requirements are, of course, separate issues that are quite demanding. The diploma question is just a preliminary hurdle.</p>