<p>My friend’s daughter was admitted to both JHU and Peabody last year but she did not get accepted for the double degree program. She chose JHU because they gave her a much better financial package. She has been able to take lessons and play in the Orchestra at Peabody and they told her that she could try again the next year. She reapplied to be a DD student and was accepted, I guess they wanted to make sure that she could manage the rigorous academic requirements, she is a physics major. Her private teacher was very supportive of this, she is a talented musician. So, if a student is really determined to do both then they can try again.</p>
<p>Yeah, llamas is asking one of my biggest concerns. I’m petrified I will enter the DD and feel lost in both places and wish I had gone to MIT (or one of my other choices). But then I think that they would not have taken me into the program if they had thought I would not succeed.</p>
<p>Does anyone have any advice whether the JHU/Peabody or Northwestern is more do-able as a DD?</p>
<p>It is a tough row to hoe. Know that now. Part of the issues will be where you decide to put your emphasis, and what you are trying to achieve. Does the love of music drive you, do you wish a performing career, see science as a passion, a career, or are you pulled in two directions?</p>
<p>It’s a rigorous curriculum, at a great institution. You will find many conflicts, hard work, intense dedication, and probably more than a bit of blood, sweat and maybe a few tears.</p>
<p>You may find you’ll be torn between the two, or have a eureka moment in one. Nothing is pre cast. You “guys” have shown both the chops and brains. You wouldn’t be there otherwise.</p>
<p>Not all do it. Some will finish, some won’t. You give it your best shot, and you find yourselves in the process. You’ve probably read it before, but here it is again. [Peabody</a> Institute - Conservatory Admissions: The Double Degree Dilemma](<a href=“http://www.peabody.jhu.edu/doubledegree]Peabody”>http://www.peabody.jhu.edu/doubledegree) Peabody says it better far better than I.</p>
<p>FantomBassoon – I do know someone who has done the DD at Peabody/JH. It is very difficult. The distance between campuses is obvious, but if you had a car, that might not be so bad. What really makes it hard is that the schedules of the two schools are not the same (the hours of classes, vacations, etc.) so that you have double-duty trying to figure out how to mesh a schedule. Both schools are very rigorous academically so I don’t see much difference there, but the mechanics of doing a DD at JHU/Peabody are going to be much more complicated to manoeuver around. Good luck to you whatever you decide.</p>
<p>Hello everyone!</p>
<p>I was accepted to Johns Hopkins and Peabody for Vocal Performance but I was not accepted to the Double Degree program, sadly. But for all of us who didn’t get it, think about it–it might be a blessing in the end. We can still takes as many classes as we want at Hopkins, and who know? We may need some breathing room freshman year to adjust.</p>
<p>Congratulations to everyone who was accepted to Peabody! I hope that the rest of your college decisions turn out the way you want! I don’t know if I’m going to choose Peabody yet but I hope that I’ll see you all next year!</p>
<p>Aria</p>
<p>@ FantomBasson
NU and JHU (along with Vandy and U iowa) are my choices right now for DD program. Do you know if NU has a double major program?
I’m kinda torn between the choices- I think i’ll go to the NU admit day. I would go to the JHU day, but it is really far away.</p>
<p>NU is a double degree program (BS/BM in 5 years). I don’t know about double major. I’m so glad that I’m not the only person trying to make this choice…</p>
<p>With regards to my current thought process: I have read the Peabody articles many times. Probably more than is actually healthy. I am the kid that loves both. Until the beginning of my junior year, I didn’t really think I would ever be good enough at bassoon to seriously consider any of these double degree programs, I knew I was a smart kid, and I didn’t want to waste that to be an average bassoonist. All of this is still true. Somewhere in the spring of sophomore year, I really worked my tail off to get a spot in my youth symphony (there was one opening and 3 of us in serious contention for it). I really learned how to practice and I uncovered a joy in music that had always been there but never really with such a fire. Since then, I realized I didn’t know how I could give up or compromise either side. I have said that I would be an engineer since I was 9 and that is obviously a more stable career than music; however, I know that if I didn’t try to go pro in music I would always wonder what I had missed…
I’m currently thinking that my dream would be to play for an opera (in the pit of course) and hold an engineering job as well. I know, it’s a bit crazy, but I have college to figure that out, right?
