Hi @MommaCat - My D applied and was accepted to UCSD last year (among others - she’s now a Freshman Theater Major UCLA). For UCSD, 1310 SAT is right in the middle of accepted students for - 25th percentile is 1210 and 74th percentile is 1410. Is that 3.95 GPA on a 4.0 or 5.0 scale? UCs admit based on Sophomore and Junior grades, with weighting for AP, IB, honors, etc. Most of the kids applying to the top 4 UCs are going for STEM degrees - its approx 70% of the student body at UCLA, and I think its similar for UCSD, UCB, and UCI. So applying to a non-impacted, non-STEM degree should in theory be easier. UCSD is not know to be competitive to get into for the undergraduate theater degree. UCSD is well respected for its graduate theatre department - they have La Jolla playhouse there on campus, and the program was started by some Yale alumns and modeled on that program from what I have been told. But that reputation has not rolled down to undergraduate department.
Your D has good enough scores to get in IMO, good luck!
Hi, everyone – Tech parent checking in! I didn’t notice any other design/tech comments, but I’ll chime in just in case anyone else is looking for tech scoop. I, too, am in shock that senior year is half over already! ?
Wow, this process is grueling…instead of pre-screens, my DD (Theatre Design/Production applicant) has to submit a portfolio with different criteria for each school, plus an artistic statement and extra essays for some programs. The portfolios have ranged from 5-20 pictures with commentary, but some have allowed “documents” rather than individual pics, so she created PowerPoint collage-type pages for submission to those. She also has a color printed portfolio, 38 11x17" pages, with all of her work to present at interviews.
Since we had no clue what to expect, she is casting a wide net - 14 schools(!) - and hoping for a good selection. Most require an in-person interview, if at all possible, so we are traveling like crazy in Jan/Feb. She is scheduling Skype interviews at a few places we just can’t make happen in person. (There is a little more flexibility with Tech Interviews than Auditions, at least!)
So far, she has received several academic acceptances with some great scholarship money on the table, but many interviews still await! She also has received Theatre Design/Production offers from three BFA programs (one interview on campus, one Skype, and one interview not required).
We’ll be in Chicago during Unifieds for her CMU interview and also for DePaul on campus.
@SoCalPops Thank you so much for the information! And congrats to your D on UCLA!
The 3.95 is her weighted UC GPA which again is low for any UC but we are hoping it is in range since she isn’t applying to a STEM major. Right now her #1 is UCI. Unfortunately, that admit is only based on academics. And her dream school, but it’s so crazy hard to get into, so we don’t really rank it, is UCLA. She has that audition in February for MT.
Welcome!! Please continue to post! We definitely want to hear how your DD’s journey unfolds and to cheer her on. And it sounds just as crazy ? for the design/tech/production side of things. And congratulations ? to your D on her BFA acceptances!!! That’s great!!
@MommaCat Wow! It’s kinda crazy how similar my situation is to your daughter’s! I didn’t put UCLA on my ranking of schools because of how difficult it is to get into, UCI is my more realistic first choice, and I also have my audition in February lol. My GPA also isn’t phenomenal (4.0 weighted UC/CSU), so I’m so happy to see someone with a very similar situation to mine, it gives a girl hope :’) If you don’t mind me asking, which audition did she schedule? I have mine on the 16th at 8:30 am
D is scheduled for about 13 or 14 auditions - half prescreen, half no prescreen, half MT, half redirected to acting.
I think she does much better with live performances so I’m hopeful for a good audition season. That said, it’s a shame she won’t get to audition for several great schools as she didn’t pass their prescreen. Hopefully she’ll have good options but I can’t help but feel there would be a different result if she got to audition.
@HighLady8 It’s great to know she’s not the only one applying to UCs for theatre! She actually chose the 2:00 slot because she’s not much of a morning person and thought her voice would sound better in the afternoon.
She also applied to 2 Cal States for safeties - Long Beach for the new BFA in acting and Northridge for the theatre degree with musical theatre minor.
I hear you about the prescreens. The decisions seem random with no clear picture as to why they don’t pass. Just a thank you for sending it in and you are not a fit for us. I think it is sometimes worse for us parents, especially when our kids don’t even get the opportunity to show what they can do. This process can seem so brutal at times. I’ll just say that there were more nos for my D than there were yeses with prescreens.
It’s crazy that next week is the beginning of January and the start of the biggest audition time period. I hope your D has options that make it a tough decision in the end. All of our kids work so hard and I am hoping they all have great options.
Just know that we are here to help support each other, cheer each other on, and celebrate too. So please do continue to post on your D’s journey.
@anastasiasmom thanks for the support, greatly appreciated. At the end of the day, I know she’ll be and do fine. It’s just a rollercoaster right now. Jan. and Feb. will move pretty quickly and we’ll know soon enough. She’s already in one program which she could be happy at so that takes some pressure off.
