<p>CoachC is a woman. You guys are silly! :)</p>
<p>So which schools are the top ones now???
KIDDING!!!!!!!! :)</p>
<p>I think we're just burning nervous energy before auditions really get going. Just wait, once Jan hits we'll all be too tired for these circular discussions!!!</p>
<p>I have just finally had the time to read Coaches posts.</p>
<p>If a student reading this, please know that what coach says about casting and agents and booking jobs is the absolute truth. I hope you all will remember it when you are out of school.
This is expert advice and I am grateful coach posts these pointers. </p>
<p>Everyone who reads here is lucky to have this kind of advice from someone who knows exactly what they are talking about. Many knowledgeable folks here post opinions and we all benefit and learn from hearing different points of view about colleges. In this case, Coach's notes on casting and agents and getting work are not just opinions but professional wisdom.</p>
<p>Coach, thanks for taking the time to tell how it works in the real world. All these kids will be there eventually.</p>
<p>xxx,Mary Anna</p>
<p>Just wondering, if you care to share here, or you could email me or PM me, what "very bad" things have you heard about Syracuse. Especially since it is the only program you mentioned that you had heard "bad" things about. Not wanting to "shoot the messenger", just think it would be good to know what someone out there in the real world might know, since we wouldn't have any other way to get this type of information. And Syracuse is talked about here on CC as being a really good program. It is high on my daughter's list for next year's auditions. Wondering if that should change?</p>
<p>Hi dancemom - </p>
<p>As many have pointed out (calmly and also quite heatedly - I think my inbox may explode! :)), all of these opinions are subjective - I can't really reveal what I have heard b/c doing so would reveal my various sources to anyone intimately familiar with SU, but I'd say if you and your D have had great experiences there and love the program, go with your gut. I have students at many programs which have some "bad" buzz but who are doing REALLY well, getting great Equity work (when they are still students!), and loving their educations. I'm sorry, I know that's not directly comforting to you - but as I said in an earlier post, "industry" buzz in just ONE factor in choosing a school. I absolutely didn't mean to upset anyone and should have been more cautious about conveying negative opinions - you can find those about ANY school, and I mean ANY, as I expressed in an earlier post. My info did come from people with NY "pull," but there are of course other people with NY pull who may LOVE S.U.! In the end, I suggest that EVERYONE go back to the criterion of working grads - how many are working and where, esp. RECENT grads (to take care of the "this is a new program" disclaimer - b/c if it's a GOOD program which knows how to prepare students for the real world of MT and isn't still "learning" as a PROGRAM, then the grads should be working) - as the MAIN "professional rep" determinant. As mtdog points out, once you get your first (or first few) big gigs, then your rep is your own and it becomes about your school utilizing YOUR name rather than vice-versa. (And that's ok, esp. if you loved your education - you may even get to go back and be a guest speaker, teach master classes, etc.)</p>
<p>mtDog, I'm really curious to know your role in the MT world - are you a casting director or a college faculty person? I'm curious mostly b/c your info contradicts a lot of my info, and I always want to learn and correct myself when I'm "wrong" (or expand my knowledge of other opinions). As I said, my info isn't random - but it comes more from working Broadway and touring actors, some of whom I coach for their auditions, and casting directors than from Broadway directors. So keep sharing! :)</p>
<p>P.S. dancemom, I wasn't "ignoring" your earlier messages - this is the 1st chance I have had to respond</p>
<p>Something I just thought of to add to the "working" criterion - ask also where the STUDENTS work! Which summer stocks, how many get their Equity cards while still in school (a great advantage to have this BEFORE going to NYC!), etc.</p>
<p>i have some questions regarding several of these programs so i thought i'd just post it here rather than on each program's thread. i think this will be of interest to everyone. i know some of this info is available, but if some of you could post it here, i would appreciate it. i'm interested in how many audition and how many are accepted into these programs.........emerson, penn state, boco, ccm, univerty of ok, webster, hartt, u of miami, college of santa fe, and roosevelt. thanks so much for any help provided. btw, i've been putting together a spreadsheet of most of the major's along with pertinent info on each one. if that would help anyone and there was anyway i could make it available, i would be happy to do so.</p>
<p>razorback,
To answer your question regarding # auditioning and admitted to Penn State: approximately 400 apply and offers are made to approximately 15- 18 students.</p>
<p>Razorback, is your D transferring? I did not realize that but perhaps you are going through the process again?</p>
<p>When you gather this data, one thing to delineate is how many are accepted vs. how many they yield to enroll. </p>
<p>For instance, last year at Penn State, they stated that they auditioned 350 and that they wanted to have 16 in the class but I don't know how many offers were made to YIELD 16. For example, my D and her best friend got in but did not accept the offer. I don't know how many beyond the 16 slots they have, that they offered admission to in order to yield 16. So, for ANY school, when figuring the acceptance rate, you really do need to look at how many are accepted, not how many that yields for slots in the class. </p>
<p>For BOCO, I recall the admissions director giving a number of approximately 1200 auditioning with 110-120 offers going out to yield 60. I hope I have that accurate because I recall immediatly thinking, wow, 10% get offers which is higher than the other admit rates of my D's list of schools. Again, she got in but did not attend so obviously more offers are made than slots in the class. </p>
