Music at University of Michgan

College Majors Music Major
1

<p>Hi, I'm a rising high school senior looking for advice regarding music at University of Michigan (Ann Arbor). </p>

<p>I play the viola, and really enjoy it. I have been playing for about 8 years now, and I have taken private lessons, and performed in various orchestras, chamber music, and other groups. I truly love viola, and would love to pursue it in college. </p>

<p>As for my future, I want to go into science. Science and music are my two passions, and I want for my career to be in medicine. In LSA, I want to major in "Brain, Behavior and Cognitive Science". In music, I would major/minor in "Viola Performance".</p>

<p>I've started my application for U of M. I'm excited that it has great programs for both music and science. I am thinking of applying as a dual applicant in School of Music, Theater, and Dance (SMTD) and LSA.
Pursuing science in LSA is my first choice, but I still really want to keep playing and learning viola. Here's where my questions come in:</p>

<p>-Is it really hard to keep up with practice and coursework in a double degree program?
-Is it tough commuting between North and Central Campus?
-When I come to college, I will have at least 10 APs. Even so, will it take more than four years to get two degrees?
-Do they offer music minor in U of M?
-Should I look into a major or minor in music? What are the pros and cons of both?
-If I want to minor in music, do I need to apply to SMTD now and audition?
-What would course of action would you recommend?</p>

<p>Again, science in LSA is my first choice. I want to go to medical school, so grades are really important. If doing music hurt my grades in LSA, or vice versa, or if things became too stressful, I would drop music. But hopefully that won't happen! If major/minor in music doesn't work out I will DEFININTELY continue playing, with the campus orchestra, chamber music, lessons, whatever. </p>

<p>Thanks for reading all this!
Please let me know what you think.</p>

2

<p>dee37, welcome. Combining a performance concentration as a BM and a science degree is typically one of the more difficult combinations to achieve. Both are time and credit intensive. A recent thread is here <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/747401-major-music-performance-w-pre-med-requirements.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/747401-major-music-performance-w-pre-med-requirements.html&lt;/a&gt; and there are more accessible by using the search function. Dual degree students need to adrress specifics here [UM</a> School of Music, Theatre & Dance - Dual Degree Programs](<a href=“http://www.music.umich.edu/departments/dual_degrees.htm]UM”>http://www.music.umich.edu/departments/dual_degrees.htm)</p>

<p>AP policy can typically be found on the admissions/incoming freshmen pages. Depends on your scores, the cut-off the institution will accept, and whether any AP coursework will serve to satisfy core academics or general electives; there may also be limits to how many they will accept cumulatively.</p>

<p>If LSA is your first choice, then concentrate on that. You can pursue music as a minor within LSA [UM.SiteMaker:</a> Message](<a href=“Office of Budget and Planning”>Office of Budget and Planning) I could not tell if there was an audition based component. The School of Music is an audition based admit. There is also a minor option within the SOM, but the link did not provide much detail.</p>

<p>I would suggest you contact the SOM admissions department directly and speak with someone with program and option specific knowledge. You may not find the depth of knowledge about UMich sufficient enough on the forum to answer your questions. It’s always best to go directly to the authoritative source.</p>

<p>I’d also urge you read these as well as general background
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/258796-so-you-want-music-major-one-familys-experience.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/258796-so-you-want-music-major-one-familys-experience.html&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/460187-how-many-music-voice-performance-majors-find-jobs.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/460187-how-many-music-voice-performance-majors-find-jobs.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

3

<p>Credit for AP’s also can be dependent upon the major that you choose and how they fit into the school’s curriculum.
My D has had 18 credits and, were she not going to be a VP major, she would be able to enter as a sophomore (that would be the case if she wasn’t in a performance-based major, that is), but, as it us, they will enable her to take some time in Europe for study without losing her original graduation date.</p>

4

<p>Mezzo’sMama- I looked into the requirements for Brain,Behavior,and Cognitive Science, and I’m pretty sure I can use my AP credits from Psychology and Statistics to skip the intro courses. So hopefully, that will keep me from staying in college for no more than four years. Thanks for the tip! Are there a lot of study abroad opportunities for music?</p>

<p>Violadad- I’ll definitely contact U of M and ask them those same questions.
Right now, my biggest concern is</p>

5

<p>…whether or not to apply and audition for music, and if I can handle all the workload in college (provided I get in). But I guess those are rather subjective answers. Thanks!</p>

<p>Is there anyone here who does Music or Dual Degree at Michigan? Anyone?</p>

6

<p>DD is doing double degree at Michigan. All her AP credits counted, but that still doesn’t really help to do the degrees any faster than 5 years, although she has had friends who have done this. UMich is one of the best places possible for doing the dual program. Transportation is very easy between the campuses, and depending on the studio, music teachers are very supportive. Happy to answer more questions if you have them.</p>

7

<p>My friend is doing a double major at UMich in engineering and violin performance. It’s very tough, but she seems to be dedicated. She is currently out doing a co-op off-campus, so I suspect that at least for this year, her violin must have taken at least a slight back seat. It is hard to give 100% equally of each field, but it’s doable. She’s closing in on graduation, and I’m sure it has been a very rewarding time.</p>

8

<p>The commute between the campuses is easy on paper, but can be a pain in actual practice (that is, if you’re on Central and need to get to North and the bus is late). It’s not ideal, but it’s doable. You’ll learn to loathe the bus, but it’s pretty reliable.</p>

