<p>A friend of mine who recently finished paying off undergrad loans and isn’t that financially well-off has decided that he wants to go back to grad school for opera. Realistically, what are the chances of him finding a reasonable financial situation coming out of grad school as a probably in-debt opera major? I do realize that with music majors, it’s not all about the money. I’m going to be one, after all. He just worries me a little. You see, he’s very skilled and talented already, but he tends to make some silly choices… I don’t know. I already know that I’m not going to be able to sway his decision very much… just looking for some opinions on the matter.</p>
<p>If he is a skilled and talented baritone, at least he will not have to pay for grad school. And burdensome debt should be a HUGE concern for music students. Do not go into debt.</p>
<p>Predicting the future is not my forte. Here are some things that could happen:</p>
<p>He could go into debt.<br>
He could get valuable training and feedback.
He could waste two more years of his life.
He could spend two more years in a somewhat sheltered training environment.
He could mature.
He could network and meet people who can help him establish a career.
He could meet someone who helps him establish more realistic goals.
He could land a job prior to finishing grad school.
He could get half way through and have a Eureka moment about what he really wants to be when he grows up.
He could decide to go on and get a PhD, and teach.</p>
<p>Or none of the above. </p>
<p>Yes, it’s a gamble to take on debt. Can you gain the necessary skills and contacts at a school where you won’t incur debt? If so, it makes sense to avoid the debt. But I’m not willing to say all debt is bad, if, by incurring the debt, it improves your likelihood to pay off said debt.</p>
<p>The general advice on these boards is to go cheap to undergrad [Caveat: this is not what we did. S has lots of debt and no regrets], and aim high for grad school. Going cheap to both might get you what you paid for. Going to a high-level program, and incurring some debt along the way, can be more lucrative in the long run.</p>
<p>The obvious dumb thing is to incur great debt to attend a medicre program.</p>
<p>My reaction is that it’s different for vocalists as opposed to instrumentalists. One only to look at which schools successful singers are coming out of. There are so many quality undergrad programs where a singer can get a great education without incurring burdensome debt. And conversely some very, very expensive prestigious schools of music where the vocal education is not what it should be. Pair this with vocal development and the longer education requirements for singers as opposed to instrumentalists and the possibilities of incurring mountains of debt increase exponentially.</p>
<p>The other argument is that by the time you are ready for grad school, if you are good enough to be competitive in the world of opera, you should be good enough not to have to pay for grad school. D was accepted at all her grad school choices and not one of them was considered a “safety” and each has a recent history of producing great singers. Her choice came down to the teacher, the opportunities and the money. It’s all about her voice and now that she about to graduate and is competing with the best of the best, she certainly is glad that she can leave grad school in the spring and afford to spend some serious money traveling to auditions around the world. (no regrets)</p>
<p>Just an addendum. I said “do not go into debt” when I should have said “burdensome debt”. Even my D, who wanted to avoid debt completely, will graduate with her MM and a total of around 9000 in debt. This was incurred during her senior year as an undergrad.</p>
<p>The advice I have always been given, with regard to vocalists, is to not go to any grad school that does not give you significant money. Not only is there the debt issue, but the attention is given to those who get the money. Paying for a program in which you are not give good performance opportunities is a double whammy.</p>
<p>^^^Binx, I think it bears repeating, since I LOVED your answer:
</p>
<p>The truth is each of us has to listen carefully to our hearts when it comes to which path to head down, and be prepared to meet whatever vicissitudes life echos back! So, OP, just support your friend and believe that he has what it takes to live a great and interesting life. He probably gets enough stones thrown in his path from people who AREN’T friends ;)</p>