The good news is that you still have time to do what’s necessary to be ready to audition for music school when you’re a senior: regular lessons, daily practicing, performing, getting feedback on your performance skills; learning some music theory; listening to lots of live and recorded music of many genres; and really earning what it entails to be a music major.

In addition, we highly recommend you take summer music programs to strengthen your proficiency, work with mentors and peers who are passionate about music, improve your aural skills and much more – all without the burden of also being in school at the same time. Check out our Summer Music Camps & Programs section to learn about some of the many options.

To get in to a music school, you will need to prepare an audition on one primary instrument, i.e., the instrument you’re strongest on – which can be voice. While it’s great to be well-versed in more than one instrument for many careers in music (including teaching K-12 music, music therapy, pit orchestra musician, and cruise ship musician), a limited amount of training and practice on several different instruments will ultimately not prepare you for what you need to do to get into a college music program since you won’t have enough time to practice a lot and perform a lot let alone prepare for your audition – while keeping your academics up and having a life as well. Remember that music schools, like many others, like well-rounded students since experiences in addition to music inform your knowledge and artistry.

Check each school you’re interested in to see what their academic requirements are. Historically, especially at conservatories, auditions have trumped academics but some schools will use GPAs and test scores as determining factors for admission when candidates’ auditions are equally proficient. Since you may discover additional interest(s) as you continue forward, it’s a good idea to keep your writing and reading skills sharp so you can keep your options open in music and other fields as well.

Victoria, MajoringInMusic.com is designed for students like you who are thinking about majoring in music. There are a ton of articles on the website designed to help you understand what it would mean to be a music major, as well as what careers in music are all about. We recommend that you take time to read as many of the articles as possible, to help you think out your next steps. New articles are being added at least every few weeks, so considering “liking” MajoringInMusic.com on Facebook and follow on Twitter to hear about new articles as they happen.

We also highly encourage anyone thinking about majoring in music to seriously consider signing up for summer music programs. Look at our Summer Music Camps and Programs page – the text part of the page explains why these programs are so important. There are lots of opportunities right on the page; some of them are deadlining quickly especially for financial aid and top priority for acceptance.

Best wishes to you as you continue with your music!