My D just received acceptance from SFCM.
But NEC is still her top choice, we just filed appeal to see if they can give out some more fund. If we are not able to get more, she might decide to go for Berklee. Berklee is not for Classical VP, she will do Music Therapy. Sigh!
Congrats!! hope you get some scholarship!! Good luck
Hi - is anybody’s kid having a tough time deciding which school to accept? How did you coach them through the process? I would love any advice as we are coming down to the wire. Thank you!
My D is having hard time deciding, only two days left…
We narrowed down to 4 schools,
SMU or Berklee for VP/Music Therapy; NEC or SFCM for Classical VP.
SMU is most financially fit since she got a big FA package (parent’s choice, ha ha)
NEC is top choice for Classical VP, but out of our budget.
SFCM is as high COA as the NEC, but SF is a beautiful city with great weather.
Berklee is most likely for now…
D’s voice teacher think D should go for Classical VP since she think my D is talented with good voice; but we are concerning if D would be competitive well after graduated with VP. Opera Houses are very hard to get in, specially for Soprano, isn’t it? Any suggestion from parents with children going into VP?
Hopefully she can decide by tomorrow…
@goldenmoom - Opera is very competitive especially for a soprano. If your daughter decides to go that direction, you’re probably looking at a masters in music followed by a young artists program after her undergraduate degree. So, while choosing her school, COA for her undergrad might be more important when you think about the total number of years of education required.
An MM degree is usually required to have a studio within a college which is another (or additional) career path for classical/opera singers. My daughter, who is taking this route, is starting her MM degree in the fall. She’s finishing her undergrad at a less expensive school and still got accepted into IU/Jacobs for the MM.
My niece took the music therapy route and loves it! She had a good job lined up right after graduation. Although at some point she’d like to continue on to her masters, she’s been able to be employed in her field without it.
These are very different career paths though your daughter could start college with both in mind and then focus in a direction starting in her sophomore or junior year.
goldenmoom—-
SF is a lovely city with some dirty areas just like any other big cities. Weather is only two mild kinds, warmer and colder with minimum rain. It might be a less student-friendly town than Boston because SF is at least 3% more expensive than Boston (simply higher sales tax). But it is a great place for young adults to get many kinds of “new” opportunities. I heard that SFCM has great classical VP program and there is SF Opera (and SF Symphony & SFJAZZ, too) right there.
Did you appeal SFCM? It’s not May 1st yet!
@momhsc2 - Thank you so much, you actually helped a lot. specially the future between Classical VP and Music Therapy. My D will probably go for Music Therapy and VP double on 1st year, but she likes the idea Music Therapy doesn’t need to have master degree.
@JeJeJe - Thanks for your input. I love SF myself. My D actually prefer Boston…My older D is at Northeasten University, so they can be together for a few years.
Two more days…
@Everygoodboy Yes!! We actually thought we had made our decision and we are in “bold” on this list, but then when my daughter called St. Olaf to tell them she wasn’t coming, they offered her significantly more money, so we’re torn. I was wish I was in the 1% class so that wasn’t an issue, but it is. Eastman will cost an addition 25K per year, which is a LOT over the course of 4 years. Also, it’s not just the money. St. Olaf is a great school and they REALLY want her and she’ll be a big fish in a small pond there for sure. It will be much harder to stand out at Eastman, but at Eastman she’ll be surrounded by such talent. We’re deciding today.
Thank you for that @arehorst. After a week of angst on deciding between two great options, my son literally just came downstairs and said that he accepted his offer at Eastman - just like that. In the end he followed his gut and felt that the teacher at Eastman would be the one with whom he would thrive the most. Good luck to your daughter!
