<p>Daughter has been accepted to both Berklee and Belmont, for Commercial Music, and can't decide which one to go to. Both have wonderful opportunities for her. At first she thought Berklee since they gave her some money, but even so it will be more expensive than Belmont. The environment at each is so different, but both programs look good. Is there a right/wrong choice? She got into Berklee with her piano/vocal audition and Belmont with her vocal only audition. She's already accepted Berklee because she thought she wouldn't get into the music program at Belmont. Her preference would've been to get into Belmont on her piano audition, but I think her emphasis can change once she's there. Thoughts please! She must decide today.</p>
<p>We, too, had to decide between Belmont and some “national” music programs. For my S, he was a classically focused performance major and for that reason alone opted for the Northeast over Belmont. He said himself that had he been a Commercial Music he would have signed at Belmont without a single reservation. The Curb school is the “crown” of Belmont and Nashville has the industry to support students in the Commercial field. I know he has friends there who spend hours “free of charge” in the incredible recording facilities on the Belmont campus. We have a family friend that graduated from Belmont in commercial that has been touring with a major music group for two years now and was offered that job before he walked the stage at Belmont his senior year for graduation.</p>
<p>She could defer her acceptance at Berklee for a year and try out Belmont.</p>
<p>Regarding the Berklee deferral, I am not familiar with Berklee’s policy in particular but some schools that offer deferrals specifically prohibit attending another school for a similar major during that period. It would be a good thing to check before pursuing that course of action.</p>
<p>Regarding the acceptances, congratulations. I have posted them to the <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/1260441-master-list-music-school-acceptances-fall-2012-a-63.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/1260441-master-list-music-school-acceptances-fall-2012-a-63.html</a> and hope you will let us know about any others she may have gotten, even if she has narrowed the decision down to Berklee or Belmont.</p>
<p>^Can you do that? I was told that was a definite no-no and that both schools would revoke your acceptance.</p>
<p>You can defer at Berklee for up to 1 year without affecting any other decision. My D is doing this as well as electricbassmon’s S. It is a place hold, a bit different from other schools. You can attend another school and transfer in to Berklee. There is possibility that you would lose a few credits in the transfer but if you wish to leave that window of opportunity cracked, it can be done. You can also audition again at Berklee to see if you can raise your scholarship number.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your thoughts. I think that after all the research we’ve done to compare the two schools we’ve come to the conclusion that both are excellent choices and that in the end what she gets out of either one is going to depend on her. I admit I am bit partial to Belmont. Excellent music program and yet a university experience. I appreciate the dorms on campus as well as the internship opportunities and the fact that it is right in the midst of the music scene. One thought has been to go to Belmont and in the summer take advantage of opportunities for learning at Berklee. Sort of the best of both worlds. Well, it’s not going to be up to me. It’s a tough choice. She likes both schools and is really having a tough time making her choice. Either way, I don’t think she can go wrong.</p>
<p>We visited Belmont for my junior daughter in September and we all loved it. She’s going to Berklee this summer for the vocal summit and stage performance workshop. So I know must definitely be a tough choice for your family.</p>
<p>As someone wisely posted on another thread recently, it’s not a bad idea if - all other things being equal - you let finances be the tiebreaker. If she would love going to either school, which one will allow her to start life with the least amount of debt? It’s a hard path anyway, but heading out into the music world without the weight of student loans around your neck would give her a lot more freedom to pursue her goals without compromise. </p>
<p>Again, I think that’s valid only if you truly feel everything else is equal. Bets of luck in deciding - keep us all posted!</p>
<p>What did your D decide? It sounds like she really could thrive at either.</p>
<p>First of all, congrats to your daughter for being accepted! Voice is by far the most competitive major at both schools. </p>
<p>We faced the same choice a year ago. S is a guitarist and aspiring commercial composer. We chose Belmont, mostly because of cost but also because of the true college experience at Belmont. S got a decent merit scholarship and additional financial aid, which made it close to a no-brainer since Berklee gave him nothing. We told him that if he really did not like Belmont we would consider a transfer. He just came home after his first year and loved it at Belmont.</p>
<p>And it is not difficult to change your emphasis/instrument at Belmont.</p>
<p>I think the difference with the Berklee deferral is you do not deposit at the school, and thereby secure a place. It’s an odd procedure, but I guess by their retention rate, they have empty slots to fill in the second year.</p>
<p>At most schools, to defer, you have to deposit and accept your spot. That’s considered to be “enrolling” and cannot be done at two schools.</p>
