BFA Acting, Colleges

College Majors Theater/Drama Majors
1

<p>Hi there! So I currently seventeen about to become a senior. As of now I've been taking theatre at my school districts career center. I don't have a lot of onstage experience but the little that I do have, where I did a monologue at my career centers 'Fort Fest' event, definitely gave me some insight that I made the right choice in wanting to pursue this as a career! I'll admit I probably haven't researched colleges as much as I should have and would like to but I do have a few colleges in mind of where I'd like to go. So to finish my little rant I have a few questions that I'm hoping you fine people might be able to answer for me. =)</p>

<p>First, this is kind of for any BFA college in general, I was wondering what do they typically look for academically wise? Like cumulative GPA? My cumulative isn't the greatest so I was wondering that, and if administrators put any insight into someones cumulative that was even lower and was able to bring it up a decently okay amount before they graduate?</p>

<p>The next thing I was wondering is if I get into a BFA program do they normal give the students some type of opportunity to get experience in acting onscreen? I know this might be a stupid question but I know most colleges are more geared towards stage acting and not so much film so I'm curious as top what students who more so want to work in film/Hollywood, do to get film experience.</p>

<p>Also I was wondering if any of you could give me any thoughts on Cincinnati Conservatory of Music in Ohio. Is it considered a decent school? That is one place I have in mind and wanted to know if it is thought of as a good BFA school.</p>

<p>As for BA acting colleges, I heard those would be considered 'safety schools' and wanted to know what good BA ones were out there? I know of UCS and UCLA. I'm not sure if they have what I would like acting wise but then again I would really rather take a BFA program to focus solely on acting so I'm not sure if any BA school's curriculum will be something I'll love.</p>

<p>Another question I had was people that come from more low income family's what do you all to get money to pay the college application fees? I know getting a job is an option, and I have been trying, but I was wondering if I had any other options I could also try and pursue as well?</p>

<p>Again those that aren't considered 'upper class' how do you find a way to go audtion for the BFA schools you'd like that are in different states? I know saving up is probably an option but I can say my family is definitely horrible when it comes to that but I have been trying to put a little money away each time I get some. I'll probably end up taking the grey hound or something. So I guess what I'm trying to ask is how did you manage to pull it off?</p>

<p>Realistically what are someones chances of becoming a professional actor(ess) if they go to a school that isn't in California? Would it be easier to go to a college in Cali that way your already there when you graduate? That way you can already be near Hollywood and if ever given some downtime, or on break you can go try and audition?</p>

<p>So three schools I've been thinking about are University of Miami, CalArts, and Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. I've also been considering Otterbine. I'm not sure about it and will need to look into it's curriculum and see if it's something I'd like but I want to know any thoughts on these schools? If I was to go to one of them would they help stand a decent chance of becoming a professional actress?</p>

<p>That's all I can think of for now but I do appreciate any help and insight into these!</p>

2

<p>You’ve raised a lot of questions here, and I’m not going to even attempt to address them all! First of all, much of what you are asking has already been discussed at great length in this discussion group. I suggest you begin by taking a few days to read through some of the relevant threads. There is a HUGE amount of information here that will help you in your search for appropriate colleges for your list.</p>

<p>Keep in mind that most BFA programs are highly selective; they audition hundreds of applicants, and the acceptance rate is generally less than 10%. Even students with a great deal of experience are routinely turned down. You may prefer the idea of a BFA program, but realistically you must have some safety non-audition BA schools on your list.</p>

<p>At this point you should not be worrying about whether or not to attend a school in California. It’s not necessary; there are many good schools all across the country. Right now you should be looking for schools that are an academic match. Admission requirements vary a great deal; some schools put a great deal of weight on your academic record, and others put more emphasis on your audition. You need to take some time to investigate each school that interests you.</p>

3

<p>Regarding auditions: many schools participate in the Unified auditions, which are held regionally. It could be a solution for you; rather than going to each school individually, you go to a central location (NYC, Chicago, LA) and spend several days auditioning for many schools. If you do a search of the threads on this discussion board, you should find info about last year’s Unified auditions.</p>

4

<p>A BA school is not an automatic safety. A non-auditioned school, you can afford, would be happy to attend, and where your stats are well above the stats of the average admitted students is a safety. </p>

<p>In terms of GPA. Some schools will be more lenient than others. Ex. At NYU academic admissions is 50 percent of the admissions puzzle, the other 50 percent is the audition. They expect students to be on the admitted student range at the school academically. Carnegie Mellon counts the audition for about 90 percent. While grades are certainly considered, the Drama students do not need to meet the admitted student stats of the general university population. </p>

<p>Each school will have a different policy in terms of scores and grads.</p>

<p>Read through the threads here and on the Musical Theatre forum. A lot of your questions have been addressed.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

5

<p>Thanks for all the answers! I did have one question. Well one more that is. I was wondering is there any BFA programs for screen acting? I know Chapman has one that you can audition for in your second year but is there any others besides that? If there are I would definitely like to check them out.</p>