Kathleen
Should I double major if I want to go into music education?
I really want to be a music teacher but I am a nervous because all i hear about is state's and school districts cutting the arts to save money. #college #musician
2 answers
Gabriel Figliuzzi
Gabriel’s Answer
Hi Kathleen,
Thank you for the question. The most direct answer to your question is "Yes, you can double major". However, that's not your only choice. For example, you could major in music and minor in something else OR you could major in something else and minor in music. For students interested in teaching it's pretty common for them to major in education or math and minor in teaching.
Keep in mind that double majoring means you will have to complete two different degree requirements which means you won't likely graduate within the usual 4 years. USA Today has a good article on deciding whether or not double majoring is a good fit: http://college.usatoday.com/2014/11/27/5-signs-double-majoring-may-be-right-for-you/
One key question you may want to think about is "Do you only want to teach music or would you be okay with being a teacher?" I ask because if you want to teach then you could major in education and minor in music. Then, later on, you could potentially move into a music teacher position. Having a minor in music would also help you to land part-time work in private music schools, after school programs, or even help you start your own business from home (there many possibilities). Presently, one only needs 18 semester hours of music education to teach music in Illinois: http://www.isbe.net/licensure/requirements/endsmt_struct.pdf (page 10).
I hope this helps, but please respond if I can help further!
Thank you!
Kathleen
Kelly Desso
Kelly’s Answer
Of the people I went to school with, I don't know too many who had their jobs cut, but I do know many that had their budgets cut! This could mean in places for travel (competition/parades/fests), equipment (uniforms, stands, folders, ordering new music), taking on contractors like drill instructors, etc. I've also seen certain courses cancelled from lack of student interest, or development of more popular classes in the field.
The double major question though is going to be highly dependent on the program. When I was a music education major, the department I was in did not allow the educational specialization to double major. Why, you may ask? This was because there was a set of graduation requirements and a set of departmental requirements, which required education majors to spend a lot of extra time in place that the composition, jazz studies, and others did not have be in. One example was even though one only may need seven credits of ensemble to graduate, it was required to join multiple (due to instrumental needs), and be in them every term you attend. That could mean 3 classes of your day are orchestra, wind ensemble, and jazz ensemble that aren't counting toward your transcript after you meet the minimum. Another hidden requirement I ran into was between year two and three you had to take a test on piano proficiency no matter if you were a piccolo player or majored on piano. This is fine if you majored in piano, but if you don't our students did four semesters of piano to pass this test. It didn't count as a requirement, but one of those classes that majors had to attend.
I'm going to give you a link with a base curriculum example- and the same site at the bottom shows the required extras that are built into your schedule that take time away from where it makes taking on a double major impossible https://www.ccsu.edu/programs/music-education-bs/curriculum
As a result, if you are scared of the educational system cutting your job (music department), it would probably be easier to complete the music education program and then do a master's level certification in something like special education.