Music
We have prepared the following information to guide students who have pursued music throughout high school. We suggest that you create a resume and a recorded tape in order to highlight your talent and distinguish you from other applicants.
Tape Format
- Each college has its own requirements for a musical tape. If you plan to major in music, you will likely have to audition at the school. In this case, you may not need to present a tape. However, if you do not plan to pursue music as a major, then the tape will be essential to showcase your talent.
- The tape should be recorded professionally. A poorly recorded tape is worse than no tape at all.
- Select your pieces carefully, in order to highlight your strengths and range of abilities.
- Do not make the tape too long. For instance, if a piece has three movements, then tape only one and add an additional piece that has a different style.
- Be sure to send the tape both to the admissions office and to the appropriate person in the music department. Enclose a letter and a resume of your musical achievements.
- Depending upon the specific circumstance, you may want to follow up with a phone call to the music faculty member.
Resume Format
- List all of the important musical things that you have done, whether or not school-related.
- List all awards and titles that you have.
- List all competitions in which you have participated.
- List teachers with whom you have studied
- List all major pieces that you have played/sung.
Schools:
The Julliard School
Indiana University
Oberlin College
Yale University
University of Connecticut
Johns Hopkins University—Peabody
MIT
New England Conservatory
SUNY Purchase
Bard College
NYU—Tisch
***The schools listed represent only a sample of a much more comprehensive list
Visual and Performing Arts
Students who have a great interest in pursuing visual or performing arts must assess at an early stage their goals and commitments. For example, performing artists should begin to explore colleges, programs, portfolio, and audition requirements in their sophomore year, and should prepare early for auditions if required by a particular school. Students also must understand that admission to a university must be at both an academic and an artistic level. A student must meet both the academic and artistic talent requirements of a school in order to gain admission.
Schools:
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Savannah School Art and Design
Rhode Island School of Design
Pratt Institute
California Institute of the Arts
Parson’s School of Design
San Francisco Art Institute
Cooper Union
Maryland Institute College of Art
The Art Institute of Boston
The New England Institute of Art
***The schools listed represent only a sample of a much more comprehensive list
Resources include:
The Peterson Visual and Performing Arts Guide
The Stern’s Performing Arts Directory and Performing Arts Major’s College Guide
Performing Arts College Fair: www.nacac.com/fairs_faqstudents.html
Athletes
This information is intended for students who plan to continue athletics in college and might be recruited. If a student has been approached by coaches on either the Division I or III level, he/she can be fairly confident of being able to compete at some collegiate level. If you wish to compete in college but have not yet heard form any coaches, we suggest the following:
Self-Assessment: Be honest with yourself about your abilities and potentials.
Talk with Others: Speak to your coach, counselors, and peers who have similar ability level.
Talk to your Coach: Ask your coach to contact colleges on your behalf.
Contact the college coaches directly.
Highlight your ability: Send an athletic resume and a five-minute video highlighting your strengths.
Beware of coaches’ tactics: Please remember that it is the admissions committee, not coaches, who make the admissions decisions.
Student athletes who plan to attend NCAA Division I or II institutions and participate in intercollegiate athletics need to register with the NCAA Eligibility Center. Utilize the NCAA websites www.ncaa.org and https://web1.ncaa.org/eligibilitycenter/common/ and/or see Coach Harriot, Athletic Director, for detailed information regarding deadlines and registration forms.
Four Parts of Initial Eligibility
- Graduation from High School
- Minimum Core GPA
- Minimum SAT or ACT
- Completion of 16 Core Courses - Please refer to the NCAA web-site for further information.
| GPA | SAT* | ACT** |
| Division I | ||
2.5 |
820 | 68 |
| 2.3 | 900 | 75 |
| 2.1 | 970 | 82 |
| 2.0 | 1010 | 86 |
| Division II | ||
| 2.0 | 820 | 68 |
* combined verbal and math scores
** combined scores for each of the four sections
Note 1: The writing components of the SAT and ACT will not be used to determine your qualifier status.
Note 2: All SAT and ACT test scores must be reported to the clearinghouse directly from the testing agency.
- Toll-free phone numbers (domestic callers only):
Customer Service Line - 877/262-1492
24-hour voice response - 877/861-3003 - Clearinghouse customer service hours:
8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central Time Monday through Friday.
Learning Disabled
All colleges are required to offer assistance to diagnosed learning disabled students; however, we have chosen to list several colleges that offer specific programs. Please note that this is not a comprehensive list and we suggest that interested students review each university’s specific LD catalogue. We recommend the following guides: Peterson’s Colleges for Students with Learning Disabilities or The K&W Guide to Colleges.
Schools:
Lynn University
The University of Georgia
Auburn University
Arizona State University
George Washington University
American University
University of Hartford
University of Denver
University of Arizona
University of Vermont
***The schools listed represent only a sample of a much more comprehensive list
Engineering
Most colleges offer general engineering programs. Students should research each school for information regarding specific programs and requirements. For example, a university may offer a program in computer science but not biomedical engineering. The following is a list of a few schools noted for engineering programs.
Schools:
Harvey Mudd College
California Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cooper Union
Johns Hopkins University
Georgia Tech
Virginia Tech
***The schools listed represent only a sample of a much more comprehensive list
Business Schools
Students who are interested in pursuing business may choose either to do a combined BA/MBA or a specialized BA program.
Schools
Indiana University Kelley School of Business
Washington University Olin School of Business
Babson College
Bentley College
Wharton
***The schools listed represent only a sample of a much more comprehensive list