Just to add @jacole I do think the music program at Belmont sounds phenomenal and like a great fit for your son. Sounds like you have been proactive with college classes and that should bring down the price tag which is great! Good luck as he decides this month!
Sorry I meant my son received an email not letter. The title of the email was MICHIGAN-Scholarship offer!
@tripletmama I second @HereWeGoAgain2108 and @akapiratequeen’s advice - try to have your D do freshman year in the Berklee dorms if you can. I think it will be worth it considering the camaraderie, the proximity, and apartment hidden expense and hassle. My S and his friend started looking in early Spring of freshman year and ended up in a Boston neighborhood called Jamaica Plain which is on the T’s Orange line (stops at NEC and not far from Berklee). Your D might look in the Brighton neighborhood as it’s on the Green line which stops right at Berklee. I lived in Back Bay around the corner from Berklee for most of my 20s (so many years ago) and just loved that whole area. I’m so excited for your D! And you too - this is big to launch all 3.
Following along today and keeping my fingers crossed for all of you still waiting to hear something! What time of day are decisions expected?
@PianoMom88 Hi, I’m just catching up on many of these messages. My d will be there on the 14th as well! Still struggling with the $$ concept though.
I always recommend first year in the dorms. My D has made so many amazing friends including her awesome roommate from Hong Kong and great suite mates. And many musicians in the dorm. She has been able to do jazz hangs on Friday night’s with them in one of their suites. Despite the cough cough 21K price tag for 9 months, it was worth it. She is moving to an apartment for next year with her keyboard player and one other musician TBD haha.
I hope the last of you get answers today you had hoped for! Happy April Fool’s day! I’m sure many of you are happy to have March in the rear view mirror.
Re scholarships, I think we have learned a LOT this year in that regard. But I do think it’s VERY important to take each offer that others get with a grain of salt as was mentioned on this thread a few pages back. Many offers are indeed “need informed”. I didn’t know that was a thing before this year but it is a fact. So one person’s amazing “Merit award” may in fact have a good chunk awarded based on need. I also think many offers should not make anyone feel their kid or others are any more or any less talented. Some may very well be quite a bit more talented but may get a lower offer because the school just doesn’t need that instrument or voice that year.
Case and point, we followed a lot of kids applying to NEC for vocal jazz last year and D and her vocal coach thought she should throw in an app last minute just in case she was one of the lucky few who got a big offer. We knew of one kid who was there on the Tufts/NEC dual degree on a full ride. We met with him when D auditioned. He mentioned he had “need” and felt that much of that award was need based. I know how uber talented that kid is, amazing talent. And he must be academically gifted as well for the Tufts part so I am certain merit was a great part of it and maybe need was a good chunk as well. We also knew another jazz vocalist there on big money, was it need based or all talent? We have no clue. D was offered very low there (we did not have an EFC that warranted any FA) and the appeals there were minimal at best. We knew going in that big money was a long shot, but possible. I think having that knowledge is helpful but in no way does it suggest that’s what your kid would get. And her biggest money ended up being at a school that we had LOW expectations of money coming through on. It’s all a crapshoot.
I hope that helps! If your kid auditioned at any of these schools THAT is the testament to their talent. NOT how much merit/talent scholarship they are offered if they are admitted.
Happy April everyone and now we can look forward to May first and admissions decisions!!!
I have to agree with the recommendation to live in the dorms the first year. That’s where students find their tribe. As well as jam sessions. The other huge bonus to living in the dorms at Berklee are the practice rooms! I believe the freshman dorms have the largest number of practice rooms on campus.
From what I hear rent in Boston is more than NYC. And you would have to commit to a 12 month lease. I don’t think that is going to be a cheaper option.
If it’s a stand alone conservatory, i would presume
that merit aid and financial aid comes from
the same pot. A university should have more resources to pull financial aid from. Consider someone with no demonstrated need applying to NEC or SFCM. The school would be thrilled to get all of that tuition, and wouldn’t feel that they have to offer any merit discounts at all. On the other hand, giving a full pay student a 10,000$ break would STILL net them far more than they would get from a deserving student with high need. If they manage admissions correctly, they should be able to collect high fees and still make some families happy with some midrange (10-20k) awards. No?
Agree with @SpartanDrew one thousand percent! I went back and read the FA information for the schools where S applied – nearly all merit scholarships were also “informed by need” to some extent. We also learned a lot about yield, class balance, and ebb and flow within departments. All of these are much more likely to be a factor than how much the faculty liked your audition (although this is critical to being recommended for acceptance/waitlist)!
Frankly, these are the only arguments that makes sense in evaluating S’s offers, which ranged from $0 at two schools – including one that gave him a full ride to the summer program the year before and another where he was a 2x legacy! – to $20, $30, and $50k. Another equally talented applicant might have gotten a completely different set of offers.
@akapiratequeen how can you tell if an offer is “informed by need”?
You can’t…I just mean the web site pages say so.
$21K @SpartanDrew
omg
@dbandmom yep. Gulp. We hope to get her an apartment with her own room for substantially less than that in Brooklyn. Or maybe Harlem. Price for being in the village
I thought $19k was bad for Berkeley(UCB) for my first D.
Many conservatories don’t take AP or DE credits as the curriculum is all music except one elective. I personally don’t recommend taking too many AP classes the year of auditions but if going to a school that has core requirements it’s a great idea. If applying/auditioning to multiple conservatories, make sure the teachers and school are willing to work with you for missed classes to audition, visit…
@jacole See if Belmont takes the CLEP Exam for credit as well. He can study on his own and take the test and get the credit. He can take the test at the local cc or at Belmont. Might knock off a bit more. However, will he be able to fulfill music class requirements in 3 years? Maybe see if they take transfer credit for theory or other music classes that he can knock out at CC or in state University this summer.
Update everyone!
Although CMU wants more information concerning my lack of contact with my father, they have said that, assuming I don’t contact him (I don’t), My aid package is $71k a year. I’m so relieved! Everything looks like it’s going to work out!
Anyone have any clue as to what time Peabody releases results based on previous years? I know it will be today but other schools have provided specific times when results would be released.
@oboeboy1917 – that is incredible news! I am so happy and relieved for you! Woo hoo!!!
@lkbux64 Thanks so much! Everything is looking up, and I’m honestly so thankful. CMU was my first choice anyway, so this is amazing!
@oboeboy1917 that is amazing! So excited for you!
@SpartanDrew I lived in Brooklyn for years and my D lived there during college. You are looking at at least $1k a month plus some utilities (heat is included, electricity and cable etc. are not) on a 12-month lease. My D paid $1200 a month all in, which was still much cheaper than NYU dorms, for her own room! Add food to that of course but we still saved a bundle.