<p>I saw a similar post for vocal majors, so I thought I'd ask.</p>
<p>D is a 9th grader and very seriously considering/planning on a performance major. She's a woodwind player. She was overwhelmed with homework this year, so we had her drop Spanish II. She had Spanish 1 in 8th grade and got an A, and is a straight-A student.</p>
<p>Have any of you come across any music conservatories that REQUIRED three or so years of foreign language in order to be admitted? I've looked through some websites, but haven't found any such requirement.</p>
<p>I believe that many universities do have such a requirement. In our experience with an older daughter (studying science, no music), the foreign language she took in high school didn't count and she's having to do it all over again. Our state allows high school credit for foreign language classes taken in 7th and 8th grades. My older daughter went out of state, and they didn't count her high-school level foreign language classes taken in 7th and 8th grades; they only counted the 9th grade course. However, it didn't prevent her from getting admitted.</p>
<p>Stand-alone conservatories may not require it, but most music schools associated with a University probably will. Universities often require at least two years of a foreign language in high school, plus at least two more semesters while in college, so it is not a matter of the high school work not counting unless you are speaking of possible AP credit. Many high schools require two years of a foreign language for graduation. In any event, not having at least two years of a language will close some doors that you may want to keep open.</p>
<p>Thank you Bassdad. In our state, three years of foreign language study are required for an advanced high school diploma, and none for a standard diploma. However, most students usually take foreign language in 7th and 8th grades, and those years count as high school foreign language credits both towards HS graduation, and for meeting requirements at all in-state universities.</p>
<p>Our state has more HS graduation requirements than most other states, which is why we are trying to cut down on the “non-essential” courses, much as I would have liked for her to continue studying foreign language. There was just too much homework for her to keep up with, along with intensive music study.</p>
<p>I just wondered if if anyone has had experience with a music school NOT admitting a student because they hadn’t taken foreign language yet, or whether they simply required them to take it during university studies.</p>
<p>Juilliard requires high school diploma. You have to meet your school’s graduation requirements. So if your school does not require a language in order to graduate, it won’t be an issue (for instrumental students, at least).</p>
<p>High Schools have different requirements for everything else, too - our local school requires 2 years language, 4 years math, 1/2 year PE, etc. Another school might only require 3 years of math, but PE every year… And so it goes. Conservatories are not going to be adding PE classes, higher math, languages, etc. in order to make everyone’s diplomas equal.</p>
<p>That said, Juilliard does state that they are “seeking students whose talent and commitment to excellence promise future achievement in their chosen areas of major study.” And “Applicants must supply official transcripts demonstrating scholastic competence sufficient to succeed in course work at the college level.” In other words, they want to see that you are not a slack-off.</p>
<p>“Conservatories are not going to be adding PE classes, higher math, languages, etc. in order to make everyone’s diplomas equal.” posted by Binx</p>
<p>Thanks Binx; that’s a great quote. I certainly hope that’s uniformly the case, or at least mostly. In our state legislators have added an additional graduation requirement for 10th graders, Economics, unless it’s repealed. It will mean that 10th graders will not be able to take any music courses if they are taking a foreign language, as there won’t be room in the schedule.</p>
<p>I searched the websites of about 10 of the “top” conservatories today, and I can’t find any requirements relating to foreign language.</p>
<p>Although my daughter attends a high-ranked public school, administrators like to see students take on as much as they can “just in case”. I know some music students can take multiple AP courses and still practice 4 hours a day, but my daughter isn’t one of them. My daughter is known as an extremely hard worker, so that should be reflected in her teacher recommendations and reports.</p>
<p>I agree–I haven’t seen a conservatory that requires a second language for admission, but some universities do. In Canada, I am not aware of any universities requiring a second language for admission to any field (ironic given that Canada is officially a bilingual country).</p>