<p>Hi everyone,
Below are two links to articles on student debt and music careers. I hope this post can generate ideas, hope, etc. I am posting these because I am interested in thoughts on the entrepreneurship programs being initiated at colleges, counseling young musicians on careers and finance as they move forward. This is a topic my son wrestled with in his choosing graduate school and continues to struggle with. What are your thoughts on what the authors are saying?</p>
<p>Here’s the list of interviews with dual career muscians: <a href=“Recovering Oboist: Blog Index”>http://recoveringoboist.blogspot.com/p/blog-index.html</a>
S passed this on to me. </p>
<p>I haven’t read these yet but I just know that they will be helpful ;)</p>
<p>It is a very unequal society (and not just for musicians) in which some students emerge from school shackled with debt and others don’t. Today a friend told me that “as a graduation present” her parents were paying off her son’s Stafford loans. That puts him on a very different plane than his newly-minted colleagues emerging with $20/30/50K in loans. </p>
<p>p.s. I think the private blog links are forbidden</p>
<p>Excellent links @hornet </p>
<p>Where were the parents when these young musicians took on this kind of debt? Once you go over the Federal student loans of approximately $29000.00 over 4 years, some adult needs to cosign for the extra amount. It is true that an 18 year old wouldn’t understand how crippling debt is but their parents should have known. </p>
<p>“A serious debt load is likely to limit your career possibilities after you graduate – especially if you try to do music for a career. You will be motivated by the need to make a certain amount of money just to cover the monthly loan payment – and that’s not even counting other essential expenses like rent, instrument insurance, gas, and groceries.”</p>
<p>Where are the parents? Both parents and students are unrealistic about how limiting debt can be after graduation. Too many parents think that debt will expand opportunities rather than limit opportunities. They need to be educated on the realities of the post graduation job market. I could (and have) gone on and on about this, but it’s like spitting in the wind.</p>
<p>I wonder if parents co-sign these extra loans thinking that their child will “break through” and be able to pay off the loans? Or maybe they can’t bear not supporting their child’s dream (and some music teachers push the dream making it harder for parents to intervene)? As mentioned in the first link, Americans don’t like to talk about debt with each other. Is the information on the debt situation not getting out?</p>
<p>Thanks, Saintfan for the head’s up on blogs.</p>
<p>Perhaps the parents/students borrow at the undergrad level think that grad school will be a “free ride” and that the debt will not continue to accumulate? I only found one conservatory in the US at the MM level (Colburn) that was a true “free ride” with living expenses being covered along with tuition. Please enlighten me if I missed one (Yale and Curtis waive tuition-Curtis does not provide living expenses and Yale offers 3-5K fellowship to assist with living) . </p>
<p>Here’s a link to an Article on the Yale website-fascinating. It goes into a lot of comparison among grad programs with finances.
<a href=“Music School profits from free tuition - Yale Daily News”>http://yaledailynews.com/blog/2012/04/10/music-school-profits-from-free-tuition/</a></p>
<p>We appreciate your contributions, hornet. As other members have pointed out, the blog links would be considered non-authoritative, so we would just ask that you post from more mainstream sources. I’ll keep this thread open as it contains some good information, but please consider our site terms of service:</p>
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<p>Thanks again for your contributions to our community!</p>
<p>No problem, L!
I was not aware of the blog rule until today. I will adhere in the future. I joined CC many years ago so I am not up-to-date on rules as they have evolved. I did not even notice that the Yale one was a blog until just now. I will look for other sources with the same information and pay better attention to the URLs. Thanks. </p>
<p>"I wonder if parents co-sign these extra loans thinking that their child will “break through” and be able to pay off the loans? "</p>
<p>Yes, @hornet ,I think that’s the case. But they do not realize that a debt burden severely affects that opportunity to “break through”.</p>
<p>Well, this is truly the most depressing thread I’ve seen here. I’ve been struggling with my son’s decision to attend conservatory grad school since the decision was made a couple months ago. He is aware of the debt, but how can he really understand what it means? I feel a great responsibility about this, and fear that we got swept up in the excitement of the opportunity, the “reward” after surviving several grueling months of prescreens and auditions and waiting. But now what? Do we pressure him to change his mind? Soon he will have to commit to housing, and sign loan documents. He could get out now, losing just a deposit. He’s so excited about going, but he also confided that he feels burdened by the prospect of such debt. I am at a loss…</p>
<p>@onekidmama, It’s a tough decision, the dream versus reality. Son’s summer job is at an historic site which is heavily populated with underpaid history majors living the dream. One of them pays $700/month in student loans. He lives in substandard housing and always takes home the leftover “historic” lunch (hard tack, salt pork and peas) to supplement his food budget. At least musicians, can gig and teach lessons to bring in extra money. This young man’s hope is that after another 8 years working at the nonprofit some of his loans will be forgiven. I’m sure we all know young people struggling with mountains of debt. Help your son to estimate what his monthly loan payments will be and what he is reasonably likely to earn for the first 10 years after grad school. Then it is his choice. We recently had dinner with a music prof at son’s school. At age 40, this person just finished paying grad school loans and is starting a family. Student debt will definitely influence choices for along time into the future for our children’s generation.</p>
<p>“we got swept up in the excitement of the opportunity, the “reward” after surviving several grueling months of prescreens and auditions and waiting.” As a parent it’s very, very hard to detach yourself from this. Probably the toughest aspect of the whole process.</p>
<p>@onekidmomma – there are other options while your S is at school. He needs to make it clear that he needs paid performance opportunities. He needs to find out from faculty what’s going on in terms of small grants, teaching jobs, and well paying competitions. My D became the departments penultimate squeaky wheel. She had only received a 1/2 scholarship, but more than made up for the balance with opportunities they sent her way. Church jobs, grants, singing at donor events, teaching, etc. She was always asking for money. They even got the school to pay for her travel expenses to Europe when a prestigious performance opportunity arose. This sort of scrounging and hustling not only pays the bills, but it gives them a taste of what awaits after school.</p>
<p>“Where are the parents?” I think we parents are as angst-ridden and worried as the students are in deciding whether or not to take on these loan burdens, and know that the future ahead is uncertain and frightening. No one I know has made this decision lightly. For my family–we are not well off by any means. Even with good financial aid and merit scholarships for undergraduate (allowing both our sons to graduate without loans) our savings for college have been used up. Number one son went on to the working world and is doing very well without any further parental assistance. However, number two son is conservatory-bound for grad school, and will be signing on the dotted line for the first time for some very large loans. Just two years of grad school will cost way more than four years of undergraduate for him. Are we concerned? Are we frightened? Is this a tough decision? You bet!!! We know a difficult time lies ahead as he tries to pay off these loans. Yes, we could have suggested a gap year (or no grad school at all), but we felt that chances of getting huge amounts aid next year or the year after probably are still just as slim. And, he truly feels two more years of intensive conservatory level study are exactly what he needs at this point in order to continue his growth as a musician. Many probably cannot understand or don’t agree with our decision–but we support and encourage our son and feel getting the best training and experience he can at this point is essential for his future career. So, onekidmama–you have others traveling in the same boat as you. Bound to be a tough but exciting journey.</p>
<p>" Many probably cannot understand or don’t agree with our decision–but we support and encourage our son"</p>
<p>I promise you that those who do not encourage debt support and encourage their kids as well.</p>
<p>On a lighter note, my older son who is a nanophysics grad student took great delight in showing his younger brother, the bassist, a Youtube video, “Scared Straight- Liberal arts degree” over winter break. I would share the link but don’t want to run afoul of the forum rules but you can search for it yourselves. </p>
<p>You can post youtube videos! 
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