Am I "good enough" to present myself as a music student?

Applying to College
1

<p>I am having problems trying to find something that makes me stand out in my application process. Obviously a hook is not completely necessary, but to give something that makes me stand out would be helpful. My question is whether you guys would consider my musical backround good enough to build my application around, with things such as having my essay focused on it and listing several of my experiences as activities. </p>

<p>-Symphonic Band at my High School for 4 years, Bass Clarinet
-Jazz Band at my High School for 3 years, Tenor Saxophone
-Marching Band at my High School for 4 years, Clarinet
-Piano, Recitals and Competitions since 2nd Grade
-Played in our Orchestra Pit for our school musicals for 3 years, Multiple instruments
-Overall have advanced to State in Solo and Ensemble Competition in 11 events on 3 instruments (Bass Clarinet, Tenor Sax, Piano)
-Specifically invited to perform with the Youth Wind Ensemble, called UWAY, in Milwaukee, WI (I live in WI)
-Our Jazz band will be traveling to New Orleans this spring to participate in a competition where I will be a featured soloist.</p>

<p>Hopefully I don't sound to boastful or arrogant when I post this. I just always see the posts about kids who overcame struggles or had national achievements that they hung there hat on so to speak. I just don't want to center my application on something that might be looked at as not that impressive. If it is impressive and I sound stupid, I apologize in advance.</p>

<p>I was also wondering if this would be bad to focus on if I am not planning on being a Music Major. I will hopefully still play in college, but majoring in music is just not what I want to do for a career. </p>

2

<p>If you don’t plan on majoring in Music, then you need to display your academics – that simple. There’s no “buildng your application around you”. You find colleges that match well with your academic achievement.</p>

3

<p>Bump</p>

4

<p>While it’s nice that you have those musical interests, you are not applying to be a music major. You can certainly discuss your love of music in your essay.</p>

5

<p>I think this will look terrific on any application, especially given the well-known connection between musical performance and intellectual ability. </p>

6

<p>Your music as it stands right now is not good enough to be considered a hook or anything like that, but it does show dedication in ECs. So it will help your application in that respect.</p>