marycven

My daughter is a double bassist in the Chicago Symphony Youth Orchestra with many music awards. She has also played varsity sports. She has a 30 ACT and a 4.1 wieghted GPA with all honors and AP courses. Both her grandparents went to Wash U and her grandfather just set up a scholarship fund for needy students from his hometown. She wants to major in science and minor in music.

It appears her ACT might be low for the school. Would the fact that she is an excellent musician help her get into the school? Or that she has relatives who have atttended the school or given money?

Don_Quixote

the fact that her grandparents went to WashU should probably help her chances (counts as double legacy, no?). A 30 in the ACT is on the low side, but definitely there's more to the picture than test scores, and ECs are a big part of that. No guarantee one way or the other, but there's no reason she doesn't have a decent shot. best of luck!

SimpleLife

FYI -- a little off topic ...
One of my younger sons and I visited recently. He's also a talented musician, but perhaps not at the same level as your daughter. He does not want to major in music, but does want to continue playing in the orchestra and would like to minor in music (or maybe even double major with a BA in music versus a BM). Wash U seems perfect for him so far (he's still a hs junior), in that it has the broad academic opportunities, selective academic standards, and plenty of music opportunities. Furthermore, from what we gleaned on our visit, the music program is not very demanding -- the ensembles don't meet as often as other music schools' ensembles, the standards are more laissez-faire as they seem to want to provide musical outlets for as many hard-working academic majors as possible rather than demand perfection (which is perfect for this son's desires), and we were specifically told that their musical environment is intentionally not competitive, but fun and relaxed. It's not a hard-core music school, apparently. Again, this makes it perfect for this younger son, not because he's not talented, but because his main college focus will be elsewhere. For this son, we just loved what we saw at Wash U -- in all areas, including the music school and the music school faculty.

However, as the parent of another, older, VERY talented musician (who's likely AT LEAST at the level of your daughter), I can tell you that this older son would not have been as happy at Wash U as at several other schools to which he applied. He visited Wash U as well, several years ago, and concluded that the music program was not as rigorous as he desired. So, if your daughter wants a competitive, hard-working, perfectionist musical experience, she may not get that there. Just an FYI.

Furthermore, music scholarships at Wash U are small, and based on all the college searches I've done with my older music major son, and then this musically interested son, I did not get the impression at Wash U that they're really shooting for the best and brightest musicians, in a recruitment sense. However, I'm pretty sure that wherever your daughter applies, including Wash U, her musical talent, awards, expertise, and experience will make her all the more attractive as a college candidate. No matter where she goes. It makes her more well-rounded, proves her dedication and perseverance, makes her more interesting, etc. --just like any other demanding extracurricular.

Likewise with "the legacy" and the donated money. I'm pretty sure kids from a legacy family do have a slight leg up. At least that's what I've heard at many college info sessions. The legacy and money could certainly make her more competitive despite her test scores, which are not exactly Wash-U- high, but which are definitely good enough for entry to Wash U. Nobody short of admissions personnel can really answer your question, of course, but based on my own college search experience with my kids, I think she'll have a good shot!

nngmm

She does have a shot, especially if she applies ED. (Of course she should send a music audition with her application.)

vbball90

The amount of people who actually major in Music is really small (i don't know the exact count, but i heard it was around 30 per year). There is also a Bachelor's of Music, which is the professional music bachelor's degree that goes above and beyond the basic major. You can also have a minor in music or a minor in jazz.

I think the main strength of the department is that you don't need to major in music to take classes, lessons, or try out for any of the groups. Apparently this is pretty unique as far as music departments go across the country.

There are a lot of student performing groups, and events on campus (like Jazz at Holmes). The St Louis Symphony Orchestra is amazing... I went there last year with people in my res college and was REALLY impressed.

So, it's like you'll find the professors/classes/resources if you're really dedicated to music, but Wash U is by no means a music conservatory. The quality is probably good, but I don't think it's going to be dazzling.

I guess it depends on what your daughter is looking for. If she wants to do music and something else, then I think Wash U is probably a wonderful place to come. If she wants to ONLY focus on music, then she'll find a solid program, but I don't think the aim of the music department is to be a conservatory-style program for the extremely dedicated musician. I don't think many people choose to come to Wash U to study music... it's the kind of place where you'll come to Wash U for other reasons (nice campus, the people, other really strong majors, good city, etc) and we also have a music department if you want to do that and the other things.

PS -- the music library is awesome, though. It has great hours and has thousands and thousands of works and books.