Safety schools: Drew University in New Jersey (non-auditioned BA in theater), Hofstra in Long Island (non-auditioned BA in theater with the option of auditioning for BFA in acting at the end of freshman year).
Audition programs that are not quite as selective as the “tippy tops”: Brooklyn College, SUNY New Paltz, Adelphi, LIU, AMDA.
Welcome mt summer help! Sorry, I don’t know how to tag when there’s a space. The mantra for safeties: the only safety schools are non-audition! 
And of course, your child’s grades are good enough and it’s affordable.
@thespis1 - The prescreens will definitely let you know about your S’s dance. If rejected from MT, you’ll know! Not all BFA-Acting programs are the same. Some have a lot of crossover with musicals, letting students take dance, voice and audition for musicals (Syracuse is an example). Others are very rigid with crossover (Michigan is one example). My S sent out prescreens for both and only had success (due to dance I think) with Acting. Also - MT programs have far fewer electives- so the film/play writing focus might be easier with Acting, which tends to have a bit more flexibly.
@thespis1 I would add to @MomofJ5 ‘s comment above that “some” acting programs may have more flexibility to allow electives. However many do not. School specific so as with all else, ask each school. My D’s acting program is nonstop from 8:00am to dinner every day, plus some evening classes. Then official rehearsals are until 10:00 or 11:00pm. Then they get to do homework or projects or continue to rehearse unofficially after that. Weekends are also busy with rehearsals and projects. Again, not all programs are run this way, so good to ask and make sure there will or won’t be time for electives. Some BFA programs and many BA programs do have flexibility. I hear U Arts is very flexible and has lots of crossover.
I agree with @bfahopeful, you must check each school. At my S’s school, the MT majors have no electives and the acting majors can take one elective class per semester.
What are the general thoughts on Unifieds? Which location is better? Do the same schools go to all 3 Unifieds? I know Chicago is held all in the Palmer House where as NYC is all over the city. Other than that what recommendations does anyone have who has been through this.
Generally, I think Unifieds are an excellent chance to get a number of auditions completed without the expense of traveling to each school. Chicago is the most well-attended by schools - spans over 4 days with some dance calls being held the week before. It is NOT all held in the Palmer House; there are numerous auditions at other area hotels (the Hyatt Regency hosts a number of schools). Also, dance calls are not always held at the Palmer House. This year, many dance calls were held at the Joffrey. The Chicago locations are accessible (easy to walk if the weather cooperates). Roosevelt, DePaul (and I am sure others but I don’t have direct knowledge of those) will do auditions on campus during the Unified time slot. New York is similar but the time frame is shorter and the schools a bit more spread out. I have not been to LA.
I’ve done this three times and each time did Unifieds to varying degrees. I preferred Chicago because the kids were able to get quite a bit done in one week’s time. However, each of my kids did do a mix of on campus and Unified auditions. With D2, if the school were a fairly easy drive (5 hours and under generally), we drove to campus to audition if she could fit it into her schedule. She did not want to run the risk of an illness at Unifieds taking her completely out of the running.
To answer one of your other questions- no, not all schools attend all Unifieds. So make sure to verify who will be where before making your decision on which to attend.
Thank you! I looked at the Unifieds website and it just gives a list of the schools participating, which makes it appear that the schools listed will be at all 3 locations. So should my son just compile his list of schools and then contact each school directly to see if they are going to be in Chicago to set up auditions? Does he need to apply to each school on his list prior to contacted each school? At what point does he set up his auditions for Unifieds. I’m so confused!!!
Is it necessary to stay for the entire length of Chicago Unifieds? I’m pretty naive so is it possible to get all your auditions scheduled within 2 days? 4 days of missing school is a lot.
@collegeadmiss he should compile his list and then most schools websites tell you if they are at Unifieds and which ones. If it’s not directly on the website for some it is on Acceptd or another site that the school may use for either their supplemental applications or prescreens.
The point at which he sets up his auditions for Unifieds will depend on the school. Some schools you must be admitted academically or at least fill out the school application and then they will send you an email letting you know how to set up your audition. Some schools you must first submit a prescreen ( sort of like a video audition) and if you pass the prescreen then you will be notified how to set up your audition.
I doubt you can get all your auditions in in 2 days. Again, part of this will depend on which schools you are applying to. Some schools the audition is a 1/2 day process. On average I have heard you typically schedule 2 or 3 auditons per day. You could possibly do 4 in a day but more than that I would imagine is not only exhausting but hard to schedule. Everyone says don’t overbook yourself at Unifieds.
He has compiled a list. I was just a bit confused on the timeline of setting auditions, applying, etc. He just returned from auditions at ITF. He received many call backs. He was granted admittance on the spot into some of the school’s theatre programs if he were to attend, received a full tuition scholarship + yearly stipend to one school, and then for others he was told they were interested in him and for him set up an audition. So I’m confused because he hasn’t applied to any of these schools. It’s like putting the cart before the horse.
As Boilermom said, it all depends on the school. Most schools you need to apply first in order to audition. Some of the generalized local high school theatre auditions- it is a bit backwards since they see you audition and then ask you to apply. But that is not the norm. Then those schools that have prescreens, which are quite a few, you must pass those in order to set up an audition. There are a few schools that actually have you submit your prescreen before you apply, which is great because if you don’t pass, then you aren’t spending additional money to apply as well. You can find out each process for each school on most schools websites but as mentioned some you find out the process on Acceptd. Most of the processes are different and require different things of their applicants, so pay close attention to the specifics for each school. It is a very confusing and expensive process, feel free to reach out if you have any more questions!
Thanks for everyone’s help!
Keep in mind that there are a limited number of schools that are “official” Unified schools. There are many more schools taking part in the audition process at the same time but they are not identified as Unified schools. One (and I’m sure more) of the national coaching teams puts out a list of schools participating in the process at the same time. If I can find the post here, I will re-post.
@collegeadmiss It is possible to get auditions done in two days for Acting majors if you plan early. Do you intend to do some on campus as well? I do sympathize with missing school. It is a tough balancing act!
@artskids Thank you. If you find the list, that would be great! If my son attends Chicago Unifieds and has passed the DePaul prescreen then he will audition on campus. Other than DePaul I’m not sure what other on campus auditions he would be doing in the Chicago area. Maybe we would do a campus tour at Northwester?
@collegeadmiss I believe that artskids may have meant schools from outside the Chicago are but who are doing regional auditions in Chicago at the same time as Unifieds. This tends to happen at each of the official Unifieds cities. Many schools conduct regional auditions in several cities across the country. Check the websites of the schools on your list for details! Just as an example, NYU holds auditions in Miami, Chicago, LA, NY, as well as Berlin and Shanghai.
Hi!!! Does anyone have a legit link or website that shows tiers 2/3 or rankings. I have searched and only see Tier 1 and Top Ten schools listed. But how about those hidden gems? Trying to compare apples to apples and see how those hidden gems are viewed nationally. Pm if you feel more comfortable! Thanks!
@thespis1 it’s so hard to rank schools. Some of what you read as the ‘top’ schools aren’t the same as they were a few years ago too. That being said, onstageblog is a website that is simply that, a blog. But it does give some regional rankings that are outside of the ‘top’ schools that you read about on other sites.
Yes, Google “onstage blog” “underrated” for the articles about hidden gem programs.