Music Scholarships

[feff123]

Hi trumpet enthusiasts,

I'm a high schooler who plays trumpet. I plan to major in music as well as a more "practical" major (as per my parents). I'd still like to be a professional trumpeter, however.

My favorite schools right now are two out of state school with phenomenal teachers and enough academic prestige to satisfy my parents. However, these schools are quite expensive for an out-of-stater such as myself, but I've heard that if I audition well enough, I could receive scholarships. How much do these scholarships tend to be for? What are some schools that are known for offering good scholarship money?
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“The mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but in finding something to live for.”
-Dmitri Karamazov

[kehaulani]

Financial aid runs the gamut, from work-study programs, marching band stipends, conventual scholarships, and a few schools that are tuition free if you can get into them.

Yours is a very broad question and I suggest that you contact each school you are interested in for their own specific information.

As an aside, you do realize that a music program is usually a five-year program, regardless of what the school says, right? And music is a very labor-intensive program. Add to that a double major like you are intending and you're looking at a lot of long-years' work.

I'm not saying it can't be done or that you couldn't excel in both of your major areas, just that it's no walk in the park and you need to be prepared for that.
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[Goby]

Scholarship depends heavily on how desirable of an applicant you are. As dark as that may sound, there are plenty of schools looking for multi-disciplinary students such as yourself. If you're looking at private universities with decent music programs (not conservatories), I wouldn't expect a huge scholarship based on audition performance, especially if you're not applying as a music performance major. Big schools tend to give out scholarship on a need-based scale, although there are always exceptions and opportunities for additional aid through work-study or even stipends for being in marching/pep bands. State schools tend to be pretty good with financial aid and scholarships, especially for musicians, so look into some public schools. If you're auditioning at top-level conservatories, don't expect to get a generous offer. Those schools have their choice of talent from across the globe, and can afford to lose students over the cost of tuition. Smaller schools with strong music programs (or at least, a great trumpet teacher) also present a good opportunity for you. In a smaller, less competitive program, you'll have plenty of opportunity to get involved in the music program even if you're not a performance major. You'll be able to major in something your parents approve of, and you'll be able to continue pursuing music.


To echo the other comment on this thread: reach out to schools directly about their financial aid. You could also reach out to the teachers at these schools and ask to speak to some current students to get a sense of the school and the financial aid situation.


One last comment: there is nothing wrong with pursuing music as a degree path. The skills you learn in practicing music extend far beyond simply playing your instrument, and the lessons you learn and friends you make will last a lifetime. Unfortunately, with the cost of college these days, many parents see it solely as a vehicle to increase their child's earning potential. If the gains you make in earning potential are at the cost of your happiness and financial well-being, it's not worth it. Do what makes you happy, and stay out of debt.

[LaTrompeta]

It depends. Some schools will cover EVERYTHING. Those schools tend to be more exclusive (I'm thinking about Curtis or Rice, which are super-duper-uber competitive).

I would simply try to get as much funding as possible and then see which school offers you the most. Really, you should avoid student loans as much as possible, they are not a fun thing to have.
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[Billy B]

I was on a full ride scholarship because the school "needed" trumpet players.

Huge mistake.

If you really want to grow, go to a school where you will initially be one of the worst players.
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Bill Bergren

[Shark01]

[kehaulani]

I agree with the point that surrounding yourself with better players is much better than being top dog, at least for a while.

When I went to North Texas, I was big dog from where I came. When I got to NT, I was surrounded by players who had also been top dogs from whence they came. I went from top dog to being lost right in the middle of the pack. I'm convinced that the associations and competition and stimulation from my classmates went into better preparing me for the future.
_________________
"If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn." Bird

Yamaha 8310Z Bobby Shew trumpet
Benge 3X Trumpet
Benge 3X Cornet
Adams F-1 Flghn

[mafields627]

The key is being able to "stack" scholarships, meaning that they will let you keep merit based, need based, outside scholarships, loans, etc. Some places will not let you exceed the cost of attendance or if you get a higher amount award from the institution it replaces a lower amount award you qualified for. If you can stack then you can often end up with a refund that you can use on "educational" expenses (a new horn, a laptop, whatever).
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--Matt--

No representation is made that the quality of this post is greater than the quality of that of any other poster. Oh, and get a teacher!

