Hello everyone! My D is currently in the college audition process for Vocal Performance. She loves the vibe of the undergraduate only programs, and has been accepted to a good number of those. However, she has also gotten acceptances to many larger programs and conservatories with graduate and doctoral programs. It’s a hard decision on which road she should go, because there are many pros and cons. Does anyone have any opinions about this topic?
Pros to smaller schools: more performance opportunities, smaller class sizes, more room for individual attention and growth
Pros for bigger schools: influence of grad and PhD students, a bigger artistic community, more name recognition
(PS: Some people on CC say that undergrad only programs can put too much attention on students, therefore causing vocal damage?? And that trying to earn a spot in productions doesn’t mean anything in a small school? Personally, I call bs… Thoughts?)
My D (mezzo) applied to both types. In the end she ended up in undergraduate only conservatory at Purchase. Many many opportunities to develop performance skills as not competing with graduate students. She was told at conservatories that have both in general graduate students get roles only. Definitely hard to hide in a small conservatory. If the professors like you opportunities are awesome. If you are struggling everyone knows it. Small schools like Purchase have a good reputation so I don’t agree with last comment. Don’t have an opinion about other small conservatories. In the end it is all about developing skills to get to the next level - graduate schools and then stage.
Thank you for your response! I completely agree. I think undergrad only programs fosters an environment that sets students up for the future, in a way larger schools cannot. The comment I read on CC that opposed undergrad only programs really concerned me, but it seems like that was an unpopular opinion. I just want the best for my D!
My son applied to both types and chose the large school with big grad programs. Part of the decision process was needing room at the top so he didn’t top out before senior year. He (and this is likely true for many musicians entering college) had always been at or near the top in his ensembles and there were lots of discussions during the decision process about whether to go for the small pond or the big deep one. He went deep. It’s been good for him but also hard. Impostor syndrome is a real thing. For the first time in his life he is not at the top. He may still be near the top in the pool of sophomore baritones but he’s in a choir full of grad students and given the way the voice matures and the skills gained in college, he doesn’t sound like the grad students and really can’t expect to without time to mature, and it’s hard sometimes. It’s one thing to be a top student in a top high school or Allstate choir and quite another to feel like the bottom student in the top choir, never mind you’re in the top choir as a sophomore. It’s a growing experience, and he even knew to expect it, but expecting is different than experiencing, and it’s a conversation to be had in the decision process.
That said, there’s a lot to be learned in a deeper program, from the students above you, there’s a lot of opportunities to see performances (or will be when this Covid mess is over) of all those grad students, there’s a lot of hearing their stories and seeing what they go on to do. My son is music Ed, not performance, so the opportunities to be cast in operas and such matters less to him. He’d rather have an opportunity to conduct, and he can see how those opportunities are made available, and also learn from the grad students and watching how they handle their opportunities.
My son has struggled some in the big pond, and I think he underestimated how challenging it would be, but he does not regret his decision.
One type of program is not better than the other. Each type has pros and cons. You should encourage your D to choose the school on her gut instinct. Where will she be the happiest/most confident? That’s where she will grow the most.
For UG, my D went to the big U with the conservatory…lots of grad students. However her choice had a lot to do with the teacher and the program (allowing some outside study of theater). I do like the comment by @parentof2014grad. You often hear that UG will be “ignored” at big schools. I never found that to be the case. There is so much work…I think my D sometimes wished she would be ignored just a little! But the “mountain” in big schools with lots of grad students is high. It really can make reality set in early.
If your kid does best being able to see the top and work hard for the top and enjoys moving along a defined path with her peers…a small school may be best. If your D is OK being in a large pool…where you can’t even see the top of the mountain (and when you get a glimpse it’s a bit scary)…and many peers are on a variety of paths (maybe ahead or not)…and she finds this exhilarating and freeing then a big school may be best. Just know that whatever school type she chooses, there will be buyer’s remorse to an extent. It’s a competitive field…and someone will always tell you how you could have done it better. Ignore that and have her pick “happiness” bc that’s where she’ll grow the most.
I don’t think of it as one school type is better than the other. It’s all about fit for the individual.
Props to your son! Yes, imposter syndrome is REAL… unfortunately a sad reality for many music students. There are definitely pros and cons to each side. My S went to a larger school and loved the grad students, but had less performance opportunities then them. It’s a hard decision to decide between the two.
One of my favorite aspects of my undergraduate alma mater, both while I attended and now in hindsight, was that it is a tight-knit community of all undergraduates. You just cannot underestimate the impact of having faculty focus and professional opportunities channeled toward you without regard to seniority.
Lots of good points raised above for and against, but honestly, I found it to be one of the most impactful elements of my BM, and I always advise students away from big schools that offer graduate degrees for their undergrad because I know several students who got lost in the fog and felt they weren’t nurtured in the same way as they might have been elsewhere, to their short- and long-term detriment. It should be one of the bigger factors considered by everyone, in my opinion!
