Hello,
I’m considering doing undergrad as a music major, since I have had a passion for music for years, along with playing in the top ensembles at my high school. That being said, I don’t think I’m willing to go dive into a conservatory, but more likely a school of music or a college with a reputable music program. I do want to go to grad school afterwards, but I just want to focus on what I love to do for undergrad. On top of that, while I have dedicated myself to music, I am certainly not at the Juiliard/Curtis/Berklee/MSM/etc. level. Maaaybe Jacobs.
My grades are OK, for top schools it can be iffy (I’ll include them at the bottom). It’s safe to say Northwestern/Rice/USC/NYU is out of the picture (CMU?). But for other colleges, especially liberal arts colleges, I might have a chance. However, how would an admissions process work at a liberal arts college? Some of them seem to only allow one to choose a major sophomore year, so I would likely be rejected through regular admissions. However, some of them ask for audio recordings. Would that help in admissions at all? Is there any liberal arts colleges that have competitive, but not super competitive music programs? Thanks, and sorry for the confusion.
*Grades: 3.6unweighted/3.8weighted. 30 ACT (although I can get this up to a 32).
So just to clarify, by “conservatory” you mean freestanding? Some colleges and universities that you may still be considering do have “conservatories.”
You might want to read the Double Degree Dilemma essay posted near the top of this forum. It is really about the different ways to study music as an undergrad.
You wrote that you want to go to grad school but want to focus on what you love for undergrad. That would seem to imply that you envision grad school in a different area of study-?
A conservatory or school of music usually offers a BM degree, which is 2/3-3/4 classes in music and generally requires an audition.
A liberal arts college may offer a BM, but if you did a BA in music, the classes would be 1/4-1/3 music, the rest would be gen eds and electives in other areas. For a BA, you usually don’t audition (though you might audition in the fall for ensembles) but it is possible to submit a music supplement, with recording/video, music resume, and letters of recommendation from teacher(s) and/or director.
There are certainly many programs that would fit your needs and qualifications. One place to start might be the Colleges that Change Lives website. We can also suggest specific schools once you have a little more clarity 
@compmom
To start off, conservatory (in my world) would typically be freestanding, although I feel like schools like Eastman, Peabody, and UCCCM are to “seperated.” Of course they’re not actually separated, but I have a friend who goes to UCCCM and they feel that they aren’t really part of the University of Cincinnati.
I am considering grad school for three reasons. 1) I was talking to my physics teacher (who has a BA in music). They said that there are many people he knows who are in physics that do research relating to music. Obviously, physics are a vast field, but I could get a Masters/PhD in physics and see if I can score a position working with sound/music. 2) Another possibility is health- I may do a little bit of shadowing before college and see if I’m really interested in getting a MD/DO/DDS/PhD etc., but that might be a possibility. 3) If I decide that I want to purse full time symphony and orchestra positions, I might consider getting an MM from a conservatory.
I’m thinking of getting a BFA/BA in music over a BM. I would still send in supplements. The only schools I could think of that have a really intertwined culture between conservatory and college are Oberlin and St. Olaf.
I’ll take a look at the Double Degree Dilemma. Thanks for responding!
Campuses with “intertwined” music and academics also include Bard, Lawrence, Ithaca there are others…Oberlin has ramped up its BA with its Musical Arts program so that is worth a look for sure.
One caution is that for some schools with a conservatory or school of music on campus, the best teachers and performance opportunities go to the BM students, so there are instances where you want to actually avoid those schools. That is why I mentioned the way in which Oberlin has tried to address that.
Many liberal arts schools without a music school or BM program might be a better fit for you. In other words, you don’t have to look for schools that have a BM program to continue your music.
Look at Clark University for instance, College of Wooster, Macalaster, Lewis and Clark…I could go on…Many liberal arts/BAprograms will fund and give credit for private lessons and sometimes for performance in extracurriculars.
It sounds like you might be interested in acoustics. Another direction you could consider is studio-oriented work in music production, and all the other terms used for programs that involve studio audio work. Check out Columbia College Chicago for an example.