We know kids at GTech who participate in the orchestras, chorale and various ensembles.
Colleges with strong orchestras/chamber groups truly open for *non* music majors (engineering major)
4 Likes
Exactly what one of our kids was looking for. They were in large city youth orchestras and all state including first chair so definitely didnāt want to give it up, but a STEM major. Here is the college list we came up with on the East coast.
Yale
Princeton
Harvard
JHU
Duke
BostonU
MIT
CMU
Pitt
UD
UMCP
UNC
Brown
Iād suggest looking at past performances videos online to get an idea of the symphony/band/ensembles. We also went to live concerts when we could and got sample lessons. Good Luck to you.
3 Likes
USC - I canāt speak to the ātruly openā qualifier. However, you might look at USC.
We encourage our students to pursue minors and even double majors in a diverse set of fields outside of their regular curriculum. The most popular options are Business, Music, Theater. But with more than 150 majors and 150 minors at USC, the combinations are endless, and other examples include Art History, International Relations, Cinematic Arts, Entrepreneurship, Foreign Languages, Public Policy, or any one of the minors offered by Viterbi to complement an engineering degree. These include ITP minors and specializations like 3D Animation, Mobile App Development, and Cyber Security. There is extra space in every major program to deepen your knowledge in many subjects.
1 Like
I agree USC is a great school for this, so itās too bad that the OP specifically said they were not considering schools in California. 
1 Like
Oops, missed that! Sorry OP and thanks @tamagotchi
2 Likes
Boston University has a whole set of ensembles specifically for those who are not music majors. They were called BUMO (Boston University Music Organizations). Lots of talented folksā¦and these were auditioned ensembles.
4 Likes
Hi, Iām sorry, I didnāt specify a budget. We canāt afford harvard and in that category level - depending on the school, DD may qualify for a scholarship. She was a College Board Hispanic award recipient and her grades are very good (3.85 - this will increase this year, weighted itās a 5.05 here in SC). Hoping for max 20K per yearā¦ Thank you for all the advice so farā¦ I also found a music honor society that has a list of all their chapters in the USA. All the major music schools have a chapter so I figured that is a sign that they are somewhat committed - I just have to look up the engineering - then costs. I personally think DD would fare better at a smaller school but getting the engineering and music combination is difficult. Also- one of her safety schools is Univ of South Carolina that offers a music certificate. I saw Peabody has it too but not interested in Hopkins (and $$$).
2 Likes
Texas A&M University has a great engineering program and orchestras open to any major since thereās no music major. I donāt know how far away A&M is from you, but I will say it takes a special kind of person to enjoy A&M. Anyways, take a look at it.
2 Likes
Ohio Stateās music school is welcoming to non-majors. Thereās a music performance minor available for non-majors, and the symphony orchestra includes āaccomplished non-major instrumentalists.ā As a URM, depending on her interests and ECās, your daughter might be a candidate for the Morrill Scholarship, which is not only great financially but also provides a smaller, supportive cohort. And engineering programs are very solid.
3 Likes
With her GPA and CB Hispanic award, I agree that she has a good chance at merit from the schools that offer; getting to $20k on merit alone will be a challenge, but not impossible. Have you run the NPCs at any schools to know if you will qualify for need-based aid? That will influence the suggestions you get here as schools generous with meeting need may be the most affordable.
Is Univ of SC affordable? In state cost is around $35k, before any need and/or merit aid. I suggest running the NPCs at UofSC and 2-3 of the privates mentioned in this thread to get a ballpark idea of what they estimate your cost would be. Then let us know so we can make more targeted suggestions.
https://sc.edu/about/offices_and_divisions/financial_aid/cost_and_aid/cost_to_attend/index.php
Best of luck! There are a lot of music families on CC who will be thrilled to help you come up with a list that makes sense for your D.
4 Likes
The presence of a music honor society does not mean that students who are not music majors can play in college ensembles. We found that out at a number of places where they clearly stated that only music majors could be in the (one) college orchestra.
1 Like
My kidās second choice college was University of South Carolina. In 2005 when she was applying, there were multiple ensembles and all students (regardless of major) were welcome to audition. My kid also had a private trial lesson with the applied faculty on her instrument, and an interview with the head of the music department. At that time, they were very welcoming of those who were not music majors.
2 Likes
Virginia Tech seems to fit the bill. I donāt know of any personally in the orchestra, but I know lots of engineers are Marching Virginians. (A family member is currently one!) I was an engineer who took piano lessons as a class every semester, albeit 30 years ago. They seem to have a lot of other ensemble options as well.
1 Like
Iād take a real close look at U. of Louisville mentioned above. I repeatedly read great things about their engineering program, and for National Merit Finalists/Semifinalists, they give a $28k scholarship (out-of-state tuition is $28,xxx). Double-check, but most schools that do National Merit awards will also grant it to National Hispanic/Achievement scholars as well. This option would be well within your budget. Thereās a minor in music offered and it appears there are numerous ensembles, including those for non-majors. It also appears that if the studentās audition merits it, they may be placed in an ensemble for majors as well.
2 Likes
You donāt mention the instrumentā¦if itās one like violin where there are a lot of players, that might be easier than an instrument where there is oneā¦or two like oboe or flute.
If a college has only one orchestra and the instrument your daughter played only has one or two players, those will likely go to music majors. This is what we found when we were doing the college search.
Reallyā¦my kid found this info out easily by contacting the music department chair and orchestra director.
2 Likes
Looking at Ohio Northernās net cost calculator, it appears as though your daughter would receive the max general merit award of $23k, but that still wouldnāt bring it into budget. There are some full tuition scholarships that I think your daughter would be competitive for, and ONU might be a good fit in other respects. There are many musical ensembles and theyāre open to all university students (though some are auditioned and others are non-audition). There are also music scholarships available, which seem as though they could stack on top of other merit awards (though check with the university). And if your daughter doesnāt know which engineering major she wants, thatās perfectly fine here. The Exploratory Engineering pathway allows students to pick their area of focus at the end of their first year, after theyāve been introduced to all the types available at ONU. Again, your D would need to target one of the full tuition scholarships, but I think sheād stand a definite chance.
3 Likes
Another vote for Tufts. Some great opportunities for musicians. And for a student in the engineering school, a great chance to mix up cohorts.
1 Like
They also have concerto competition!
3 Likes
If you donāt qualify for fin aid (and some of the Ivies can be surprisingly generous), then her options are in-state flagship and 3rd tier privates at which sheād get major merit aid. Also, there are some public Uās that are offering massive merit aid for very high achieving students.
You might be surprised to find out that she would qualify for fin aid, depending upon your income.
1 Like
Did anyone mention University of Michigan?
1 Like