[abontrumpet]

Going into serious debt for your undergraduate degree isn't worth it. Full stop. With any school, the majority of the work is going to be done by you. With the state of music, it's much smarter to get a nearly free undergrad, spend big for a masters, and get paid for your doctorate (if you choose to do a DMA program).

With all programs, music programs included, there is a spectrum of prestigiousness. Usually, only the top 10 programs (juilliard, rice, colburn, et. al.) are going to POTENTIALLY give you opportunities/gigs and open doors that would be more difficult to do at ANYthing less than those. Which means from small school to damn good music school, they offer about the same in terms of opening doors. Once again, the best way to open doors is with your playing. Yes, teacher/student match is important, but you can likely find that in your state (which state are you in?).

My two cents. If you want to potentially save 10's of thousands of dollars, fly out to NYC and have a lesson with Ray Mase. He's seen it all and he will tell you if you have the "ballpark" potential of a future professional. Yes, there are terrible > amazing stories, but if you look at the top orchestras, most of them have been great since high school. If he says "wow, you're fantastic" then you can pretty much go anywhere, hustle during the year, get into great summer programs and come out decent. You just have to work harder for it. If you're in the "almost got that potential" to "eh, you need some work" category, then the teacher/program match is going to be much more important and maybe worth shelling a little more for.

As far as being one of the "worst" players as being desirable, your mileage may vary. Some people thrive in that environment and some people get burnt out. What worked great for me was always being in the top 10% and having fierce/productive competition amongst the really good players. At some schools you may never get the opportunity to be "someone" which can be disheartening. People that get "bored immediately" do not have the drive necessary to be a pro musician, in my opinion. If you're one of the worst players at your school, you should seriously reevaluate whether you should sink any kind of money into your music degree (especially if you haven't made massive strides in year 1). Starbucks baristas are filled by a number of former music grads, why pay for a degree to do a job that you can do today?

My background, Small undergrad (full ride plus extra on top), decent masters (had full rides offered, choose to pay a bit), big doctorate (had 5 full rides offered between Graduate assistantships and Fellowships but decided to pay for a bit then later got the GA and got paid). Top 3 player at all of them and now I make a living playing the trumpet. Having done it all, I should have taken the free route the whole time. Now I'm debt free, but I got lucky. No amount of debt is worth going into for a music degree, in my opinion. I know many musicians from top flight institutions still having to hustle and nowhere near done paying off their debts.

Do get a second major in something with guaranteed future employment.

[Jaw04]

I chose the path of least resistance and got a full scholarship to a small school that did not challenge me or develop me that much. HOWEVER! I never got into debt or took out student loans. So there are trade-offs to every move you make. Think about what is important to you. Some days I feel I made a great move, other days I feel like I should have pushed myself more and tried for something more prestigious and expensive where I would have to work my ass off.

[OldHorn]

Make sure you're looking at everything realistically. If you're lucky, school can give you an envirinment where your playing will mature and improve, but it probably won't help get you a "job" in music. That usually comes from the networking you do while you're in school. Good luck.

[Richard III]

[Jaw04]

[Jaw04]

[yinzbrass]

There is already a great deal of excellent advice on this thread. As the OP is asking about scholarships, I'm assuming that saving money is a bigger priority than teacher fit or an elite school name on the degree. If so, in-state tuition at public schools is often a bigger "scholarship" than many private school and out-of-state awards.

Also, food, dorm or apartment, transportation and beer/entertainment expenses often eclipse tuition. If you live near a decent school, consider living at home and commuting to school. It is less fun, but paying student loans on an entry level salary is even less fun.
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[Billy B]

Going in with a backup plan is admitting failure. Go for your dream but always realize your path may change.
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Bill Bergren

[kehaulani]

[abontrumpet]

[Billy B]