<p>I don't know if this is like a universal thing, but my music courses aren't worth half of what they actually are in credit hours. I'm taking 18 hours a week (7 classes) for 15 credit hours. And that's the minimum for my scholarship and degree. How in the world are music majors supposed to survive? :(</p>
<p>They are very busy. Add in work hours and outside gigs or a second major, and that’s even busier.</p>
<p>Ensemble courses don’t earn many credits anywhere.</p>
<p>DD found she was taking 21 credit hours several times just to get everything in. Ensemble and lessons don’t count for much. Voice students had to get in langauges in addition to what instrumentalists took, but they did not have as much rehearsal time. There was not a lot of downtime for music students. When others were getting ready for party weekends, she was heading into studio class on Fridays. This major is not for the faint of heart.</p>
<p>Yeah, it’s pretty bad how little ensemble courses are worth. You spend twice as much time in them as in a normal class AND have to practice, rehearse, and perform. And it’s only worth one credit hour, maybe 2 if you’re lucky. Doesn’t make sense.</p>
<p>@ Singersmom: That’s insane. Vocal majors have it really hard. Any performance major does, but it seems like they’re always busy. One of my friends is vocal performance/music ed and she never has any free time.</p>
<p>I’m just not sure what I should be doing. I feel like I have way too many major life decisions to make right now. I have a neuro disease. Meds are so-so but I can’t do without them. I’m still groggy and tired all the time, need daily naps to function. Don’t know what the future’s going to look like. I might get better and never have to worry about this again, or I might someday need surgery that will require months of recovery and adjustment, and possibly more surgeries afterward. It’s just stressful. Music is all I’ve wanted to do but I don’t know that I can do it. And I’m scared because if I don’t have music then I feel like I don’t have anything. I don’t even know what I’m good at. I’m kind of ranting now, but yeah, I’m really not sure if this is something I can handle. I have no idea what to do.</p>
<p>Those applied music courses don’t generate a lot of homework or papers, so it’s not quite as much as it sounds. Most music majors have a lot of course hours. And most of them also work, gig, etc.</p>
<p>Those first few years as a music student are a real shock to the system. Some embrace the hard work and for some, it’s just too much. And illness makes every major that much harder. Don’t compare yourself to other students, give yourself some slack, do your best and try to keep things in perspective. I think if you could take 30 minutes out of the day to calm yourself and focus, it might help you work more productively. I know that yoga helped my D get through the madness.
A half hour of physical activity may cultivate a calm, thoughtful way to deal with a crazy schedule.</p>
<p>Stick with it; it will help you with your medical issues as it will keep you busy. Try not to take on anything extra. Many students, not just musicians, find that they have a lot of work at college. It is a shock to the system, but in a few weeks the shock will be more familiar and it will be easier to manage. There are actually many students dealing with medical issues while in college. And do fit that exercise in daily.</p>
<p>Potato - remember that there’s no requirement that you do it all in four years. If your health isn’t up to the demands of a full course load, there’s no shame in taking a little longer to finish.</p>
<p>Also, have you gone to the disabilites office or the Dean? Medical conditions quallify as a disability and you can get some accommodations that could help ease the stress. DD’s roommate had a serious medical condition and they did a number of accommodations for her. She was still very successful and did finish in 4 years.</p>
<p>Neuro issues are especially difficult with stress or overwork because the problem is in the brain, which needs rest.</p>
<p>You should be registered with the disabilities office with documentation from your doctors.</p>
<p>My daughter has similar issues, needs rest, goes to bed early, cannot drink, and has to do all her work in advance. She is at a college. College means fewer hours in class, but more time reading, and reading is hard on the brain too.</p>
<p>Her life was a nightmare until she reduced her courseload and though it has taken some extra time to finish, she has blossomed and thrived since the administration suggested that reduction to her.</p>
<p>Feel free to PM me.</p>
<p>Thanks for the encouragement. It’s good to hear that from people in the field who know how much work is really involved. Unfortunately I don’t think I would qualify for any disability benefits as my condition isn’t technically disabling. I can do pretty much everything that other people can do and everything that I could do before - it’s just much harder now. No doctor has ever taken my symptoms seriously, and I doubt the school would either. </p>
<p>I’ll do what I can though. I’ll give it a chance before I let myself get too worked up. Fortunately I have a couple of easy required courses this semester and they’ve really lessened my workload. </p>
<p>As for finishing in four years, it’s really important that I do if at all possible as my main scholarship that covers tuition is only renewable for eight semesters. After that I’m on my own until grad school. Of course, there are other scholarships, and I plan to continue applying.</p>
<p>If you can get documentation of your medical issue, and permission to reduce course load that results in longer time to graduation, then any aid or scholarship must cover the extra time, legally. PM me and maybe I can help advise you on the medical documentation issue.</p>
<p>If you have meds, you have a doctor that can help with the documentation. It is a common misconception that you have to be failing or unable to work to get accommodations. If you are having to work that much harder to compensate then that is the issue. Go visit your disabilities office. They are nice people who want to help students succeed. They will tell you what is required to qualify. Then you can decide what to pursue. DD had accommodations, too, due to an LD issue that was not discovered until the heavier coursework of college. Before that she had been able to compensate.</p>
<p>Just to add to the above posts there are Federal laws that mandate that your university, college or workplace must make accommodations if your medical condition at all impacts you with your work. Even if you are currently performing, as the above poster said, you are entitled to accommodations to make it so you are not so stressed and having to overcompensate for your disability. Google Section 504 to learn more.</p>
<p>The problem as stated is that medical doctors so far have not taken the condition seriously. Medical documentation is needed for accommodations. I can imagine several scenarios in which certain MD’s won’t take certain medical issues seriously, but would offer to Potato Soup some strategies for getting that documentation nevertheless.</p>
<p>One of the most important things that any student can do is to learn to identify their advocates. This applies in academia and professional life. Just as singersmom07 said,they gave you a scholarship, they want you there and they want you to succeed. (heck, we don’t even KNOW you and we want you to succeed 
)
Think long and hard about who within the school can help you work your way through the next four years.
