Should I commit now, or wait?

College Majors Music Major
1

<p>I've been accepted to my dream school! I'll get at least $2,000 annually from this school, but it is also in the top 3 most affordable schools I've auditioned at (top 2 not including my in-state super safety). Financial aid info comes out at the end of the month. There is only one other school that I might consider attending instead, but that would only be if they could bring the cost down significantly lower than dream school. This would be difficult considering the fact that school B is about $15,000 more expensive. I have not yet heard from school B. </p>

<p>Dream School: Selective for my major (voice) with an ideal class of 10 or fewer. Beautiful campus. Nice people. I see myself here. I like the voice teacher a lot and her students seem to like her. All of the teachers work full time. I never imagined I'd get in to this school and my family has already started to talk about my attending. I really think that this will be a challenging but perfect place for me. It's everything I think I want and need right now. I love the curriculum, and since auditioning here, I've compared all schools to this one. It has remained my #1 since the beginning. </p>

<p>School B: A lot more expensive. Also selective for my major with an ideal class of 8 or fewer. The campus was very overwhelming to me, and the city is not my favorite. This was a last minute application addition because my mom always wanted me to apply. The school has a better academic reputation, and more recognition for common people. (Everyone knows the name of this school... non-musicians don't always understand the other one). The catch is that my absolute FAVORITE teacher is here. I had two lessons and loved both teachers. The problem is that I don't like the city, the campus, the facilities, or the students as much, and the teacher isn't full time (works at other schools and performs), so I don't know how that would impact my experience. I haven't been accepted yet, and might not, although I got great responses from faculty. I'm worried about my academic standing. Also, they specifically said "You're going to go into a lot of debt to come here", "Don't make your decision based on money" and several times noted how expensive the school is. I also would not be able to take a year of each language at the school because of schedule and cost. </p>

<p>I am extremely eager to commit to my dream school. My parents are cool with paying the fee, and I know that overall this is where I see myself. However, my parents have asked about if I DO get accepted to school B and DO get money. I still don't see myself being happy there. Would it be okay to commit, or should I wait? I don't know why I'm so eager to commit. I just want to sign up for housing and to tell my friends that it's official, and just KNOW what's going to happen next year! Commit now or wait!? In writing this I think I only reinforce that I know where I want to go, but I'm not sure if there is any reason I should wait that I'm not seeing?</p>

2

<p>This is my own opinion… if you know that the financials will be okay for your dream school, then commit. Quite frankly, just reading your post, I can tell you are excited about that school, and that shows alot. If you know that you wouldn’t be happy at the other school that might offer more money, then to me, it’s not worth the wait. If you can’t be happy there even if it’s cheaper, I don’t recommend considering it… like I said, as long as you can afford this dream school. </p>

<p>If it feels like home, feels right, and has everything you need, that’s the school for you. It sorta sounds cheesy or cliche. But honestly, congrats on finding your dream school, and getting in! Good luck there :)</p>

3

<p>Often you can sign up for housing without committing (sometimes with a minimal fee, which is worth it to get your place in “line” for your first choice of housing.)</p>

<p>I really don’t see what the rush is. You are accepted. It’s not going away. Perhaps an acceptance to the other place could even give you leverage to get more aid from your first choice.</p>

<p>Why not commit in your head, but wait a few more weeks to push that button?</p>

4

<p>So long as you are not talking about a binding Early Decision or Restricted Early Action agreement, many schools will allow you to rescind a decision to attend up until May 1 with minimal loss of deposit money. Check the policy of your dream school with regard to this, both for the acceptance deposit and for the housing deposit. They will not rescind your acceptance for asking, and you might be able to get a parent to call and ask anonymously if you feel awkward doing it yourself. In many cases you will be able to commit to your dream school and sign up for housing now without risking much should school B come through with the big bucks later.</p>

<p>If you would not mind telling us the schools involved, we would love to add your acceptances to the <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/1427644-master-list-music-school-acceptances-fall-2013-a.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/1427644-master-list-music-school-acceptances-fall-2013-a.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Crossposted with jazz/shreddermom - It is indeed another good idea to see if the school will accept a housing deposit without requiring a decision to attend. You could minimize your potential loss even further this way. The waiting is hard, but it will be over sooner than you think.</p>

