It’s a great story and very cool you were grounded enough to kind of know your path and grow positivity along the way! I had a great Berkeley grad teacher in high school but quit early since I wanted to play AC DC and Deep Purple covers instead! Probably a huge mistake but after continuing on my own by ear for 30 years I feel as you described yourself! I learned along the way I’m definitely not a performer, I’d be a studio guy all the way. Currently use studio one and amateur record produce my own stuff eventually I’ll do a KZread channel or such and probably just give it all away free downloads etc…lifetime of joy and at almost 60 I’ll play until I cant!

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

Awesome!!! Keep jamming my friend!

I graduated from Berklee in 2013 and it was some of the best four years of my life. I would do it again but the student loan debt really sucks. I would do it again though. Can’t imagine what it costs now.

@ravilambmusic

8 ай бұрын

Agreed. I can't imagine any other path to have taken.

Honest, fair and insightful. Thank you.

@ravilambmusic

10 ай бұрын

Thank you!!

Solid essay. One puts in the time to accumulate information about an area of interest at a formative period in life, and then goes out into the world and sees how it goes. I studied biology as an undergraduate, went into and then quit a masters program(“everyone” was disappointed), worked as a research assistant in a big productive immunology lab(made tiny money), maintained an electron microscopy facility(no new challenges after a few years), and then….decided to go to dental school(combine love of biology with talent for and interest in manual manipulation and fixing things). 30 years later I’m retired, healthy, soul nourished….looking forward to a phase of life involving my grown children, maybe grandchildren, new adventures. You got this.

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

For lack of better words, you are the man. Or seem like it, thanks for the kind words!

Great video! Thanks for sharing your experience.

@ravilambmusic

Жыл бұрын

Thank you! I'm glad you made sense of my blabbering

Thank you for sharing !

@ravilambmusic

11 ай бұрын

Thanks 😊

Thank you so much for your guidance

@ravilambmusic

9 ай бұрын

Just sharing my experience, best of luck on your journey!

A very frank and insightful discussion

@ravilambmusic

Жыл бұрын

Thank you for making sense of my blabbering!!!

Thanks for being brutally honest about your experience. ❤

@ravilambmusic

6 ай бұрын

Thank you!!

Unfortunately, Even though I was doing so great at Berklee, after 4 semesters I was just about to max out in my loans so I couldn't finish and I ended up with a massive amount of debt. Thankfully I got a job teaching. My boss hired me just based on the fact that I went to Berklee but every day I am very sad I never got to finish my Degree. 😢

@ravilambmusic

10 ай бұрын

I totally understand that...I was at my absolute last thread when I changed majors to pro music just so i could grad a semester early to make it work out. I lived deep in Roxbury my whole time in boston and never worked less than 20hrs/wk in the service industry while doing 9+ classes a semester at berklee. now im in a different hustle, i have 2 kids and my wife and I are both independent artists haha!! the struggle will never end...

@christsservant5472

10 ай бұрын

@@ravilambmusic I also considered changing to the Pro Music degree while I was there. I was dual Major Composition and Performance. I transfered in with an Associates Degree in Liberal Arts. That plus the 4 semesters at Berklee and I still needed a lot more semesters for that dual degree. I should've done the degree you did. That must have been so hard to work at your job and keep up with your school work! You got the degree though. You and your family must be so proud of you. Congratulations!!! Maybe in a few years I can figure out a way to finish. You must have not slept much while getting your degree! I wouldn't be able to handle 9 classes and 20 hours of work!! Again, Congratulations!!! You graduated Berklee!!!!! You'll take that with you the rest of your life.

@LogicalQ

8 ай бұрын

I feel like for as much emphasis is put on the degree, it winds up being a crutch or an excuse for the people who obtain it for the wrong reasons… There is a big difference between “I’m the musician I ought to be.” And “I have a the credentials that a good musician ought to have.”

@willinguyen1

7 ай бұрын

that must have been exhausting (the service industry is especially exhausting) but it must have built great character, liked your video@@ravilambmusic

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

thank you! i have two kids now...im still tired

Interesting Story! Thanks!

@ravilambmusic

Жыл бұрын

Mahalo Ted! How you been??

@tedfitzgerald3153

Жыл бұрын

Doing well. Thanks.

