Applying for Fall 2014

[georgemckean]

I figured I'd start a new topic. Has anyone heard anything about University of Kentucky's musicology program? According to the website all applicants have to take three entrance exams. And if I am understanding correctly, they are taken on campus. I do not live anywhere near Kentucky. I just wonder if it's worth going all the way out there for a chance at admission. Thanks in advance!

[music]

That's a tough decision. Can you find out what kind of exams they are, so you at least know whether you'd be likely to make a good attempt at them? I will be applying too, for musicology or ethno depending on the school. Not sure where yet, making a trip to the US this summer to check out the ones I'm most excited by. Unfortuntely the ones which offer the best fit are the most competitive. Yay. I am also only looking at fully funded schools because I can't get loans, being an international applicant. Still trying to figure out how many schools to apply for, but I have decided not to put down any safety schools - I'd rather wait a year if necessary. Going into this process blind is simultaneously great, because I have no expectations, and terrifying, because I'm convinced I'm not good enough. My background is a little kooky, comprising a very thorough English boarding school education with high level academic work in politics, philosophy and music, followed by a year of travel, and then 5 years of violin performance and music theory/history batchelors indispersed with a bunch of music based travel projects. No masters. No nice liberal arts batchelors, even. That said, I'm confident in my writing and research ability, and irritatingly excitable about discussing my area of interest with anyone within earshot. My application should be strong, it's the issue of whether schools are ok with my batchelors education which concerns me most. I'm also going to apply to a couple of UK one year terminal masters programs in the (likely) case that I get a straight set of rejections. My biggest concern? Remembering maths for the GRE. And remembering that I have to call it 'math'...

[georgemckean]

I think with your experience you have some strong credentials. The three tests are entrance exams, much like the diagnostic exams you take anywhere. They include music theory and history and so on. I am not worried about passing them. I am worried, however, about paying $1000 to fly out there just to apply. It doesn't add up for me. If it were my #1 school, I might consider it. My uncle is on the faculty in a different department there so I would at least have a place to stay... But, regardless, it seems like a weird requirement and one I have not come across in my research into different grad school possibilities. So, if I find out they have a stellar program that I would be crazy not to try for, I'll fly out there. But at this point it just seems ridiculous. 

[music]

It does seem like a lot to ask. Are you sure that it's not more like an interview stage, so the people who are asked to take the exam are already being seriously considered for a place? And they definitely don't fund it, or offer a remote testing option? Because $1000 plus the application fee and other expenses you'd incur on the trip is more than most people would spend on their entire application season. That is a huge financial commitment to make which would surely be beyond the reach of a good number of potential graduate students. Seems strange they would effectively shut people out like that, but I guess it also ensures that their applicants are seriously keen to attend...

[georgemckean]

Here is what their site says: 

 

 

Applicants for all graduate programs in music are required to take entrance exams in the areas of music theory (aural and written) and music history. The purpose of these exams is to discern the applicant's readiness to pursue graduate work in music. Applicants must demonstrate a minimum level of skills and knowledge on the entrance exams in order to be accepted into the program. For students who are accepted, the exams indicate whether they need review classes in specific areas before entering into graduate-level course work. Admission of students who need review classes will be provisional until these requirements have been completed, which should be before the student has accumulated 12 graduate credit hours. Applicants in some areas of specialization (indicated below) are also required to take an additional exam in the proposed area. All applicants should take the exams seriously and attempt to do their best work. Because the exams are also a factor in admissions decisions, applicants should not consider the intention of taking review classes as an alternative for satisfactory performance on the exam.

Regular Entrance Examinations are scheduled on 4 dates per year at the School of Music. Additional dates may be scheduled to accommodate various programs. The dates usually fall in these months (but may vary year to year):

November
January/February
February/March
June (Please note that most programs will have made all their decisions regarding admission and financial assistance well before June. You are strongly encouraged to take the exams on one of the earlier dates to be considered for Fall admission..)

