Music Colleges' Interests In Applicants?

As I am looking into colleges for Film Scoring/Composition (USC Thornton), I would like to know what kind of things they look for in the first year applications. Specifically, I would like to know whether winning something like one of the monthly competitions offered on this site would be of any value on a college application/résumé. I know these monthly competitions are usually not very large compared to many competitions you find online, but even so...

Any other information regarding this topic would be appreciated!

Gracias :D

Well, it can't hurt!  I don't know specifically what music programs are looking for, but my dad used to do college admissions so I have a general idea…  After throwing out the "definitely not" applications, college admissions departments usually spend a bit of time researching you, specifically your high school.  So they will know if a music theory course was offered at your school, and whether or not you took it.  They will know whether or not AP and honors courses were available at your school, and whether or not you took them.  They want to see that you are interested in learning and willing to work hard.  Challenging yourself to the honors course and getting a B, is better than coasting through the regular level and making an A.  

Because mom is not going to be there to make sure you do your homework at college instead of partying every night.  And mom is definitely not going to be there after college to hold your hand at work all day at your first job.  Are you self-motivated or just skating along doing the bare minimum and studying for the test?  Are you interested in the world around you and using your education as a tool to really learn, or is a degree just a piece of paper to you that will land you a comfortable job?  Do you have the discipline to achieve your goals in college, and afterwards?  

Anything you can do to show that you are working hard to take the opportunities available and grow on your own is great.  Including winning monthly competitions that they have never heard about.  It shows you are serious. (:

Good luck!

I'm sure this varies from college to college, but in my experience (talking to music professors and such), the composition portfolio is the most important part of an application to composition programs. Grades and (for some colleges) performance auditions* tend to be very important, too, but that varies widely from program to program and, ultimately, the composition portfolio is the best evidence they have as to whether or not you would succeed in their program. Still, things like awards--no matter how small--can make your application stand out, so it can't hurt to put one of the informal competitions here at YC on your résumé. It shows that you are at least slightly involved in an online music community and have been recognized by your peers. Good luck!

*Performance auditions for composition majors are weird. Some colleges don't require them at all, some (like Eastman) want them up to the same standard as performance majors, some require them but will accept you with a mediocre audition if they like your scores, or may not hold composition majors to the same performance standards as other majors. This might be something to research when choosing what programs to apply to--I'm not sure what USC's policy is.

Just finished my first semester at University studying music composition... honestly the audition plays the biggest role in whether or not you're admitted into the program. Sure you can have awards, and good grades (I had good grades, no awards) but in the end you have to be able to play well and write well, and they wanna see that you can. I only applied to two schools (not easy schools to get into either), but after each audition they accepted me on the spot. I HIGHLY recommend becoming as proficient as possible on your instrument even if you're going to study composition.