The College is worth it, the loan is not.

@ravilambmusic

10 ай бұрын

Agreed! I can't imagine how much a loan would be for tuition in 2023

@travisbennett3332

9 ай бұрын

@ravilambmusic after 2 years one guy said he's 100k in debt. That alone was enough to turn me off from berklee.

@ravilambmusic

9 ай бұрын

@travisbennett3332 yes it was expensive 10 years ago and I know tuition has gone up dramatically. I had to work my ass off to minimize my loans. Had I lived in the dorms, and not worked during my school I would have been out 3-5× as much. Lifestyle has a huge influence on how expensive any degree will cost you. Best bet for avoiding financing stress is to go some state school in the Midwest. There are some awesome programs, but you can't have it all, i was making great money for a 20 year old working in bars in downtown Boston, not sure that same wealth is available for young adults to access in cheaper areas..Everyone has to make their own decisions, there is a reason certain cities are more expensive. That all being said, I live in a very rural area and wouldn't choose to raise my kids anywhere else.

@LogicalQ

8 ай бұрын

Nail on the head

@juancasas4821

8 ай бұрын

21000, sick @@ravilambmusic

Very interesting story, thank you for sharing that. Greetings from Ukraine!

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

Thank you!!! Hope you and your family are safe and well. Happy holidays

Went there around the same time as u! But i used all my money on the first 1.5 semesters lol. So i dipped and got lucky for a few years after with a record label and then transitioned into other things from there. I def would’ve linked w u if we crossed paths at school.

My son is studying options to further his musical education. For him, it's a broader choice than for most Americans thanks to his dual US-EU citizenship. Coincidentally, we live a few miles from the Berklee Valencia (Spain) campus. They have a great reputation, and we have met a number of their people. It didn't make sense for us, however, when every other music school and conservatory here costs about 3% of Berklee's price tag. There's definitely a "big fish in a small pond" effect here too. He has been given opportunities he likely would not have Stateside: accompanying orchestras, Big Band, and rock gigs (he played 'Disney Rock' this past December). For him at least, what he does on his own has played a bigger part in success than what he gets with an hour or two with teachers in a week. Classes are important, however, because it shows what you don't know- you just don't need to pay a fortune to get them.

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

Sounds like he is doing great!!!

Hey thanks for being honest about your experience. I am wondering though that in the video you talk about how you had very little guitar knowledge prior to your attendance at Berklee, what did you know and what should have you known before going into it?

@ravilambmusic

4 ай бұрын

I knew a bunch of Metallica riffs lol!! Yea I didn't know how to read or nothing but I really liked music. I did a video on the Berklee audition that night answer this question a bit more too. Hope this helps!!!

I greatly respect those that follow their dreams and go to art/music school. To me, the ROI is just never there. You'll spend $200k and four years of your life to (most likely) make less than an electrician or plumber. Not to mention the crazy competition and lack of job security. I chose a career that doesnt interest me much (engineer), and it gives me enough time and money to enjoy my interests as hobbies. As much as I like the choice I made, I still envy those that took the riskier, and in a way, more challenging path.

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

Thanks for the great reply!!! I hustled my ass off and worked and paid my own rent and school, I left Berklee with a little over 40k in loans. That was 10+ years ago tho, I lived in the hood and my rent was $400/mo. Totally different world new college students face. But I guess what I'm saying is, I could have gotten way more out of my college experience if I didn't work and lived on campus, but I would have been out waaaaay more money. Can't have it all at once in life. I'm now a father and now have the opportunity to be present in my children's life because I don't work traditional hours. But believe me I considered electrical training during covid 😄 🤣

@yishihara55527

5 ай бұрын

@@ravilambmusic Music isn't worth risking your life for. Hood life is never fun.

@yishihara55527

5 ай бұрын

Less than an electrician or plumber?! Try fast food restaurant worker.

@ravilambmusic

5 ай бұрын

@@yishihara55527 haha yes I don't like hood life!

@ravilambmusic

5 ай бұрын

@ayakosaito7323 haha yea I probably make less than a well paid fast food worker. But I get to be a musician that doesn't smell like French fries. You can't have everything in life.

respect, I'm at Berklee now and have already been teaching guitar for a while. Did you have John Baboian and Bruce Bartlett as your teachers? Did you master in song writing?

