5 Steps in Applying for College Music Scholarships
As you prepare to study music in college, take advantage of scholarships that reward the work you’ve already put into your technical and artistic development. To maximize your music scholarship awards, start early and strategize carefully to select, practice, and record audition pieces that best showcase your talent and hard work.
At Gustavus Adolphus College in Saint Peter, Minnesota, we offer generous financial aid to all incoming students, and many also qualify for merit-based scholarships for accomplishments in academics, leadership, service, and the fine arts. Gustavus music scholarships range from $2000-$25,000 and are renewable each year, including for non-majors. Music majors at Gustavus take private lessons and perform in 25+ vocal and instrumental ensembles as well as student-led groups. A Gustavus music degree combines a customized liberal arts education with rigorous studies in music theory, history, composition, and discipline-specific electives. At Gustavus, you receive one-on-one mentorship and close advising tailored to your musical career pursuits as you explore your musical passion inside a vibrant, collaborative performing arts community.
What do you need to know about the music scholarship process? Keep reading to learn how to approach music scholarships, including tips on optimizing your recorded auditions.
1. Start a scholarship list to stay organized.
As a high school junior or senior, your first step to college finance planning is to estimate your college expenses. List your top music schools and calculate your tuition, fees, housing, and food costs for each one. These numbers are available on the college website. Keep a separate list for each school and take notes as you research federal financial aid, the scholarships available from each college, and independent scholarships you find for music (or anything else).
As you think about how early to start this process, consider that priority deadlines for college music scholarships often fall in December of your senior year of high school. Prior to that, you should allow several months to select, prepare, and record your audition pieces. Missing the priority deadline diminishes your chances of receiving the scholarship and possibly other available financial aid.
2. Estimate your total federal financial aid.
Grant money from the federal government is equivalent to a need-based scholarship: money you receive to pay for tuition or school-related expenses and do not have to pay back. Use the Federal Student Aid Estimator to find out how much federal aid you are likely to qualify for during your first year in college. The FSAE will estimate your total grant and loan allowance for the upcoming school year, so if you do this as a high school junior it won’t be your actual first year of college. However, historically the award amounts don’t change a lot from year to year unless inputs such as your household income change significantly. If these are likely to stay about the same, you can expect roughly similar numbers over the next 4-5 years.
3. Research music and other scholarships from your schools.
Search each school website to see what scholarships they offer, and update your lists with any you’re eligible to apply for. Note application and priority deadlines. Check to see if the scholarship is renewable over all four years, and if so, what the eligibility requirements are to keep receiving it.
Music scholarships. What scholarships does the school offer specifically for music, how do you apply, and what are the eligibility criteria? Gustavus offers competitive music scholarships at three levels, with annual scholarship amounts ranging from $2,000 to $25,000. Students can submit multiple entries covering different performance areas, for instance, a separate scholarship application each for voice, piano, and guitar. Students do not have to be music majors or minors to qualify, only to meet certain musical participation requirements each semester.
Need-based scholarships. Does the music school offer students scholarship money based on financial need? If so, they will probably have an online estimator you can use to find out your award amount. Under the Gustie Guarantee, each student accepted to Gustavus receives a minimum of $25,000/year towards tuition, adjusted upwards based on financial need. Eligible Minnesota students with household incomes under $80,000 receive most of their Gustavus tuition free for all four years of college.
Academic scholarships. Many colleges reward academic achievement during high school, as well as extracurricular participation. The Gustavus President’s Scholarship offers substantial tuition aid to incoming students who rank near the top of their high school class, and the Dean’s Scholarship honors academic, leadership, or service accomplishments.
Miscellaneous scholarships. Investigate your college’s other scholarships in case they match any of your interests or achievements outside music and academics. For instance, Gustavus offers scholarships in theater and dance, as well as visual art. Almost all Gustavus scholarships can be stacked on top of each other as well as on any outside scholarships you bring in, so it pays to apply to every one where you are a candidate.
4. Look for independent music scholarships.
Searching broadly for music scholarships won’t return many helpful results. Try narrowing down your music scholarship search by instrument, genre, or geographical location. Ask your choir director, band teacher, guidance counselor, and other likely people if they have any good music scholarship leads.
Music scholarships might require a short essay, videos of you performing, or both. You can streamline your performance recording and essay writing by finding the overlaps in different scholarship criteria. For instance, the Evergreen Club music scholarship for Minnesota high school seniors asks applicants to upload two 5-7 minute performances of their best work to YouTube. If you’re applying for a Gustavus music scholarship, you can reuse your audition recordings for this and other independent scholarships. This approach will often work with other performing arts scholarships, such as theater or dance, as well.
5. Ace your music scholarship auditions.
When applying for scholarships from your college and elsewhere, start early so you can gather the information you need and be thorough, accurate, and timely with your submissions. Besides a possible short essay, most of your written application will be straightforward, objective information. Your application may require an interview. However, the centerpiece of your music scholarship application is your audition video(s). Your scholarship success hinges on these recordings, so invest substantial time and thought into them. Ensure you’re presenting your best work as professionally as possible:
- Read the scholarship criteria closely. What type of work are they looking for, what are the time constraints, and what technical guidelines are given?
- Select challenging pieces. Your audition should showcase your best work. Don’t play it safe with something that’s too easy, just because you can already execute it flawlessly. Also, choose pieces that contrast substantially with each other and highlight your artistic range.
- Practice regularly leading up to recording. Give yourself several months and work with a teacher to master your audition pieces.
- Choose a room with good acoustics. Select an uncluttered space that will have minimal background noise while you are recording. Upholstery and carpet are preferable to hard surfaces, to minimize reverberation. If you’re using a room in your house or any space that isn’t a professional recording studio, do a test recording early to check sound quality.
- Create a professional visual experience. Dress the way you would if you were performing this music for a live audition. Set up a simple backdrop and avoid harsh overhead lighting. Try dimmable lamps or other indirect lighting sources until you find a lighting setup that looks good on camera, then frame the shot carefully to best capture your performance.
- Use a good microphone. Invest in or borrow a high quality microphone if possible, and position it at an appropriate distance from your mouth or instrument. Test record in the recording space to get it right before you record an entire great performance with poor sound quality.
- Enlist help. Optimizing your audition recording requires thoughtful choices about acoustics, presentation, recording, and editing. Don't hesitate to ask for help dialing in these different aspects to get the best video you can.
- Record multiple takes. Leave yourself lots of time, warm up, then sing or play your piece multiple times. Submitting a recorded audition means you get to choose your very best performance! Get feedback from trusted musical mentors on which take to use.
- Edit the recording neatly. Leave a few seconds on either end of the performance so the recording doesn't cut off abruptly or drag on too long. Remember to maintain a professional demeanor just before and after your performance to facilitate this.
- Submit your recording correctly. Ensure you upload your recording according to scholarship application guidelines, including correct platform and settings.
Earn your music degree in Minnesota at Gustavus.
The Gustavus music program offers the rigor of a conservatory education with the flexibility to chart a liberal arts degree path in line with your passion and professional priorities. Gustavus sponsors over 240 musical performances annually, and our top vocal and instrumental ensembles tour across the country and the world. Our close proximity to the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul connects students to Minnesota’s premier musical and cultural hub. Experienced music department faculty mentor students closely and ensure they graduate with valuable industry experience in their chosen specialty.
Visit our campus and tour our state-of-the-art studios and performance venues. Reach out today to learn more about music scholarships, auditions, and the world of opportunities available to Minnesota music majors at Gustavus.
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