4HSKIDS (D) BM Songwriting & VP
1/31 Berklee
angelcatcher (S) BM Jazz Bass
Wayne State
MSU
2/24 U Michigan SMTD
3/24 NU/Bienen & Weinberg
arehorst (D) Viola
Eastman & U Rochester Dual Degree
St. Olaf
arkham (S)
12/19 Berklee BM VP
12/20 Loyola NO BM Jazz Voice
12/23 Adelphi BFA Theatre Arts: Acting
3/4 SUNY Purchase
3/5 UNT
3/16 The New School Jazz Voice
3/23 Temple U Jazz Vocal
BenniesMom1 (S) Clarinet Perf
1/10 U of Delaware
2/4 Rowan U School of Performing Arts
2/5 Wells SOM/West Chester U
2/11 West Virginia U SOM
2/24 Mary Pappert SOM, Duquesne BM Perf & Music Tech
03/11 Kutztown U
03/12 Tell SOM, Millersville U BM Music Perf & Music Industry
Lebanon Valley College BA Music
4/17 Seton Hall U BA Music (off WL)
BigPapi2 (S) Viola Music Ed
Berklee
3/3 Ball State
bonfigleo (S) BM Horn Perf
2/7 Madison-Mead Witter
2/20 IU/Jacobs
Busy_Momma (S) Bassoon BM/BA Dual Degree
3/6 U Washington
3/24 NU/Bienen
3/24 Temple U/Boyer
cellistamadre (D) BM Cello Perf
1/24 Penn State
3/11 Ithaca
3/22 Eastman
3/24 ASU SOM Herberger Institute
CindyCV (S) BM VP
CCM
Oberlin
Eastman
Lawrence
U Houston/Moores SOM
ClassCompMom (S) BM Comp
NEC
BoCo
Peabody
coloraturagirl (D) BM VP (soprano)
U of Houston
Cal State Fullerton
San Diego State U
UC- Irvine
Boston U
UCLA- WL
CMU- WL
NEC/Tufts Dual Degree
Compgrad1 MM Comp
Juilliard
composermom (S) BM Comp
3/30 BoCo
3/21 Boston U
3/24 Eastman
2/10 IU/Jacobs
3/3 NEC
3/30 NYU
3/21 Oberlin
3/30 Peabody
12/6 Stanford
3/20 UCLA
3/27 U of Michigan SMTD
3/30 USC
delynnel (S) BM Viola Perf
3/21 The Glenn Gould School
3/23 CIM
3/24 NU/Bienen
3/27 Rice/Shepherd
Doransa (S) BM Music Comp
2/10 IU/Jacobs
2/17 CCM
3/21 Oberlin
3/23 Eastman
3/23 CIM
3/28 U of Missouri
3/30 Peabody
Elegie17 BM Classical VP Soprano
2/24 SUNY Purchase
3/12 Syracuse Setnor SoM
3/21 IU/Jacobs
3/28 U Miami/Frost WL
3/30 NYU
essbeeny (D) BM tuba perf
2/23 SUNY Fredonia
2/25 U Michigan SMTD
3/6 UC Boulder
3/8 St. Olaf
3/17 ASU Herberger
3/26 McGill
4/15 Oberlin (off WL)
Ferkee (D) BM Jazz VP/Comp
12/19 Berklee
3/27 Frost
GalaOvsi (D) BM Classical VP Soprano
2/24 SUNY Purchase
goldenmoon BM VP Soprano/Music Therapy
12/19 Berklee VP and Music Therapy
3/11 SMU/Meadows
3/20 NEC
3/30 BoCo
SFCM
HiyaHoyas (D) BM Flute Perf
2/6 IU/Jacobs
2/24 U of Denver/Lamont
3/6 DePaul
3/6 Roosevelt CCPA
ihearmusic (S) BS Sound Recording Technology (piano)
3/13 TSU
IronCitEE (D) BM Violin Perf
2/7 Duquesne
3/20 IU/Jacobs
4/1 MSM
Jazzmom3 (S) VP
12/19 Berklee
12/6 LACM
12/24 Belmont
3/5 UNT Jazz
3/16 The New School Jazz
3/11 MEIS CU Denver
3/20 NEC Contemporary Improv
3/28 U Miami/Frost WL
JoHollywood (S) MM Voice/Opera Tenor
Univ of BC - Vancouver
3/13 IU/Jacobs
3/15 SFCM WL
3/15 BoCo
Kean DMA Piano Perf
3/6 Rutgers
3/14 Eastman
3/23 CIM
La96vln MM Violin Perf
3/19 Yale
3/30 Juilliard
lexjen BM VP Soprano
CIM
Maverick8 BM Violin Perf
3/16 Bard Conservatoy
3/21 Boston U
3/27 Eastman & U Rochester dual degree
3/30 Peabody
4/1 MSM
