@Compojazzmom , actually I think I would ask each individual program about their preference regarding regional vs. recorded auditions. Recorded auditions DO lead to admission offers and merit aid, however, especially in certain instrument types (i.e. Voice), a live audition is always better!
S emailed one of the schools and asked if recorded audition would make him disadvantaged in terms of admission or scholarship, and this was the response he got:
‘There will be no disadvantage, though the faculty like to see applicants in person.’
To me it means on-campus audition is preferable. Anyone comprehending the message differently?
I think most anyone would agree that on-campus, in-person auditions are preferable for both parties to get the most ideal feel for one another. That said, it’s not always possible for all sorts of legitimate reasons. Mine did two regionals and one video audition, and he got into all three with solid merit dollars. I really do trust that seasoned faculty know what they’re looking for and can spot it however they see it.
Here are my “opinions” (which could be wrong).
For high interest schools, it’s always best to travel to the audition…no doubt. You will also benefit from being at the school, interacting with faculty, seeing performances, feeling the vibe and so on. Even for mid-interest schools, it’s best to travel if possible. And it sounds like for instrumentalist, the video screening could have other challenges.
Of course, the second choice is the regional audition. There’s nothing wrong with it. If you are talented and a fit for the school, it’s probably just fine.
Still what’s “best” to do, doesn’t always line up with peoples’ pocket books…so if you can’t audition live, you aren’t doomed. Or if you do a regional audition, you shouldn’t be at a significant disadvantage (particularly if you ask about it - good job @compojazzmom having your S contact them!). Communicate with the schools. Take them at their word. They aren’t going to spend time doing regional auditions if they don’t accept anyone. They are looking for talent and understand that not everyone can afford the money and time. Again this is MY opinion…backed up by some experience.
I still think that it’s early in the game for these decisions (but not discussion). You need to wait through pre-screens to see how well your kid does. If you pass all or most of your pre-screens, it may be time to designate a school or two for a video submission (or a regional audition). If you only pass a few, welp maybe you’ll be traveling to unexpected schools!
TIME and MONEY will impact your audition schedule come Dec/Jan…and that’s OK. Happened to us.
None of the schools on my son’s list have regional auditions or pre-screens for his instrument. He’s also not doing any EA auditions since he really first decided he wanted to major in music earlier this year and he’s not going to be as prepared as kids who have been on this path from an early age.
Kudos to the families who go the extra mile to drive their kid for 22 hours! I’m dreading just having to deal with a 3 to 4 hour trip probably every weekend between late January and early March. If he wants to record a video audition or two in the middle of that, then I guess I won’t discourage him.
I think he’s becoming a little more realistic about his chances - he’s now dropped Oberlin and moved one of our in-state publics to the top of his list.
Great discussion! My s has one prescreen (Eastman) and one regional audition (Lawrence) planned. He’s not doing early decision, but will do early action where he can — Berklee and our state school, which is rolling admission. The others are your basic audition weekends, I believe. Not sure if Oberlin is still on the list or not. Still can’t quite believe we’re here…
Just here to chime in since Oberlin was mentioned a few times that Oberlin was the only regional audition D18 did, in NYC, and it worked out fine. Even though the voice faculty weren’t there, the Director of Conservatory admissions was in the room (running the video camera) for the audition. I think in general it is an advantage to have a live human in the same room experiencing you moving the air, but I wouldn’t feel bad about taking advantage of regionals. It’s not an uncomplicated undertaking to do all these auditions.
Just getting started on this journey and a little overwhelmed. S is a HS senior and a will be a trumpet performance major in college. He will be our 2nd in college although the 1st is an engineering major so all of the auditions and other things we have to account for makes this a little overwhelming. I have a few questions for those that have been through this and those going through it now.
- How many schools are your children auditioning for? My son has selected 5 (with a 6th possible)
- When do you finalize applications? We have started nearly all and two apps have been submitted with one state school already giving an acceptance to the university.
- Scheduling auditions. With 5 to 6 schools to audition for scheduling auditions could get hairy especially since most occur in late January through February. How is everyone handling?
One more question, sorry…
Essays - How much if any are they considered when applying to music schools? It seems that everything is really all about the audition and the audition alone. Some schools don’t even require test scores. I’m just wondering how much time should be spent on the essays if they are only a very minor consideration if considered at all.
Hi @TxSker – This is my first time through so I am no expert, but here are my thoughts (my son is also a rising senior, music ed with minor in performance and/or jazz).
- My son also plans on 6, with a possible 7th if things don't seem to be going well. I've been told anywhere from 3 to 10 or more, mostly because admissions and financial offers can be all over the map. In my son's case, we looked at about 10 but, for various reasons, a few of them fell off the table. Of those six, I would say there are 4-5 in the true "top contenders" so sounds analogous.
