They shouldn’t but their stated requirements for homeschoolers are pretty annoying. But my oldest kid applied there and got in, so it should be fine. I just worry!
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Interesting visits; we went on a Juilliard tour in August and were surprised that we didn’t see any admissions people. Having said that, DD did like the atmosphere although it’s smaller than expected and def not glossy but i imagine that is a reflection of New York costs! DD also waiting for live auditions for other visits (has done YAle and Columbia, and has had trial lessons at others virtually)
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Do you (or does anyone) know when the understand undergrad Curtis application will be available online?
Thank you for the very helpful report on Wheaton!
I don’t have specific knowledge, but the Curtis website says applications will be available in October.
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They do a fantastic job at UGA’s SOM welcoming prospective students! D23 also spent a day and it felt like a real close-knit community, especially on a studio level. Being able to shadow a current student to different classes was a big deal too. She loved the experience and it moved UGA much higher on her list after!
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I don’t want to say the name, but my daughter has had a heck of a time getting any response from a small and well-regarded music school to have some questions answered about a grad program. She finally resorted to messaging the department head on Instagram (they have an active professional account) and set up a phone call. So I wonder if this isn’t somewhat common for small schools? It certainly leaves me wondering what her experience will be like if she ends up going there.
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yes DD’s experience too- a bit worrying when you have to list teacher preference in the application
I am not really sure how much folks should let these communication issues determine choices. Not saying anyone is doing that. Some schools pay a lot of attention to applicants, and that has an emotional effect, but how do these differences in communication and focus on applicants play out in the quality of the program, including selectivity? Just asking.
My kid had a similar lack of response in the fall and even after acceptance in the spring, from a well-known small music school. They had to contact admissions to get through to the teacher, again even after getting in with substantial merit aid. My kid did not come to any conclusions from this and we heard that teacher never answers emails. KId met with the teacher who was excellent and very attentive despite the lack of responsiveness on email.
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That is great to hear. Very reassuring. I’ve tried to tell my D that it’s not like undergrad, you’re not going to have the shiny, glossy catalogs in your mailbox every week and there isn’t a lot of detailed info to be found online, either. That said she has now talked to some people there and is feeling really good.
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In our experience, teacher preference was often modifiable if desired by the applicant later in the process. I know mine was able to update his studio request once live auditions (which allowed for meeting with teachers) and acceptances were completed. Of course the process of studio assignment varies from program to program. Another bit of unpredictability to add to the adventure of pursuing a music degree. 
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Thanks for sharing - that’s really useful to know; DD isn’t too fussed as she is used to relatively low contact teachers currently but good to hear
Music supplement( and possibly a few prescreens) recorded Friday! He thinks it went well so excited to get them back in a few days and start submitting!
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Brilliant - dd’s music supplement also done on Friday and she submitted her EA application yesterday 
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Congrats! He has one scholarship audition before submitting his ED which is due 11/15. Application done just waiting on that visit!
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DS and I got back last night from a great visit at Curtis. We originally were going to fly in late Friday and tour and leave Saturday afternoon. However, DS was able to schedule a meeting a composition professor early Friday afternoon, which also allowed us to be able to attend a (fabulous) Curtis performance Friday night.
Our experience at Curtis was pretty much the complete opposite of that at NEC. They had divided the prospective students between composition and performance. Our tour guides were a graduating senior (5th year) in composition and a first year Master’s student in voice. From the previous evening, I recognized the other group’s tour guides as performance majors. Besides DS, the other student in our group would be applying to the Master’s program. So, I thought the assignment of tour guides was very deliberate and conscientious.
Our guides were fantastic and shared lots of great insights, especially a very realistic preview of what the first couple of years as an undergrad for a comp major would be like (overwhelming, LOTS of work). While she seemed appreciative of all that Curtis offers, she also seemed a * little * jaded. However, the Master’s student was very, very happy to be studying there.
Of all the places we’ve toured, this one was clearly the most music-focused, but maybe at the expense of academic studies. It was surprising/disconcerting to hear from the graduating senior how little the undergrads seem to care about or have respect for the academic courses. But, maybe that was just her perception/experience? DS was salivating over the fact that every composition student has a requirement to compose an orchestral piece each year that gets a full rehearsal and performance. No other place he has looked at offers/requires this. He also loved that the students are not assigned to one professor but who they work with is more fluid and flexible.
We found out that they may accept up to four composition students this year (undergrad, grad and professional studies (?)) which, they joked “are really great odds!” Which, compared to last year, is true given that they didn’t take any composition majors at all, and maybe only 1 the year before. In total, they only have 5 fellowships for composition, so acceptance rates will always depend on how many slots they have open.
DS, of course, would love to go there, but is realistic about the odds. If anyone has any questions, don’t hesitate to ask!
And now we are DONE with visits.
curtis-institute-of-music #composition music-major
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Glad you had a nice visit at Curtis, it really is a special place.
As for academics, there’s little, if any, academic courses in a conservatory. My son is a sophomore (performance major) and he’s taking an Animal Studies class this year to satisfy an Ethics requirement - other than that all of his courses thus far have been music/performance related.
Best of luck to your son - 4 open spots are really, really great odds for that school!
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Sounds like an amazing place. Ms S21 goes to another conservatory for acting and he takes 1 nonsense academic course a year, this semester I think he isnt taking any. The down side to this is that if you want to transfer to another program you will need to completely start over. The positive is that they are so busy with their performance based classes that there is no time for anything else.
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Has anyone submitted for Blair ED yet? S24 just told me that he is reconsidering his ED choice and wants to change to Blair. His prescreens are basically done and turned out better than expected but is there enough time to submit the Vanderbilt application and access the Blair one at this point? Otherwise he can just wait and do ED2, not sure that it makes a big difference other than knowing earlier, right?
Haven’t done Blair but most of the submission portals have opened really quickly (longest was within hours) after doing the common app submission so there may be time if he wants…. DD is doing her RD Dec ones now hence we have a lot of portals….
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