Good schools for music and science?

You can actually figure out how a double major might work, per school. Look at major and minor requirements, often listed on websites. Also look at gen ed/distribution requirements. Most schools have 10 classes for the major, so 10/40 classes total and 30/120 credits. This varies (some schools give 3 credits per class and some 4).

Obviously schools like Brown or Amherst, that have no gen ed/distribution requirements, leave more room in your schedule for two majors. But you still have to deal with labs and rehearsals and various other conflicts that could extend the time it takes to do a double major.

There ARE programs intentionally set up for people who want to do music and science. Carnegie Mellon’s is an example. But that is not to say it isn’t difficult and there aren’t other good options for what you want to do.

I also think it can be helpful for music and science to be on the same campus, which isn’t always the case, even when they are both in the same university or college.

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This is what one of my kids did. Double majored in engineering and biology. Played in the student orchestra and took lessons for all four years.

Her school had a BM program but it wasn’t a strong one. So….what you need to look for is colleges that allow non-majors to audition for and play in their ensembles….and offer lessons to non-majors. They exist.

My kid went to Santa Clara University. She is an oboe and English horn player…not a piano….so the school was very happy to have her for those four years.

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People can and do major in music and go on to be doctors or nurses or PAs. People also major in science and continue with music in a very serious way, sometimes even later getting a MM or becoming a professional musician. Really! They really do!

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Since you are early in the search process, you might find this blog helpful.

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You are still early in this process and doing the right thing. As a Sophomore, in my opinion, you should simply be learning and exploring degrees and possibilities. I would not suggest making any firm decision yet.

Maybe try on a double degree for a month. Look at schools that offer these programs (given above). Explore their scholarships etc. What do their curriculums look like (available on most school websites)? Does the school seem to promote study in other areas or not? Make a spreadsheet or list about each school.

Maybe try on the double major for awhile. See which schools may offer that and who gives scholarships. Go through the same questions above.

Maybe look into schools that offer a hybrid degree (some mentionned above - CMU). Do the same process.

Talk with your music teacher(s), other music students, your parents etc. At some point (next year), you may be able to talk with students at schools doing similar degress to find out the pros and cons. Just gather lots of info…and, you’ll probably start to drift in a certain direction.

This thread is a great first step for you. I would just wait a bit on any firm decision now.

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Ok, thank you! Do you have any ideas of specific schools to look at? A lot of the schools people have suggested do not offer merit scholarships (Brown, some of the liberal arts schools, etc.) and I’m in that fun category of “my parents make too much for need-based aid” and “they are divorced, including stepsiblings I have 5 siblings, and I don’t have much of a college fund.”

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The University of Rochester does have scholarships if your stats are good. Whether they will be high enough is the question.

They also have a more open curriculum with just one writing requirement and two “subject area” requirements that are easy to meet - esp with a double major. Double majoring in general is very common at the school. There are also a lot of musically inclined people at the school with several performance, dance, vocal, or similar clubs, both competitive and just for fun.

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Great post!!!

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I think you should talk with your piano teacher regarding how realistic your aspirations of being a piano performance major are. Many of the schools suggested above are quite selective while the repertoire you’ve indicated are intermediate level works. You may well be an extremely “quick study”, but take a look at the audition repertoire required at some of the schools mentioned above and discuss with your teacher if you have any chance of reaching this level and being accepted as a piano performance major.

Talking with music teachers at your high school may also give you very good ideas including insights into schools where you might fit in.

You might be admitted at a “lower tier school” for performance (and there can be excellent teachers even at schools not typically attracting the best-of-the-best) IF you can accomplish quite a bit in 3 years. Or, you could possibly be accepted as a Music Ed major at a school that has differentiated admission requirements for a performance vs a music ed degree. The focused music ed track open to you would probably be general music or choral specializations, unless you also play a band or orchestra instrument? Your notion of teaching at a college is one that is never attained by some of the best piano performance graduates from some of the most selective conservatories with MM and DMA degrees.

I am not trying to be harsh, just think you should consider, in consultation with a teacher, the best options for you.

