<p>nalajen asked me on another thread how I “know” acceptance rates. I’ll admit that I don’t. They change a lot, depending on the year, the school, the weather, etc. None of this is supposed to be exact; it’s just a way to make a balanced list, because so many kids pick pretty much all incredible longshots and so many lovely “lesser-known” schools are excellent, and actually could give them some options.</p>
<p>To say that “if you’re going to do this, you should shoot high and not compromise yourself” is a disservice to the kids - since that’s like telling someone “only apply to Ivies; nowhere else is worth it” - and to the schools themselves, which so often get overlooked because they aren’t “the most highly regarded” (whatever that means).</p>
<p>I don’t have stats, am just going on what the schools tell people. Some are what I’ve been told, and some are what others hear. So this is why I just use a general spectrum of “higher” to "less high. </p>
<p>For example, from my D’s list, BU told us that they audition about 800 and would offer spots to about 80 for a yield of 45-50. So I’m calling that about a 10% acceptance rate. CMU probably auditions more, and accepts fewer. Minn asks 60 to its callback weekend, then accepts 20, and I’m guessing they audition at least as many as BU. Monclair State takes 16 into Acting (according to a list on a thread that’s gotten buried - which posts the size of the class but not how many audition); they probably accept more than that, but I can safely assume that several hundred audition. </p>
<p>Some schools manage their yield differently - they call or write to their first-choice kids until their get their number, and if the kids turn them down, they start calling their next preferred kids until the class is full. So it’s impossible to guess how many they actually offer admission to - a bit more than the class size, but who knows? If a school like BU offers admission to almost twice the yield they want, we can think that at any school (either because of a student’s preference, finances, etc.) they probably offer admission to at least 50% more than actually enroll.</p>
<p>On the other hand, Adelphi told us a year ago that they audition about 400 and accept about 100 for a class of 30. I think New Paltz is about the same. You still need to work hard to make these cuts - as I said, these are acceptance rates that compare to very highly selective college admissions. But they’re way better than 10%, and I do believe kids who are auditioning should have a couple of these schools on their list if they don’t want to be shut out of getting in anywhere. We all say “a balanced list,” but we don’t always help them understand what that means, or find the schools that will help balance it.</p>
<p>I’m not that familiar with schools like Marymount Manhattan, Pace, Hartt, UArts, and others that aren’t in or near larger cities. Would anyone say that they do offer a SLIGHTLY higher chance of acceptance? Higher than 10%? We have kids going to schools in Texas, the Carolinas (and I don’t mean just UNCSA, which I suppose is in the “higher selectivity” group?), and other states - could anyone make some recommendations? A new thread yesterday mentioned IL State, an auditioned BA with an excellent program, for example.</p>
<p>I’m also curious if we’ve seen changes this year, or over time in general, as nalajen pointed out in her question on the other thread - have some schools been recently inundated with auditioners, so that their acceptances rates have gone down? What role do the Unifieds play in all of this - is it typically schools that don’t travel where you can get more like a 25% acceptance rate instead of 10%, just because they don’t have the hordes of kids auditioning? </p>
<p>I’ll say one more time, at the risk of sounding obnoxious, that I am not trying to help kids “play a numbers game” here. They have to work just as hard on their auditions, and they can’t count on anything. This is basically a very tight spectrum between chances at Harvard, Yale, Stanford … and Tufts, Vassar, Haverford. It’s just a good idea to have a few schools where you have a statistically slightly better chance, and lots of our group this year did. I also want to make the point that the “slightly less selective” schools offer still an enormous level of quality and that to get into them is an enormous accomplishment. There are no safeties, nor likelies, nor matches, in auditioned school admissions.</p>
<p>If people actually know admissions stats, that’s great. I think even anecdotal information is helpful, though. Even if it starts an argument, it keeps the subject under discussion for people to learn from.</p>