<p>this is what the faq on the NEC site says:
What is the difference between a Conservatory and a University?
Conservatories offer concentration in one specific area. Although the student does have liberal arts and seminar requirements, all other academic courses center around music. Students also study privately in weekly lessons with their assigned faculty member.</p>
<p>NEC also has some programs with academic schools, of course – Tufts and Harvard. Juilliard had an arrangement with Columbia that students, depending on their grades, status, etc., can take a course at Columbia during the semester.
So there is obviously a range of academic breadth and depth beyond the music requirements (theory, aural skills, music history). Whether a student cares about grades in such courses is an individual matter, of course.</p>