 

 

Musicology, applicants for the Ph.D. degree

In this exam, students are given a musical element and/or genre and asked to trace it through several epochs of the history of music. Students will also be asked to discuss one or more specialized topics in areas including music research and bibliography, music in vernacular and cultivated traditions, music and culture, and Western idioms and styles.

 

 

CONFIRMATION OF EXAM REGISTRATIONS: Applicants who have registered for the graduate entrance exams will receive a confirmation email a day or two before the exam date when we have the details (room, proctor, etc.) and a complete list of those who have registered for that date.  We are not able to supply detailed information before that time, but scheduled exams generally begin at 9:00am and are finished between noon and 1:00pm.  If you need to change your exam date, please resubmit the exam request form.

Please plan to arrive at least 15 minutes prior to the beginning of the exam in order to be settled and ready to begin on time. Location (usually in the Fine Arts Building or Fine Arts Library) will be provided in a confirmation email a day or two before the exam.

Students wishing to be considered for Fellowships are advised to take the exam in November, but may be eligible for consideration if they complete it before the end of January. Students wishing to be considered for TA must take it no later than March. Students may audition the same day if they take the exam in February or March.

 

It still seems super weird to me though. I will call them tomorrow just to find out if you can take it remotely. Otherwise, it might not be an option....

 

Anyway, I hope I didn't scare people from this thread! Please feel free to talk about other schools and plans you have this summer to prepare for application season!

[hiroshiman]

Those exams are for people who are admitted. You won't be flying out to take them as part of your application.

[hiroshiman]

Actually, I just reread that, and I was mistaken. Having applicants come take diagnostic exams as part of the application is highly unusual, and I personally do not think Kentucky is worth that expense.

[Kand]

Having applicants come take diagnostic exams as part of the application is highly unusual, and I personally do not think Kentucky is worth that expense.

 

I agree.

[georgemckean]

I didn't think so. I wonder how they get any one to apply. They must rely on alumni or other locals applying. Anyway, is it time to apply to schools yet?

[music]

How many schools is everyone applying to, and what GRE scores are you aiming for/have you achieved?

[Karajan]

Try not to worry too much about GRE scores, guys!  They are probably the least telling aspect of your application to committees.

 

[music]

Sure, but I am guessing that below a certain level they may have a negative impact...especially on funding when it decided by the graduate school rather than the department.

[Karajan]

Of course, try to do as well as you possibly can, but certainly don't get into the mindset that your GRE scores will make or break your application!  I can't really comment on the impact of GRE scores on funding... 

[music]

Well I haven't done any maths in 7 years (thanks, UK education system...) so even to get a 155 it's going to take a lot of time. From what I hear, when it comes down to funding, if the department want more students than the graduate school can afford, often the raw numbers like GRE, GPA will come into play. And diversity, etc... Besides, with the competition as it is, I guess schools would not need much of an excuse to cut someone from the list! I'm guessing 315 combined would be good enough for anywhere though. Karajan, knowing what your GRE was makes me tremble in my boots.

[hiroshiman]

I ate shit on the GRE, by the way.

[CP3]

Wow, I haven't been on this site in several months. Turns out I got rejected by all 8 schools in the application process for a PhD/DMA. I wasn't surprised, but I still felt very disappointed, to say the least.

 

But, the good news is that I will try again!! I'm SOOOO glad I applied last fall, because it was a great learning experience. The amount of time, money, organization and energy required is pretty overwhelming. Now I know what it takes to make it through the process, which will give me a better chance the second time around. 

 

The gre is a bunch of bullshit, but that's the point of it....In my opinion, I think that schools simply use the GRE score as a way to "weed applicants out" Of course this isn't the same at every school. It's just a weight they use of the scales, a bad score just tips the scales the other way, which makes their jobs a lot easier. I mean, lets face it, would any of us want to sift through a thousand applications for a living, hell no! not me!! 

 

The gre matters, but not much. If you have stellar credentials, then the GRE score won't matter. However, if you have a mediocre GPA and less than stellar letters, SOPs, etc, it would be a good idea to study hard and get a good score.