- He's done the common app options (four), as well as Berklee because it was super-easy. Waiting for the other two to open and will do them as soon as they do. He only has one pre-screen, but he's not ready with that yet so that one may go last.
- So this is why he jumped on the applications so fast -- he was told it would give him a better crack at audition times. He has one early action scheduled for Dec. 1 and one regional audition scheduled for Jan. 11 (this may fall off the table). he's hoping to get at least 1-2 more in December and then, based on results, decide how many others to travel for.
Hope this helps!
P.S. Re: essays, great question! My son is a very strong writer so he put real time into these in hopes it will give him an edge. He’s also hoping to get additional scholarship for a high GPA.
On the other hand, he struggles with standardized tests so we only had him take the SAT once and the ACT once. Scores weren’t great so he will only submit to the two schools that require them.
@TxSker - This is my second kid, first time through this and I am pretty clueless. My son is planning on music performance and might minor in jazz or music technology.
- I think he plans on 6 or 7 live auditions and has been tossing around the idea of doing one or two video submissions. Two of the schools are within 45 minutes of home and he may be able to go on a weird day (Monday or Friday audition).
- He'll finalize his apps as soon as he writes his essay! I'm hoping the English 12 teacher assigns a college essay by next week (school started today). Some of his schools are Coalition and some are Common app. Hopefully, he may be accepted academically at some schools before auditions - one school doesn't guarantee freshman housing and we might want to put down a deposit while we wait for audition results in March. I also want them in early so he doesn't end up having to drop schools due to filled up audition dates.
- I think we're just planning to be very busy for five to six consecutive weekends in the winter! If your kid is ready to go, then maybe you can consider doing some EA auditions if offered. I'm not really sure how homework will happen in February!
- The essay - He's applying to mainly public universities where the essay will be reviewed by the regular undergrad admissions people. So he'll give it the same attention he would if he were applying for a "regular" major. But, he's not really into writing or talking about himself, so I'll be happy if it comes out "sort of decent."
I should add that, while this is my first musician, it’s my sixth (and final) college applicant 
My son was a vocal performance applicant last year.
- How many schools are your children auditioning for? Applied to 9, once some results came in he dropped 2 before auditioning, prescreen rejected at one so auditioned for 6. We were chasing merit/talent scholarships though so we cast a wide enough net.
- When do you finalize applications? Early, most done by end of Nov except a couple in late Dec, so we could get audition dates set and book travel. Also many scholarship deadlines are early.
- Scheduling auditions. We spaced them out by making sure we did at least 2 before end of calendar year, which also helped him prepare for the later ones. Consider choosing an easier admit or lower interest school to audition at first, as you may get better as you go along.
- Essays-depends the school but he spent a lot of time on his Common App essay, less on others.
Thanks for all the helpful responses!! Trying to get my kiddo to finish up his essays so we can finalize his applications and set his audition schedule is where we are at now. I’d like to get it done as soon as we can, he on the other hand thinks he has some time.
- How many schools are your children auditioning for? Not sure!? I hope he throws out apps to like 10-12 schools and has the option to audition for at least 7 or 8? Then maybe we can trim down from there. 4 auditions are within easy driving distance and one may be completed EA. I'm going to have him start with the easiest apps and work himself toward least realistic options financially. Merit is a factor for sure over here.
- When do you finalize applications? Well, the kid has a good start on the common app. We could probably hit go on a couple easier options soon. I'm guessing it's going to take another month to get all his reference letters together for fussier private schools.
- Scheduling auditions. With 5 to 6 schools to audition for scheduling auditions could get hairy especially since most occur in late January through February. How is everyone handling? Still piecing that together. I'm guessing kid may need to make some hard decisions if he gets through a bunch of prescreens. Also would consider regional or recorded audition if scheduling is super rough for a less favorable school over a more favorable one (in the kid's opinion).
Ok, so it seems we are not behind and still have some time. He has most of his application stuff together, one common app, one apply Texas and the others are all school specific apps. For references all he needs are the recommenders email addresses and for them to be willing to send a recommendation which he has lined up from his private lesson teachers.
Any other trumpet parents out there?
Sneaky Parent audition advice- if there is a financial safety you want kiddo to have as a “back pocket” admit, schedule the audition early. Audition fatigue in Jan-Feb is real, and he/she will balk somewhere along the line and want to cancel certain auditions.
We’re planning on doing one single trip within a span of around 10 days taking a few flights and bus rides for on-campus auditions. Not sure if the plan will work out as it all depends on the audition dates, many of which have not been updated at the schools’ websites. For the time being, we’re mostly referencing last year’s audition dates for S’s intended major (moving one day backward). Hope things will start to clear up in early Sep.
Anyone else hit send yet on the common app to Oberlin? A note says that an email will be sent in the next 24 hours with additional forms to fill out and we have not received on and it’s been 2 days.
Yeah it’s been two weeks for us and no forms