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Should I go to college?

#21
Good points all around I suppose- I realize the importance of an education, and realize the need for one in today's world.

However, this is REALLY what I want to do, my own friends pretty much label me an outcast because most nights I rather practice than go out. And my jazz band teacher is currently dying for me to joining concert band, so I suppose I'm not a horrible player.

I'm actually considering a popular idea amongst some of my friends' brothers; take a year off after high school before going to college. That way I can test the waters before going to college...good idea?

And I apologize for an spelling errors, I'm still not used to this blackberry!
 
#23
Go to college. Forget New York, it's too competitive. Pick a good school someplace not as busy. Start a band there. Get good. Less competition means you will get more gigs, more house parties, more fans. You won't just blend in with every other good band in town. You will probably never make it big anyplace you live (just a fact of life, odds are against you), so you might as well get as much out of making it small as you can. Keep college first though. That's going to be your meal ticket when you're in your mid 20's and on.
 
#26
99.9999% chance You're not going to "make it" (sorry to break it to you), and you're not going to learn anything in college (everyone who went to college can tell you this).

When you are 40 people are going to want to see your degree not the EP you recorded with some minor label.

Go to college, major in something useful then minor in music.
 
#28
fsf347 said:
Good points all around I suppose- I realize the importance of an education, and realize the need for one in today's world.

However, this is REALLY what I want to do, my own friends pretty much label me an outcast because most nights I rather practice than go out. And my jazz band teacher is currently dying for me to joining concert band, so I suppose I'm not a horrible player.

I'm actually considering a popular idea amongst some of my friends' brothers; take a year off after high school before going to college. That way I can test the waters before going to college...good idea?

And I apologize for an spelling errors, I'm still not used to this blackberry!
Click to expand...

Taking a year off is usually not a good idea. I work with several college recruitment programs at the university I attend (Morehead State) and the numbers for people going to college after "taking time off" isn't great. I've played more music in college than I ever did before. I've also learned more about music in my time in college than I ever did playing gigs on my own. Play in ensembles and things like that. College is totally worth it.
 
#29
Well iv been posting aimlessly around craigslist for bandmates for the past four months, to no avail. I just put up fliers today, so hopefully I can get something started before college :(

If that doesn't happen, what are some good cities with a decent scene because I really happened to like that post explaining that there's just too many bands in nyc. That way I can go to college there instead.


oldbassplayergu said:
why don't you just ask daddy for more money and hope the world doesn't kick your*&%. I have a feeling if it does you'll just ask daddy for more money.
Click to expand...

Firstly, no need to be rude. Secondly, my father passed ten years ago.
 
#31
I thought i was a above par bassist and musician. but even as a college student trying my hardest, and putting college on the backburner, i still can't "make it".
go to college, somewhere cheap, study to be a music major, or music industry/technology, or recording or something. something that is a little more "behind the scenes" in the music Biz. that way, if your band cant make it, you can still find a 9-5 job
 
#34
College is a great place to network with other musicians. Some schools are notorious for their network of musicians. That networking will help you with gigs and all kinds of other work.

Bands come and go. Don't put all your eggs in one basket, so they say.

It challenges your mind in other ways that I think can really enrich your musicianship. I didn't major in music, but I gig all the time and that started off with the people I met in college. You want to surround yourself with the best minds and talent possible and that's a good focused to find it.
 
#36
I had to face the same question last year. Music is my passion, and I would love more than anything to be heavily involved in the music industry. Unfortunately, so would just about everyone else. As you know, our chances aren't good.

Fortunately for me, my second passion is science, and I've always been pretty good at math. My plan is to go to a good college, get a degree in something stable and with great potential (Electrical Engineering) and play as much music as I can.

I figure that once I hit college, the admissions process will automatically weed out the loser musicians. Of course, those left over may not be counting on music to pay the bills, but that's probably not going to happen anyway. I decided a few months ago to get as involved in music as possible, and now I find myself in three traditional bands and a live band supporting a sketch comedy show at school. I've got a band practice or gig most nights and that's on top of homework and the rest of my life. I'm just looking at it as practice in spreading myself thin. Being busy with both school and music should be a breeze in college after this.

Spend this time and the time in college getting good - really good - at bass. Find a band, stick with them for a while, and get really tight. When you graduate, how old will you be? 21? 22? 23? That's nothing, you still have almost your entire 20's left to try to make it big, and if it gets tough in the meantime, you've got a degree to pay the bills.
 
#38
FrenchAK said:
When you graduate, how old will you be? 21? 22? 23? That's nothing, you still have almost your entire 20's left to try to make it big, and if it gets tough in the meantime, you've got a degree to pay the bills.
Click to expand...

THIS. 4 years or so pass will pass by like that. It seems eternal from the perspective of a high school student, but trust me, it goes by fast. It's a small amount of time to drastically effect the rest of your life.
 
#39
I don't know the *exact* numbers, but these numbers are (or should be) sobering for anyone facing this "dilemma" (or is that a delema?).

Lifetime earning potential of Bachelor's Degree OVER High School Diploma: $1,000,000 - that's $1 Million dollars, per a Census Bureau report using 1999 earnings data.

The odds of "making it big" in music: 1:1,000,000 - a common number I've seen. Maybe it's more like 1:750k, or 1:1.2M, but who really cares at that point?

See where this is going? You're in essence gambling $1M on your dream of making it big, and the odds are 1:1,000,000. Not very good odds. Go to school. Get a degree. Make music, and THEN try to make it. Some of the more successful bands and musicians I know are college educated and have put their education to use in marketing themselves - with success.
 
#40
I have never met a single person who went to college and graduated and regrets having done so. Not even the people who wound up working in a field unrelated to their education (me, for example--I have a bachelor's in political science, but I'm an x-ray tech at a hospital).

Go to school. It will have an impact on your life, no matter what you end up doing.
 

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