So, You're About to Major in Music....(Part One)

It's getting about that time!

  Ahhh, spring, where soon to be graduated high school seniors are trying to get out of homework (Senioritis) and decide what they want to do following graduation. For some of you young scamps that means wanting to major in music and figuring out where to do so. Well, as someone who only finished his degree a few months ago, I thought it would be fun to start a list of things that most of us wish we knew going in. I'm going to try to get my colleagues and future colleagues to join in with thoughts, too.

Ok, so.....picking a school...

• I would submit a few thoughts here. First, when you visit, email, whatever (I'd try to visit), see how easily you connect with the person who'll be your studio professor and the person who will be your major ensemble director. These are ultimately the two folks you'll work with the most and it's important that you can have good working relationships with each. 
• What is the reputation of the program as far as getting people employed following graduation or getting them into graduate programs? What is the focus of the program? Is it more education based or more performance based?
• The quality and size of the school's marching band should be about number 632 on the list of things which are important when picking a music school. It contributes zero to your development (Unless there's a program where the ed. students are involved in the design and teaching of the field shows, which would honestly be pretty cool).
• What is the proximity to good repair techs? This is ultimately not a deal breaker but it's a giant pain if something has gone wrong with your instrument and the nearest decent repair tech is 2-3 hours away. I speak from experience there.
• This is going to be your home for the next few years. What do you think about the town in which the school is located? Yeah, that is important.
• What kind of housing is available to students?
• What kind of scholarships are available? More scholarships mean fewer student loans which means you aren't in debt for the next four lifetimes.
• What are the time commitment expectations to fulfill the scholarship requirements? You may decide that some aren't worth it. 
• What is the level of literature being played in the studio as well as in the major ensembles? That's another way of saying "Are their students progressing?". 
• How aggressive is the studio professor about performing? Do they do a lot of recitals and public performances? You don't want them performing so much that they are constantly missing lessons but you want them to be able to put their money where their mouth is. 
• How big is the studio? How much attention will the professor be able to provide? Will you even study with the professor at first vs a graduate or doctoral assistant? That shouldn't necessarily be a deal breaker but it's important to know going in.
• Get a lesson or two with that professor. See the above statement about connection. 

Ok colleagues- GO! Add to this. Part two will be coming out very soon.