UNT’s housing application is $400, so I’m hesitant now. Hmmm. The site looks daunting to me, and I need to spend a while reading it tomorrow, deciding if we want to spend 400 given that we won’t know decisions until March. I feel like there’s some urgency, but I don’t know if that’s true.
Can you even send in the housing fee before he is accepted? I am surprised if they would allow that. I can see them allowing it for a student who has been accepted but not committed, though.
Also, it looks like that $400 is $50 application fee and $350 pre-payment. It is possible they will refund the $350 for students who choose not to attend?
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He’s been accepted to the university pre-music, so I’m pretty sure it can be done before the audition. I’m going to find out about that pre-payment refundability.
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@philmad I do recall, and this is some years ago, that someone at the Juilliard audition was doing a sample lesson. I agree it is common after acceptance, to help with choosing, and sometimes even well before even applying, also to help with choice. I would have assumed teachers were busy during auditions, but I do think in some cases, sample lessons are done, simply because clearly a separate trip for the lesson would be impractical. Not sure of the effect of so much being done virtually these days.
I don’t know for certain, but I would assume a sample lesson is not anywhere near the importance of an audition. The teacher may not even be involved in admission in any significant way. I would see a sample lesson as more of an opportunity for the student to test out a teacher. Curious what others think.
As for sample lessons, my opinion (VP parent) is:
Timing matter - early in the process or after acceptance is best due to the time crunch for all during auditions.
Still, not everyone has the money or the willingness to spend or knowledge about the process to do sample lessons early (that would be us!!). My D still got acceptances.
We figured out that people did sample lessons about this time. Did a little panic. It’s been awhile ago…but I remember looking at teachers at her first audition school online (my D was too busy). Had no idea what to consider. But I noticed the head of the dept had sang in our home city quite a few times. So I reached out to her, noted that dubious connection…and was frank about not knowing how to choose the right teacher…and could she possibly help. She had also listed that she had a family and looked about my age. So I’m not sure that I would have reached out to everyone in the same way.
She offered to meet my D on the audition day for a short session (for free). My D sang with her for less than 10 min. She did check each of my D’s songs…and said that she was well prepared and not to worry. If she needed help with a teacher later on to just let her know. All to my D not me…first time I was frozen out…appropriately so.
This was great…but being always cheap…we had flown in the day of the audition so it was very stressful to add this in. Based on this interaction, I figured it wasn’t that important…lol…maybe wrong. This school rolled acceptances…and my D received a studio offer a few days after. So that took the pressure off too. We never did it again…and she got offers. Note that she is not an instrumentalist. VP candidates are relative “young” so not understanding what teacher is best is not uncommon for some.
If you/she has some time, you can certainly go online and look at teachers. If there is a teacher of interest, you can have your D email her music resume with a short note of her audition date and interest in the teacher. I think that it is important to make the email quite short and too the point and to state something to the effect: I don’t expect a response. I just wanted to make you aware of my interest.
Those are a couple of “ideas” particularly if a school is implying a “sample lesson.” Note that music admissions can imply something that teachers don’t have time for.
Still, your D could start thinking about teachers. There is a possibility that a teacher would note her name and pay a bit more attn at her audition knowing of her interest (or not). There’s always a chance that they would respond. I think if she has time and it’s done right…it wouldn’t hurt.
I also do think it’s fine to go in with no sample lesson. My D’s UG teacher on principle did not do lessons before the audition…only after.
I hope that this gives you some ideas/comfort…and good luck to her.
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I would say if a sample lesson is encouraged by the school during the audition visit as per @philmads case in the post above, then fine to take it. I would say that it is not a typical scenario.
In the majority of audition situations, it would not be appropriate to ask for a lesson during the audition visit, or even well after the audition but before acceptances are posted. Not only because teachers are very busy, but because they are in the process of selecting their students based on the objective audition process.
Edited to add that our experience is classical instrumental which may be different than VP. The number of faculty on my son’s instrument was very small, even at huge programs. Thus, he auditioned in front of all potential oboe teachers. Most programs only have 1 or 2 oboe professors. So my perspective is through the lens of asking for a lesson with a professor for whom you are specifically being evaluated for admission. VP seems to have much larger faculty and so I would defer to those with VP experience.
