Author: Brad Behn
Date: 2014-03-26 18:01
This is a very exciting and stressful time of year for college applicants. With the extremely high cost of education, the highly competitive nature of the music business and the relatively low salaries involved, there are many nuances to your decision process.
First of all, congratulations for your excellent achievement of being accepted to two extremely good programs!
May I suggest that you develop a system - a Rubric, or an Algorithm which will allow you to sort through all of your many important decision elements in a way which can provide some clarity.
For example, as I see it there are a bunch of things to think about. These points can each have a number value - based on your level of importance.
The scale can run ten points. So first lets pick our elements (you can create more elements of course).
Here is my proposed list of important consideration elements:
Teacher
studio size
proximity to family
culture outside the school
Total cost of education
Your general "feel" of the place
Probable ensemble experiences
Assigne each element with a 1-10 grade for each school. Then add the total, and you will get a glimpse of how you think of each school and their offer in total.
For example:
Teacher - 10
Studio size - 6
Proximity - 1
Culture - 7
Total cost - 3
General "feel" - 8
Ensemble - 5
Total = 40
Now do this exercise with all of your other schools in question, and you will probably learn something…
Again, your scale should be made from the various elements which you find most important in your decision making process.
And on a personal note, I have had experiences working with all of the teachers involved in both institutions and I believe they all offer great things. To study with all of them would be the best! They all offer so much.
Indeed Nathan's studio is smaller, but it is a very good group. The level of playing down in Austin is high, and their morale or "spirit" is noteworthy. When I went down there in the fall, I was very impressed by their positive vibe. This was something I felt noteworthy. And Nathan is a very caring and giving teacher who happens to play the clarinet extraordinarily well.
And I have two friends doing doctorate degrees at UNT right now. They have both spoken very highly of their experiences, I believe they are receiving top-shelf educational experiences. And I can say that I have come to know Kim, John, Daryl, and Deb over the years and I have great respect for all of them as artist level players and teachers as well.
For me, if I were involved in the decision making process. Some of the most important elements I would have sleepless nights of pondering would be:
Teacher - all five are great choices, but which one do you feel you connect with the best, which one will deliver the focus or path which is inline with your long term goals (do you want to be a college professor, an orchestral player, a band director etc.). While I am certain they will all be able to guide you well in each of these career paths, some of the teachers are actively playing in orchestra on a daily basis, others have played in orchestra in the past, while other teachers have become international pedagogues, and others international soloists - all slightly different nuances worth consideration I think.
School "feel" - In talking with parents especially, I am always curious to note that they mention the feel right away. When traveling from school to school, with their son or daughter during the audition process, parents see other things, they note the facilities, the campus, the spirit from the students and faculty and such. Bottom line, the sum of all of these extra sensory experiences can create a powerful and meaningful impression which should be taken seriously.
Cost - I think undergraduate education is ideal if it is as inexpensive as possible. The four years of that degree can rack up a huge bill, and the last thing I would want is for my child to have a burden of debt right out of the chute. Music industry offers very few job opportunities at very low pay, and to pursue a music degree is a bit of a leap-of-faith in itself, and so I would mitigate that stress by keeping the costs as low as possible. And then, upon conclusion of the undergraduate degree, if the experiences were successful, and the trajectory is optimistic, I would then go on to a graduate program where I can really focus on building a network - that program may end up causing some debt - but the master degree is shorter termed and therefore it may cost less. And for a doctorate - if that is what you end up doing, again networking is key, and this degree can be expensive, so I would really try to keep the costs down.
Ensemble expériences - I am certain that both schools mentioned have top-level ensembles, but it is important to note given the studio size, and the competition -what realistic prospects to play in a leadership role, to play in an orchestra, to experience ensembles in a rich way will you actually receive?
Good luck!
Brad Behn
http://www.clarinetmouthpiece.com
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