5

<p>I need to commit before signing up for housing! I tend to be a bit of an anxious person sometimes, I suppose. I guess my acceptance seems so unreal that I feel like it might have been a mistake? (Although I have a personally signed letter and online confirmation that yes, I have been accepted) So I feel like I need to confirm sooner. Also, I really want a certain housing option and feel nervous about not being able to live where I want. I guess I actually only have about two more weeks now until April 1 when I’ll know about all of the schools. I’m pretty sure I have my mind made up, but I might just wait until then because I’ll still be committing earlier than the deadline.</p>

6

<p>Imthinking,
Reading your post what stood out is that you wrote that you tend to be a bit of an anxious person AND you wrote that School B’s campus was overwhelming and you were not fond of the city it was in. BINGO. That is your clue. You are young. Going away to college can be stressful. Stress can make it difficult to perform your best or to learn. It can lead to depression which can result you shutting down. It is not worth it to put yourself into a situation that is potentially stressful just because of a “brand”. And be wary of going for a professor that is not there full time. At this point in your career it is probably more important to have a mentor who is there for you. </p>

<p>My son was talking about a friend of his who went to a conservatory that is not as prestigious as the one he attends. He was saying how he was a bit jealous because his friend got so much more attention from his private teachers who often would hang out with his friend after lessons sharing and listening to music. My son’s professors are too busy and my son’s lessons are always exactly 50 minutes. </p>

<p>Also keep in mind that many musicians go on to get a Masters. So you can go undergrad to a place where you are comfortable, work hard and then apply to be a Master’s student with your favorite teacher. By then you will be more advanced and probably get more attention from them.</p>

7

<p>We counseled our S to pick the school where he thought he would be happiest for four years - regardless of prestige, etc. He needed to consider the whole package - teacher, location, size of school, curriculum, other students, etc. As others have said, you will probably be going on for a Masters degree - which IMO is the time to go for “prestige”. Undergrad is for growing/maturing, gaining great technique and making friends. Where do you see yourself doing that best?</p>

8

<p>I understand you are excited about your acceptance, but also are facing a lot of questions, that is normal to the audition process (we are still waiting with my S, won’t know until the end of the month, which is hard, then he may have some tough choices to make).</p>

<p>First of all, relax, take a deep breath, you are doing fine, and you have choices, which is never a bad thing. Most schools have a deadline of may 1st to commit (if these schools are different, I apologize, I can only talk about what I have seen). You have time, it is still early in March, you have time, and if the school has given you a formal acceptance, you are in until you say you don’t want to go there, they have to honor that. </p>

<p>In terms of where to go, it seems like you have a dream school, that you seem to like a lot, and that makes it easier. That said, you don’t have all the information yet, school B hasn’t given you a response on financials, so you don’t know what that will end up being like. Even if it is likely it will cost you a lot, wait until you know for certain before responding. You could send the financial aid office an e-mail, asking when they probably will have the financial stuff out, and let them know that it is an important part of the decision process, that you would like to go there but cannot make a decision until they let you know the financial side. In making decisions, you should have all the information possible.</p>

<p>Conventional wisdom is that you should go where you think the best teacher for you is, but like anything else, that is weighted. You said your absolutely favorite teacher was at school B, but how much better do you like them than the teacher(s) at school A? Do you think that with the teacher at school B, you would advance significantly faster, or is it simply personality? If the choice is between an excellent teacher and an ok teacher, that is way different then an excellent teacher and a slightly less excellent teacher. I don’t know voice that well, there are people who are experts on here, but from what I know of voice another factor is the voice matures later, and therefore the ‘great teacher’ may be less important at this level then grad (and please take it for what it is, my limited understanding of voice), that if it were grad school then teacher B might be the way to go…</p>

