Well it comes directly from my daughter who attends Jacobs. She started with one professor in her freshman year. That professor retired. She then had another professor her sophomore and junior year…that professor is retiring. She is looking for another her senior year. And lots of kids are talking about how the school may be encouraging retirement. I cant say for sure, but that is the word on the street, so to speak.
It’s hard, but if your student really likes the professor, even one or two years with the professor is better than none! It always works out in the end. If you feel comfortable that might be a question to ask, but I wouldn’t let it deter you from going there.
I plan to edit my original response if I can to clarify this is the word on the street, not first hand knowledge.
We reached out weeks ago to confirm with the professor my daughter would be assigned to their studio, and it was confirmed personally. I’d think they would disclose any pending departure, right??? We’ll stay the course. Thank You for the follow-up.
I would hope. We had one professor who was amazing but gave a heads up that he would be retiring in 3 years and that a teacher change would be necessary, but no Idea who the replacement would be… which gave us a bit of pause.
Many businesses look to remove high priced people or to reduce headcount. Don’t know if Jacobs is impacted but IU is. But other schools people look at may be similar. We read about N Texas earlier.
And one can’t know when the next program will be. Like a college football coach, there are no guarantees someone will remain for four years.
Thanks! One appeal = $0. The other (leading pick) = nearly $10k more. If the scales even needed tipping at this point, that would’ve done it. Time to commit!
Hoping to alleviate and not add to anyone’s stress at this point in the long and arduous journey.
While the general advice is to prioritize the teacher when choosing a program, know that faculty changes are not all that uncommon.
Teachers retire, relocate for new performance or teaching opportunities, have illnesses and family obligations just like the rest of us.
While it is great if you end up with the perfect teacher and mentor who is available for all 4 years, know that your kid will be ok if this is not the scenario. Many studios are moving towards a multi teacher approach, partly to alleviate turmoil if there is faculty turnover. Most programs are very good at bringing in new faculty when needed and prioritizing student’s learning and needs.
So make your best choices and know that if there is teacher turnover, your musician will be ok.
Speaking as a parent of kid who had multiple teachers over his 4 years at conservatory.
“Voluntary separations” are happening in some schools to replace the higher paid “seasoned” professors/teachers, as a way to save money in these hard times for many schools. There are incentives often. Of course that is sometimes followed by “involuntary separations” otherwise known as layoffs.
How about some “Voluntary Separations” in Admin! Voluntary Reductions in Salaries” among University Presidents and GF Football and Basketball coaches! What a concept!
They are doing “Voluntary Separations” and cutting previously committed retiree benefits at the U where my wife teaches, while spending 28M on a new set of sports fields. Just shows what matters in our culture.
Plenty of cuts in administration at the school I am very familiar with. Agree on the sports.
I read today that Brandeis is revamping their curriculum to be more career-oriented. It seems likely this involves some cost-cutting. I asked if they were going to restart their music grad program. How do the arts fit in to a new “career focus”?
Eastman came through after the second appeal with a very significant increase, putting the cost on par with my son’s best two offers. As a result, he committed to Eastman tonight and is extremely excited about it. Eastman was always his first choice and now it is real. As corny as it sounds, I think some things are just meant to be.
I couldn’t agree more. My son went to UNT for one professor and has voluntarily switched back and forth throughout his years. Also, he seems to be super excited about what may come from the retirements from what he is hearing…
