<p>I have been looking at Oberlin for quite some time, off and on whether or not to apply. OF COURSE, I know that most prestigious liberal arts schools like oberlin are difficult to gain admission into, but...what I want to major in would probably be most difficult. Which is, Music performance (though I don't want to go into the conservatory). I am eager to know whether or not I at least have a chance, so...yesh, here goes nothing:!</p>
<p>9th grade: gpa = 3.64(uw)/3.90(w) Rank = 88/290 (w)
10th grade: gpa=3.793(uw)/3.999(w) Rank = 55/317(w) and 44/317 (uw)
11th grade: gpa=3.80(uw)/4.059(W) Rank = 42/317 (w) and 34/317 (uw)
12th grade: Hon speech/comp (Ap english was cancelled)
Hon Spanish (does not offer AP)
AP gov/econ
Hon Physics
Hon trig/college algebra
Chamber choir
Jazz Choir</p>
<pre><code> I just got updated: gpa = 3.70 (uw)/4.19(w)
Rank! = 40 (w)/26(w)
</code></pre>
<p>SAT: I'm not saying
ACT: Just took in October. Predict a 31
SAT subjects: taking in november/december: spanish + math level 1, unless i don't need them for admission !</p>
<p>Extracurriculars:</p>
<p>*GLSEN board member (only high school board member in the Pittsburgh area)
*Jr. Mendelssohn Choir (grades 9, 10)
()Performed w/Pittsburgh Symphony
*Piano for 10.5 years
*Chorus for 8 years
*Jazz choir/club (extremely selective)- 11th/12th grade
() Performed @ PNC Park (Pittsburgh's baseball stadium)
* Performed Nat'l Anthem at football games and baseball games (solooo)
*Literary magazine-10th grade
*Classical Singers Competition in Philadelphia-2006
*Cantoring for high holidays (Rosh Hashana/Yom Kippur) at Temple-grade 11/12
*Orchestra (piano) - 9th grade
*People to People Student Ambassador program - grade 7 (but it's significant)
() Promotes peace and cultural networking.
*Apprenticeship w/Pittsburgh Opera-grade 12
*Voice lessons (3 years or so)
*Social Action Committee at my Temple- grade 11/12
<> Co-founded and run many hours a week
*National Honors Society- grade 12 only allowed
*Peer tutoring for science and spanish- grade 12 only allowed
*Anime Club-grade 9
*Amnesty International- grade 12
*Gay Straight Alliance- grade 10, 12
*Fantasy/Creative Writing Club- grade 12
*Temple Youth Group- grade 9, 10
*Played piano at Christmas pilgrimages 2 years in a row-grade 9, 10
*Volunteer piano player for choruses-grade 9, 10
*Summer course @ Brown University-Summer 2006
()() There are a few that I have forgotten, but this should be the gist of it lol ()()</p>
<p>I'm not good at judging these things, but I'd say you would probably get in, but not definitely. Also there seems to be a problem if you plan on majoring in Music Performance but you do not want to be in the Conservatory. You would have to be in the Conservatory for majoring in music performance.</p>
<p>poster Bassdad provided the following information on another thread:</p>
<p>"- the music major in the college is a BA, not a BM. Only about a third of the total credits will be in music.</p>
<ul>
<li><p>College music majors can have a double major within the college, but cannot participate in the double degree program through the Conservatory.</p></li>
<li><p>There are several courses, particularly some of the more interesting upper level courses, that are completely filled by Conservatory students every year. Otherwise, all Conservatory classes are open to College students on a space-available basis with Con students getting first crack at registration.</p></li>
<li><p>BA students interested in concentrations in Performance, Composition or Music Technology go through the same admissions auditions and are held to the same standards as their Conservatory cohorts.</p></li>
<li><p>BA students interested in the History/Theory concentration need not audition for admission. They will, however, have to audition into Secondary Private Study on voice, an instrument or composition in order to complete all of their requirements. The Secondary Private Study auditions are normally held during orientation and during the first week of the semester. They are not terribly hard provided that you are not a soprano, a flutist or a violinist. Those three in particular would face some competition for available teachers.</p></li>
<li><p>Most of the merit scholarship money for music is distributed through the Con. College music students may not see very much of it. Since they cannot be in the double degree program, any merit money that they did get would not be extended to a fifth year. "</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Actually, you do have to be in the con to major in performance. The program in the college is not a performance major, even if the performance concentration is selected. The major difference is that students in the college have to fill all of the standard liberal arts distribution requirements, so their time is spent about 1/3 in music and 2/3 in everything else. A really dedicated student in the college might manage to approach a 50/50 balance by careful selection of electives and taking an extra class some semesters. Conservatory students can spend anywhere from 2/3 to virtually all of their time on music, depending on how they use their electives.</p>
