@JeJeJe She’s studying classical, but is interested in MT as well. She’s a first soprano usually, and classical stuff seems better suited to her voice, so Berklee hasn’t been on our radar screen – although she truly loves every genre. Basically, if she’s singing, she’s happy!
@UniversityMomOf2 — thanks for the congrats! And thank you for the information about Lawrence’s aid—useful to know it travels with the student during study abroad. I really appreciated the VP audition process there with so many vocal performance profs attending, the enthusiasm of the Dean, and their excitement about the music Ed program as well (although we did not stay for the workshop).
And so nice to hear of other male flute players who your son spoke with at BW! He must have enjoyed that. I almost wish there was more time (another six months?) to get to know each program a bit better but am grateful for the effort that went into each experience, and grateful, too, that we’ll know our fates in the next few months!
@“Pikachu’s Mom” The vocal teachers that came to the workshop were very enthusiastic and I enjoyed hearing what they had to say. And it was really great having the Dean take part in it. He certainly is enthusiastic about his alma mater. It’s so great to see that. So many department heads are stuffy at some of these places. I didn’t see the whole study abroad or financial aid presentations but I did get that from them. I thought it would be useful for people to know since many students do study abroad.
I like this CC community. Lots of information and lots of encouragements. Thank you, everyone here!
khill87———Like what other people said, you should send your daughter to Oberlin if Oberlin is her top choice before HS senior year. My son never had “college” summer camps (except in 8th / 9th grade) but he had the best summer opportunity last year that was like a life changing for him. Guess what? He changed his college list!
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@khill87 - my kid did a summer program last year at IU (Jacobs) and I would say it helped getting him through the prescreen phase, but hasn’t given him any sort of leg up in admissions (still waiting, waiting, waiting…). It’s a great idea for getting a feel for the school, professors, and general college type experiences (dorm food anyone?). I think it’s worthwhile to get a feel for a potential ‘top choice’ school.
I don’t know if they give you a leg up. My S only attended 1 camp at our state flagship summer before senior year. However, he got to live in the dorm (yuck), eat the food (double yuck lol) and take classes with people who would be his professors if he attended. For him, it helped in deciding for sure this was the career he wanted (despite said faculty being discouraging of kids pursuing music), and in deciding whether or not to apply there. He did and after auditions it moved into 2nd position surprisingly. But the camp he attended had a modest fee by comparison to most we looked at and he got a small scholarship from the band boosters. Had we known sooner that he would be pursuing this as a career we would have sacrificed for him to go to camps every summer as some of his peers NOT pursuing music have done. I think they are such a valuable learning experience, especially when run by the actual college faculty. What they learn can further their skill set which can be looked at as a leg up so to speak in a different way.
@khill87 - most definitely on the summer program question! Unless as you pointed out, there are no faculty that are there. But even so, I think that kids can really get a feel for a place from talking to other kids at summer programs. There is a recent article that talks about how campus tours aren’t that useful and instead, kids should pay attention to college “surrogates” - that is, students who are similar to themselves in terms of goals, etc. that go to that particular school - and their experiences. So - networking and hearing other musicians experiences at various schools is invaluable.
And putting the “getting into that school” to one side, I’m a HUGE proponent of summer programs (esp those that are generous with scholarships). Two out of 3 of our triplets are involved in the Arts and summer programs are what made them realize that they wanted to pursue being a professional (one is a ballet dancer and one a bassist). Our son has gone to summer programs since he started ballet when he was 14 (Houston Ballet, CPYB, SAB and PNB). That first summer in Houston solidified what he wanted to do and put a fire under him. Same thing with his sister - she went to Furman for a few years - and then to Brevard - and that summer, she came home on fire and has never stopped practicing her brains out. It was a HUGE. It was like someone turned on a switch. She was equally inspired last summer at Berklee - it was so hard to get her to leave when the program was done.
Good luck!. Sounds like we have the start of a new “Journey” thread? Does that mean we are nearing the finish line 2023ers???
Re: new “Journey” thread, getting close! I think this one started in April after last year’s decisions had come out. Can’t believe it’s been almost a year. I’m excited for the juniors and parents lining up for the roller coaster and wish them an exhilarating ride …
My D attended the program during the summer of her rising senior year. Four of the six faculty teachers were present during the program. She was assigned a studio teacher and participated as a singer for all other teachers’ master classes. At the end of the program she knew Oberlin was her first choice and who her preferred studio teacher was. The summer program boosted her confidence level which made her “audition ready” for the forthcoming applications and auditions.
Faculty teachers will be working one on one with each student. They will detect if a bond/chemistry is present between them. If this “connection” exist it will definitely help the student to get accepted into the college. Granted it is very tough to feel this “connection” during the school audition, thus those present at the summer program have an advantage if the student/teacher chemistry exist. At the same token the summer program can be counterproductive if a prospective student nails a college audition but shows no chemistry between student and teacher during the summer program.
