<p>Hi I am looking into Music Education as a career choice and was wondering if it was all possible to start a Music AA program at a community college for freshman year, audition at colleges of choice then transfer over the credits and everything to college of choice and still graduate with that four year frame? Thanks for any/all help.</p>
<p>This is very school specific. You need to sit down with your community college and see if they have any agreements with the state universities. Then also discuss this with the colleges that interest you to get their take on it. Having the community college credits accepted will be the issue. Music and Music Education are intense degree sequences that challenge a regular 4 year. There will not be a single answer that applies to all.</p>
<p>Sounds more like a 5 year plan but doable. Music Engineering still rules tho.</p>
<p>Based on the curriculums that I have looked at, it would be very difficult. </p>
<p>BM degrees in general tend to have fewer general education classes than most degrees. At some music schools, particularly conservatories, all or almost all your classes will be music classes, but community colleges and jr. colleges rarely offer a lot of music classes. When they do offer music classes, they may not transfer to a 4 year music program, even with some type of official university transfer program. Not all music classes count towards a BM degree, just like not all math classes will count towards a math degree.</p>
<p>Maybe you could do one year and then transfer, but even that would be difficult because a lot of music classes have to be taken in a specific sequence. Like you may have to take 4 semesters of music theory (in sequence) before you can take certain other music classes, like music composition. Also, most music colleges require 7 or 8 semesters of playing in ensembles (which counts as a class). </p>
<p>Music Education in particular allows for very few electives because it is almost like getting two degrees, one in music and one in education, with some of the education classes being taken in the music ed department, and some taken in the education department.</p>
<p>The reason I suggest that you do not turn a 4 year program into a 5 year program is because that extra year may be better spent in graduate school. At some colleges you can get a masters in a year and a half. I’d much rather have a bachelors degree plus a masters in 5-6 years, than just one bachelors (or even two bachelors) in the same amount of time.</p>
<p>If you are interested in saving money in the long run, you could do summer school at a local college for the first couple or three summers, taking all or almost all of the general education requirents during the summer, and try to graduate a semester or even a year early.</p>
<p>What state are you in ?</p>
<p>Singersmom is correct, I believe, it is very school and very state specific.</p>
<p>I know that Onondoga Community College in New York offers an AAS in music. From their website:</p>
<p>“The Onondaga Music degree program offers a two-year sequence designed to parallel the first two years of a typical four-year music degree program in music education, music business or music therapy. Completion of the two-year music curriculum will provide you with an A.A.S. degree, which includes a well-rounded liberal arts education. It also provides the options of transfer to a four-year degree program or direct entry into work as a private studio music teacher, professional musician, or any of a variety of positions in music merchandising.”</p>
<p>I also know that they have transfer agreements with four-year SUNY schools, such as Fredonia and Postdam:</p>
<p>"The Music Department has formal Articulation Agreements with the institutions listed below. Don’t worry if the college you want to eventually transfer to is not among those listed. Working closely with your full-time music faculty advisor from the beginning, you should be able to maximize transfer credits.</p>
<p>SUNY Potsdam
SUNY Fredonia
Ithaca College
Syracuse University
Mansfield College
Nazareth College"</p>
<p>Thanks everyone for the help, and to answer a question asked earlier I am in PA and this is mostly a financial problem that my parents wanted to get information on.</p>
<p>bornconfusedz, Bucks County Community College offers an associates in Music and has an articulation agreement with Temple U’s ed department. How well the AA aligns with Music Ed, I do not know, but it seems there’s at least a relationship between the two schools to work off of. </p>
<p>Good luck to you - one of my sons went the CC transfer route (public to private university, albeit not for music) for similar reasons and it worked out well for him. He made it out in four years.</p>