nicoleace

so, i'm from pa.. 25 min drive from WCC my musical director attended and 2 of my choir directors. they loved it and i absolutely love princeton. so i applied. my friend's dad is a professor at the school since the auditions were over in february they arranged a special one for me about 2 weeks ago. I loved it there. i was nervous to apply because i just knew about their great choral/ed prog but nothing about MT. the one thing i heard was they didnt have enough dance.. but you can obviously take classes at the amazing princeton ballet school. i went to see Oklahoma! and met Professor Nova Thomas there in which i emailed a few times before that. She is the head of the department i think. The audition went well and im really considering. But, Oklahoma was amazing! it was my deciding factor in wheter to apply or not. Everything was spot on. I also.. still waiting for my acceptances.. hoping.. i got into Temple's first class of MT.

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it sounds like its going to be absolutely amazing. i know there are two more auditions this weekend if anyone is interested. I really love westminster though. everything about it.

Was the showcase this May or last?

evasmom

nicoleace, My D is a freshman MT at WCC and as you can see from my previous posts and hers... she is very happy with her decision to go there! The first senior showcase was last May and I assume it will be around the same time this year. My D told me that some of the recent grads have come back to speak with the current students and that everyone at last year's showcase has done well in terms of work. If you want more info I am sure my D would be happy to answer your questions.
Good luck on your decision making, go with your instincts.

evasmom

Nicoleace --- Also regarding Dance, there is talk of increasing the required dance; however, as you said Princeton Ballet is great and what my D and some of the students have done is get a card for classes at PB which they can use throughout the semester. It is very reasonably priced and allows for getting in as many classes as you want.

SeansMom

Evasmom - hi, new to the conversation, in particular WCC. My son is planning a visit. ANYTHING you can tell us would be very much appreciated. I have read your posts. It sounds like the school that would be perfect for him, but I am concerned he'll be turned off by the small campus. (The only negative thing I ever hear.) Are there any positives re the campus that I can pass along to him?

evasmom

SeansMom - Welcome! This is a great place to get info and find support. Is your S hoping to be an MT major? If so the MT program from WCC will be located at the Lawrenceville campus starting next year. They will have the same faculty and courses as previous years. I believe that they will be transported to Princeton when needed. The Lawrenceville campus is larger and has more facilities (gym, dining options, theaters, sports facilities). Small is one of the Great things about Westminster for my D. This is not a place where you can become a number. The faculty know you and what you need to work on for your sucess. I would suggest not trying to worry about prepping your son for his visit. My D had very strong opinions about the schools she was interested in and believe it or not, only went to audition at WCC because I wanted her to! Despite her negative preconceptions, when she walked out of her audition, she felt as if this was the place that was right for her. Trust your son's instincts and he will end up where he belongs. That said, if we can answer any of your or his questions, feel free to ask! When is he visiting? My D is done with classes but stays until graduation, when the freshman sing for the graduates.

SeansMom

Thanks for the feedback. We visit on the 19th, so we'll miss out on the choir rehearsals, etc., but I am hoping he'll be able to meet with one of the vocal professors.

He would not be a MT major, but has done MT in HS and certainly would enjoy those opportunities in college.

I'll take your advice and not say much about the campus. He already has some preconceived notions, like your D, and believes he wants to be where there is "alot going on." Football would top the list! I just do not know how to advise him; all I can do is expose him to a variety of campuses, and hope he too will get the gut feeling.

evasmom

haha, no football ... but strangely there is "Homecoming"!? If he does fall for everything else... there is Princeton University accross the street. Keep me posted after the visit and I will pass on any questions he has.

SeansMom

If Princeton is literally across the street, are the WCC students allowed to use their facilities? For instance, assuming Princeton has a rec center for working out, intramurals, etc., do WCC students have access to it?

evasmom

Sorry, it is actually a couple of blocks and accross the street and WCC students can not use their facilities. My D has gone to events there though with her roommate who has friends competing in various sports. There is a shuttle to take WCC students to the Lawrenceville campus to use the gym, etc... Also some students use the Princeton Y. All in all Westminster students are kept very busy, so I am not sure how much time there would be for intramurals?

ray198

Hi SeansMom,

My D is a senior and has decided to attend WCC as vocal performance major in the fall. Evasmom is right on with her advice but I thought I would add my two cents. My D visited many of the popular music schools on the east coast which come in various sizes and environments, city, suburban etc. She too originally felt that she needed to be where the action was and was interested in some of the larger universities. In the end, she chose WCC for several reasons:

- First and foremost, we believe the quality of the education, training and the faculty are excellent and the performance opportunities are abundant.
-She determined that she wanted a school focused on music and performance but connected to a university.
-The campus is smallish but intimate vs. other larger schools and she feels that the camaraderie there will be very good.
- She realized that she would be very busy and focused on her studies and the travel to and from classes and her dorm would be easier vs. some of the other schools.
- And finally, she felt that the close proximity to the main campus was good and visiting there for a little excitement and a change of pace would be easy. Plus it is a college town and with Princeton nearby there would be life after school.

As evasmom suggested your S will have to make his own decision, but I thought you might like to consider the thought process of another. Best of luck in your S's journey and I hope you stay on the boards. I have found the advice of the folks here extremely helpful.

ray198