MezzoDadByNight (D) BM - VP
12/14 SMU/Meadows
12/17 Baylor U
12/19 DePauw U
3/18 Pepperdine U
3/21 Oberlin
3/21 CMU
3/23 Eastman
3/27 Rice/Shepherd
3/30 Juilliard
4/1 MSM
MezzoMama (D) BM Classical VP Mezzo-Soprano
3/4 Chapman U
3/15 SFCM
3/17 UC Santa Barbara
3/20 NEC
3/21 CMU WL
3/21 UCLA
3/26 USC/Thornton
mindyou BM Piano
12/19 Berklee
mom2clarinetobsessedkid BM Clarinet Perf
Temple U/Boyer
Shenandoah Conservatory
2/14 U of Michigan SMTD
3/20 IU/Jacobs
3/22 Eastman
3/30 NYU/Steinhardt
momhsc2 (d) MM VP Soprano
IU/Jacobs
CCPA/Roosevelt U
Notre Dame
mominwestlake (S)
BoCo
NEC
Eastman WL
MomOfSingers (S) VP Bass-Baritone
2/19 U Michigan SMTD
2/24 Lawrence Conservatory
3/4 Aaron Copland SOM Queens College
3/21 Oberlin
3/23 Eastman
Momofviolinboy (S) BM Violin Perf
3/2 JMU
3/10 McDuffie Center for Strings at Mercer U
3/20 NEC
3/21 Oberlin
Musicmom2two (D) BM Music Ed Soprano
Berklee
NECJ97 BM Jazz Voice
North Central College
U of IL
Loyola NO
2/24 U of Denver/Lamont
3/14 Western MI
3/27 U of Miami/Frost
OrangeJacket (D) Mezzo Soprano
11/? St. Mary’s Minnesota BFA Acting
12/13 Oklahoma City U BM VP
12/13 Baylor U BM Applied Music VP
2/11 UT Austin
pianissimolove Piano Perf
2/20 IU/Jacobs
3/7 UCSB
pianowanderer MM Piano Perf
3/30 Peabody
4/1 MSM
Pocket22 (D) - Popular Music Keyboard / Piano
12/7 Belmont - BM Commercial Music
12/11 CU Denver College of Arts and Media - MEIS
12/12 Lewis and Clark - BA Music
12/15 Cornish College of the Arts - BM
12/6 U of Oregon - BA Commercial Music
12/19 Berklee - BM
Scripps College BA Music
Occidental College BA Music
3/21 Oberlin
3/26 USC/Thornton
Racingfan53 Classical Mezzo-Soprano
12/? Azusa Pacific U BA Music
2/17 Univ of Kansas BME Music Ed
3/3 UNT BM Music Ed
3/10 CSUF BM Music Ed
3/26 USC/Thornton
raincat (S) BM Jazz Piano
12/19 Berklee
3/26 USC/Thornton
3/28 U Miami/Frost WL
rubypiano (S) Piano/Keyboard Commercial Music & Jazz
12/18 Elon MPRA Program
1/30 Belmont
2/19 CalArts
2/24 U of Denver/Lamont
3/16 The New School
3/30 Berklee
runninglate (D) BM VP
1/14 Loyola NO
2/11 UT Austin
2/26 CCM
2/28 IU/Jacobs
3/15 SFCM
3/21 Oberlin
3/21 CMU
3/30 Peabody
3/30 NYU/Steinhardt
Senior2016M
2/28 IU/Jacobs
3/13 U Michigan SMTD
shulad (D) Violin Perf
IU/Jacobs
3/20 NEC
3/30 Peabody
3/30 McGill
4/1 MSM
songbirdmama (D) MM VP/Opera Soprano
2/13 IU/Jacobs
3/3 U of Maryland Opera WL
3/17 Bard Conservatory
3/24 Mannes
SongStress2024 (D) Soprano VP and Neuroscience
Duquesne BSMD
3/21 Boston U VP
Syracuse U Neuroscience
American U Neuroscience
3/25 Vanderbilt/Blair WL
3/26 Northeastern U Neuroscience
3/30 Peabody
stirrup27 (D) Soprano Classic VP
NEC
Peabody
IU/Jacobs
USC Thornton
NYU Tisch (MT & Drama)
SweetStrings (D) Violin Perf
U of Miami/Frost
tableforsix (S) BM Cello Perf
2/17 U Michigan SMTD
3/11 SMU
3/20 NEC
3/21 Oberlin
3/23 Eastman
3/23 CIM
4/1 IU/Jacobs
4/1 MSM
teewhy (D) BM VP Soprano
2/27 Memphis
2/28 TCU
2/28 W Virginia
3/5 UNT
3/21 IU/Jacobs
3/23 U of Tennessee (UTK) SOM