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This is for VP. The statement to reach out to faculty for sample lessons came from admissions. She does happen to know professors at this school and after reaching out, one said that candidates typically (actually not certain that is the word she used) do sample lessons when they are on campus. She was quite willing to offer a lesson.
In any case she won’t be on campus long enough to do a lesson as she needs to fly immediately after to make a second audition in another city.
I was just thinking everyone knew something we didn’t and this was common. It appears that is not the case and there is no longer any concern on my part that we didn’t reach out to the schools at her prior auditions.
Thanks everyone!
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our experience was the professors did not want to do private lessons the day of auditions. The only one we scheduled was with a professor who was not involved in the audition decisions.
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DS had his first audition last Saturday at Butler. He was very happy with it and feels great. I didn’t go with him but hubs said he was relaxed and calm. Tomorrow he has Rice and then Thursday morning we fly to Cleveland for Oberlin on Saturday! We will be packing lots of layers and 2 tubas. 
send some warm vibes to this Texas girl, please!
After Oberlin we have a month until Jacobs 3/4.
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DD has Oberlin on Saturday, too! Safe travels!
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To those of you heading to Oberlin- toi toi toi! My S will be one of those students on hand to help with information and auditions. I hope he’s supportive and helpful, haha!
He knows I am on this forum and he’s looking forward to talking to you all about his time so far at Oberlin and in his program. So far he is happy and thriving and feeling challenged and engaged.
Wherever you are headed this weekend, enjoy it! Can’t wait to hear the stories and how it all went. Travel safely!
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Same! My kid gave me the best advice when I was going into a competition: have fun. I wish that for everyone auditioning. I would love to hear stories and thoughts.
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To follow up on what I found out about housing, the big Us seem to ask for a deposit in the hundreds of $$ but most of it is refundable (anywhere from $50 to $100 is not). So, we’re doing it at a couple of schools. The superstitious part of me doesn’t like it, but it makes sense just in case.
p.s. The online system doesn’t know that a kid accepted pre-music is still not fully accepted to the program they want. The housing portals have worked.
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Does anyone know if NYO decisions will be released January 26, 27 or February 2, as the website says?
Two things: Not a fan of CIM’s no-time-until-you-get-there audition scheduling. Hard to travel that night when they want to keep you all day. I hope we make it to Rice for a next morning audition. Ugh.
The other: Yesterday, our musician received an email from a professor, possibly his top choice, inviting him to stay after audition for a bit to talk. My thought, “Oh no, he’s retiring and wants to let the kids who checked his box, know.” Son said, sure, he’d love to. The follow-up email from said teacher added that it will actually be about 45 minutes long and to come to his studio at a certain time that afternoon. Hmmm. I think this is nice news? But, will not know until we know. BTW, they have only met over a zoom sample lesson back in November though there is a nice pipeline of local classical musicians who attend this school from his unusual, string-instrument based middle school.
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Was it your sense that times are pre assigned and revealed to students at check in or are times assigned in order of student check in?
They say this: " You will receive your schedule including times and locations of your warm-up, audition, and interview when you check in at 8:00am . Check-in will be followed by a Welcome Meeting at 8:45am ." Added, they tell you not to book flights until after 7 pm.
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CIM Parent is here. I remember being annoyed too. We live in Ohio and we had to arrive and stay at a hotel a day prior and it turned out he had his audition at 10 am . After all we could drive that morning. If I remember correctly there are some other activities like welcome talk, meet the dean, etc. It is snowing in Ohio this week dress warmly. Good luck to all heading to Ohio.
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I hate to be “that” parent, I have tried so hard not to be “that” parent, but has anyone heard from Curtis? (Except for the one viola child)
VP kid and I have been obsessively checking since they emailed that decisions are imminent… it will probably be a no…. Right? But I just want to know at this point. 
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When kid auditioned at CIM most were in the morning/early afternoon. They did have a lunch with the faculty so that was a nice time for kids to chat with professors more informally. We were able to leave mid-afternoon to make an evening flight out of Pittsburgh.
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