<p>Let’s try to estimate some numbers. Many if not most states have an all state choir, frequently both a mixed chorus and a women’s chorus because so many more young women apply than young men. These choirs tend to be pretty large - I have seen groups that must have had 200 singers in the mixed group and as many again in the women’s chorus.</p>
<p>If I had to guess, I would say that the number of students nationwide who participate in all state choruses cannot be far short of 10,000 and may indeed be well over that. Now, accounting for the schools that are not eligible to send students, there are probably several thousand more students at that level who could have made it but were not even allowed to apply. The requirement, at least in NJ, is that a teacher from your school must volunteer a certain number of hours in judging auditions or helping with various other jobs needed to run the event in order for the school where they teach to be eligible to send students. If there was nobody from your school to do that, you may not have been eligible even though you were sent an application.</p>
<p>Now consider that the competition to get into all-state is fairly keen in some states but not so great in others. I think you see where I am going with this. Given the large number of students so honored, the uneven nature of the criteria from state to state and year to year, and the uneven nature of the judges from one site to another, all-state is not going to stand out on a resume unless, perhaps, you achieved it in a very competitive state and were chosen for a solo.</p>
<p>Do you have a private voice teacher? If you are interested in a performance major in voice, you will be at quite a disadvantage come audition time if you have not been studying with a good teacher. If you do have a teacher, I recommend you ask them some of the questions concerning whether you should be singing in choirs and competitions and, if so, which ones. Advice from people who have never heard you sing and who have no clear idea of where you are in your vocal development may actually hurt more than they help. If you do not have a teacher, you might consider trying to find one while you still have a couple of years before auditions.</p>