@ravilambmusic

Ай бұрын

Baboian is the man! Did pro music so I could graduate in 7 semesters

Hey great video very informative, one question I have for you is was there a audition to get in or was it the standard application process?

@ravilambmusic

Жыл бұрын

Yup application and in person audition. I have anther video about that on my channel

@blackboxcomics5966

Жыл бұрын

@@ravilambmusic thanks I’ll look that up!

You are correct that graduation is just the beginning of the grind. Berklee gives you the tools to get started, but it’s just that: a start.

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

I bet you been grinding

@trevaudio

4 ай бұрын

The same as every university / college

If I had to do it again, I wouldn't enroll in Berklee Online. I've definitely learned alot and grown as a musician, but I could probably get all the knowledge I've learned from a few books and online courses. I was fortunate to have the GI Bill, so for the most part I haven't paid tuition, but in hindsight I would have pursued a completely different degree (visual arts, 2D/3D) and acquired all the music knowledge elsewhere. Others mileage will likely vary greatly...

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

I've heard terrible things about Berklee online

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

I should do a video about that

I’d love to be in front of a crowd playing guitar competently and you get to tell people you’re a BERKLEE GRAD - and THAT is IMPRESSIVE.

@ravilambmusic

10 ай бұрын

Thank you! Yes I have many priceless memories of playing in new cities on big stages and meeting amazing musicians. There was no paycheck for it, but I'll have it with me all my life

Took a Berklee tour in 2005. Just couldn’t see myself that much to learn the guitar, walking away thinking.

Hey Ravi, thank you for your insights and honesty. I am thinking of enrolling in Berkeley's Guitar's Skills classes. The tuition is $6k. What are your thoughts?

@ravilambmusic

4 ай бұрын

Is this one of those online courses? I don't recommended them. Those "certificates" don't really count for anything and are kinda seen as a joke. You will def learn a lot but you could spend half the amount on a good private teacher and get more out of it.

@ravilambmusic

4 ай бұрын

Berklee has become this mega corporate music giant figuring all sorts of ways to cash in on the legacy name, Berklee online being a recent iteration.

@larryjay302

4 ай бұрын

Thank you for this information. I will definitely look into other ways of gaining information and learning. Mahalo, Larry Jay

I’m guessing it’s 50k a year now?

@juancasas4821

8 ай бұрын

42000

Do you feel Berklee’s online courses have the same status and prestige that the in person courses do?

@JBangaBeatsTV

8 ай бұрын

good question. I've been looking at the online courses and certificates

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

Definitely not

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

I'm gonna do another video addressing that

@peterandolph7628

4 ай бұрын

Actually the same professors teach the same courses. The difference is ensemble participation and connections you make on campus. From an academic standpoint it’s the same, and the diploma is the same.

Just because someone finds a few pennies in the industry and/or happiness doesn't mean that it isn't one of the biggest scams going. All the real money goes to the schools and musical instrument/gear manufacturers as they prey on people's hopes. I say this as someone who has been around the block a few times.

11 years later...... in just 11 mins?

@ravilambmusic

5 ай бұрын

I'm surprised anyone is watching more than a few minutes of my rambling 😄

That didn't sound too convincing. I detect some doubt as to your choices. Good luck though, I hope things work out for you. It's tough when you are competing with people that were bread for that field and have parents that are already in that field to help and mentor them. They have a huge advantage.

@ravilambmusic

Ай бұрын

Thanks! Yes it's never gonna be easy. I'm lucky to have the opportunity to play, some cultures poor people are forbidden from music

LOL!

@ravilambmusic

9 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching!

Now that there's KZread, music schools are just a pure scam 😂

@ravilambmusic

6 ай бұрын

Now Berklee online, that's a scam. I definitely recommend playing with other people in real life versus being alone in your bedroom during your musical journey. Even if you are just doing electronic production, having in person criticism is crucial to growth.

@matt_the_man9831

6 ай бұрын

@@ravilambmusic Yes 1000% agree with playing with others. That's probably the only good thing coming out of school, being surrounded by other passionate musicians. But I guess there's cheaper ways to do it also

I've heard your playing, you should ask for a refund.

@ravilambmusic

7 ай бұрын

Thanks for all your support!