Just the phrase “I wonder if you could offer me some advice or insight” will do wonders. For my brief stint as a teacher and I always felt flattered when a student approached me in that fashion.</p>
<p>We found that conservatories aren’t that understanding, and indeed some colleges. The vibe we got was sort of like the vibe from sports teams: if you aren’t tough enough to take it, don’t come. And at the post-secondary level of education, there are limits to accommodations: they cannot cost the school money, change the school program, or cause undue administrative burden.</p>
<p>The understanding of accommodations is still primitive. Unfortunately, those who are advocating for themselves are in a position to trailblaze, which is very difficult. I sent you a private message yesterday, with our family’s story, when I first saw your post. Look at the upper right of the forum site and click on “private messages.” Hope it helps.</p>
<p>Students with disabilities, whether medical conditions or learning disabilities or anything else, minor or major, deserve, legally and morally, a chance to have a level playing field to achieve their very best. It is perfectly possible to do your very best with, for instance, a reduced course load, extensions on projects (used judiciously), excused absences, postponements of exams, and so on. </p>
<p>However, how that works in a conservatory environment with classes much of the day, practice, rehearsals and performances may certainly be problematic and may require talking with someone who can help.</p>
<p>I am not trying to be discouraging. In fact, quite the opposite. But other posters are correct, you may need help in the form of an advocate, even an advocate outside of school. But first an MD-documented condition is a requirement.</p>
<p>Potato, my first reply came across as glib because I didn’t understand the problems you are shouldering. I can definitely relate in that one of my four daughters (not the one in music school) has problem I suspect is similar to yours. Her condition is debilitating but poorly understood by medical science (although slowly her condition is gaining recognition.) It has been very frustrating dealing with colleges in terms of accommodations for a student with chronic medical needs, and regardless of federal law, not all schools are equally equipped for helping students deal with these problems. </p>
<p>At my daughter’s first school, the administration was sympathetic, but it was a small school and their resources were limited. As an example: she needed help getting from one end of campus to the next for a quick change of classes; there was no shuttle available; the best the school could do was offer a security escort for her from the university in which her school resided. The security staff was always <em>very</em> late (or sometimes did not show up.) They were also passive-agressively rude at best, demanding that she wait for them on the street in freezing rain and snow, rather than inside the shelter of the building (and if she were not there on the curb, they would drive by without stopping. </p>
<p>The teachers in her major were understanding for the most part, but the adjunct gen ed teachers cut her no slack-- despite documentation. Life was so difficult that she ended up transferring. Her new department, in a much larger university, has been more accommodating (it is never easy.) She is also taking longer to graduate, which makes things saner. </p>
<p>My suggestion is to try to arrange your life so that it’s not impossible. Consider dropping your schedule down so that you are going 3/4 or even half time (and maybe using summer school to get through some of those gen ed courses.) </p>
<p>The other thing I would strongly suggest is to practice self-advocacy. Those around you may refuse to acknowledge your pain, or may simply forget about it, regardless of their good intentions because they can’t see it. If you have a visible disability your task of self-advocacy would be a little easier (but talk to anyone in a wheelchair who gets doors slammed in her face and you’ll find that disabilities are generally ignored by the abled population.) So you need to constantly speak up and remind those around you of your needs. It can be very hard to do this, I know, but it’s essential.</p>
<p>Oh my, so many responses! Thank you all for the info, encouragement, support. This is really unusual for me. I usually just have people telling me to suck it up and learn how to better manage my time.</p>
<p>I’ve started looking into Section 504. I never realized there was so much help out there. I’ve even googled it with my condition and there are a few parents who’ve said that their kids were able to get a 504 plan through their school, though some weren’t. Luckily I’m at my state’s university so I’m assuming that, unlike in a smaller school or a conservatory, they’ll have a wider range of options since they cater to a larger population.</p>
<p>As for getting the documentation that I need, I don’t really know how that will go. I am supposed to see a new neurologist and an ophthalmologist sometime soon, but I’m a little wary about bringing it up on the first appointment since I don’t know this person yet and don’t know how favorably they’ll respond. If I mention it too quickly I’m worried–well, I’m actually not sure exactly what I’m worried about. But I’m used to not being taken seriously, so I want to know that the person I’m talking to is going to take me seriously before I ask them to do this. If that makes any sense.</p>
<p>In the meantime there’s not a lot I can do. Every class I’m taking satisfies a credit or degree requirement, and if I were taking any less I wouldn’t be eligible for my scholarship. I can’t really afford to postpone my graduation by switching a music class for something like PE, either. My parents have been very adamant about sticking to the program and keeping the scholarship, and since they’re paying for the rest of it for the time being, they still pretty much have the final say. And they don’t tend to cut slack when it comes to academics. I think I’ll be okay for right now, though. I’m honestly more worried about what it’s going to be like in the upcoming years.</p>
<p>@compmom: I really want to reply to you but apparently I need 15 posts. So. I’ll just keep posting until I can. Sorry 'bout that.</p>
<p>DD’s roommate had other accommodations, not a slower schedule. She had excused absences when her condition flared, with an assigned notetaker and extended exam time. When she had a particuarly bad time, there was campus transportation to get her to classes. She was even excused from some juries and performace rehearsals. It is really important to go to your disbilites office and start or find out about the process. At a state university they will most likely have a good office with knowledgeable people who will help and be your advocate.</p>