This forum has been pretty quiet. Does that mean everyone is too busy practicing, too stressed out over auditions, too busy trying to complete financial aid forms, or just too busy shoveling snow?
My son was miserable back in November/December when applications were due. I didn’t interfere, the result of which was that we were both up until the wee hours of the morning the night before due dates. 
Even the New School application, which wasn’t due until January 15, got done on the 15th…
Of course, he’s laughing now because I’m growling about doing my taxes early so that we can get the FAFSA done accurately.
And he’s having a blast with the auditions so far. In retrospect, I guess misery over the essays and fun at auditions is much more preferable to the other way around.
We’ve been in limbo, waiting for all the pre-screen notifications to roll in, waiting for W-2’s, tweaking the repertoire.
Waiting makes me crazy, so I’ve been just trying to stay distracted!
S was pretty great about getting everything done before the deadlines, (although he complained a LOT about all the essays). That eliminated some stress, but also meant more waiting. The worst for him was wrangling the recommendation letters! One teacher in particular, (academic), waited until the final hours for each application, all with different deadlines. Why wouldn’t he just do them all at the same time? He seemed to think it was funny when S would uncomfortably remind him a few days before, then again the day they were due. They have a kind of funny ba**-busting relationship, so it wouldn’t surprise me if it was intentional.
S completed one audition back in early December, which was a good experience, with an early acceptance and nice scholarship offer, so that relieves some stress going forward. Starting next weekend things will start rolling again with 6 auditions in the following 4 weeks.
That’s wonderful that your S is having a great time with auditions. I’d say that is definitely preferable to the inverse!
It is nice to have a little community when going through this process. There is no right or wrong way for the kids or parents to experience it.
For us, once all the busy work of building a resume over years and then wrestling with the many heads of the application process was complete, there was only that final hurdle - the audition. You could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel! And let’s face it making music is what these kids love to do.
Me doing early taxes for the FAFSA - that was NOT on my love-to-do list! Or paying gobs of money to audition…or the fear of her not being accepted at any school as opposed to the terror of her being accepted at only one really expensive school! Which was worse? Thankfully I’ll never know.
Good luck finishing the race - it may be harder on the parents now…
With FAFSA (which I haven’t done yet, which is a waste of time, but I still have to do it) I generally use last years information then modify it after I have done this years taxes. Among other things, I can’t do my taxes until my W2 is done and I also can get the 1099 info on stock transactions that are part of my compensation…
I wish I could skip the FAFSA too, but it’s required even just for scholarships at most schools, I guess.
Currently weighing whether or not to go to the Curtis audition. It is a hard one to pass up, given that it is a “dream school.” However, I’m having a hard time finding any info online about what it is really like to be an undergrad vocal performance major at Curtis–probably because there have been so few of them over the years.
Does anyone have any insight on this? I already know that the odds are almost as bad as the powerball lottery, so I don’t need any further education there. 
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think I actually AM having fun.
As of yesterday 3 out of 5 auditions are done. The first one was the worst, not knowing what to expect and with it being my daughter’s top choice of schools. But it went better than she could have reasonably hoped and I think, after that, parents and daughter have all relaxed and the attitude is more of a confident “I can do this!”. She’s had auditions the last three weekends and I think we’re all genuinely enjoying the time together. Having a quiet weekend away right now and the downtime is wonderful. Two weeks off until the next audition.
FAFSA was done a couple of weeks ago. I have always done something akin to what others have suggested and initial filed an estimate. It’s very easy to go back and plug in final numbers later. CSS is another story as this is our first go around with that. I’ve got it filed, but looks like getting final numbers in the system is more work because each institution has to be contacted separately. Overall not too bad though.
The CSS is the worst thing I’ve ever seen. I really am resentful that I have to fill it out, too, because I didn’t even know about it until it was mentioned at a financial aid presentation at one of the auditions.
I can’t imagine passing up the Curtis audition! Free tuition! I met one undergrad VP major when my son was doing the summer double bass workshop there a few years ago. All I can say is she was very nice and seemed very happy. My son said all of the Curtis students involved with the housing and activities for the workshop were wonderful. I know that doesn’t help with your situation directly @choirandstages but I just thought I’d share. Also, the food at Lenfest Hall is really good and the dorms are fantastic. Each student lives with 3 other students. They share a living room and each have their own private room. Also, my understanding is that Curtis only accepts the amount of students they need to fill ensembles, etc. So everyone is busy and has opportunity.
Thank you for the feedback @momsings. I have read here that the housing is almost $30k a year, so that gives me pause. Also my D doesn’t seem to like urban settings. In the end, though, it’s still difficult to pass up on this opportunity.
@choirsandstages, I’m pretty sure Curtis’ website shows room and board to be around $15K per year – pretty much on par with other schools.
Housing is not $30k a year–that must be a typo. Room and board, according to their website, is $13 K for a double room, which is on par or cheaper than the rates for most urban universities. Lenfest Hall is a beautiful new building, by the way. After two years, students can move off campus.
With two down and three to go, we are also having fun, at least some of the time. When the family’s musician isn’t second-guessing, self-criticizing, and generally succumbing to the stresses of the season… not without reason, of course. The travel is good, and the auditions themselves have been relatively low-stress. But it’s such a loooong stretch - right through the beginning of March. For now, we just keep our fingers crossed for calm weather and clear skies.