<p>from post above -
"BA students interested in concentrations in Performance, Composition or Music Technology go through the same admissions auditions and are held to the same standards as their Conservatory cohorts."</p>
<p>We were told by an Assistant Director of Admissions at an on campus interview that BA Performance majors only auditioned for placement, not acceptance and that the auditions were held at the beginning of the academic year.</p>
<p>"The Performance Emphasis major is designed to meet the needs of a student who is fully qualified to enter the Conservatory with a major in performance but who prefers to receive a liberal arts degree instead, while still pursuing a fairly rigorous training in performance. The junior and senior years in this curriculum resemble the freshman and sophomore years in a Conservatory performance major. Admission to the Performance Emphasis major is by audition before the appropriate private study department; this audition is equivalent to the audition for admission to the Conservatory."</p>
<p>Was the admissions person with whom you spoke from the college or the conservatory? The two of them sometimes give different answers to the same question.</p>
<p>I think it is at least possible that she may have confused the policies for the BA in Music with the History/Theory Emphasis with those for the BA with Performance Emphasis. If you have not already done so, I strongly suggest that you (or anyone else with an interest in a BA in Music at Oberlin) speak with the conservatory admissions folks to confirm that they agree with what the college admissions person told you. It would not be good to start out on a BA in music there and then find out in the second or third year that you cannot get into the classes you need to complete it.</p>
<p>The conservatory announced about a year ago that they are going to accept fewer students in an effort to shrink enrollment by 10% to 15%. They feel that they have gotten a bit crowded in recent years and also want to become more selective than they are now. I would be very surprised if the conservatory admissions department agrees that their auditions are for placement and not admission so far as the Peformance Emphasis is concerned. If they do tell you that, please let us know because it is very different from what they have said in the past.</p>
<p>Will do and I will let you know. In recent weeks I have heard from people majoring in both theater and creative writing who were surprised to learn in their second and third years that there was a selection process at that time to get into classes they wanted. Best to know these policies in advance.</p>
<p>Here's the response from my questions to the conservatory admissions office.......</p>
<p>"The college music major is generally decided at the end of the liberal arts student's second year at Oberlin. The application process is the same for all College of Arts and Sciences students getting a B.A. versus a B.Mus. You are encouraged to submit supplemental recordings of yourself to the college admissions office as an addition to your application but there are no audition requirements. You simply have to be admitted to the college based on your academic and personal merit.... As a college music major you are guaranteed spots in our theory and aural skills classes but would study with conservatory faculty."</p>
<p>Interesting, but that response raises more questions than it answers. An audition is not needed for someone entering the college, but the results of the placement audition could have important repercussions.</p>
<p>The student would have to place into full-hour per week, 4-credit primary lessons with faculty in order to meet the requirements for the performance, composition or music tech emphases. They would have to place into the half-hour per week, 2-credit secondary lesson with faculty in order to meet the requirements for the history/theory emphasis. What would happen to a student who did not place into the level of lessons that they needed for their intended emphasis? Might someone who was really interested in the performance emphasis be restricted to the history/theory emphasis? Might someone interested in the history/theory emphasis be told that they do not qualify to be a music major at all? The start of third year is a bit late to get answers to questions like these.</p>
<p>With whom would the student study before declaring the music major through the college? Would this typically be a faculty member, or a junior/senior student?</p>