As far as my D, the Oberlin summer program was a life changing experience for her and made our lives much easier during college decision time. Please feel free to PM me for any specifics.
I think it is important to consider the individual program. At Berklee, for instance, the program is huge and my S did not work with anyone who would be his studio leader at the school (that said, it was an amazing experience and he was glad he did it). At Eastman for the Jazz Workshop, he worked with the same people and the entire program was under 40 students, so he had a much better chance of making personal connections.
OTOH, he never took a summer program at our in-state option, but he spent two years in an honor band that was run by a studio head. When it came time to apply, he was able to request this person as a his teacher.
Finally, no matter how positive those relationships may be, it’s impossible to predict either the school’s need (maybe all their sopranos just graduated or maybe they have a glut this year) or the quality of an individual year’s pool. I still think summer programs are really helpful, though. For one thing, they’ll bring your student into contact with other serious players and help him or her see where they are on the spectrum. In my son’s cases, they helped him decide he wanted a full-time conservatory-like BM and showed him how hard he’d have to practice to make that dream a reality.
I have “mail pieces that we do not have an image for are included in today’s mail”. I’m wondering where it came from and if it’s an acceptance or rejection.
@pdxtigermom or it could be a Pottery Barn catalog…just sayin’. We’ve had some disappointments in that regard.
@akapiratequeen you make me laugh so hard! As long as it’s not a rejection, I’m fine. I’ve received rejection letter before and the image was clearly shown in the mail.
In my experience, those are usually junk mail/catalogs @pdxtigermom, but I hope it’s an acceptance. (A snail mail rejection would probably come in a regular letter size envelope).
I look forward to the day when I no longer find myself previewing my bills and junk mail on a daily basis! Also, I hope the end of Ithaca portal purgatory is coming soon. I almost don’t even care what the decision is anymore. (Others who auditioned on the same instrument have been accepted, so I’m not sure what the holdup is on the (likely) rejections for the others who applied to that studio…)
@khill87 - My D did 2 expensive (for us), auditioned summer workshops. They were a financial stretch for us but had a lot of benefits for her. She worked with profs from a couple of the schools she later applied to because she liked their “vibe.” It in no way guaranteed getting into those schools, but I’m sure having a connection with the prof before the audition has given her a little bit of an edge. In addition, she spent time learning excerpts that she later used for various auditions, and she was able to work on chamber ensemble repertoire that she never has the opportunity to work on locally. Finally, she got to spend several intense weeks immersed in doing what she loves with other kids who share her passion. It confirmed her decision to pursue a BM and provided a network of peers across the country that she is still in touch with. She was even able to connect up with some of them when she was doing her audition trips.
@AmyIzzy I don’t know how I could ever forget your description of the ax throwing audition venue for CalArts! It will be interesting to hear how that turns out.
@PercussionMama yes this! My S ran into several people he knew at the Eastman audition – they hung out and waited and even grabbed lunch together. Really made it less stressful for him.
Haha @PercussionMama! I think I am mentally scarred for life after that experience! Glad my daughter and I can laugh about it now ?
@AmyIzzy ? that is so darn funny!!!
Guys I have to tell you all, it’s crazy to me that I first got onto CC 5 years ago for my son, aka SpartanDrew where I got my screen name. He is finishing his degree in Mechanical Engineering at Michigan State and heading to Clemson this fall for a masters in automotive engineering. I just got his commencement invitation in the mail today!!! (and yes it showed up in the informed delivery photo lol).
AAAACKKK!!! Where has the time even gone?!! As painful and stressful as this month and next month is you can’t even believe how FAST your kid’s college experience will go! Mind blown…truly. We are headed to SC for his spring break next week to meet with faculty, schmooze for fellowships and grad assistantships which will hopefully pay for most of it and find him a place to live. Enjoy every minute of this ride! It goes by in a blink of an eye!!!
Congratulations to your son, @SpartanDrew! Very cool!
I think I got on CC 10 years ago when my eldest son was a freshman. Long time. 
Very exciting news here. The first school that my son would strongly consider attending emailed him today. Cal State Fullerton admitted him into the BM Cello Performance major with a $6900 a year scholarship! Yay!
If we combine that with the expected 6K Cal Grant and possibly get his 6K a year National Merit Corporate scholarship reinstated (he had to give that up when he withdrew from Penn as a freshman 2 years ago), then Fullerton would be super duper affordable. And only having to maintain a 2.0 GPA for the scholarship will take the pressure off of him.
He liked the teacher very much and the school is only about 2 hours away. And private lessons are included at no cost. We’re happy!