<p>My daughter is interested in Music Ed, but she also wants to get a more traditional academic major. To avoid having to wrestle with a double degree, I am suggesting she double major with a BA in Music and also something else, and then she can get a masters in Music Ed later if she is still interested.</p>
<p>So my questions are: Do grad schools look down on a BA in Music? Can you minor in Music and get into Music Ed grad programs? Are there any competitive colleges which offer a BA in Music Ed? </p>
<p>In general, the music grad schools do not look down on the BA. At our local music school, College of St Rose, they have the students who didn’t get a degree in music ed do some extra courses and they also offer a music education certification program for those with a music degree but not in music education. So, your daughter won’t be closing any doors by pursuing a BA in music and another major but it would just take her longer to be certified in music education than if she just jumps into music ed as an undergrad. On the other hand, as a music ed undergrad, she would have exposure to learning other instruments and teaching technique classes for the whole 4 years helping her to be a better prepared teacher when she hits the classroom…</p>
<p>Yes, there are competitive colleges that offer a degree in music ed but it isn’t the BA route. BM in education degrees are very time consuming usually involving 17/18 credits per semester. At son’s school, they have the entire 4 years mapped out with room for only one general ed class per semester. So to get the BM in music ed and BA in something else it would take at least 5 years unless your daughter comes in with AP credits and/or takes classes over the summer.</p>
<p>Some schools have a “Performance Certificate” route, where you can major in Music Ed (ideal for undergrad degree as it is a guaranteed career if they don’t make it as a full-time performer) or any other degree, but come out with classes and training very similar to a Music Perf major. Most colleges also have open auditions for their ensembles and bands, you don’t have to be a music major.</p>
<p>Grad School is really ideal for a Music Ed undergrad degree who wants to try for a performing career…</p>
<p>A BA in music is perfectly fine grounding for applying to a masters program in music Ed, assuming she takes enough academic classes during the degree.</p>
<p>One of the colleges that my son looked into only offered a BA in music, but they also had a 5 year BA Music/Master of Arts in Teaching program that qualified one to be a music teacher in our statej.</p>
<p>Like someone else mentioned though, the opportunity of learning many different instruments in the BM Ed program is invaluable though. A music teacher could be asked to teach many different facets of music, and if they teach any instrumental ensembles (and the majority do), they need to know how to play a variety of intruments. In my sons BM Ed program he will not only study his primary instrument each semester, he also studies one or more addititional instruments each semester. Next semester it’s voice - he’s not a singer at all, so this should be interesting.</p>
<p>Question about Masters in Music Ed, is it similar to the BM in that a BM in music ed gives you similar (almost the same amount) training as a performer, or is the Masters for music degrees a lot more specific/specialized?</p>
<p>I’m asking this because it is actually one of the options I’m keeping open in the future since I don’t think I’ll be able to get into a BM program (at least not one I want) my freshman year at college or I might dual degree BA in Music + something else then also do Music as a Masters later on, so I’m wondering if I’ll still get some decent training in performance if I can get into a Masters in Music Ed, without taking neither a BM nor a Masters in performance.</p>
<p>Yoshi, I think that Masters in Music Ed vary more than undergrad programs do - at least some of the ones that I have looked at.</p>
<p>There are quite a few masters in music ed degree programs that don’t require any performance classes at all. In my state you can also be teacher certified with a Masters of Art in Teaching, which isn’t really a music degree at all, although some schools that offer MAT degrees will offer specific tracts for different specialties and may include music as one of those specialties.</p>
<p>At my son’s school, to enroll in the Music Ed Masters program you are required to have a Bachelors in music ed and are already certified to teach. Otherwise you would enter into the MAT program.</p>
<p>One of my sons friends intends on teaching music at the middle school level, he enrolled in a Intermediate Education program and is minoring in music. I believe he told me that his degree and student teaching will allow him to become teacher certifided, but that he will also have to pass the music version of the Praxis II in order to be certified to teach music.</p>
<p>Every state has different laws and qualifications, and I believe every state probably has some different options for certification.</p>
<p>There’s lots of different roads to the same destination.</p>