The reality is she wasn’t that happy with her prescreen but didn’t say anything (needs to learn to be her own advocate). When I saw it I thought, “This is pretty good but not outstanding nor anywhere near your best”. Of course I didn’t tell her that. Her coach must have been right in that it doesn’t need to be perfect (as several schools have passed her to auditions). She gets caught up on the ones that said “No”.
Anyway, Happy New Yr and here’s to good things for all!
Curious to learn from others who have artists who have a love for pure acting AND musical theater. My understanding is that at some programs there is a lot of crossover and at others they keep them pretty separate. My concern in the latter is getting very little to no required dance in acting (and not nearly as much vocal training) which would put D at a disadvantage (I think) professionally should she want to pursue musicals.
@rickle1 My D is definitely a singer first but has in the past year really enjoyed pure acting as well due to being cast in her school’s fall drama the past two years. So, she applied to two programs that are pure acting.
Both theatre programs actually share space with the dance program so I believe she can get classes for dance but looks like just beginning level which is great for her. I have looked at the music programs at both and she could try for a minor in voice for one that could give her access to private voice lessons (they are by audition even for those majoring in voice). If she ends up choosing between either of these programs we will definitely have more research to do and will want to sit down with the department head to get concrete answers.
@rickle1 I feel the same about the prescreens, not a fan and my D too does better live. I guess it’s just going to be one of the great unknowns as to the why/why not pass. It’s hard not to analyze and I stop myself if I start to go there. I know it truly can be some random reason, meaningful to them in building their company of actors but not a determination of her talent/potential. I have to keep in mind that it is the same as casting a show, it just wasn’t the right fit.
It’s been rough, some very sad painful days, including one prescreen “no” in particular that really hurt. And then she was fortunate after a low point to get some very good news. It truly is a roller-coaster!
It’s impossible to explain how difficult this process is to anyone that hasn’t been in a performing arts college audition situation, and the concept of getting a BFA acceptance being the equivalent of lottery odds. We’ve become good at the generic non-informative answers to those asking “So what schools are you applying to?” and the “Oh, she’s so talented she’ll get in!” … We’ve become good at nodding & smiling and changing the subject.
@sagezinnia
Ditto, ditto, ditto! And so glad your D got some good news!
@rickle1
My D loves acting and musicals. She has really started assessing programs for that mix of a strong acting core with cross over into dance and vocal training. It is what she wants. So you are definitely not off on your concerns. Ask questions as @MommaCat said.
@rickle1 - for what it is worth, my S has a strong acting preference and did not even apply to any MT programs, and yet in his Acting BFA program (in a school alongside a strong MT program) he does a ton of voice and movement, and even is cast in a musical for next semester. My sense is this is a pretty typical experience and there is a lot of crossover.
I would just like to give an opinion based solely on my very limited experience. :). My kid would have been fine with Acting or MT and ended up MT. I have been astonished by how much non-Acting is involved in an MT program. There’s a lot of music in the curriculum - music theory, vocal performance, group voice, private voice - and dance is pretty intense, much more so than taking a couple classes on the side. With all that to study, Acting classes and all that’s involved in studying acting can’t/don’t occupy as much of the MT student’s time. I don’t think one course of study is superior - it’s a personal fit thing. I do think that HS parents tend to define “getting cast” as a measure of success but a BFA program is truly about “getting trained / educated” . The training is different for MT than Acting and I think applicants should look at the actual course of study for each school to decide what “fits” their goals. /soapbox.
@CaMom13 Thanks for that perspective. That very clearly describes the conundrum. Do you go “all in” on acting or MT? I know there are programs that blend a lot.
Ultimately it will depend on acceptances so not really D’s choice at this point. The one program she’s already been accpeted to does not have a true MT program. Strong acting program with dance and music (with a MT concentration) minors. Not sure if it’s realistic to do both minors to “cobble” an MT program together.
I guess the answer is in the auditions. Once we know her options, then we can take a deeper dive.
I also come from the perspective that there are more actors that sing than singers that act (professionally) but I have no actual data to support that. Just a feeling.
@CaMom13 I love your perspective and appreciate the information. The 2 acting programs are at schools without an MT program so my D would definitely have to add in her own electives for dance and music. She actually has most of her training in music theory and composition but not much in acting other than her drama classes at school and being in performances in community theatre. So, she really gets excited about the future acting classes she will have at college. And she recently told me she’d even be interested in acting for film. Just so happens that one of the programs recently added film classes to the BFA.
Hey all, just checking in. Son got a couple of prescreen rejections first (CMU and DePaul) but then better news came when videos from the same shoot yielded auditions for Pace’s BFA’s and an acceptance at Adelphi. Live audition at LIU Post seemed to go well - we’re waiting on decision. Seven acting auditions scheduled in January, six of those over Unifieds weekend. He’s decided to learn new classical monologues in advance of that because a teacher warned him just late that his prescreen selection is overused.
On jazz voice front, acceptances at Berklee and Loyola New Orleans so far and things in progress elsewhere. Should be a few auditions between mid-feb and early march for music programs.
This is on top of school shows and I believe four out-of-state school-related trips in the next three months. You know how it goes. Hope everyone is enjoying the ride.
