Hello everyone. I’m a senior in high school, and I really love music. I really love it in that I want to have a career in orchestral music (I play the clarinet). However, my parents want me to become a doctor or any of those “safe” jobs (I’m asian). I really don’t know what to do…It’s time to start applying and if I want to major in music, I need to audition and etc. Is it possible to get a career in orchestral music without a history of studying music in college or maybe just minoring in music?
First, you can major in music and still go to medical school. I read, a few years ago, that music majors have the highest admit rate to medical school at 62%. Sorry I cannot cite it- lost the link. But you get the idea. Of course you have to do prerequisites, either during undergrad or after graduating. There are post-bac programs for that (see Goucher’s as an example, there are many such programs.)
Second, please read the Double Degree Dilemma essay posted on the top of this music forum, for a description of the different ways to study music. There are many paths for undergrad, and some go to grad school as well.
-BM in a conservatory or school of music, freestanding or part of a college/university (you usually need to submit materials for prescreening including a recording/video, then also, if passed, do auditions).
-BA in a college or university, with varying degrees of performance in the curriculum plus extracurricular performance; usually lessons are available, often for credit, and credit may be given for performance as well, but not always. (Some have auditions for admission, some have auditions for participation in extracurricular music; for application you would include a music supplement with recording, music resume, letters of recommendation from teachers/directors.)
Both BM and BA will have theory and aural skills, music history, ethnomusicology/world music, composition, music technology and so on. The BA is more academic and will often include distribution requirements )if you combine music and science, find a school with lower or no gen eds). A BM is 2/3 - 3/4 music classes and a BA is 1/4-1/3 music classes.
Other options are a minor in music, a double major with music and something else, a double degree with a BA and BM or sometimes a BA and MM. Double degrees are 5 years.
There are exceptional individuals who major in something other than music, continue lessons and performance on and off campus, and continue to progress enough to enter grad school or a career in music.
You CAN major in anything and still enter one of those “safe” jobs. Colleges are not vocational in that sense. You do NOT have to do a premed program, or prelaw, or whatever it is your parents want. It sounds like you do not yet know what you want to do after college but have a desire to pursue music for 4 years and see how it goes. I hope you can convince your parents, but that is my personal opinion.
Perhaps showing them the Double Degree Dilemma will help. David Lane, who write it, was admissions director at Peabody (part of Johns Hopkins) for decades and knows his stuff. Good luck!
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/876019-66-med-school-acceptance.html
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/871211/pre-med-music-major/
ah, 66 not 62%!
Do you have a high level clarinet teacher now, a professional? Are you now in competitive orchestras? Or, this is “I love music?” Sorry, but the question needs to be asked.
So, you ask your teacher or conductor to assess your talent.
But isn’t that a factor of those music majors who both met the requirements and the lesser number of them applying? 44% of biochems may reflect a far larger number of candidates.
And the study was 1994?
OP - Tell your parents that you can major in music and become highly successful, such as Chief Security Officer at Equifax…
^ PLEASE tell me he WASN’T a music major.
Looking forward, yes percentage is different from absolute number. I had no idea it was 1994 and will stop mentioning it. I stopped awhile ago because I didn’t have the citation but couldn’t resist. Now I will.
As for Equifax, maybe he will be playing music again soon in his spare time unemployed.
I’m a doctor. You can certainly become a doctor with a music degree. You can become a doctor with any degree as long as you complete the med school prerequisites.
That said, I’ve never personally known a doctor who was a music major, so my guess is the numbers are very small. BUT, back when I reviewed applications, I would have found it very interesting, and assuming the academic credentials in med school prereqs were outstanding and LORs were good, I would have probably passed the application along to the next level.
@compmom it’s still an interesting study. I also heard English majors are appreciated, based on the amount of reading in med school. It’s also, I think, an older look.
Susan Mauldin, CSO of Equifax and now comfortably retired shortly after the security breach has become public knowledge, studied music composition:
Your other thread is going too…Just wanted to add that instrumentalists are not limited to orchestral work as a career option in music.
@BassTheatreMom I know a very successful doctor who graduated with a music degree! He still plays keyboards in two bands in his spare time.
FYI - I was a clarinet performance major at UCLA, went to law school, and am now a political consultant/lobbyist who also plays in several great groups and even records for a few classical record labels on occasion. It can definitely be done! Double majors are also a possibility. But yes, you need to audition now. The experience you get in college with a private instructor and in playing with orchestral groups and chamber ensembles, as well as having juries and junior/senior recitals will be critical to your musical growth.
I have a friend who not only majored in music but had a double major (computer science), went on to med school, and is now director of an emergency trauma center.