<p>Hi everyone - my D has been accepted to both these schools for vocal performance & they are her final 2 choices. I’m curious about general reputation of both. CSULB / Bob Cole is very highly respected in Southern California, but I don’t know if it is well-known outside our area, plus the “Bob Cole” name is new in the last few years. On the other hand, many people here are unfamiliar with Temple when we mention it, but I believe it is well-regarded on the East Coast & perhaps more nationally known. Also, any first-hand experience (or second-hand, what the heck!) at either school would be appreciated. THANKS!!</p>
<p>If those are her final two choices, I’d go with the CA school IF you are in state. It would be the opposite if you were a PA resident.
Assuming that you live on one coast or the other, factoring in the expenses of transportation and storage of stuff when your D is home for the summer will really mount up. Off campus housing in Philly is expensive and the area around Temple is sketchy.</p>
<p>Depending on which teacher you get, I think CSULB could be the better opportunity. I can send you some information on one of their recent grads who is doing quite well in grad school right now. However, I am not sure who her teacher was. (you might have to call the school to find out) </p>
<p>just sent you a message </p>
<p>Temple has an excellent reputation on the East Coast. It’s also a good value money-wise, especially in-state. I’ve heard that on-campus housing options are improving, with more dorms being built. My son didn’t like the urban vibe, but your daughter may feel differently. </p>
<p>Thanks @Bachmom - it’s good to have that confirmed! I don’t think she can really go wrong with either choice - just such a difficult one! At this point Temple is the more affordable, even factoring in travel, as they are offering the better scholarship. We haven’t received financial info from Long Beach yet, so that could change, but they are close enough that cost isn’t really an issue at this point.</p>
<p>This is for VP…correct? Was your D informed as to who her teacher would be? </p>
<p>No, she wasn’t - we aren’t really familiar with any of the teachers at either school.</p>
<p>I just thought that the right teacher assignment might make the decision easier. Congrats on the opportunities!</p>
<p>GM,</p>
<p>Maybe you can arrange for sample lessons at one or both schools. My son is planning to do this during his spring break. He wasn’t able to audition in person at all of his schools. I know it’s pricey, but it might be worth it if you can swing it. BTW, Temple is supposed to be very strong for vocalists.</p>
<p>I tried to post this weeks ago, but it disappeared. Then, I found it in “drafts.” Anyway, I thought that CSU Long Beach Bob Cole was giving every accepted student some kind of merit scholarship. Did they mention any of that when you auditioned? There are some excellent teachers at Long Beach, and the opera director is really great. Your D can get some sample lessons from various teachers and see what she thinks. We loved Shigemi, who also teaches at USC, but there are other excellent teachers to check out. There are plenty of talented singers at Long Beach, plenty of them are choosing it over other quality programs (like UCLA, for example), because of the price. Good luck, it sounds like your D has some excellent choices, including Chapman. </p>
<p>@sopranomom92 - yeah, I’ve actually been wondering that as well, since I know the Bob Cole endowment is earmarked for scholarships. She was offered music merit in the form of a waiver of private lesson fees, but since I didn’t know we had to pay for those, it was kind of a wash! The school is very affordable however, even without scholarship since we’re in state, so I haven’t been too worried about it. And yes, we’ve been quite impressed with everything there. She had a sample lesson with Brian Farrell who she liked very much, and some students that we met with spoke very highly of Katharine Rundus. D really loves Chapman, but it would cost $10-12,000 more per year than Long Beach and about $14,000 more than Temple, so is pretty much off the table now.</p>