I'll chime in on this from a couple of different perspectives: one is the perspective of a long-time member of the education and university community; and one is as a father of children who have gone through various education programs and are now in their late 30s.
I went from high school to a very high end private "polytechnic institute" and graduated (as was the custom then) in four years. Then immediately to a very high end private university where I emerged four years later (again, the custom then) with a Ph.D. I then taught for 10 years in a medium-size private university in Chicago, at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, and was given early tenure. Several years after that, I decided to leave academia for a variety of reasons. I got through those programs with an NDEA loan (remember those -- I paid it off over a period of 10 years), work-study (20 hrs/week as an undergraduate), scholarships, and fellowships. My parents had NO money (they's send me $20 now and then; they did what they could). Was my expensive education worth it? Yes, it definitely was. Could it have been done in a less expensive way? Maybe. Not sure.
My wife likewise has a Ph.D. and taught for several years at the university level. Earlier in her life she was a private middle school science teacher. My daughter just left education after being a public middle school math teacher for 8 years. One son wasted one year in college and then entered the work force. No college degree. When he died last year (at the age of 41: congenital heart condition that eventually got him) he was a high-level IT software automation expert in one of the country's largest successful regional banks. The other son left college after one year, entered the work force, worked for IBM for 15 years and IBM paid for his college over time. After 10 years he got a Computer Science degree. He recently moved to a management/development job at Amazon with an offer that I've never seen the likes of.
I retain ties with faculty friends in several universities and taught a combined undergraduate/graduate course in 2009. My point here is that I KNOW the educational system and the current state of universities and university education today. I'm not happy with it. I don't think that anyone is happy with it. I won't go into the details here.
So, my opiniions -- based on that background:
- You say you think you have a realistic grasp on what it takes to be a professional musician. Well, what it takes to be a PROFESSIONAL musician is to GET WORK -- to MAKE MONEY. It's not something that just happens because you have the right attitude, are talented, and go through one school or another. What do you REALISTICALLY think is his (in fact ANYONE's) chance of GETTING A JOB as a professional musician? Now, once you're honest with yourself about that ...
- How good an idea do you think it is for a young person (who at this stage very likely doesn't even know what his interests may be in a couple of years or what his talents -- broadly speaking; not just in music -- may be) to saddle himself with a huge debt in order to shoot for that "career in music"? So ...
- Do NOT commit at this initial point to an expensive and probably debt-ridden deal to get an "education" which very likely (almost certainly) will NOT lead to GETTING WORK. Suppose he gets to college and falls totally in love with some subject area and career path that he's totally unaware of now? I NEVER thought I'd end up the way I did -- at any stage of my education. In part, that was because my knowledge and interests changed; and in part it was because the world changed. What I did for most of my working life simply didn't exist when I graduated from high school. I've seen the same thing happen with my children. It also happened with my wife.
- Especially do NOT commit to an expensive and probably debt-ridden deal to get an "education" in some relatively "esoteric" area in which what is learned in that education are largely non-transferable skills that will lock you out of a broader job market. My daughter just went through this -- and she has years of experience in teaching along with a "highly qualified" rating on her license for both math and language arts. Yet when she went to get a job outside of teaching, it took her months to find one and she had to take an entry-level support job. It's a good job, and great for upward mobility, but she was getting turned down for virtually everything because her entire experience said "middle school teacher" and didn't display the experience and skills people were looking for. So how well do you think someone with a "music education" would do in trying to find a "real job"?
- He's "been recruited by professors" ... Yeah, want to know why? (Ex-faculty member speaking here.) There are SO MANY colleges and universities now, and SO MANY programs, and now so many "specialty programs" that competition for students is fierce. And you know what? If you don't have students, then pretty soon you don't have a program. And if you don't have a program, then pretty soon you don't have a job (and tenure won't shield you from that -- the easiest way to get rid of tenured faculty is to close the entire program. I've seen it happen several times.) So don't put much weight on his being recruited. They're desperate for bodies (and the tuition and fees).
- Almost certainly, no one except a university professor will now recommend that the student or his parents incur substantial debt to send the student to an expensive program. And when they do recommend that, at the same time they won't be sending THEIR children to such programs because they can't afford them. This is the case in general. There are exceptions. E.g., if you're smart and have shown the right talents and have your sights set on being something like a computer scientist, a doctor, a biologist, a chemist, an attorney, etc., then shooting for one of those high-end programs can be (and sometimes must be) an investment. But again ... Guess what? The skills you learn in THOSE programs are TRANSFERABLE and will help you get a job in a broad variety of areas. Not like music, or poetry, or art history.
- Will an expensive and debt-ridden education in an "amazing program" in music pay off? Possibly. But almost certainly not.
Those are my views -- just based on experience from both inside and outside the "educational system", and from having had three kids go through it and then find careers. Also, I just run into too many people who were professional musicians (some in the military, some not), who for the obvious reasons just couldn't (through necessity or choice) sustain such a career indefinitely. Not trying to kill the dream here, but keep in mind that many people have careers in music without ever seeing the inside of a university or conservatory. And keep in mind that you can spend a lifetime "in music" without having to depend on it as your financial resource. So if being realistic is the goal, then focus (and focus your son) on being realistic. And realize that you can't buy that music career.
Gary Merrill
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