Mark's Music School Diary.

It's been fun for me watching Mark go back to school, as I'm doing the same, too. I didn't take off nearly as much time as mark (10 years... I'm 33 currently), and I finished my B.A. and am working on my M.A., but there's still a little bit of an age gap. Fortunately (?) I look really young, so the students are shocked to discover I'm over a decade older than them, and several of the professors are surprised to find I'm only a few years younger than them.

I've been teaching guitar at a different local collage as an adjunct the last six years, so I haven't been out of the school environment, but I have been on the other side of it. They finally hired on a full-time guitar position this year, which you needed a masters to apply for (hence my having the push to finally go back to school), but in order to create the full-time position, they took all the classes away from the adjuncts and combined them into one full-time position. So I'm techincally still on staff, but I have no classes anymore. More time for school I guess, but it sucks losing a job, and it sucks even more that the administration has been treating me like a middle school ex-girlfriend. They have literally told me nothing about what's going on since they posted the job opening in January. My classes dissappeared without explanation, they wouldn't reply to my e-mails asking about it, and I haven't been included in any of the annual start up meetings/e-mails. Maybe I dodged a bullet by being let go there... With my masters, I'll have a lot more mobility with landing better gigs, anyway.

Also, I'm majoring in electric guitar performance, but I'm playing guitar in 0 ensembles and upright bass in 5. Just like the real world.
 
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Poparad said:
It's been fun for me watching Mark go back to school, as I'm doing the same, too. I didn't take off nearly as much time as mark (10 years... I'm 33 currently), and I finished my B.A. and am working on my M.A., but there's still a little bit of an age gap. Fortunately (?) I look really young, so the students are shocked to discover I'm over a decade older than them, and several of the professors are surprised to find I'm only a few years younger than them.

I've been teaching guitar at a different local collage as an adjunct the last six years, so I haven't been out of the school environment, but I have been on the other side of it. They finally hired on a full time guitar position this year, which you needed a masters to apply for (hence my having the push to finally go back to school), but in order to create the full time position, they took all the classes away from the adjuncts and combined them into one full time position. So I'm techincally still on staff, but I have no classes anymore. More time for school I guess, but it sucks loosing a job, and it sucks even more than the administration has been treating me like a middle school ex-girlfriend. They have literally told me nothing about what's going on since they posted the job opening in January. My classes dissappeared without explanation, they wouldn't reply to my e-mails asking about it, and I haven't been included in any of the annual start up meetings/e-mails. Maybe I dodged a bullet by being let go there... With my masters, I'll have a lot more mobility with landing better gigs, anyway.

Also, I'm majoring in electric guitar performance, but I'm playing guitar in 0 ensembles and upright bass in 5. Just like the real world.
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That sucks, but it seems to be how it goes for adjuncts. One of my friends is an adjunct math professor and I've been helping him apply to positions at other schools. The college we work at starts the fall semester on the 8th. The department gave him his class schedule this past Friday. IMO, that's just not enough time, and it fucked him out of positions at other schools because he had to keep his availability open.
 
Help!I'maRock! said:
That sucks, but it seems to be how it goes for adjuncts. One of my friends is an adjunct math professor and I've been helping him apply to positions at other schools. The college we work at starts the fall semester on the 8th. The department gave him his class schedule this past Friday. IMO, that's just not enough time, and it fucked him out of positions at other schools because he had to keep his availability open.
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I'm working with a group of adjuncts to potentially unionize. It's gotten really awful in Ohio. I taught a 12-hour load each semester (full-time is 15), for $10k a year (full time is $45+), with no benefits, no representation on the faculty senate, no guarantee of anything beyond the current semester, no office (yet had to maintain 12 office hours a week... right messedup0) and there's a law in the state of Ohio saying that even if adjuncts do unionize, the school doesn't have to recognize it. So, it's an uphill battle, to say the least.
 
Poparad said:
It's been fun for me watching Mark go back to school, as I'm doing the same, too. I didn't take off nearly as much time as mark (10 years... I'm 33 currently), and I finished my B.A. and am working on my M.A., but there's still a little bit of an age gap. Fortunately (?) I look really young, so the students are shocked to discover I'm over a decade older than them, and several of the professors are surprised to find I'm only a few years younger than them.

I've been teaching guitar at a different local collage as an adjunct the last six years, so I haven't been out of the school environment, but I have been on the other side of it. They finally hired on a full time guitar position this year, which you needed a masters to apply for (hence my having the push to finally go back to school), but in order to create the full time position, they took all the classes away from the adjuncts and combined them into one full time position. So I'm techincally still on staff, but I have no classes anymore. More time for school I guess, but it sucks loosing a job, and it sucks even more than the administration has been treating me like a middle school ex-girlfriend. They have literally told me nothing about what's going on since they posted the job opening in January. My classes dissappeared without explanation, they wouldn't reply to my e-mails asking about it, and I haven't been included in any of the annual start up meetings/e-mails. Maybe I dodged a bullet by being let go there... With my masters, I'll have a lot more mobility with landing better gigs, anyway.

Also, I'm majoring in electric guitar performance, but I'm playing guitar in 0 ensembles and upright bass in 5. Just like the real world.
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It sucks that the school is treating you that way but as you said, having the masters degree will open things up for you a bit. My original plan was to just get my B.M degree but the more I speak with people around here the more I realize that I need the Masters if I want to make this a meaningful effort.


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Mark Wein said:
It sucks that the school is treating you that way but as you said, having the masters degree will open things up for you a bit. My original plan was to just get my B.M degree but the more I speak with people around here the more I realize that I need the Masters if I want to make this a meaningful effort.