 

I completely bombed the GRE last fall....I didn't have the time or money to retake. I feel that it hurt my applications a little bit, especially considering I had a 3.25 GPA for my Masters Degree. But, I'm not going to waste all of my time studying for the damn test, just enough to get an acceptable score.

 

Let's get this new round of applications going!! WHOOT WHOOT!!! 

[gnufoo]

Wow, I haven't been on this site in several months. Turns out I got rejected by all 8 schools in the application process for a PhD/DMA. I wasn't surprised, but I still felt very disappointed, to say the least.

 

But, the good news is that I will try again!! I'm SOOOO glad I applied last fall, because it was a great learning experience. The amount of time, money, organization and energy required is pretty overwhelming. Now I know what it takes to make it through the process, which will give me a better chance the second time around. 

 

The gre is a bunch of bullshit, but that's the point of it....In my opinion, I think that schools simply use the GRE score as a way to "weed applicants out" Of course this isn't the same at every school. It's just a weight they use of the scales, a bad score just tips the scales the other way, which makes their jobs a lot easier. I mean, lets face it, would any of us want to sift through a thousand applications for a living, hell no! not me!! 

 

The gre matters, but not much. If you have stellar credentials, then the GRE score won't matter. However, if you have a mediocre GPA and less than stellar letters, SOPs, etc, it would be a good idea to study hard and get a good score.

 

I completely bombed the GRE last fall....I didn't have the time or money to retake. I feel that it hurt my applications a little bit, especially considering I had a 3.25 GPA for my Masters Degree. But, I'm not going to waste all of my time studying for the damn test, just enough to get an acceptable score.

 

Let's get this new round of applications going!! WHOOT WHOOT!!! 

 

That is a great attitude to approach it with, best of luck in your applications.

I will also be either applying for fall 14' or spring 14'

[panjo]

Hello there, I'm new to the forum. I'm planning to apply to composition programs for fall 2014. Anyone here have experience applying straight from a bachelor's? My inclination is to apply to a roughly equal mix of masters and DMA/PhD programs. My undergrad's a little unusual as my program involves studying in both Singapore and the US, so I'm hoping that gives me somewhat of an edge. Other than that I have no idea what to expect!

[CP3]

Hello there, I'm new to the forum. I'm planning to apply to composition programs for fall 2014. Anyone here have experience applying straight from a bachelor's? My inclination is to apply to a roughly equal mix of masters and DMA/PhD programs. My undergrad's a little unusual as my program involves studying in both Singapore and the US, so I'm hoping that gives me somewhat of an edge. Other than that I have no idea what to expect!

I think that studying in different places helps. I unfortunately made the decision to study at the same school for both my Bachelor and Master degree(s). (in the long run it worked out, because I met my beautiful wife during my Master's studies.)

 

It seems like applying from a Bachelor's to a Phd/DMA is pretty difficult. If you are extremely talented and have great credentials, I'm sure you would have a decent chance. I was told by my mentor/professor of composition towards the end of my Bachelor's that "you need to get a Master's Degree to move on to the PhD etc." 

 

I don't think that many of us are ready to skip the Master's level. If you are a prodigy, then they will accept you for a doctorate program without the MM. The MM is like a bridge, it buys you time to prepare for the level of doctorate studies. This is mostly personal opinion, but from my personal experience and research, it seems to be fairly accurate.

[CP3]

I ate shit on the GRE, by the way.

If I didn't mention it several months ago Hiroshiman, congrats on Northwestern!!! So exciting! 

[Counterpointer]

Hello there, I'm new to the forum. I'm planning to apply to composition programs for fall 2014. Anyone here have experience applying straight from a bachelor's? My inclination is to apply to a roughly equal mix of masters and DMA/PhD programs. My undergrad's a little unusual as my program involves studying in both Singapore and the US, so I'm hoping that gives me somewhat of an edge. Other than that I have no idea what to expect!

