<p>As of right now, I'm looking for a school with:</p>
<p>A decent music program
Good Academics
Urban setting (Suburban could be alright, too)
Location in the Midwest</p>
<p>I have a 4.28 GPA, ranked in the top 5 in a class of 350 or so, and an ACT of 32. I haven't taken the SATs or SATIIs, which could also be a problem. I have a long list of ECs, including lots of orchestras and music competitions, as well as some volunteer work, school clubs, and a varsity sport for 4 years, with awards there too. I'm looking into majoring in music or psychology.</p>
<p>I'm applying to:
University of Wisconsin-Madison
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
University of Chicago
Northwestern
Lawrence University (even though it's rural)
and possibly Michigan-Ann Arbor.</p>
<p>Are there any other schools that I overlooked and should be considering? Any help would be appreciated, thanks much. :)</p>
<p>Washington University in St. Louis- tough to get in, but great. They're in the suburbs of St. Louis, maybe about as far away from Downtown St. Louis as Northwestern is from Chicago's Loop (I live near Chicago and know my distances well). They're psychology programs are excellent, but I don't know about their music. They're worth some attention.</p>
<p>Rice or Vanderbilt are a little southern, but they might be worth some looking into as well. They're both excellent schools, in urban areas (Nashville and Houston if I'm not mistaken). </p>
<p>But your list looks great. You've got some decent reaches, matches and safeties in there. It looks fine for a kid who wants to be in the Midwest.</p>
<p>When I read your post, I thought that your list would center on LACs, since you want to do both music and psych. Many of the schools that you list are conservatory/music school types, where most of the attention and performing opportunities go to those in music school (which often grants a B.M., a degree that's highly specialized in music and which leaves little opportunity for outside work). What led you to focus primarily on this type of university, and have you looked into the difference between schools that grant a B.A., a broad liberal arts degree with a major in music), and a B.M.? I think that should be your first-order decision.</p>
<p>I have looked into the differences between a B.M. and a B.A. I honestly haven't decided yet which one I would like to do, and it also depends on the school I choose. Madison and Twin Cities offer both B.M.s and B.A.s. Lawrence offers a five-year double degree program, so it would definitely be possible, but still hard. It would be much easier to get a B.A. in music and then major in psychology as well, but I haven't ruled out getting a B.M, even though it would be a lot harder. One of the reasons I ruled Oberlin and Indiana out was because, from what I've heard, its pretty hard to double major at them because the music is so intense.</p>
<p>Regarding Oberlin, your conclusion may be correct, but before you dismiss it you may want to follow up with someone there first.</p>
<p>I say that because, though I'm sure it is in fact quite difficult, the fact is a good number of students there are in fact pursuing the 5 year double-degree track.</p>
<p>You might be dismissing what may, upon further investigation, turn out to be your best choice.</p>
<p>Carnegie Mellon U. has a great fine arts and music program and Us News consistently ranks CMU's psych programs well. There were no rankings on ugrad but for grad Cognitive Psych was #2, Experimental Psych was #5 and overall Psych was #9 as of 2006.</p>
<p>Keep Michigan on your list (apply ASAP) and definitely consider UIUC- superb in psychology and music performance. Chicago is stronger in music theory/composition than performance.</p>
<p>Monydad's right on the money. Given your broad interests, programs like those at Lawrence or Oberlin (and with your stats, I think you could be successful on the academic side there) could be just the ticket. You should probably investigate how hard it would be to move from the B.M./music school track to the B.A/art-and-science double major at any school that you consider attending. (I assume that would be the route and not the reverse.)</p>
<p>If your interests are broad and you are not quite sure, pick schools that will meet your need to explore and change if necessary. The only one of your picks that I know will do this is Lawrence because my son attends and is an explorer. They seem to focus very well on individual needs. I am sure there are others. I just don't know about the larger schools on your list. And, an aside, Lawrence is in a small city and though on the banks of a river with a pretty campus, it is not in a rural setting.</p>