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Yeah, the only thing a B.A. is good for is the training you get to survive as a professional musician. In applying to places to teach lessons, a B.A. is helpful, but if you have any reputation and work experience, it's not necessary. And in your case, absolutely unnecessary as you already run your own business! College gigs are the only places that care about degrees, and they won't even look at you without a master's half the time, even for a shitty adjunct position.
 
Poparad said:
Yeah, the only thing a B.A. is good for is the training you get to survive as a professional musician. In applying to places to teach lessons, a B.A. is helpful, but if you have any reputation and work experience, it's not necessary. And in your case, absolutely unnecessary as you already run your own business! College gigs are the only places that care about degrees, and they won't even look at you without a master's half the time, even for a shitty adjunct position.
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PREACH.


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Well, Ive been working away. I was added to a second combo that is pretty challenging for me in terms of the level of music. Check this out..its a students arrangement of a Joe Henderson tune:

IMG_9115.JPG
 
Congrats on going back! I'm right there with you, 31, and going for my Masters. Which is why I'm in my hotel reading instead of exploring the Philly nightlife. :embarrassed:

I gots funny symbols too.

edfef9a53511cc61c6727c3f68963439.jpg


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Poparad said:
I'm working with a group of adjuncts to potentially unionize. It's gotten really awful in Ohio. I taught a 12-hour load each semester (full-time is 15), for $10k a year (full time is $45+), with no benefits, no representation on the faculty senate, no guarantee of anything beyond the current semester, no office (yet had to maintain 12 office hours a week... right messedup0) and there's a law in the state of Ohio saying that even if adjuncts do unionize, the school doesn't have to recognize it. So, it's an uphill battle, to say the least.
Click to expand...

Adjuncts absolutely should unionize and fuck over the academic administration. My institute refuses to hire/abuse adjunct faculty. We have professional instructors and actual faculty that teach. The whole thing is a giant fucking scam and it is an embarrassment to the academic world that adjunct abuse exists.
 
eloydrummerboy said:
Congrats on going back! I'm right there with you, 31, and going for my Masters. Which is why I'm in my hotel reading instead of exploring the Philly nightlife. :embarrassed:

I gots funny symbols too.

edfef9a53511cc61c6727c3f68963439.jpg


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I had a kid ask me last week "are you one of those old people who just take classes for fun?" Hopefully you don't have any gray hair yet :embarrassed:
 
Mark Wein said:
I had a kid ask me last week "are you one of those old people who just take classes for fun?" Hopefully you don't have any gray hair yet :embarrassed:
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Haha. I wish I had that kind of cash and free time to do this "for fun".

Luckily I'm doing all online classes through Arizona State. So those young fucks can go sit on it.

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Tiltsta said:
Adjuncts absolutely should unionize and fuck over the academic administration. My institute refuses to hire/abuse adjunct faculty. We have professional instructors and actual faculty that teach. The whole thing is a giant fucking scam and it is an embarrassment to the academic world that adjunct abuse exists.
Click to expand...
It's a big thing here too. Adjunct faculty are treated horribly. My Logic and Critical Thinking teacher last year told me that Adjuncts were only allowed 500 copies per year in the faculty office at Fullerton College and since he blew through that the previous semester he had to either print our materials at home on his own computer and printer or post them on the class web page and have us print our own.
 
I forgot to mention that I was asked to play some event for a faculty member this weekend (which didn't schedule out right) and a prior Premier Music instructor who is now a professor at CSUF asked me to play for his vocal jazz groups' concert in November. It's funny that there are a lot of kids who play jazz better than me at the school but I'm still getting called for these things in my first month there and I'm even getting questions from the faculty about things like PA's for small groups and whatnot. I have so much to learn in this place but it's nice that some of the folks recognize that I have some real world experience under my belt.


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Mark Wein said:
I forgot to mention that I was asked to play some event for a faculty member this weekend (which didn't schedule out right) and a prior Premier Music instructor who is now a professor at CSUF asked me to play for his vocal jazz groups' concert in November. It's funny that there are a lot of kids who play jazz better than me at the school but I'm still getting called for these things in my first month there and I'm even getting questions from the faculty about things like PA's for small groups and whatnot. I have so much to learn in this place but it's nice that some of the folks recognize that I have some real world experience under my belt.


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Click to expand...

As with anything, it's not the most talented person who gets the job, it's the reliable one who puts in the work.
 
Yesterday was interesting. I had a good private lesson but when I got there he was teaching a kid that was vaguely familiar. Turns out he was one of my students about 8 years ago at Premier.

The weather was nice yesterday so I practiced outside as much as I could. I'm suprised at how much I use my iPad now but its become indispensable. I'll probably start putting my combo charts into Fourscore and using the bluetooth page turner. A couple of the other student have the ridiculously large iPad Pro and just being able to read charts that large is a huge thing. Unfortunately I need to replace my phone first. :(

14372326_10154572606737425_682988635667626880_o.jpg
 
I'm also going to note that I am down 14 lbs from the start of school and 22lbs since March. Between better eating and walking an additional 5k steps a day I'm getting a little healthier. I'm at 258 today and if I could get to 240 by the end of the year I'd be stoked. 225 or 230 is my actual goal by next summer. Slow and steady this time around.


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Hanging in there. I'm doing OK in all of my classes for the most part but the hardest thing is finding actual time to practice guitar. I have probably 25-30 pieces of music ranging from simple jazz standards to highly arranged ensemble pieces to learn so far this semester and I am supposed to be also working on my personal skills every day.
 
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