What do loans mean for musicians?

College Majors Music Major
1

<p>Hello all! With less than a week left to make a decision on a school, I'm seeking some advice. I've been blessed with the curse of choosing between two of my "dream" schools: Northwestern and Harvard. At Northwestern, I would be in the five-year BA (Math) & BM (Piano Performance) program, and at Harvard I would be pursuing a BA in Music and studying privately with a teacher at NEC (I am not in the Harvard/NEC dual degree program, however).</p>

<p>This isn't another "music at an ivy vs. music at a music school" thread - I have already done a lot of research about the programs at both schools, and this forum has been incredibly helpful for that. After talking with current students, faculty, and alumni from each, as well as examining the requirements for each degree, I've made the determination that I'd be happier at Northwestern. Music is the priority for me. Even with an NEC teacher, I think that Harvard would not be the optimal place for me to study music the way I want. I want to be surrounded by fantastic musicians 24/7 and really have the opportunity to hone my craft. I'm worried that performing would become very much an extracurricular thing at Harvard, and at Northwestern, it would be built right into my curriculum. Beyond that, Northwestern just "clicked" for me both times I was on campus in a way that Harvard didn't. That said, I'd be happy at Harvard, but my path afterward would probably be much different. It just seems like it's an incredible amount of work to maintain enough practice time in the schedule to stay on the music performance track and be eligible for an MM at the top music schools and conservatories. Possible, but difficult.</p>

<p>If both financial packages were equal, I would choose Northwestern. That conclusion in and of itself was a difficult one to come to, as it is difficult to walk away from the incredible academic opportunity of attending Harvard. But of course, the situation is more complex than that. The yearly expected family contributions at each school are relatively equal, but Harvard is loan-free; at Northwestern, I would graduate with roughly $25,000 in debt (in addition to my parents paying for that 5th year of the dual degree). If I was going to pursue a career in engineering, then I wouldn't be so worried about quickly paying off the loans from NU, but I want a career in music. As we all know, high-paying salaries are neither expected nor guaranteed for young musicians (or old ones, for that matter).</p>

<p>So I guess my question is, where do I make the sacrifice? Do follow my head and go to Harvard, where pursuing a performance-oriented degree would be incredibly challenging, but I'll walk out debt free? Or do I follow my heart and go to Northwestern, knowing that chasing after a dream now will lead to a significant financial burden down the road? I am not savvy with most financial matters, so it's difficult for me to gauge what that financial burden really means... with such a tough job market, how do musicians even begin to pay off loans?</p>

<p>I know a lot of people subscribe to the old "go with your gut" theory, but I'm trying to be practical here. If I were comparing two similar degree programs, I would be more willing to choose the cheaper option, but these are completely different. Obviously financial aid is more of a personal issue, but I'm hoping that some of the helpful parents on this forum can offer some anecdotal evidence in support of either side, or just offer some opinions/advice that you would be giving your child if he/she was in this position. Thanks in advance for all of your help.</p>

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<p>Have you already considered in your numbers some income from working over the summer? If you can make a few thousand dollars in each of the four summers between the five years you would be at Northwestern, that could cut the debt in half. If you could add the occasional paid music gig (not always possible if your teacher does not want you doing this) then you might be able to graduate debt-free.</p>

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<p>Allegro, I’m always harping against excessive loans on these threads, but in this case, your anticipated debt load is actually quite in line with federal recommendations. So, worst case scenario, let’s say you end up with a monthly payment of $280 over 10 years (because costs do go up at Us). In a perfect world, you’d hole up somewhere and just mow that debt down for a year or two with any old job you could find and not purchase a car or live in any place especially fancy for a few years. But in real life, you may take a more moderate path where the loan payment will mean small trade-offs (economy second hand car instead of new…walk up instead of condo…) At the end of the day, that is not the kind of debt load that would necessarily sink/crush you the way kids who think nothing of borrowing $100k or more to finance their undergrads. So I think you’re golden.</p>

<p>Though it’s less than ideal, remember than you can scale your repayment to income if its a fed loan (but you’ll pay more interest) and you can extend debt loads over $30k over 25 years (again, not as smart move financially due to compounding interest.)</p>

<p>Please do try to avoid private loans and stick to feds and fed limits if you’re able. There are some nasty predators in the student loan industry.</p>

<p>Best wishes for an awesome adventure!</p>

4

<p>Thank you both for the sound advice. As it happens, NU just got back to me today about a financial appeal and came up with a package with significantly reduced loans. I don’t see how I can walk away from a package like this at the school of my dreams. The decision is much easier now… I think I’ll sleep on it one more night, and hopefully be sending in a deposit tomorrow!</p>

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<p>Allegro-
Given all the circumstances and where your heart lies, especially with the new aid package, it sounds like Northwestern is where you think you need to be. If you were doing music as a sideline and wanted to be an investment banker, I would tell you something different, but with the focus on music you want, Northwestern sounds like a good deal.</p>

<p>One side comment, if you get a math degree from Northwestern, that could turn into something quite lucrative if music doesn’t pan out. These days in the financial world quants (which I suspect is short for quantitative analysts) are the big thing, and a lot of them were math majors. Might be worth investigating if you can take any courses in that as electives or whatever, not bad to have as a backup in case music ends up not being your muse:)</p>

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<p>Good luck allegrovivace - don’t worry - whichever of the two highly prestigious programs you choose, I’m sure will be a fabulous experience. Just enjoy your path and don’t look back with regrets! Congrats!!!</p>

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<p>Congrat!, Allegro,</p>

<p>I know Northwestern will allow if you want to challege some international competitions which other school would not. It might be very important factor for young musician.</p>