9

<p>My S. is about to embark on a dual degree between LSA (film) and SOM (Performing art tech, Music, BFA). Here’s some of what we’ve discovered so far: </p>

<p>We have found that U of Mich is very good at providing consideration for dual degree students thus far, and that SOM students are very well cared for in the counseling process, by people very highly attuned to the needs of dual degree students and musicians. We have also found that it is unrealistic to expect to do it in fewer than 5 years, and that the first two years in particular of the dual degree program will be heavily dominated by music prereqs, esp. theory, (since “nobody does theory quite like Michigan : )” and that you can expect to carry a course load of 17 - 18 credits (note: ensemble and lessons are for credit hrs, included) or if you’re really ambitious, 20, but you’ll have to pay for overload after 18. You CANNOT minor in SOM as I understand it (as it is a “professional” program) but you can pursue a “bachelor of musical arts with an LSA minor, at the School of Music” OR you CAN minor in LSA music, and some of those courses are taught by the same profs. You can also access the SOM lessons, though may be placed with a GSI instead of a prof if you are not from the SOM. The Residential College also has an interesting music program (though RC is dominated by language requirements, I believe it is possible to take premed approach).
There is no harm in applying to both and making your decision once you’ve been accepted. The audition process itself is an excellent opportunity to garner information and connect with fabulous faculty members regardless.</p>

<p>You will also have available to you two levels of symphony/orchestra…The SOM ensembles are “recommended” for SOM students only (but it IS possible…adds about 6 hrs rehearsal plus addl performance time to your sked) and is by BLIND audition. For strings, I believe they do have non-screened callbacks.
But if the SOM ensembles are a little time-intensive given your academic priorities, there is also a “campus” symphony available to you, etc.
In short, you would be in good hands IMHO and should be able to make something work if you feel you are sufficiently trained/prepared to be selected by the SOM or other top music schools (which is never a given at any of these programs, but which certainly is always possible given your background.) You may wish to start on your resume and repertoire list NOW if you intend to pursue the audition path, and have your private teacher assist you with your audition material prep. It’s really worth the early start. And if no one has told you about admission at U of Mich, APPLY VERY EARLY TO LSA. I mean, Sept. - Oct. gives you the greatest chance at merit scholarships, of which there are none too many. If you are out-of-state, you’re competing against twice the pool for 1/3 of the spots, and the higher your 1) GPA 2) ACT/SAT stats and 3) class rank at a competitive and rigorous school, the better your odds for both admission and scholarship consideration.
Good luck in your quest! Follow your passions : )
Cheers,
K</p>

<p>I also suspect that you may find that all of your APs are not exactly useful in accelerating your degrees, insofaras your “major” credit hours MUST be attained at LSA, as do your language requirements (although you may test out). Eg. while AP English can be a general credit, it do NOT replace the prereq of first year writing at Mich. So the APs are more useful (in some cases, it depends) on fulfilling electives and assisting you in testing out of lower level subjects (eg. calc…yet many students take cal 1 anyway since calc is known to be rigorous for some at U of M and sometimes jumping into 2 is a GPA killer…depending on the school you came from…)</p>

10

<p>dee 37- good job with those AP’s; somehow they will make your life a bit easier whether it be moving to a higher level or using the AP to count for a required course in the general requirements. As for opportunities to study music abroad, it depends upon the school and the circumstances. US schools have affliations with conservatories in Europe-those will be listed in the viewbook or on the website somewhere. Many now require a one-for-one swap and that usually takes place sometime in the junior year. In other words, a viola student in the UK would want to come to the USA, so the schools would make the arrangements and the tuition and fees would be comped by what you pay the school here. Check out the bulletin boards in the music schools themselves as they are full of flyers about summer programs abroad-some of those are quite well known. During grad school, advanced musicians may apply for Fulbright Scholarships to study in Europe and at least for VP majors, those can include arrangements to sing in particular opera houses,most commonly in Germany, France or England.</p>

11

<p>Hey, I’m starting the dual music/LSA this year, so I don’t have any experience to speak from unfortunately.</p>

<p>I do know that AP credits do not count for what are called “distribution requirements” for LSA, which is a large chunk of the required coursework to get a degree from there. Normally, APs would replace extra elective credits, thus allowing you to get ahead, but in the dual program they are eaten up by all of the music work. So, going dual w/ LSA will most likely take an extra semester or going over 18 credits/semester many times.</p>

<p>Pre-med and music majors would be extremely stressful and borderline impossible, but you can minor in music. I would ask the SMTD about this, I don’t know if you need to audition. There are lots of non-music-major students at UM that are great musicians, so you can have lots of fun in the campus orchestra if you don’t want to commit to a music major. In fact, if you are not interested in working as a musician, don’t major in music. A major is meant for someone who is willing to commit fully to performance.</p>

<p>I did not have problems w/ commuting at orientation. 50% of freshman are placed in housing on North Campus regardless of major, and they schedule classes so that you get extra time if you need to take the bus.</p>

<p>Even w/o major or minor in music, there are lots of opportunities to keep playing in Ann Arbor. The main drawback is that you would not have the same resources as a music student.</p>

<p>Anyway, I hope this helps a little.</p>

12

<p>Thanks winnywinnwinn. I think I will just sign up to audition, then see how things go.
Let me know how things are for you once school starts.</p>