On Feb. 16, Brooklyn College was listed as one of the best music colleges in New York state in an article from BestValueSchools.org.
Ranked fourth on a list of 19, Brooklyn College precedes schools like Manhattan School of Music, The Juilliard School, New York University, and Columbia University. Listed ahead of BC are three CUNY schools: the College of Staten Island, York College, and the City College of New York.
“Brooklyn College offers a wide variety of instruction, disciplines, and resources that give our music students an experience like few others,” Maria Ann Conelli, the founding dean of the School of Visual, Media and Performing Arts at Brooklyn College, told the Vanguard. “The Conservatory of Music offers one of the top performance educations in the country, with outstanding orchestra, ensemble, and voice programs.”
According to BestValueSchools.org, the ranking of each college was determined using research centered around each college’s tuition costs and acceptance rates.
“We took annual tuition rates directly from each school’s website and acceptance data from Google,” the article explains. “We sorted each school first by the cost of tuition (lower is better) and then by acceptance rate (higher is better), letting each value make up equal portions (50%) of the final rankings.”
With a tuition cost of $6,930 and an acceptance rate of 44%, Brooklyn College’s music program is praised as one of CUNY’s best with its various majors, including the BA in Music, as well as the specialized BA in composition, education, and performance.
The article goes on to praise alumni of Brooklyn College’s music program for their many accolades and accomplishments.
“Graduates have gone on to perform in orchestras, opera houses, night clubs, and cutting-edge concert venues, run arts organizations and festivals, and teach in schools across the country and around the world,” the article reads.
Piano Adjunct Professor Jeffrey Biegel, who has taught in the Brooklyn College music program since 1999, spoke to this phenomenon as someone who has witnessed the success of many students, and enjoys preparing them beyond their studies at Brooklyn College.
“We have had many wonderful students and have been enjoying their success in their chosen careers,” Biegel told the Vanguard. “Brooklyn College prepares their students to succeed in the world and we inspire our students to network and make friends while at school and for the future.”
One of Biegel’s students, Harrison Sheckler, who is set to graduate with a masters of music degree in piano performance this coming May, has already made headlines for his viral virtual choir projects that he launched last year during the early months of the pandemic. Echoing Biegel’s remarks, Sheckler credits his success to the Conservatory of Music at Brooklyn College.
“Brooklyn College Conservatory of Music with its state of the art facility and renowned music faculty is a great place to prepare for a professional music career,” Sheckler told the Vanguard. “Students experience a multitude of performance opportunities and are located in proximity to the hub of the classical arts world.”