I will echo almost exactly what @listenmissy said, except D is “5 down, 3 to go” and the auditions have not been low stress! D (vocalist) was quite sick (almost cancelled) for 1 and still struggling with lingering symptoms (sinus infection) made worse by the plane ride for the next.
We just got back from New Orleans and despite the sinus issues, it was a really nice trip. Loyola shot straight to the top of her list. It has been interesting to see how the farther through the process we go, her realization of what she wants from a school / program has become more and more clear. My top choices for her were not always the same as her top choices. I try to keep my mouth shut as much as possible! We also both have been heavily influenced by the interaction (or lack thereof) with the staff and/or student body at each particular school. It’s interesting to see the differences.
Most of the schools D has applied to are universities with a school of music or music department. So, in most cases, there are the 2 applications for each and now she has been getting invited to apply for honors programs, additional academic scholarships, etc. Today is a big deadline day for that and I’m pretty sure she will be hitting submit to somewhere at 11:59 pm! This application / paperwork overload combined with the lack of flexibility we have received from her school and some teachers regarding time off and make up work, has made the whole experience truly exhausting.
We keep getting emails from a few schools about submitting financial aid documents (also with a deadline of today) despite the fact that I believe I’ve already submitted everything! My job today is to double check with them to make sure they have what they need. I’m assuming the emails I’m getting are bulk emails, but I figure I better double check. I’m not looking forward to updating all this info either. Ugh.
Is anyone planning any big celebration when auditions are complete? It seems we’ve had no time to celebrate any of the accomplishments so far. D got her Berklee acceptance yesterday and it was like “Really? Cool!..You know we still need to send an email to…” That is NOT how I pictured that moment in my head! Same thing with getting scholarship letters, “Wow, $20K, that’s great…When do yo have to retake your Spanish test?” LOL! I would really love to take my family on a vacation during spring break to celebrate “getting through” all of this, but I can’t even wrap my mind around making those travel plans! My husband loves to travel and has not been on any of the college visits or audition trips. I’m pretty sure he’s feeling left out / jealous, but hasn’t said a word. I’m sure he’d like a vacation, too! I would love to hear ideas of how others are celebrating.
Well, I just used up all my free time today! Have a good one everybody!
dbandmom - Your post is quite good about how the audition process can really change the rank of a school. Future applicants should take note. It’s not over until its over. It’s best to be flexible all the way until April 1.
We went to Paris for spring break! Just my D and me for 5 nights only (I had lived there for a year in my 20s so I knew how to keep it affordable). I was nervous about adding more costs after auditioning and before college but I’m so glad we did it. It was the beginning of a very wonderful time when we could all finally relax and enjoy the end of her senior year.
Yes, agree with listenmissy, “at least some of the time” we are having fun! I recall sitting with my older daughter in a restaurant on the way home from her final audition and she said the whole process had been enjoyable. I always joked that I should have gotten that on tape! My other daughter is now auditioning for VP (as opposed to instrumental) so it’s a whole new world to me. Four live auditions, two pre-screens…she felt the live auditions went well but she did not pass the pre-screens (which she knew were reaches). We have one left but will combine it with attending her sister’s junior year recital so it’ll be a win-win no matter. I also agree with dbandmom’s comment: “I try to keep my mouth shut as much as possible! We also both have been heavily influenced by the interaction (or lack thereof) with the staff and/or student body at each particular school. It’s interesting to see the differences.” …though I’m THE WORST about keeping my mouth shut! Her top choice now was barely even on the list in the Fall and now, because of their personal touch, is her #1. In terms of celebrating, my older daughter did a bonfire with friends because I saved every piece of college material that came in the mail for two years. I have done the same with this daughter and it’s enough to burn down the whole town.
We have also had an unexpected experience w faculty at one school that has made it go to the top. It makes all the difference. Anxiously awaiting the outcome of that one!
When my son got his acceptance from Berklee (first audition, first acceptance), I think he was ready to cancel some auditions at schools he thought weren’t as high on his list as Berklee which, ironically, was a last-minute “safety” application. He almost cancelled Thornton (USC), but I convinced him to go and, just like Boston/Berklee, he liked the school/city/professor much more than he was expecting (not to mention the weather!) He’s figured out that the audition weekend itself makes a big difference in how he feels about the school. So, he’s now committed to doing all of his auditions; 4 more to go.
My son was sick for both of his auditions. Thank god for teenage resilience and adrenaline! I feel like we’re just traveling the country collecting germs.
The financial aid stuff is making me a little nutty.
YES! We’re spending an extra day in NYC after his last set of auditions at the end of the month. Then we’ll be in the Caribbean the first week of April, at which point all the decisions should be in.
Oooh, @clarinet13mom – a bonfire sounds like a great idea!! Sadly, I’ve been recycling along the way. Although if we printed out the thousands (literally) of emails… we might have a nice pile… er, pyre…
We finish with audition travel about a week before spring break. We’ll have to come up with something!
“Is anyone planning any big celebration when auditions are complete?”
While it is nice to celebrate, that isn’t the end of it for many kids. Then depending on where they get in, there may be the angst of deciding where to go if my S was any indication, and if there is a situation where, for example, a teacher they really want to study with has them on waitlist, versus a guaranteed acceptance at another place, can be fun. Then, too, you may see buyers remorse after they send the response saying “I’ll attend”, second guessing themselves, like “oh, did i make the right choice?”…they are still teenagers, after all, so kind of can go with the territory.