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Thank you for your honesty. The hardest song I know is not a common song so I didn’t put it, but it is Hungary by Karl Koelling. I recently started Revolutionary Etude by Chopin and hope to finish it by mid-junior year. The teaching at a college thing was really more of a dream job than something I have researched.

Teaching at the college level is often done by adjuncts these days, and the arts/humanities are areas of study that are declining, not growing. I know doctoral grads who are struggling to support themselves or not even working in the field.

I think your best bet is to major in science and continue lessons and do extracurricular performance. You can also take music electives. You can still go to grad school for music if you develop along that path.

But you are a sophomore. Now you know more about what is ahead and what you need to work on or think about, so enjoy high school and things will become clearer when you actually have to apply.

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At colleges like St Olaf, which is deliberately built for high level musicians who want to have a liberal arts education, the most common model is participating in ensembles (and many play several instruments at a pretty good level), taking music courses and lessons, perhaps a BA or a minor in music, alongside another major (often, math, but can be science or something else.) It’s not a double degree - gen eds are the same and thus overlap - but there’s still a high level of musical involvement and musicianship. It sounds a bit like what you’re after and can be cobbled together at many colleges that offer a BA in music.
In any case, based on what you say, it sounds like the path your parents would most approve of while preserving your interest in growing as a musician.

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The two posts above are excellent for your situation, IMHO!

Ah, Kölling!! This was a favorite of a number of teachers in my area as I was growing up. Great for technique building - finger work, scales, arpeggios - all in a piece that can sound quite effective. It is, however, still far below college audition level. When assigning pieces, most piano pedagogues are likely to include it in the Intermediate level like your Bach. The Chopin Waltz op. 64, no. 2 could possibly be categorized early advanced level.

The Revolutionary Etude is an incredible leap from your current level. It seems you think it will take about a year to learn? At the college level of instruction, it would be very rare for a piano major to be allowed to move that slowly. This is one of the challenges of college level study - majors are expected to traverse a wide range of literature at a brisk pace. With study for a double major, that could be quite a challenge if you aren’t already playing at a very advanced level with a deep repertoire base behind you. I have known students asked to leave their piano programs or to drop to Music Ed major if they can’t meet the progress expectations of the studio teacher. As noted in the above post, you are unlikely to encounter this level of demand if taking lessons as a science major. The instructor is much more likely to work within your abilities and time availability in setting expectations.

Your teacher may have sent students on to schools as piano majors. You might want to discuss where you stand as regards other students in the teacher’s experiences. If your teacher is not as familiar with current admissions environment as would be ideal, at some point you might want to check into scheduling an evaluation with a nearby university professor. This would be a private lesson with everyone understanding that you (and parents) need a “read” on your competitiveness for admission to different level schools.

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The knowledge,on this music forum of repertoire and levels is one reason why you were smart to post here!

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Okay! The etude is actually coming along quickly. The main reason there was a big jump suddenly is because 1. I started practicing a lot more this year and 2. I started learning things far more quickly this year. I am really hoping to learn the etude by this April, I am just saying junior year so that if I do not learn it by April I won’t be too harsh on myself lol. I am actually in the process of switching teachers because my old teacher said that if I wanted to play at a college level I should learn from a different lady (new teacher) because the new lady has taught at the college level before. Based on everything I have learned from this thread, I am thinking of majoring in science but taking enough music classes for a minor and joining a lot of ensembles. If I decide that music is the way to go, I might try to switch to a BA in music and take as many performance-type classes as I can to improve. Does this sound like an ok idea? I really don’t know. And I have lots of time to change my mind. I just like to have general plans for my future because I get worried about it and planning helps. Thanks! Also, I am glad you love Kolling. I love him too!! Anytime normal people ask my favorite song to play on the piano and I say Hungary by Kolling they have no idea who or what I’m talking about, so I gave up on it. I originally posted this in a general forum, not a music forum, which is why I didn’t include it in my post.

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It sounds to me as if you are taking a very realistic approach to a great college experience! Your current thoughts make sense to me. You will have time to plan, explore websites, maybe visit schools, talk with your new teacher, see what happens with the “enhanced” practice, etc. Best of luck to you!

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