Interesting discussion for those interested in a Vocal Performance path

College Majors Music Major
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<p>Main</a> Forum: Grad school financing/ Negative thoughts from loved ones</p>

<p>You probably have to join the classical singer forum in order to read the message. I thought with all the discussions going on about university versus conservatory for voice, this would be yet another facet - the grad student facing loans and decisions about programs and the impact on her life. This forum is full of classical singers who are mainly out of school and working on their career so they are speaking from their own experiences and perspectives. </p>

<p>Of course times change and how conservatories are looked upon now versus when they graduated could be entirely different. Does it hold true right now that only the only thing that matters is how you sing? Looking at competition winners, I see alot of singers from top graduate conservatories - but you don't know for the most part where they did their undergraduate work.</p>

<p>All we can do is find as much information as we can and then see how it all fits with our individual children's needs. There is no one straight path to success. And then in the end, the decision is theirs to make.</p>

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<p>I know for my son, that part of the reason for him to continue on with Grad school, is because he is a 22 yr old lyric tenor. His voice isn’t ready yet to go out into the professional world. He needs more time to develope…so, going to a good grad school that knows how to nudge the voices along properly, is a good option for him. Even after grad school, it will be a few years before he is completely in his “full” voice. Course I posted this before reading the article, lol…so typical of me. I’ll go read it now:)</p>

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<p>The gift we gave ours were no loans for undergrad. But they have to make the grad decision themselves. This is certainly worth passing on as food for thought. I highly discourage them from taking on big loans. There are a lot of other ways to get to the same result. I worked at went to school part time to get my masters. S1 worked several years before going back for his law degree. </p>

<p>An unacknowledged bubble out in the press is that the cost of education increased right there with houses and cars and was also hidden by all the huge unaffordable loans. . Those loans are going to be in trouble too and it will be interesting to see if tuitions have to buckle to market pressure, through more grants. I have a couple of years before DD is deciding what to do. But there are others who have been in her studio who have worked a year and continued voice lessons before applying to MM programs and one who went to Germany instead of grad school. There are other options besides big loans. .</p>

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<p>Ok…now that I read the article and actually know what it is about…lol, I get the gist of the thread better. Though, the reasons my son is going on to grad school remain the same…We, like Singersmom07 also gave our kids their first 4 yrs, on us. They are leaving debt free, which obviously makes a huge difference in how they proceed after they get their Bachelors degrees. It’s been understood since HS, that we pay for the first 4 yrs, but after that…they have to figure it out for themselves. </p>

<p>Interestingly enough, I posted on another thread about NEC, putting in the acceptance/award letter to my son, that they are “freezing” tuition. Since I don’t have the letter, and haven’t really investigated that further…I don’t have all the facts. I do think its very indicitive of the times, that such a prestigious school is willing to freeze tuition in order to continue to draw the top talent pool.</p>

<p>I know that my son as a prospective grad student, accepted to the 3 schools he applied to, is being awarded merit scholarships to each one. I actually just figured, since he’s a grad student they must do this routinely. I am beginning to see that may not be the case. I can also say, that the awards are all over the board, lol…with one still pending some missing paperwork. I will also tell you, that because his first choice isn’t the school who offered the most $, he is totally willing to call them back to tell him what the other offers were, and that they are his first choice. Why not?! I don’t want him saddled with ridiculous debt coming out of school…but, in this current economic downturn, he may actually be better off in school a few more years, if he can arrange a good deal…then he would be out there trying to get hired. (did that make sense?)</p>

<p>I have another child graduating this year, as well. She actually has to have 2 yrs of experience working in her field before she can apply to grad school. To me, this is a blessing!! lol. She’s got some excellent responses to her initial interviews and has second interviews lined up next week. (fingers, toes and eyes crossed).</p>

<p>No matter how I look at it, I feel like it will be difficult for our kids starting out. But then, I think back to the late 70’s…when I was there age, and ya know? thinks were kinda hard those days too! But we survived, and many of us prospered in spite of the odds. I pray that happens for all of our kids. We sure have put in alot of love, time, attention and $$ to see it happen, lol.</p>

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<p>A word for Papagena’s son and his choices…besides the financials of the specific schools, the costs and the FA, he should check into what the paying gigs are for singers in the area of the school. Good church choir jobs pay generously for a core quartet, easily $400+ a month. He has some great options…good luck!</p>

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<p>thank yo lorelei…is it ok if I pm you? you are one of the resident experts I’d love to actually ask a few questions of.</p>

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<p>Of course!</p>

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<p>Wow. Thanks for posting. What a great, and timely, discussion!</p>

<p>That validated the choices my son has been making about his undergrad program. He got into all seven of his schools. One of the seven is an absolute dream school for him. He would so love to go there! Two others are pretty close seconds.</p>

<p>Guess which schools have the highest COA, after scholarships? Yep - the three most well-known, conservatory-type schools. The other 4 schools? He was offered full-tuition at 2 of them, and just under full-tuition at the other 2.</p>

<p>It’s a little sad for him to throw in the towel on the 3 most widely recognized, “most prestigious” music schools. But our plan all along, from the time he wrote his first word on any college application, was to apply only to schools where he could be happy, and then attend the one that resulted in the least amount of debt. The fact that the plan was clearly stated from the start makes it easier to follow through.</p>

<p>(I was fortunate enough to hear early-on from a college financial aid person – “THE single most important role you have as a parent during this process is to clearly state your financial intentions from the start and to continue that discussion throughout the process. There is nothing you can do that will have a more positive effect on your child’s college search.”)</p>

<p>Just think, I told him, in four years, you’ll have your undergrad degree – with no debt! What a dream come true! And so he’s not looking back.</p>

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<p>Congrats on all your sons acceptances SimpleLife! Good luck during this stressful decision time; you certainly got a confirmation about his talent!</p>

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<p>Thanks, ABlestMom. We were certainly surprised! And very delighted.</p>