| My S is a baritone and the two schools that have treated him the best financially (and in general) are LSU and Furman. I guess if you're dead set against the south they might not appeal to you, but we're from the south and liked both schools. Also, S has outstanding grades and test scores so we counted on a lot of his scholarship money being academic. Plus we found out through a friend of his at LSU that there are extra ways to earn money while being a voice major.
For example, the LSU friend is in two school choirs and gets paid to be in them. He is paid to attend rehearsals and performances - even though his major requires him to be in the choirs, they still pay him! He also has a church job. My S has already been contacted by a church choir director to be a section leader in their chancel choir and will get paid $100/week (50 for rehearsal, 50 for the service). It's like getting paid to go to church, which (I assume) he was going to do anyway.
LSU gave him full tuition and fees, plus $1,000 towards room and board (academic merit). No music scholarship. Furman gave him $8,000 music scholarship and a $15,000 grant (no academic merit). I think he's going to go to LSU as Furman is still expensive even with the aid, but we were really impressed with Furman overall, and just remember male singers are a lot more in demand than sopranos, so count your blessings. |