<p>S (HS JR) is in the process of setting up school visits & lessons with teachers for the fall.
Two responses came back which include a meeting with Dean at one school and the Assistant Dean at another. Is this common? Any input as to how these meetings go and how to prep would be appreciated.
Thanks</p>
<p>The person(s) with whom you meet will vary: at larger more competitive schools/departments, it would be somewhat unusual to meet with the dean, but instead you might meet with a music admissions person, a studio teacher, a music students or a combination of those. At some schools, the ass’t dean’s specified duties include meeting with prospective students, but at other schools, the ass’t dean’s duties are strictly administrative. The president of one school asked to meet with my son, but only because the president was my son’s first choice of studio teacher.</p>
<p>I don’t think that any special prep is necessary for these meetings; if the dean is meeting with a student, it will primarily be for the dean to sell the school, not for the student to sell himself/herself. The student should go into the meeting with some knowledge of the school and should have the usual set of questions (which could be written down). The dean/ass’t may answer most of these questions during their spiel, but they will almost certainly ask if the student has any questions.</p>
<p>Typical questions (more comprehensive lists can be found elsewhere in other threads): How many students do you anticipate having space for on my instrument for the fall of 201X? How many students typically apply to your school on my instrument? What performing opportunities exist for 1st year students? What types of merit aid are available? What percentage of accepted music students receive merit/need-based aid? What graduate schools have recent students been accepted to? Obviously the type of questions asked will depend on the individual student’s interests and aspirations and on the nature of the school (a student with no interest in grad school who is asking about a school which doesn’t send students to grad schools would not ask about that). Try not to ask about things that are obviously on the school’s website.</p>
<p>I believe D3 met with one Dean, a couple of admissions officers, an associate something-or-another, and a student representative…all at different schools. I wouldn’t place deep meaning on it - didn’t seem to have any effect on her admissions results. Violindad’s list of questions is right on target.</p>
<p>It is always a good question to ask what recent graduates are doing now. First of all it will reveal if the Dean actually knows the students and what is happening with them. Second of all it tells what the level of ambition and accomplishment is at the school. Good luck!</p>
<p>Agreed that asking what’s going on with recent graduates is a good idea. Son asked that question of a studio teacher and the gentleman looked at him strangely and stated well they all go to grad school it’s expected. Unfortunately, son wasn’t ready with a follow up question of “Which grad programs did they go to?”. Also, in the current economy, even the best programs are not placing everyone. Son’s high school had a substitute teacher with a master’s from Juiliard. We went out to a club over the summer and all four members of the combo had their masters in music ranging from music ed to performance and music industry and none had a full time job and all were scrambling for gigs and health insurance. It’s tough out there for the recent grads in this economy…</p>