Hello, I applied directly from Bachelors last year, and it was rejection across the board. I applied to 7 phd programs, 3 masters. Only got into 2 masters. As soon as I was rejected by the only masters program I initially applied to, I applied to two more. I'll be attending the one with the better financial aid. But I'm doing music theory, and it is a bit different. For composers, if you have an excellent portfolio with a great deal of complexity (duh.. ), it may worth a shot. I know a person who got into Cornell for composition straight from Bachelors. Make sure to check out student compositions from the schools that you're applying. Good luck!

[panjo]

I think that studying in different places helps. I unfortunately made the decision to study at the same school for both my Bachelor and Master degree(s). (in the long run it worked out, because I met my beautiful wife during my Master's studies.)

 

It seems like applying from a Bachelor's to a Phd/DMA is pretty difficult. If you are extremely talented and have great credentials, I'm sure you would have a decent chance. I was told by my mentor/professor of composition towards the end of my Bachelor's that "you need to get a Master's Degree to move on to the PhD etc." 

 

I don't think that many of us are ready to skip the Master's level. If you are a prodigy, then they will accept you for a doctorate program without the MM. The MM is like a bridge, it buys you time to prepare for the level of doctorate studies. This is mostly personal opinion, but from my personal experience and research, it seems to be fairly accurate.

 

 

Hello, I applied directly from Bachelors last year, and it was rejection across the board. I applied to 7 phd programs, 3 masters. Only got into 2 masters. As soon as I was rejected by the only masters program I initially applied to, I applied to two more. I'll be attending the one with the better financial aid. But I'm doing music theory, and it is a bit different. For composers, if you have an excellent portfolio with a great deal of complexity (duh.. ), it may worth a shot. I know a person who got into Cornell for composition straight from Bachelors. Make sure to check out student compositions from the schools that you're applying. Good luck!

 

Thanks for your replies. It seems the general agreement among people I've talked to is that it's nearly impossible, although it's been known to happen. I'll probably take a shot at a couple just in case I get lucky (I'm particularly attracted to Cornell and UChicago), and apply to at least twice as many master's programs. I do feel like I can put together a strong application, but who knows...

[music]

Made my decisions as to where I'll be applying having visited a lot of schools this past month. Plus a couple of UK schools, most likely Oxford, Cambridge and one or two in London. Expensive times ahead.

[Counterpointer]

Seems like some people are panicking about GRE scores.

I thought I would steal the stats from UPenn music department (just music department, not the whole university)

 

Admitted for 2012-2013

Verbal: Median 156, Range 150-169

Quant: Median 155.5, Range 146-165

Writing: Median 4.0, Range 4.0-6.0

 

GPA: Median 3.87, 3.6-3.92

 

Sure, UPenn may not be everyone's dream school but I'd be happy if I got in there.

GRE scores certainly look doable. However, they do say that they admit 4-6 students each year from 120 applicants (2011-2012). Surprisingly not so high GRE scores, yet less than 5% acceptance rate (might as well just go to law school instead).... this probably means that they don't care too much about GRE scores. Although, I'd say, your chances are slim if your Verbal is in the low 150s- this is just far too low, whether GRE is fair or not..

[CP3]

I just registered for the GRE yesterday, taking it September 28. That gives me 2 and a half months to study. 

 

I took it last October--I'm embarrassed to post the scores--152 V, 139 Q, 4.0 AW.  Not awful, but pretty poor.

 

I didn't get accepted by any schools, I applied to 8, 6 of which required GRE scores. In music, your portfolio, recommendations, etc. are evaluated to see if you "fit" into the program. These are more important elements than the GRE. HOWEVER, when a school receives 120 applications and only admits 4-6, it is pretty obvious that they put some weight on the GRE scores. Makes their job easier when 30 applicants apply with poor GRE scores. 

 

I firmly believe that the GRE is simply used as a tool of measurement. This might sound like a conspiracy theory, but I'm pretty sure that there are schools that won't even consider your application if you score really low. 

 

Regardless, I will not put all of my eggs into one basket studying for the GRE, but I will make sure to score as well as possible!!