What colleges would you suggest for a student who wants to major in both of these or major in business while minoring in music theory or music industry?
Student’s dad is not thrilled with a recording industry major. Is music history given as a major?
This student has a 3.9 average (unweighted) and a 652 reading 620 math. Did not give me the writing score. Many AP courses and good ECs
He is from up-state NY and currently ranks 10 in his class. He is a senior so there is a time is a constraint.
It’s not a huge factor. However, they do not want their son to be over 6 hours away by car. So that would rule out California. Basically, they are looking in the NE, Middle Atlantic, New England and possibly upper South and Eastern Mid West. He’s an only child. FL could be OK At the most, a seven hour road trip if the college really interested thm.
NYU immediately comes to mind. Stern is top-notch in business and they have a number of music degrees (music in the College of Liberal Arts, composition and even a music business major). The math score may be a tad low for Stern but most music majors are in Steinhardt (the more liberal arts based music major is in the College of Arts and Science). I don’t know what the process is to double major in two different colleges.
I think Syracuse is a great idea. This is not my son. It’s the son of a relative. They live in NYS (Hudson Valley) and I live in Ohio. Drexel may not have housing after the first year. He (the student) wants a campus - so that would rule out Northeastern.
He is also open to music theory. They want to avoid “music colleges” - Berklee etc. And definitely places like Five Towns and Full Sail.
This student did an internship at Abby Road Studio and his father has a music studio in his house.
If Florida is an option, Univ of Miami might also be of interest. Known for both its business and music schools. Music majors at Frost include composition, musicology and music business.
SUNY Fredonia has an excellent school of music with options to concentrate in music theory and recording technology. They also have a school of business. It would be a great deal too.
Not sure how much more useful a music theory or music history major would be compared to a music industry major I assume this kid wants to be in the music industry - if so, he should go for it. Also, his son needs to decide if he wants to have to audition or not - most music theory schools will require an audition, so he needs to be proficient at something. If you could give more direction as to what he wants to actually do, it might be more helpful.
Everyone else has suggested many of the schools that are out there, and I would throw in a nod for Syracuse as well. My S is a freshman in Bandier. Feel free to PM me with any questions. Bandier is very selective, does not require an audition and looks for actual industry experience. Syracuse also has a Music Industry major, which requires an audition, is more theory based, and does not really require experience. Whitman is a very solid undergraduate business program, so all the elements are there. Plus, his stats are a good match for Syracuse admissions.
Have him check out American U in DC. They have a Business and Entertainment major in the school of business, and you can focus on music. The program head is a music guy with huge connections in the business. American also offers a BS in Audio Technology, if he is more engineer/producer oriented, and you can figure out a double major or major/minor with business and technology, which is very unique.
I would not discount Northeastern so quickly - they do have a campus and there are many benefits to their Music Industry program - in a big city, it’s a co-op school so good opportunities to get experience, strong faculty, etc. Coming from NY though, his SATs may be a bit light to make it a match.
We just went through it last year so if we know more, we can add more color. I just saw your post about his internship, so this will play well for his admission.
For safety schools, he might consider UMass Lowell and/or University of Hartford. I suspect he’d be offered merit scholarships at both. Ithaca College (NY) might also be a fit for safety.
Temple University (in Pennsylvania) has a nationally ranked business program. On top of that, the music department is well organized and has a lot to offer!
How about Belmont University in Nashville? Students in the Music Business program there get a regular Bachelors in Business. Belmont has an enormous music program.
Belmont is really the gold standard of practical music industry majors, but it’s a lot more than six hours from upstate New York.
Drexel’s music industry program is very good, and can branch out in different directions – pure business aspects, recording technology, sound engineering. A friend’s kid went there and has been doing pretty well as a music techie. The Drexel department has its own record company which they take quite seriously. Drexel is expensive, but it is often a great option for kids who want to do, not just to study. And Philadelphia is both very student-friendly and very musician-friendly.
SUNY Fredonia has a longstanding music business program (within a traditionally very strong music school).
My son is in the same boat, and TCNJ (in NJ) which has both excellent business department and music departments reached out to him. In his case the music department (who was recruiting him) told him they have a BA in Music that lets you design your curriculum so that you can double major in both music and business or math or another major. You first have to apply to your priority department and then after freshman year you apply to the other department for the double major. BUT you need to reach out to both departments now so everyone knows what your plans are and can help facilitate( i.e. advising) you to make this double major happen in the most expeditious way …
You might want to post this on the excellent music major forum here on CC.
He can go to virtually any college and do a general major in music for a BA. The BA program in music usually does not require an audition or portfolio, and means that about 1/4 to 1/3 of his total classes would be in music, including theory, history, composition, ethnomusicology and technology. Has he done any theory and solfege? Does he like it?
Another option is to do an audition for some music technology program (there are so many different names for this focus, music industry, recording technology, etc.) that is usually, but not always, a BM.
Does he want to spend most of his time in a studio doing practical hands on, career-oriented things? There are threads on the music forum about very focused programs that are essentially vocational.
I would suggest UMass Lowell, Hartt at U. of Hartford, Northeastern, a few SUNY’s (check Purchase), Clark University, Ithaca College, but honestly he could consider many schools. Look at Skidmore, Bennington (where kids work in an interdisciplinary fashion).
My personal opinion is that internships can be very helpful and may even mean there is no need to major in music business.
Music business/industry are very different from technical studio majors that involve recording technology and studio work, I believe.