<p>My guitar player son had the same choice this year: Berklee or Belmont (also Commercial Music). He was flattered to receive personal phone calls from several of the guitar folks at Belmont, but is going to Berklee, he says, because of the Master Class opportunities, and the diversity. Also, as a parent, I’m supposed to want him to pursue rigorous academics, as part of some “Plan B,” but I’m actually happy that Berklee isn’t very demanding outside of the music curriculum, because I’m tired of chasing and nagging the kid to get his work done. In the 10 years he’s been in music, I’ve never once had to remind him to practice or prepare for anything. </p>
<p>He liked Belmont, though, and knows someone who did a year at Berklee and was still welcomed at Belmont her second year (and graduated and is still in Nashville).</p>
<p>Does Belmont cut? As I understand it from questions asked when we toured Berklee, Berklee cuts students drastically at the end of the freshman year. We had it explained that their business plan calls for them to take in enormous amounts of freshman tuition, then cut the class down to size beginning the sophomore year.</p>
<p>You probably want to confirm this, and ask some questions. But hearing this alone was enough for my son to decide he doesn’t even want to apply to Berklee.</p>
<p>I don’t believe Belmont “cuts” like that… You do have to perform well on your juries and show progress but I’ve never heard something of that sort around the school. I’m a current Belmont upperclassmen student in multiple schools/it’s a small community so I know plenty of people within the music schools. I’m also a club’s leadership team so I’m required to know a lot about the school for incoming student recruitment reasons. If anyone has specific questions, feel free to shoot me over a message. As mentioned earlier on this thread, there are amazing commercial opportunities here - many students collaborate on studio projects for free and we’re across the street from Music Row.</p>
<p>I would double check the rumor that Berklee “cuts.” I think some students leave on their own, but the school making them leave? That does not sound accurate and should certainly not be a reason to “not even apply” without verifying. Especially when there are so few programs for popular music.</p>
<p>Agreed that Berklee cutting for profit reasons is a rumor. I think that all freshman music major classes have attrition, some schools have steeper drops than others. I can imagine Berklee having a few who are in way over their heads technically and academic music wise, as well as financially. S fully expects up to half of the guitarists in the program he has been accepted into to not continue into their second year. </p>
<p>I would not let rumor and hearsay keep my child from applying. It is true that Berklee is expensive and they do not meet need however those are transparent facts that the institution is very up front about. And that they hold you to a pretty high self directed standard.</p>
<p>And it’s often students giving the tours. Not always reliable sources.</p>
<p>I also heard that Berklee cuts freshmen, which means they are taking in extra people in order to collect the tuition. We know a recently admitted student to Berklee who said this; he said it was common knowledge. </p>
<p>My former law school cut students after their first year. Although the school claimed it was self-attrition, I knew for a fact it was not. I knew the students who got kicked out. They were very competent and caring people, and would have made great lawyers. The school simply kicked out 25% of the students every year who had the lowest GPAs. Schools also do this to raise the “caliber” of their students.</p>
<p>Look for statistics: compare how many students are admitted freshman year, and how many of them are still there in the second year. Then compare that to other music schools.</p>
<p>“I also heard” is not confirmation. No legitimate school would do this and not cop to it. I’ve read on cc that some musical theater programs cut students (or used to), but they cut from the MAJOR, not the school. And they are official about it.</p>
<p>Until someone gets official confirmation of this, it sounds like utter nonsense. Berklee is known for its high attrition rate, which may be due to the fact that it accepts a very wide range in terms of talent/experience. In this way, it’s quite different from other programs.</p>
<p>Note: I have nothing to do with Berklee, and my student does not attend there.</p>
<p>This seems like someone is twisting the concept of normal freshman attrition into an evil policy. My D explained that some of her friends didn’t continue after their first semester, not because Berklee ‘kicked them out,’ but because they were in over their head, or preferred to get high over going to class, or couldn’t afford the next semester. She knows of no one that is intent on learning and going to class that was ‘cut’ for any reason, other than they couldn’t pay the bill. There is at least one friend who had an amazing scholarship, but because he didn’t go to class consistently and therefore had terrible grades, he didn’t keep the scholarship and ‘took some time off’ to re-assess. He’s still not back, unfortunately, because without the huge scholarship he cannot afford to attend.</p>
<p>Schools call this attrition, and they build it into their accept rates. They want all students to continue, and Berklee is very supportive of any kids improving themselves and trying to learn, no matter their starting point in music. If you look at many colleges websites, they advertise a freshman retention rate, and Berklee’s dealing with this is no different than a non-music college.</p>