<p>Hi everyone! I've been a long-time reader, but have finally plucked up the courage to join you all. I know there are similar threads to this, but I felt like they weren't entirely what I was looking for. Please bear with me as I get a handle on this whole website thing! :)</p>
<p>As a high school junior, I'm just starting the college process. I've always known that acting is the only viable option for me, if only because I would never be happy doing anything else. So, with that in mind, I've poked around at a few schools, but it's so hard to know where to begin. My grades are eh--they're mostly Bs, with the occasional C and a few As. My GPA at the beginning of this year was roughly a 3.1, and my PSAT/PLAN scores are pretty pretty average. With that being said, I'm not an outstanding student, so I'm looking for a program that wouldn't punish me for that. I'm also super interested in BFA programs as opposed to BA programs, if only because I want the opportunity to completely emerge myself in acting. I don't want to use the word 'conservatory', because I'm not entirely sure if that's exactly what I'm looking for, but it might not hurt to throw that out there.</p>
<p>So, I have a few vague ideas. I'd really just love it if some of you lovely folks could guide me in the direction of a few schools that might be a good fit, as well as provide me any tips for getting started on this whole college-shebang! Thanks oodles in advance, and hope to talk to you all soon! xx</p>
<p>My daughter has very similar academic stats due to sever Dyslexia and Dysgraphia, but she did have several AP classes. However, we went to several comparison sites to look at the average accepted GPA, rank and SAT scores for colleges to narrow down those that we felt she was in line with. There were still many choices for her with a B average. She is a Musical Theater candidate who wants a school with a strong dance dept, so I doubt many of her choices are going to be the same type you are looking for, but I will list several that she has already been accepted into academically.</p>
<p>Hartt, Rider, Webster, CCM, Point Park, Pace, Ohio Northern</p>
<p>I do suggest that you spend this opportunity to concentrate on your studies - she did shows an ever increasing GPA, which I would like to think this helped. She also was tutored for the SAT over the 2nd semester of her junior year and brought up her SAT score by 100 pts. So please keep working on your academics - they really count, especially for scholarships.</p>
<p>In terms of “what I wish we had known” when my son was a junior, find out about any conferences or festivals in your area that might have auditions and college representatives. My son benefited enormously from attending the Virginia Theatre Association conference this October (which I only learned about here on CC, by the way) and I wish he had participated in some Thespian festivals and the SETC (South Eastern Theatre Conference) during his junior year. Depending on where you live, there may be more or fewer opportunities. You can learn a LOT this way.</p>
<p>If you are interested in a career as an actor, I would suggest you identify actors who currently are doing the sort of work you would like to do. Then research their careers and find out how they got where they are. If they are famous, you may be able to find information about them quite easily.</p>
<p>I don’t know which actors you will choose, but I think you will find that quite a few very succesful actors don’t even have degrees. You may want to look into all the different options you will have when you finish high school.</p>
<p>Many, many, many fine theatre departments are within schools that are not stringent about academic admission requirements, and some that are more stringent are lenient with arts majors and depend more on audition.</p>
<p>You will see among the schools that students on the forum apply to that someone with your stats can get into many of the schools quite easily. Of course try to get as good grades as possible, and perhaps take tests one more time, but focus as much as you can on your audition. There also are many non-auditioned BFAs at schools that should be safeties for a B/B+ student with decent test scores. Here is a list:</p>