<p>As I look over all the information on this site--so readily available and generously shared, I find it striking how much can change in a few years. I am 22 and high school class of 2004. When I graduated, if College Confidential did exist, it was small and no one knew about it. I don't think it did exist then. Even facebook sort of "came out" while I was a freshman. I WISH with all my heart that I'd had this site back then!! I was stumbling around in the dark--my high school advisors knew nothing about where to send an aspiring musical theater artist. I ended up at a school that hardly had a theater program and ended up dropping out after my freshman year. I have taken some classes and continued training and performing outside of school. Seeing all this now makes me WANT to go back to school--now that i know where to audition and have so much more knowledge about what kind of place would be right for me. But I would have to apply this fall, and by the time i got there I would be 23. And most of these schools make you do a full four years, even with transfer credits. And I feel like being outside of the usual mold would set me back even more for even getting into one of these schools. I would LOVE some opinions from people on this site. I feel like there is a wealth of knowledge here and I just don't know what to do. Is school out of the picture for me? Should I just move on? This business is SO competitive and now there are so many BFA schools that having a degree IS becoming necessary. I appreciate any thoughts. =)</p>
<p>Dancer, in four years you will be 27 years old. If you pursue your dream, you will be a 27 year old with a BFA. If you don't, you will be a 27 year old without a BFA who regrets not giving it a shot.</p>
<p>A 27 year old is still a baby from my perspective!</p>
<p>Welcome. CC has been around for a while. I have been on it since 2002. CC is way more than this MT Forum. We have many forums on all aspects of the college admissions process and related topics. While CC did not always have a discussion forum for MT specifically, there was an ongoing very lengthy thread on all aspects of MT college admissions that became a 40 part thread over the years and was eventually turned into its own separate forum within CC so that there could be sub topics instead of one big thread on everything to do with MT colleges. You can assess the first 38 parts of that original ongoing thread before CC created a separate forum for MT here:
Colleges</a> For Musical Theater Major Discussion FAQ</p>
<p>Anyway, it is not true that you need a BFA to succeed as a MT actor. It is a very good training path but not the only one. A BA can also be a path that leads to success. My D just saw a showcase style performance with MT students at Yale in NYC two nights ago and the talent level was very high (I know some of these kids and can attest to that they are every bit as talented as BFA kids and even were admitted to BFA schools but opted for a BA path). One thing a person your age may wish to consider is to attend a two year certificate program such as Circle in the Square Theater Program. The main thing is to get training and there are many ways to accomplish that. I am all for a college degree myself but it is not necessary in order to make it in theater. However, you are still pretty young and could definitely pursue a BA or a BFA now.</p>
<p>From the way I see it...if theatre is what you plan to do for the rest of your life, and you have no other significant career aspirations, try to get the BFA. Ideally, you will get great training and make lasting connections. However, if you have a younger type, you might just try to get work now. Do you have an agent or a manager? You might want to consult a few people in the business and procure specific, valuable advice pertaining to your individual type and talent. And, as Susan mentioned, you should look at some of the two year programs like Circle in the Square.</p>
<p>I'm 22 as well, HS class of '04 and I have been a "college gypsy" for a while, completing some credits here and there but I just haven't found my place. I got accepted to Marymount Manhattan's BA in Theatre for this coming fall and I just feel like I finally found MY school. I have 45 credits, so I won't have to be there all four years but I will most likely be there until I'm like 26. </p>
<p>So obviously I don't think its too late for you! If you really want to go, then go! Don't let age stop you! Also, if you don't have any degree, I would suggest getting either a BA or a BFA just because in today's world it's not wise to be without any degree on the off chance that it may not work out.</p>
<p>If you feel like getting a degree is important but you are getting some work right now, maybe you could find a way to take some correspondence and night courses when you have the time to get your General Studies credits to sophomore level and then audition for some BFA programs that accept transfers. I'm not sure how it works, but some that apparently do that in some capacity are Cal State Fullerton and U. Arizona. I think there was an older student on here a couple of years ago who had been cut from Arizona but was accepted to Boston Conservatory a few years later as a second year student. </p>
<p>Another option is to just take your time getting a degree of some kind part time and then audition for MFA programs. There aren't many that specialize in MT but a lot of Acting MFAs do include some MT training. Also, there are apparently some that avoid taking 22 year olds straight out of college because they prefer to train students with more life experience; so, you would likely be among people more your age by the time you finished your degree if you took that route. </p>
<p>Still another option is to look into some two year MT programs in the UK. I don't know which ones are good for MT but I'm sure you could get that info from JIJane.</p>
<p>MT in the UK - if you are doing a 3 year course it depends on whether you are more of a dancer or a singer. Generally though Mountview, Arts Ed and GSA are the top ones, Central also has a 4 year course now but it lacks some dance training and is still quite new. As for masters - Mountview, GSA, Central (although again, lack of dance) and Royal Academy of Music. None of these in any particular order. There are no 2 year MT programmes available in the UK, only 3 and 1 year courses.</p>
<p>As for not having this website when starting out - I am now 27 and when I was 16 and starting out there was NOTHING on the internet around! I literally guessed my way into college and the industry.</p>