Popular Music Degrees

My son is looking to apply for popular music degrees next year, so we are starting our research now. He plays guitar and is most likely looking for a broad popular music course that encompasses instrument skills, production, song writing etc. We are looking at the conservatoires as well as regular Universities. Any advice or recommendations on the best courses would be really appreciated. He has been looking at RNCM, Leeds Conservatoire, LIPA but they are competitive so he needs other options. Many thanks.

My son is looking to apply for popular music degrees next year, so we are starting our research now. He plays guitar and is most likely looking for a broad popular music course that encompasses instrument skills, production, song writing etc. We are looking at the conservatoires as well as regular Universities. Any advice or recommendations on the best courses would be really appreciated. He has been looking at RNCM, Leeds Conservatoire, LIPA but they are competitive so he needs other options. Many thanks.

My son is looking to apply for popular music degrees next year, so we are starting our research now. He plays guitar and is most likely looking for a broad popular music course that encompasses instrument skills, production, song writing etc. We are looking at the conservatoires as well as regular Universities. Any advice or recommendations on the best courses would be really appreciated. He has been looking at RNCM, Leeds Conservatoire, LIPA but they are competitive so he needs other options. Many thanks.

RNCM is very very good, I am glad he is aspring for that. Leeds conservatoire is good too, maybe not quite as good as RNCM, but still very very good. LIPA I’m not so familiar with.
There exist many courses at universities that are a lot less competitive than these. In fact, as long as he gets good grades, there aren’t really any university music courses in the UK that are particularly competitive (Oxford, for example, has over 50% music acceptance rate!).
However as a music student myself (albeit classical rather than popular), I hesitate to immediately recommend university courses. They won’t offer you the same career motion that conservatoires do. The tuition, even at the best unis, doesn’t compare to the RNCM or any other good conservatoire. It is also harder to make great industry connections. The biggest reason however that I have problems with recommending university courses is that they often just don’t prepare you for the real world in the way that conservatoires do (assuming that your son wants to work as a musician). Universities require a high amount of strictly academic focus and often push performance to the side – completely the opposite of a conservatoire! – and many students don’t feel ready for the music industry after graduating, and many end up in unrelated fields. Of course I’m not speaking for everyone, but this has been the experience for practically all my friends who’ve chosen university.
My personal recommendation if he doesnt get into RNCM, Leeds, LIPA is that he should consider taking a gap year and giving it another try, rather than settling for a university. Of course they are competitive courses but as long as you son works hard with discipline and has good artistry he will certainly be able to make it. He can also spend the gap year making connections, playing gigs, and practising, so he will be in a very advantaged position when the course starts.
The music industry is very competitive, so it is perhaps best not to settle for a ‘safety’ option. RNCM, Leeds conservatoire and (I’m not so familiar with it but i assume)LIPA are all fantastic instutitions and by far his best chance and success in the music industry over a potentially lukewarm university course.