<p>Hey folks, I'm a white male from California starting my senior year next year. I just got my ACT score yesterday, and somehow I got a 35. My unweighted academic GPA is a 3.71, and my weighted 10-12 GPA is a 3.93, but I'm only ranked 54 out of 258 (top 25%). During the school year, I'm fairly heavily involved in extracurriculars, with about 20 hours a week in 5 different music ensembles at school. I will have about 200 hours of community service by the time I graduate.</p>
<p>I'm mainly interested in schools that are located in great college towns with lively music and party scenes, but are still academically challenging and rigorous. However, I'm not opposed to schools with a very studious environment if they're highly rated. I've mostly looked at public schools, but I'm open to suggestions for private schools. I'm pretty sure I want to major in business administration/management and minor in music, or possibly double major.</p>
<p>In state I'm interested in:
UC Santa Barbara
Cal Poly SLO
UC Berkeley (high reach)
UCLA (high reach)</p>
<p>Out-of-state schools I'm looking at:
UT Austin (my brother attends this school, so I'm already pretty attached to it)
UW Madison
University of Washington
Michigan (reach)</p>
<p>I think Santa Cruz and Boulder are good options for safety schools.</p>
<p>I haven't done much research into private schools, but Reed, Wesleyan (reach), and USC (reach) all seem interesting.</p>
<p>Are there any glaring omissions from my list of schools? Are there any very highly rated schools I might have a good shot at because of my ACT score? Or am I aiming too high as it is?</p>
<p>With your class rank UT is going to be a big reach. Why are you so focused on “highly rated” schools? I would guess if your parents are paying OOS rates for UT for your brother then they are well off. Indiana has a good business and music programs.</p>
<p>Indiana’s music program is top-notch and I’ve looked into the school, I just don’t think I would particularly like the location. I will definitely keep it in mind though. Thank you.</p>
<p>As far as UT goes, my test scores are well above their average and my GPA still fits nicely within their range, and I do think my odds are increased since I can pay the OOS tuition. I wouldn’t say I’m preoccupied with “highly rated” schools, although most of the schools on my list have great, established reputations. I would be looking seriously into more private schools if I was overly concerned with rank or reputation. I am merely wondering if I have a stab at any of them now that my test results are in.</p>
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<p>You might get in since you are in the top 25%. </p>
<p>You should get into Cal Poly SLO.</p>
<p>BTW, USC is not a reach. Its a match.</p>
<p>What sort of music do you want to minor or double major in? Performance, theory,composition etc? If it’s performance, do you have a good fix on where you are in the talent pool?</p>
<p>Also do a search on the music majors forum.</p>
<p>musicamusica: More along the lines of theory/composition, or specializing in recording arts and engineering if the school offers it. I’m hoping to work in the music industry and perform for fun as an adult, unless I can somehow turn it into a career. It’s hard to gauge my own talent but I’m not exactly a prodigy so a performance degree seems less useful for me. Ultimately though, the academics of the school are more important to me than the strength of the music program, although it’s also a major consideration.</p>
<p>XtremePower: Thank you. I’m actually fairly confident about UT, my grades have been more consistent throughout HS and my extracurriculars are significantly stronger compared to my brother. Would you mind matching me for the other schools on my list, please?</p>
<p>I am asking since your admission into a competitive music program (as a double major) may depend on a portfolio of compositions or an audition. Especially at USC or UCLA.
Reconsider the “double major”. Music,( theory, composition or performance) is a very, very intense major when you get to the college level.</p>
<p>musicamusica: I don’t think I will apply straight into the music program at any school, but that’s important to keep in mind if I end up going the double major route. I’m still trying to figure it all out. Thank you!!</p>
<p>What about Belmont? It is in Nashville and offers several varieties of Music Business degrees. It is not as highly rated as some of the schools on your list, but it is in a city with a great music scene.</p>
<p>ETA: Vanderbilt is also in Nashville and has a well-regarded music school. No true business degree, however. Only Econ. Also University of Miami has some good music business combos.</p>
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It seems you are concerned with ratings. As far as UT, look at the Common Data Set, section C. The most important item considered for admission is class rank. I will grant that being full pay is attractive to schools today.</p>
<p>Of course the rating is a factor, top ranked schools are going to have stronger alumni networks and connections are extremely important in the music industry. That being said, the location and atmosphere of the school is probably more important to me, like I suggested in my first post (“I’m mainly interested in schools that are located in great college towns…”)</p>