<p>The acceptances (and rejections) are coming in now and we are at a crossroads...
D is interested in music and english/communications. She applied to several colleges and some universities with conservatories. She was accepted to 1 out of 4 conservatory programs (a University which was not a first choice school for her yet they only accept 15% of their applicants). She was accepted (so far) to a top University that has a music program(BA) that is NOT a conservatory. The college is excellent and we think a great choice for her academically yet, she would be giving up on the conservatory training-ugh. To us, she is so much more then just a musician with a world of choices in her future...</p>
<p>Any advice from the wise would be appreciated. We still have some colleges that we haven't heard from but all the conservatory choices are in.</p>
<p>My daughter was in a similar situation a few years ago- strong academic student but wanted a conservatory-level music education. If you want to PM me with the names of the schools your daughter is considering, I can give you more input.
My daughter had the choice of IU, Oberlin, BU, Case/CIM, NEC(Tufts waitlist dual degree) and Rice and chose Rice. It was a perfect fit in every respect. She graduated in '07.</p>
<p>I would ALWAYS recommend a school with strong academics for kids like your daughter. The music track is very difficult and many students either decide it isn’t for them or can’t handle the intense load of music theory, ensembles etc. Others simply find other academic interests.</p>
<p>You will likely get input to go either way…but more on this site will suggest college over conservatory. Do you think you can find people who have recently had to make similar decisions…and how it has turned out for them?</p>
<p>If there’s a chance that music will not be the path of the future, then the college route will allow for both. The conservatory route will be a little less flexible…and…some additional schooling may be required.</p>
<p>Here are a couple of professionals in the music field I know about who picked the college route. I’m sure there are many others:</p>
<p>My son was faced with a similar situation some years ago. He decided he wanted more of a traditional college campus and experience with the amenities, diversities and flexibilities over a more directed, specialized conservatory education. He picked a school that had a very good department in his area and ended up with a BFA. A good college with a strong department in the arts is going to have many opportunities for its students even if it is not conservatory. i truly don’t think he lost out on much if anything in terms of courses or opportunities by going the route he did and enjoyed his experience more. Time enough that he plunges into the more narrow straits of his field. However, some kids are ready and truly want to do that at the college level and feel like they are done with school in the traditional sense. For them a conservatory route would be preferable. Really a lifestyle choice, in my opinion.</p>
<p>My son faced this issue when he was applying, and he also chose the BA route. But he’s a composer, and not a performer (at least, not a conservatory-level performer). For him, I think it’s been the right choice–he has plenty of opportunities, but is getting a broader education as well. I think it’s a tougher choice for a performer, because it’s very difficult to fit in the kind of practice time they might want along with regular courses.</p>
<p>My daughter got a BMusic. The practice time/ensembles etc weren’t a huge problem unless you wanted to take a lot of science courses with labs (which she did not)!</p>
<p>I think that if she gets accepted to her top choice conservatory program, she will probably want to strongly think about going there. But if it’s a choice between a top university and a conservatory program that’s maybe her second or third choice, then it seems to me that the university program has an advantage.</p>
<p>A lot depends on the teacher she’ll have. The year my daughter was applying, one of her friends who was applying as a major in one of the brass instruments said the top teacher in the country was at Arizona State!</p>
<p>" To us, she is so much more then just a musician with a world of choices in her future…"</p>
<p>Artspeak, this sentence would seem to indicate that you have some worries that conservatory will leave your daughter as “just a musician.” There are lots of paths that BM graduates can take.</p>
<p>On the other hand, you also express distress at her losing the conservatory training if she goes to a college for a BA.</p>
<p>When we faced this decision, our daughter got it down to one college, and one conservatory, and then sat down with folks at both to discuss it. Maybe that would help.</p>
<p>Our daughter, like Hunt’s son, is a composer. She is in an intense music BA program studying theory, history, score analysis etc, which comprise about half of her courses overall. I would have been fine with conservatory, absolutely. It was, as someone said, a lifestyle choice that only she could make.</p>
<p>Try the music forum, where this comes up a lot!</p>
<p>Several of the BMs from Rice who graduated with my daughter are now in law school. My daughter is about to finish a MDivinity program and be ordained. Lots of things change…</p>
<p>Just want you all to know that I am reading all of this and taking it all in. I did think it would be a good idea to talk to the schools . She is going to accepted students day with my husband to one. I spoke with a Dean at the conservatory about double majoring in english/communications since the University offers this and she was accepted to the honors program there. Seems that it would mean going an extra year at least. Music takes up so much of the curriculum (BM). There are still 4 acceptances we haven’t received yet . Financial aid will also be a factor.</p>
<p>My D. is graduating in May with BS and music minor. From what I see, this might not be enough for OP’s D. My D. was never interested in Conservatory level of music education, her primary goal has always been getting into Med. School, which has been accomplished. So, my D. track might not be applicable. However, she took whole load of Music theory in the same classes with Music majors, which included also lots of sight singing again along with awesome voices of music majors. D. rulled out Music performance because of time commitments of pre-med track. Music composition minor was perfect for her. All of her music classes were basically R&R away from demanding science classes. She had many opportunities in several classes to record her own music on real equipment in music recording studio (could not stop talking about it!) and had a performer major to play D’s own piano peice at special recital for new composers. As an unexpected benefit, D. has developed a very nice voice without single voice lesson. Well it has worked very well for her and has helped her with her priamry goal (medicine). But as I have mentioned, this option might not be enough for OP’s D. who seemed to be more into music. BTW, D’s music involvement was primary topic at her Med. Schools interviews (not Medical Research, not volunteering or other medically related EC’s, not her travels abroad, was a bit of surprise). Of course she can talk about misic forever, from classical to all current pop bands. Similarities to OP’s D. are that mine was also in Honors and on full tuition Merit scholarships.</p>
<p>MiamiDAP- Miami-Ohio music program is not at the same level as those the OP is considering. It isn’t even apples and oranges. It’s apples and tennis balls.</p>