<p>If you are seriously thinking of going into voice/music, then academic reputation is absolutely meaningless, all you should care about is the strength of the teaching. Put it this way, if Harvard had a voice department, getting a degree from there in voice wouldn’t mean anything, other then how good the teacher(s) were there. If you go to grad school in voice, it is going to be how well you sing that gets you in, not whether USNR or someone else thinks the school is academically superior. Likewise, when you go for young artists or audition for jobs, all that is going to matter is how you sing…</p>

<p>Cost is important, if you are majoring in voice, then please, please try to keep the debt down to a minimum or even zero if you can…with voice, you will probably be doing grad school, which makes the UG a little less critical…more importantly, music is a tough, tough field, it takes years if you are any good to get established, and you don’t want to be ferrying around a lot of debt. If B is going to cause you to rack up 10’s of thousands in debt, it would be a red flag to me…which is why you need to know for certain before even considering B IMO. </p>

<p>One factor you also haven’t mentioned that gets weighted in, and that is opportunities to network,through your teacher and /or through the school. A school in NYC will probably have a lot more opportunities to network, given the depth of the music scene there (talking classical voice/opera specifically) as compared to let’s say a school in a more isolated area, and that can be important (on the other hand, if grad school is in the future, it may not matter as much).</p>

<p>One question I have, you say you don’t like the environment at school B, the city, etc…how much exposure have you had to it? Have you spent a lot of time there, or is it based on one visit? The reason I ask, is that you have said you are a nervous person and so forth, and to be honest you can’t know what a place is like if you have had only brief experience. Lots of people, for example, come to NYC, are overwhelmed at first, and then find their footing and suddenly decide they can’t live anywhere else:). On the other hand, if you have had enough exposure to think it isn’t shock of the new, then take that into account, it is important. I know kids, friends of my kid, that are going to some schools considered the best of the best, and they have their regrets about going there, primarily that the environment is caustic to them…they are getting great training, but they also feel like they have to spend energy they could do music with trying to cheer themselves up…so don’t discount environment, you are going to be there 24/7. </p>

<p>From what you have written, dream school sounds like it is the better bet, and unless B can make it financially doable without taking out loans, then I personally would choose A, given all the factors you have talked about…</p>

<p>If B surprisingly turns out to be affordable then weigh all the factors above, and if your gut says A or B, take what it says, you are likely to be fine either place.</p>

9

<p>If you are an undergrad and the schools are NASM members, you do NOT have to commit before May 1st, so you have plenty of time to decide.
That said, I woudn’t place all of my hope in a particular teacher; my D learned the hard way that they can, and do, leave (she has a new teacher for her senior year). While it’s turned out well for her, it hasn’t been so successful for others in her studio. Having a teacher who is not at your school full time can also be a problem when having to reschedule lessons missed due to illness, conflict, etc. It’s not as bad for instrumentalists, but young voices can’t practice as much and cramming two or more lessons into a shortened time period isn’t optimum. Also, look at the performance opportunities as each school and make sure that there are things which are suitable for undergrads, such as Art Song programs and studio recitals. Pay attention to the full curriculum because you need a year of Italian, French and German, as well as a good theory sequence, keyboard proficiency and music history classes for grad school- what you don’t have, you’ll need to make up as deficiencies later on which can add time and expense.
It’s not nearly as easy to transfer as a music performance major as it is for academic majors- sequences don’t mesh and credits may not transfer, so if you can “get it right” to begin with, it’s a huge help. From what you write, it sounds like there is not much at all that would make life at the second school pleasant for you, but you might want to sit down with a pad of paper divided into 2 columns and list the pros and cons for each school. Having it all laid out in front of you helps to clarify the situation.
Good luck to you!</p>

10

<p>Thanks so much! I suppose that I’m just being quite anxious and eager! It isn’t helped by virtually everyone I know asking me if I’ve made my decision yet! I know the deadline is May 1, but I’m just so excited! I’ve decided that I’ll definitely wait to hear back from everyone. (More financial aid info is coming in the next couple of weeks, as well as four more admissions decisions). Even though I’m about 98.5% sure that I’m set on school A, I think I owe it to myself to think long and hard and write out all my pros and cons on paper as you suggest. I only have 2 - 3 weeks to wait!</p>

11

<p>Nothing wrong with waiting until all options are on the table. Best of luck to you!</p>