tubamama (S) Tuba Perf & Econ
12/6 Stanford
ViolinInOurHouse (S) Violin Perf
UCSB
CU Boulder
UC Irvine
Chapman
Long Beach State
@goldenmoom and @angelcatcher probably spent the day shopping for school t-shirts and car stickers because they have chosen! Great selections. 
@arehorst --sounds as if you can’t go wrong with either St. Olaf or Eastman. We have three different friends whom my son grew up at a choir school with (and a fourth, entering in the fall). All are musicians (organ, vocal) at St. Olaf, and all are such cheerleaders of the school. And, we know people who at Eastman, who also love their experience. A lot of people wait until the very last minute to make their decision. There is nothing wrong with that at all! They give you a deadline so you have time to consider your options. Good luck with the decision! THough you’ll be great with either school!
My daughter was another one who waited almost until the last day to decide, but she finally committed yesterday to CU Boulder! She is happy with her choice but just kept second-guessing herself because of “what ifs.” This is the biggest choice most of these kids have ever made! It’s a great choice for her for a lot of reasons and luckily for us the scholarships they offered us brought it down to around the same cost as our state school (SUNY).
@essbeeny We’re from Colorado and I think your daughter will love it! Lots of great musicians from her youth symphony are going there.
@arehorst Thank you! It’s very far away but we have some family there so that helps a lot. She really connected with the tuba professor there and felt drawn to the school and Boulder since she visited.
Still deciding here between Peabody and Frost for VP. Visited both and loved both. Apples and oranges of course in terms of conservatory vs. university (although of course Peabody is connected to Johns Hopkins but academically the program is different than JHU), urban vs. suburban, weather, size, vibe, etc. She knows who her teacher would be at Peabody and really liked her during the sample lesson; she’s had a sample lesson at Frost with someone she also loved but they don’t get put in studios till they arrive in the fall. I did not expect it to come down to the wire and it is very stressful for parents as well as D. Any thoughts or insights much appreciated!
Very different environments. I’m not familiar with VP side of things, but for an academically-minded student I imagine the opportunity to take classes at JH would be appealing. Has she spoken to students/faculty at both places? That might help.
My D (BM Violin) committed to MSM today!
@khill87, my D had a similar situation with IU/Jacobs and MSM, and she chose the school that actually provided a teacher / studio assignment that she is very happy with. For us, not Knowing what studio she would end up with at IU was a deal breaker.
S got acceptance (off WL) with scholarship to IU/Jacobs today. These are crazy days.