<p>Emerson, I recall they wanted 20-25 students in the class and I don't want to quote how many auditioned for fear I'd be inaccurate as I can't recall the number off hand, if I ever knew it in the first place.</p>
<p>Can't give the numbers on the others.</p>
<p>Susan</p>
<p>Razorback--OU has around 700 pre-audition from which they choose 80 to audition on campus. They accept 12-16 to net 11-12 students. I highly recommend pre-auditioning in person, if possible, rather than by tape. You can do that at the unifieds, for example.</p>
<p>thanks everyone for the info. d is considering some auditions, yes. and thanks susie for pointing that out. that makes the acceptance rates much better.</p>
<p>so, let me re-state my question to include offers, rather than how many accepted or how many yield a freshman class. and thanks to all for taking time to answer this. i know there must be others interested in this same info.</p>
<p>Razorback, as I mentioned, I don't know the numbers for some schools on your list first hand. My own child only applied to three that overlapped your list. I know for her 8 schools, the admit rates ranged from about 3-10%, all in the single digits, in other words. I think that may be true for many on your list where she did not apply as well. What you have to also figure in, which I know does tend to ruffle feathers a bit on the forum, but you need to look at the strength of the applicant pool at each school. So, while two BFA programs may each have an admit rate of 6% for an example, one school may not have as strong of an applicant pool as another OR may be a fall back option for some kids who then do not take the offer of admission upon receiving offers from how shall I say, more highly regarded schools in this field, thus opening up slots for those next in line so to speak. So, if you have a school like CMU and let's just say the admit rate is 4% or something like that (just making a hypothetical here, not quoting the REAL rates), and then a school like Hartt, Roosevelt, or Santa Fe who maybe have a very low admit rate too, you can't then conclude that they are as hard to get into as CMU because the strength of the applicant pool or at least the ones who take the offers of admission may differ. When I counsel students who have profiles that are not as strong as others, therefore, I may guide them to go for their "dream" schools but realistically to have schools like Hartt, Santa Fe, Wagner, etc. on the list. </p>
<p>I hope this is not offending anyone but it is important to not just examine admit rates (which is also important) but to also look at the criteria for getting in AND the strength/reputation of the program in terms of the selectivity of the program. Even on an academic front, some schools have set a low bar for criteria of admission....say a 2.0 is required and some give a 3.0 or some give a minimum SAT of 1000 or 1100. But at another school, say NYU, those GPAs or SATs would indicate a very slim chance of admission. So, many factors have to go into determining the odds of admission, not just the statistics you are gathering though those statistics are important to have as well, no doubt about it.</p>
<p>i understand what you're saying and i knew that going in, from all the previous discussion. but, thanks for the info, it's all very helpful.</p>
<p>This was told me by SMU recruitment.</p>
<p>SMU auditioned 850 students last year. </p>
<p>Their first round this year ((last week) had the following:</p>
<p>50 auditioned
5 letters of acceptance ; 2 girls/3 boys
3 wait listed
42 letters of rejection</p>
<p>They always accept a larger percentage (in this case 10%) from this first round because they tend to be the stronger candidates and most have SMU as their first choice.</p>
<p>They take a much smaller percentage from Chicago UNIFIEDS. However, I was told they always get extremely strong candidates there.</p>
<p>The rest of this small select group of freshmen trickle in from vaious other auditions on and off campus</p>
<p>xxx,Mary Anna</p>
<p>Mary Anna, Thanks for that info about SMU! Gah ... I was going to audition for them at the NY Unifieds but I think I am going to have to talk to mom to see if we can reschedule for one of their January dates to increase my chances. Don't they accept about 30 for BFA Acting? How big is the final waitlist? Also, don't they tend to lose a lot of acceptees to other top drama schools in "less red" locations? There were two girls on the Theatre thread that were accepted to the BFA last year as well as a boy for Theatre Studies that didn't go and another that got in for Theatre Studies off the waitlist. Hopefully I will be able to cancel anyway after the Brown ED decisions come out. haha</p>
<p>CoachC, I think we might also be talking about different MFA programs. The ones I have gathered to be "top" are Yale, UC San Diego, UC Irvine, Tisch, ACT, Delaware, UNC Chapel Hill and Brandeis. Do you have info that counters that?
Kel</p>
<p>Kellster, didn't realize you were an ED applicant to Brown and I'm keepin' my fingers crossed for you. There is a lot of theater happenin' there. I have a daughter who attends.</p>
<p>Kellster
the 30 includes both Theatre Studies and Acting. It is usually split about half in half. For acting they usually take about 13 total boys and girls.</p>
<p>I assume you know the difference in the two tracks, if not, I will explain.</p>
<p>Their wait list is small because it's a real list they go to and they make that very clear. </p>
<p>Good luck,
xxx,Mary Anna</p>
<p>P.S> I love what you said about the 'red state". We have been in the minority here for so long, I have forgotten what's it's like in the rest of the blue world!</p>
<p>Soozievt, Thanks! My ultimate educational scenario is a BA in Theatre from Brown followed up with an MFA in Acting from Yale ... by the time Im 23. We can all dream, right? :) I like how the flexibility at Brown lets you schedule what amounts to a quasi BFA but still get a lot of other stimulating academic stuff. It is a big reach because I'm the same age your MT daughter was last year plus I have moved around a lot and my ECs aren't that great, so I decided to go ahead and apply ED to get it over with as early as possible. I just hope I get a yes or no and not a deferral for my sanitys sake. My second choice is Vassar but I might have to flip a coin if I get lucky and get accepted there and the Tisch Atlantic studio.</p>