Music Education at These Schools

College Majors Music Major
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<p>My daughter is a HS junior and a violinist in Pennsylvania. She has decided to major in music ed as an undergraduate. For undergraduate studies, she is looking for a college/university that 1) has a strong music department, 2) pushes its music ed. majors to be strong musicians, 3) has a strong violin teacher, 4) expects its students to graduate in four years, and 5) has an academic admission rating of less than "most selective."</p>

<p>Which of these schools meet the above criteria: University of Delaware, Susquehanna University, Duquesne University, Capital University (Columbus, OH), Temple University, University of Michigan, Ohio State University, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and West Chester University of Pennsylvania? </p>

<p>Please feel free to make any comments beyond the criteria listed.</p>

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<p>My DS has applied to Duquesne for jazz studies - both he and my DH came back from the audition <em>very</em> impressed with the program, faculty and facilities. The Music Ed. program has boasted a 100% placement rate for the past few years, and ed majors are definitely expected to be active performers. The program is intense - you need 138 credits to graduate. The college is "selective" in its admissions. I can't speak to the violin faculty but I think based on your criteria you would be wise to put it on your short list.</p>

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<p>viodad, All of the schools listed have solid music ed programs, although I don't know much of anything about UDelaware. There is a large disparity in size, location/environment, percent of grads to undergrads, admissions criteria and costs.</p>

<p>Duquesne and Temple have had historically solid programs, as does Michigan.</p>

<p>None of the violin faculty jump off the pages to me, except UMich. But given the sheer size of Michigan, there could well be a distinction between faculty for a performance discipline versus applied faculty for instrumental music ed majors... you may not have the full selection of faculty. Bob Culver was the music ed name that I immediately recognized.</p>

<p>Most of these schools have been discussed in some detail in existing threads. Try different search criteria to select threads by school, instrument, or music ed (or education). </p>

<p>Another way to glean specific info is look at the Master List of Acceptances threads. The last post in the '08 list is here <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1060444933-post487.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1060444933-post487.html&lt;/a>
You can look for posts by specific posters, or in some cases, you might want to pm a poster directly. FYI, if a school or poster is listed within [brackets], that indicates the school they chose to attend. There are a few posters currently attending programs at most of the schools you've detailed. First hand info might be your best bet.</p>

<p>You might want to add Kent State for a look through, another excellent school for music ed in the same geographic region.</p>

<p>If you or your d can get your hands on the MENC or ASTA publications, you might want to research some of the names of faculty. Many are active, may have submitted articles which might be a good reference point for you. Strings magazine is another good reference. Check with your d's string teacher, or orchestra director.... they may well have stack of back issues worth perusing. </p>

<p>Also, try and network a bit with your local teachers, your state's music teacher's educational association. If you can pick a few brains, you'll get a good sampling of regional opinion. The recent hires, new BM's or MM's may be the closest to the current state and quality of any particular programs, and may have friends and contacts in the process they can put you in touch with.</p>

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<p>viodad,</p>

<p>I am currently a student at Temple U and while I am a vocal performance major, I would be happy to answer any questions I can about the program here and such. I can also put her in contact with some violinists here as well if she would like to ask them questions. Feel free to pm me. </p>

<p>1) has a strong music department: Yes-in most areas, some more lacking than others
2) pushes its music ed. majors to be strong musicians: well, that's a tricky question since that's a two way street. I can tell you that Boyer gives one hour lessons to ALL music majors, regardless of their major or instrument. Performance majors don't get more time than education majors.
3) has a strong violin teacher: well, I'm not a violinist so I can't say from my experience but from what I've heard from violinist friends, yes.
4) expects its students to graduate in four years: yes, but that is largely up to the student being responsible and figuring out what classes they need to take when in order to graduate in four years. They certainly don't hold your hand but they will help you if you need it.<br>
5) has an academic admission rating of less than "most selective.": Yes, Temple isn't Yale, but they have some great academics.</p>

<p>As to Capital U, I know a grad student here, MM in Vocal performance, who I could put you in contact with. She studied VP in her undergrad there but she just graduated so I'm sure she could help answer some of your questions about the school. </p>

<p>I hope this helps. Good luck in your search!</p>

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<p>viodad, in case you missed it there's a concurrent post with Susquehenna info here <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/654690-please-offer-some-experienced-feedback.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/654690-please-offer-some-experienced-feedback.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Expanding on your point 4 and Baritonevoce's explanation, it is imperative that a student in a music ed curriculum pay strict attention to the degree course outline, and know the requirements inside and out. This is particularly true if planning a dual major in performance and ed, a path you suggested in a prior post that may interest your d.</p>

<p>While most straight music ed programs are designed to be four year degrees, there are numerous course sequencing issues and prereqs that if missed will screw up a four year plan very quickly. Many sequential courses are offered as fall or spring offerings only. Some "specialty" courses may only be once an academic year, on rare occasions, once every two academic years. </p>

<p>Couple this with a performance degree pursuit, and there may be conflicts with meeting certain performance and ensemble requirements, as these tend to meet in late afternoons, often in conflict with music ed observation and practicum requirements.</p>

<p>There may be more time slot offerings of the same course number at the larger institutions like Michigan, but in general the music ed programs at most institutions tend to be fairly small in number in terms of students, so course offerings are planned to meet the needs. Trying to make up a music ed course during a summer or winter term session is a rarity, as many music ed courses are simply not offered during these sessions.</p>

<p>If a student has other strong interests, it may be difficult to fit special interest subjects into a schedule. For the institutions with large course offerings or have continuing ed offerings, it may be beneficial to use evenings or night courses to take English, math, or other general requirements. Often these meet once or twice a week, and can free up time for additional coursework or schedule conflicts during a normal academic day.</p>

<p>An astute music ed advisor can be extremely helpful, but the reality is that it's the student's responsibility to plan schedule. It can be tricky, time consuming, and costly if errors of omission or judgment occurs.</p>

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<p>We know students pursuing Music education degrees at Temple and they are VERY happy..and musically challenged. It's also a GREAT price for instate state students.</p>

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<p>An IU of Pa thread is here <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/414072-indiana-univ-pa.html?highlight=mansfield%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/414072-indiana-univ-pa.html?highlight=mansfield&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

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<p>I'm a music ed (flute) student at Temple, feel free to PM me if you have anymore questions! =)</p>

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<p>Try Ithaca College; one of the strongest music ed schools I know- my daughter is there as a violin performance major and loves it (studies with Susan Waterbury). It's a 4.5 year program I believe, but I think it may be possible to pare that by taking some GE in the summers...</p>

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<p>Viodad: My D is a freshman at IUP. I can't really speak much to strings as she is a voice major, but she is very happy there and I know she feels quite challenged. She chose IUP for a number of reasons, but primarily to continue to study with a professor she had met at a summer program. The music facilities are beautiful, the people very nice, they are making BIG improvements and renovations to the campus (ie: 250 million in dorm tear-downs and rebuilds). We just saw the spring musical (which was a BIG step up from high school) in the newly renovated and reopened main theater. And the student pit, which included some strings, was fabulous. They seem to care about and invest in the arts. D has had some nice experiences and opportunities so far. While IUP may not be among the most "selective" academically of schools, D is finding the work in the Honors College VERY challenging. She got a nice out-of-state scholarship and has been quite content there. For PA residents, it's certainly worth a look. If I can answer any questions, give me a PM.</p>

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<p>Viodad: Also, I think you should take some of the comments made on that IUP thread with a grain of salt. Drinking is prevalent EVERYWHERE, those who choose not to will be able to find some like-minded friends.</p>

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<p>Lawrence University, Appleton, WI</p>