The Junior Nightmare

April 14, 2007 at 10:00 PM

Everyone has to go through with it sooner or later:
College Prep.

First, you have to work to death for four years...4 years math, 4 years science, 4 years English, 4 years Theology, 3 years Social Studies...AND take as many AP/Dual-enrolled courses as possible AND get straight A's. Not to mention community service hours and after-school activities.

Second, you have to spend hours and days and months preparing for standardized testing so you can PROVE that you worked your butt off in highschool. Then you have to actually take them.

Then you have to find colleges you like, get into one, and you're set.

Unfortunately, all three things happen simultaneously during junior year. Along with seven million other headaches (for the student, parents, and teachers)

So far, my teacher and I have come up with a list of teachers/places he thinks I would do very well at. We had originally talked about CIM and Oberlin, but after closer scrutiny, my teacher doesn't think any of the instructors would really work for me, with the exceptions of possibly Updegraff and someone else I've forgotten. Now, we're more leaning towards some people at Indiana U and U of Michigan. He's made some connexions for me, and is going to contact some more people before I start setting up lessons.

I wasn't accepted into Encore this year, which surprised Mr. Neal greatly. He attributes it to not "connecting" with anyone personally and also because, apparently, they're accepting less highschoolers and more college students. So I'll be going back to Brevard this summer, after a college tour across the midwest.

SAT's are coming up SO fast! I have the Chemistry exam in May and the "real" one in June...Chemistry is going to be a lot harder than I thought, and the normal SAT looks as if it will be a nightmare as well. But I made the top three percentile on the PSAT, so hopefully, with some studying, I can get even higher scores.

To take a break from it all, I'm going to a concert tonight featuring a Brahms piano concerto, Bernstein's Chichester Psalms, and Strauss' Die Rosenkavalier (I'm sure i spelt that wrong). Should be lovely.

From Pieter Viljoen
Posted on April 15, 2007 at 3:17 AM

I think letting your teacher decide who you can study with is a bit wrong. Go there, have lessons with the people and decide for yourself. Encore basically looks for a certain type of player, and maybe you didn't show them that side of yourself on that day. I wouldn't be too worried about it.

I would just really advise for you to actually go to CIM and meet with the teachers. I don't know any reason in the world why you'd get along with Updegraaf and not say, Bill Preucil, David Russell, or Paul Kantor. They're all great teachers with great personalities.

If you're that into school, consider Yale as well as the Harvard/NEC program. You have to be pretty unreal committment wise to do the latter, though. Also there is USC which is now one of the best places to study violin, but apparently it's a bit soft on the academics so it might not be for you. I think IU sounds like a great idea. As someone who recently applied to schools, all I can tell you is that meeting and playing for a teacher 1on1 can completely change your perception of them, so I'd recommend you do that. This is the next 4 years of YOUR life, not your teacher's.

From Pauline Lerner
Posted on April 15, 2007 at 6:30 AM

Many of us on this site are living proof that you can survive the junior year of high school with your sanity more or less intact. Hang in there!

From Kerah Williams
Posted on April 17, 2007 at 1:32 AM

Tasha--

Please don't go to that bug-and-snooty-kid-infested campground BREVARD again! Check out Sewanee Summer Music Festival (5 weeks on the campus of Sewanee: The University of the South) which has great teachers from all over, including SUNY-Fredonia and Stanford. I went last summer and it was a really great experience for me. The campus is gorgeous--think Harry Potter meets the Episcopal tradition of the past century--and financial aid is available.

You should also look at the Hot Springs Music Festival at www.hotmusic.org
If you are accepted, all expenses are paid except meals, and those are easy especially considering the fact that almost all the restaurants in town have discounts for Festival Students.

All is not lost!

And I understand how you feel about drowning in school work. The only reason I am writing this is because my mother, of all people, reads the blogs and discussions here and told me that you didn't get in to Brevard. I haven't had the time to get on the site for at least two months. The smoke is starting to clear and school is starting to taper off, but not nearly as fast as it should. : )

Hang in there.

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The Junior Nightmare

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