<p>I thought I'd let you all know about a new program at Marietta College that we learned about on a visit to the campus recently and see if anyone could add additional information. For those who do not know the school, it is a small (about 1300 students) college located in SE OH. The music department which impressed us, has begun a new selective program in Music Education that will only be admitting a maximum of 16 students each after an audition, exam, and interview (decisions made on March 1 of each year, but still open for next year as it is the first one). The head of the department, who also directs the choirs, explained that they had designed a program for a select number based on competitive auditions so that they could maximize the individual training and allow for additional coursework that they felt was valuable for future music teachers.
We were very impressed with the choir rehearsal we observed ( I have sung in choirs all my life and I honestly didn't expect the director at a school this size to be so engaging or effective) and the willingness of the faculty members to take so much time to meet with us.
As there were not many posts about the program on here, it had not really risen to the top of our list, but after the visit it is definitely moving up.
I would agree with one post that says the Musical Theatre degree program at the school appears a little weak (though admitedly it is not what we were looking at), but the music program itself seems excellent when combined with the liberal arts education offered at the college. We were pleased to find out about the success many of their recent vocal majors have had in graduate school (If I remember right the list included Manhattan, Westminster, and Shenandoah). It was also interesting to find out that nearly 14% of the campus is involved in about 9 ensembles (including 5 choirs) In my opinion, the new program, limited number of majors, and large number of opportunities might be a great combination. It was obvious they had a desire to do more than just train music teachers, but to help give students the knowledge they need to impact their profession and face the many challenges of the profession. The department chair also seemed very forthcoming about strengths and weaknesses of the program and provided helpful tips for our S in looking for the right fit in a college. It was kind of like a Progressive Insurance commercial, but since we have a had a couple visits (all small colleges as that is our S's preference) where I thought they had an inflated opinion of themselves it was refreshing. I guess only time will tell, but for personal attention this seems a great choice. Does anyone know any more about the program or the school?</p>