Academic requirements for European conservatories

LaurainNYC
Thu, 24 Feb 2011 18:14:45 +0000

Hi,

My daughter and I have recently started to look into European conservatories as a possibility for college, but we’ve run into a bit of a puzzle: So far we’ve found that most all European schools require the applicant to pass a European-style high school exit exam. Also, many countries in Europe have an extra year of high school that the US does not. So we need to find some sort of equivalent proof of degree that they will accept.

Right now my daughter is 16, a high school sophomore, attends a well-regarded precollege program on Saturdays, and homeschools her academics. She plays violin, but her musical interests are quite broad and she likes the academic aspects of music, too.

My question is, has anyone applied to a European school, particularly one of the German-speaking ones, from the US? And if so, what equivalent diplomas did they accept?

And if there are homeschoolers out there who have applied to conservatory, what did they accept as proof of a basic high school diploma? Is a GED sufficient for that part of the requirement? I would assume, of course, that they want more than that as well, like APs or something, but still, we have to start with the US high school diploma.

I’ve checked a few school websites, but the info they give is usually fairly vague, and sometimes suffers from translation problems. They tend to assume the exit exam, since apparently most countries except the US have them. But I’m sure that somehow, somewhere, someone has gone from the US to a conservatory in Europe successfully. If so, would you mind sharing your experience?

Also, I gather that perhaps a very few select schools such as Kronberg in Germany don’t have this sort of requirement, and that there is an “exceptional ability” clause in some of the other schools. But I think they are referring to the international soloist level of talent, which is of course quite rare.

And yes, I do understand that going to school in Europe almost always means learning another language fluently. I figure if the motivation is there, it will happen.

Thanks!
Laura