I am new to this site; apologies if there is a similar thread on this topic already. I found one but it’s more than four years old so starting a new one…
My S is a sophomore at a good private school with college counseling support but no expertise in music, and the Fine Arts faculty is good at their day jobs but also not equipped to help us navigate the process. He is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and producer who could go in a lot of different directions. He is also neurodivergent and the whole college process is going to push hard on the limits of his executive functioning skills. He’s our first kid so we have not been through this process; we are also not musicians and not networked in this space. We also both work FT and have other children. For all of these reasons, we are feeling intimidated and seriously considering hiring a consultant to help. We’ve started looking at some and it’s hard to tell who is really good (and who’s just good at marketing). I’d like to hear others’ experiences with music college consultants and any related constructive advice on choosing one. Thank you!
First, read the Double Degree Dilemma essay pinned (reposted) at the top of the music forum. It uses hypothetical individuals to describe different ways to study music.
Some of us on this forum have been here for many years and our kids are working professionally and/or know peers who have taken various paths in or out of music.
It sounds like your son would do well at certain schools, including Berklee, Miami Frost, USC Thornton, U of Denver, Loyola New Orleans, Columbia College Chicago, and several others (I can PM you a list).
If he wants an immersive music program, a BM is good. Some musicians do BA’s and major in music or even don’t major in music and take lessons, work in studios and perform in extracurriculars. So there is a range. Also double majors, major/minor and of course double degree.
He is still young. What is he doing now in music? Is he doing lessons or summer programs or working at home?
I personally think there is enough expertise on this forum. We all know the experience of the guidance counselor not knowing music admissions! Much of communication can happen privately (look for upper right green envelope).
The main questions we will all ask here is: does he have a private teacher? If not, you may want to read over the details in the past thread (eventhough an older thread, the advice has not changed). Then you may want to start looking into private teachers. This teacher will steer your kid (and you) through the process. If he has a private teacher, you can definitely start a conversation on schools there.
Most parents on this site do not use an outside music consultant as the private music teacher plays that role. However I do know that a few busy parents have used a “general” consultant to help with the essays and timelines of the general requirements. Note essays for music students will most likely not make or break an acceptance. For music, the audition is KING. So it is most important to dedicate time to music more than essays. Still you want to supply good, thoughtful essays and not miss any deadlines.
Does your son have private music teacher(s) that regularly send students onto college music programs? Because I think that is your best first resource. If you do not have private teacher(s) who regularly launch students to college music programs, I would consider either switching teacher. Or if the current teacher is beloved but clueless on the process, consider doing periodic master classes with someone more in touch with college/conseravatory admissions. My current college freshman’s teacher junior and senior year was a music teacher. But also an advisor, a mentor, a therapist, a task master and a sounding board. My kid was texting and emailing with her all the time. The teacher was on faculty at a university and I think that gave unique perspective.
As someone who has been through the process twice, once with a quirky multi interested kid and has worked with neurodiverse students at times, finding a consultant who is savvy with all the pieces of this puzzle that you and your child click with could be challenging. And I tend to think if you are on a budget, it may be better saved for college. If you have unlimited budget, I might start with a consult with someone to talk through and get an initial sense of fit before investing in an expensive ongoing package.