<p>How would applying and auditioning to a music school and its university/college affect acceptance? Is it even possible?</p>
<p>Can you clarify what you mean? What is the “it” you are asking about?
Do you have a particular school in mind?
More details will help people understand what you are asking.</p>
<p>At some schools, students must apply to both the music school and the university/college itself to be admitted. At others, students need only apply to the music school for acceptance. It depends on the school.</p>
<p>If I am reading your question right, you are asking if you apply to the college and the music school would it make it easier to get in? If that is the question, the answer is no.</p>
<p>In general, as others have pointed out, there are two kinds of music programs usually (there could be ones out there that are different)…there are:</p>
<p>1)Stand alone schools of music, conservatories, and maybe even some programs within colleges (I seem to recall Oberlin you can apply to both, but can apply just to the conservatory, could be wrong about that), where to get into the school of music, you audition there, and that is it. You get in based on your audition and if a teacher is willing to have you in their studio, you need both. For those kinds of programs, SAT scores, GPA, AP’s, etc, don’t matter much if at all (you could be rejected if you were a horrible student getting D’s and F’s, but it isn’t like getting into an academic school).</p>
<p>2)Schools within colleges generally require you to apply to both the music school and academically,examples are USC, Rice, Northwestern, U of Michigan, Indiana. </p>
<p>There, you have to be admitted to both, if you get into the music school but not the academic college, or the college and not the music school, you can’t do both (you could in most of the schools I believe go to the academic school if you get in there but not the music school, but the other way around doesn’t happen). I am pretty certain that with those programs, they are not quite as rigorous with the academic qualifications for those auditioning at the music school; that doesn’t mean that grades and scores and such don’t count, it simply means that an uber competitive academic school like USC may not judge a music student the same way they do academic admits, so if you don’t have a raft of EC’s, AP’s and honors classes but otherwise do well, you may still get into the school whereas with the same qualifications, a student only going for academic may not get in. As others will point out, it still may be a good thing to try and maintain a high GPA as possible, because they could potentially give academic scholarships as well as potentially music based merit ones…on the other hand, a 4.0 GPA, 8 AP’s, etc, won’t give you any traction on the music school side, that is all your audition,. so if you need to choose I would concentrate on the music side and maybe not take as many intense courses on the academic side, while maintaining your grades.</p>
<p>Some music schools have early action or rolling admissions with early audition dates but not early decision.</p>