I think at the moment I’m leaning NU. But I still need to appeal finaid offers and see who might come back at me with a better deal.<br>
Sorry for posting my whole life story…</p>
<p>I’m leaning towards JHU over NU. Honestly, Chicago is so cold, I don’t think i can deal. I’m a little concerned about the workload, but I think I can do it.</p>
<p>I remember from when I was looking at schools, Northwestern is one of the few places where you can double major, rather than get a double degree and possibly finish in four years.
From their website:</p>
<p>Double Major</p>
<p>For information on applying, visit Undergraduate Application Info</p>
<p>Students may earn a double major within the Bienen School of Music in four years. They may also earn one major in music and another major in WCAS in four years. Only one bachelor’s degree is awarded, but with two majors. Proper academic planning is very important, and in certain cases the curriculum may require enrolling in more than four courses per quarter. Typically, a double major within the Bienen School of Music combines a performance area with an academic area, although double majors within two academic areas are also possible. A double major in two performance areas is generally not permitted. Note: Double majors in a performance area and music education can be completed in four years.</p>
<p>FantomBassoon: If you do opt for the DD program, I highly recommend you opt to live on the Peabody campus. You will not feel lost. You will find the Peabody campus to be friendly and you will quickly meet the other DD students. Living on the Peabody campus will make practice time and rehearsals easier. You definitely do not need a car and I would strongly advise against it. The bus is quick and easy (an offers a few minutes of rest). A car is expensive and very inconvenient in Baltimore. A DD is definitely doable. You will face and overcome any minor issues on class schedules and conflicts. The big issue will be the amount of work. Plan on being busy 7 days a week with maybe 1 evening for party time and social events. You probably already know about the attrition rate. Approximately 1/3 complete both degrees. My D is finishing her 4th year and still loves the program and Baltimore. She will get her BM this Spring. She is still very determined to complete both degrees, but will probably do a year of study abroad and then return to complete the academic degree. Don’t be deterred by the high dropout rate. Many kids just are not sure what they want to do and the stress of a lot of work pushes them to decide. For those who really want to continue the opportunities are amazing.</p>
<p>Yay!! S got his acceptance e-mail late this afternoon from Peabody in viola performance. He is so excited.</p>
<p>So now that S has all of his results he is trying to decide which is the best school for him. Does anyone know anything about the viola studios at Peabody? They assign the students to a specific studio, based on the audition results. He knows nothing about the particular teacher that he was assigned except what is in his bio. He will have to make another trip to Baltimore this month. Any other suggestions?</p>
<p>I’ve heard good things about Victoria Chiang from a student of hers, but have no details. Wish I could help more!</p>
<p>I currently am a Peabody Hopkins Double Degree student and I was stumbled upon this as I was part of a similiar thread last year. I’m doing the double in jazz studies and Engineering and I can honestly say that coming to peabody over hopkins/peabody was the best decision I have ever made. Just to give some reference, I turned down doubles at USC (too far), UMich, and McGill last year to come to Hopkins. There were a number of deciding factors that went into it, but when it came down to it, this was just the best program with the best atmosphere with the best teacher. </p>
<p>Just about the two schools:
Peabody-Everyone is really friendly. Peabody is really like a family. YOu get to know everyone really well (if not too well). You will find some of the best musicians in the world at peabody. Kids come here turning down comperable offers at Julliard, Eastman, Cleveland, NEC,…The professors are amazing at Peabody. You get the feeling that they all love teaching and are here for you. (The jazz department’s profs are seriously the coolest/nicest/most talented people I’ve ever met)</p>
<p>Hopkins-Amazing people at Hopkins. Seriously some of the smartest people you will ever meet. It’s big enough for you to find your niche, but small enough to feel like you know everybody. The profs here are seriously great and are top notch. The campus its absolutely beautiful, it keeps you from getting depressing throughout the year. The dorms are really nice and the RAs are amazing people. </p>
<p>Some things about the Double Degree
-it certainly is not easy, but it isn’t impossible as everyone seems to think it is
-On that note, the doubles are anything but shutins. The other doubles and I are probably the most social people I know. We’re all in clubs, numerous ensembles, and all have friends.
