<p>I realize folks on CC are from all parts of the country so perhaps this query is a bit too narrow; however, I hope there are parents and students out there with knowledge/opinions/experiences with the music departments at the various schools in the North Carolina university system. If so, I would DEARLY love to hear from you! I have been under the impression (perhaps mistakenly) that the top 3 state music schools are, in this order: UNCG, App St, ECU. Can anyone out there in CC nation comment on this? Have I left off a contender? Is it actually harder to get into App than into UNCG? All opinions and comments welcomed!</p>
<p>My guess is that a question like this might vary depending on what you are planning to study. For example, UNC Charlotte was on my son’s list because of a particular teacher (who was at CIM for over 20 years before moving to Charlotte). Of course a teacher is not the only thing to consider as many have mentioned repeatedly on CC. Anyway, we were very impressed with the music school. It is not well known as a music school but it has amazing facilities and some really good faculty so it might just be a matter of time. It is also reasonably priced relative to many other places. </p>
<p>We visited both UNCSA and UNCG and were very impressed with the faculty and the facilities. Wish we lived in state so we could take advantage of the lower tuition. North Carolina appears to have a lot of good options musically. Both campuses were also very attractive.</p>
<p>I am from NC and my son is a senior music major at Furman (in SC). As the other posters have mentioned, the choice of state school depends on the student’s major within music. For example, if one were interested in music history or musicology, UNC-Chapel Hill would be my choice. All three of the programs you mentioned have strong performance degrees. I would look at who the instrument teacher is and the type of playing your child is interested in. How big is the studio for the individual instrument? Most teachers will have a sample lesson (some may charge) and many students will do this before applying-very important to have a teacher you like. Attending an orchestra concert can tell the potential student a lot. My son found visiting and listening to the orchestra to be very helpful in his decisioning.</p>
<p>Some schools have specialties such as electronic music (Asheville) and studio production (App State and Asheville). Some have windbands, others do not.</p>
<p>Feel free to PM me on this.<br>
BTW-if your child is set on music and has no other potential major, UNC School of the Arts is an excellent opportunity. It functions on a conservatory model and if your child were to change to a nonmusic major, </p>