-the integration between the two campuses works out really well. Although the scheduling seems impossible when you first come here, it really isn’t that bad. It just takes planning (literally thinking about when you’re going to take every course) and it soon becomes easy.
-The shuttle between the two campuses is really amazing, it runs at least every half hour and runs much more often during rush times (7-9 am and 2-5 pm). The shuttle also is really safe and takes very little time (at most 15 minutes, usually around 10) Another great thing is that the two campuses are on 1/2 hour time differences, so basically peabody runs on the 1/2 hours in the morning and hours in the afternoon and hopkins is the opposite, so you can take an 8:30 1 hour class at Peabs and a 10:00 class at hopkins and have plenty of time to make it to both.
-People at both universities are very understanding of the complications of the double and are more than understanding and willing to help. Double students are allowed to register early for their classes at both hopkins and peabody and because of this, we are pretty much guaranteed a spot in any class (this is especially nice when you want/need to take a class that is usually amazingly hard to get into (like one that is usually just for seniors) and you get in automatically). On more than one occasion, I wanted to add a class that was already full and went to the registrar and they just signed me up. Also, James Dobson is a saint and is any double degree’s best friend.
-About living at which campus, i lived at Hopkins my first year and did not regret it. I feel that the people that live at peabody only go to hopkins for classes and never get into the social life at hopkins, but that is also great for some people. The peabody community is tiny (like 90 kids per class) and is incredibly easy to get into. You get to know everyone in your studio very quickly and everyone in your year by at least the end of the first semester. The fact is that there are amazing people at both campuses and each community just needs you to find its niche for you to have an amazing experience.
-For people who didn’t get into both or got into both but not the double, it is possible to reapply after a year or so, while still taking lessons/ensemble/classes. I know someone who got into both but not the double, talked to his studio teacher he had gotten into at peabody and just took lessons/played in ensembles his first two years. He applied to the double after two years and is now a double. About 1/3 to 1/2 of the accepted doubles each year are already a student at either hopkins or peabody.
-Seriously, I can’t emphasize this enough, don’t be scared of the stories you hear about double degree drop-outs. Very rarely do you see someone who “just can’t take it anymore.” Almost all of the people who decide to end the double degree pursuit do it because they come to the realization that while they still love the other part of their degree, it’s just not what they want to do anymore. They decide, almost always in agreement with their parents that they just want to focus more on one thing. Does this mean that you drop your lessons and practicing or all your classes at hopkins, certainly not, you just make the decision to put all your time into one thing.
-Lastly, although it is touch for some more rigorous majors (engineering, pre-med), completing the program in four years is really not that unheard of. About 1/3 of applicant s do so </p>
<p>I hope this was helpful and cleared some things up. I really hope to see all of you next year. Peabody and Hopkins are the two most amazing places and I couldn’t imagine myself anywhere else. </p>
<p>p.s. Llama, if you’re really deciding between doubles at northwestern and peabody, definitely choose hopkins. Hopkins first of all is amazing in the sciences and the research here/professors are amazing. Secondly, although the jazz department isn’t really well known, it’s only because it’s new and it doesn’t have a high profile name like Julliard. The teachers here are amazing and they treat you more like a friend than a student. Gary Thomas is literally the coolest person on the face of this earth. The players here are also really good. There are people who turned down MSM and Oberlin (and Umich/Hartt for me) here. Lastly, Mike Formanek is one of the nicest,coolest guys ever. And on top of that, he’s absurdly talented. He played in Tony William’s band when he was 16. Plus, Northwestern is just starting up their department(like a few years old). Be careful, although they might have a great name on faculty now, those names aren’t guaranteed (the same thing happened at peabody).</p>
<p>Oh bassoon, I was in the same situation as you too. It hurt to turn down offers from Caltech and Carnegie Mellon, but if you are passionate about music, you know what you have to do.</p>