I have tried to look at this audition season objectively now that it is over and have some thoughts and questions. I’ve learned a lot-- seen very talented kids from all over the country pursuing their dreams, read countless posts of Highs and lows, etc. I was shocked at how many kids were auditioning and how well prepared they were. In looking at recent playbills however, I have noticed that MANY of the top performers currently on Broadway do not have BFAs. The leads particularly are often products of a well-rounded BA education. Everyone seems to get caught up in the pursuit of a BFA these days, but at what cost? Isn’t college supposed to be fun too? Certainly there are programs that offer a BFA and recognize the importance of down time, but many seem to not get that. A recent visit to a “top 10” program was so enlightening to me. The students were isolated from the rest of the student body, not encouraged to even attend a football game or have much of a life outside of theater. I welcome any thoughts on this as it concerns me as I see kids becoming heartbroken by rejections and accepting schools that don’t fit them just to say they have a BFA. I am sure there are many opinions…but these are just my thoughts at this juncture.
I agree with some of what you say, for sure. I want my BFA, but that’s because I crave the conservatory style education. I don’t care to have the “full” college experience. I know that because I homeschooled due to not wanting the full high school experience. I want to train in my field and that’s it (boring, I know). I do think there’s many solid BA programs and it’s all about what you make of it. Going into a BA eliminates the stress, time, and money of auditioning for a BFA. With a BA, the potential is truly endless. I’ve definitely pandered the idea of going to a “dream school” where I didn’t get the BFA admittance and going into the BA program. Switching gears, I think people on Broadway having mostly BA’s is because BFA’s are definitely more “new”. Many schools are just adding BFA programs, while most BA programs have been around for YEARS. It’s just more of a “new” thing since there’s now seemingly more demand. To put it in perspective, how many people went and got BA theater degrees even just 20 years ago? My parents claim that it wasn’t as normal and was met with the “Double major so you have something to fall back on!” response. I hate that mentality, so don’t get me started. LOL! I think it’s FANTASTIC that BFA’s are developing everywhere, and being seen as a legit degree choice and eventual career path (as well as a BA). I wouldn’t ever say a BA is below a BFA though, so please do not get that idea from me! It’s just more fine tuned and specialized (and elusive as well all know 
). I know many people with BA’s that received stellar training and are stunning performers. It’s all a matter of what you want in a program and school I suppose, as well as what YOU make of your education/training.
“Going into a BA eliminates the stress, time, and money of auditioning for a BFA.” There are BA programs that do not eliminate these factors (stress, time and money of auditioning). I’m sure this was a just a general thought but wanted to clarify that there are BA programs out there that do require an audition.
Yes my D has several BA programs on her list and almost all are audition based still. Some may be less competitive but are still difficult admits in general artistically.
The BFA gives you more directed and intensive training in voice, dance, and acting than the BA, depending on the program of course. Will it matter that much when you’re out in the auditioning world? Probably not.
My D really wanted the BFA but also wanted to have a college experience. The program she is in gives her both. She gets very intensive performing arts training, but she’s been involved in a host of college activities from dance marathons to sorority to working as a tour guide and many other such experiences. For those saying they know they don’t want a college experience, I’m a bit sad because you get one shot at it as a young person, and you might not know what you’re missing.
The other thing about having a BFA is it gives you a college degree that is marketable in other ways than just in performing arts. The skills you learn in a BFA program such as time management, ability to think and work creatively, work both independently and as part of a team, and many others are all desirable traits in the workforce and certainly marketable.
Yes, I think that many think having a BFA seems to get you further than a BA. In some places that may be true with the connections and training, but in many cases a BA can provide the same preparation and access PLUS a well-rounded education. I side with Brent Wagner on this, who sees the development of the whole student as critical to success in LIFE and theater. I also know that the BFA is a new concept… But most veteran actors with a BA will tell you that being well-rounded gave them character insight and they wouldn’t give anything for the education and collegiate experience they received. I’m not anti-BFA… I just think kids are becoming too wrapped up in that title, attending colleges they don’t really want to in its pursuit, and overlooking the importance of an education in some cases. IMO, of course!
And I know Michigan is a BFA… But it is an exception and I believe that its success and reputation lie in this concept. They obviously offer the best of training, while requiring 1/4 of your classes to be academic and encouraging students to have a life and participate on campus. In my opinion again, they “get it” and that is why they are successful.
@jeffandann , did you mean “BA” instead of “BFA” in your last paragraph?
@ohmtmom, I disagree that Michigan offers “the best of training.” Michigan obviously offers great training, but the best? Better than CMU? Better than ALL the other schools? I think it’s impossible to say which is “the best” - after all, there is no way to truly assess that. It is subjective and everyone will have a different answer. And why is Michigan an exception? B/c it is a BFA that encourages academic classes? There are many, many schools that do that…
And for some kids, getting a BA or a BFA with lots of gen ed credits (like UMich, NYU, NW, and Emerson, etc.) might be a better option. But for other kids, getting a BFA in a conservatory style setting is better for them. It has been said a zillion times on this board, but it is worth repeating…there are many different paths to success in this business. What’s right for one kid may be totally wrong for someone else.
Conservatories do NOT overlook the importance of an education. My D goes to a conservatory program within a LAC, and she is getting a great education. Not in calculus and physics, but in literature, history, theatre, and music. Everything in her program is tied to theatre, but theatre can be all encompassing. Each theatrical piece is a slice of life. She is spending the semester in London where she sees several shows a week, writes papers about them, learns about Chekhov and Shakespeare and art and history. She is traveling around Europe and seeing artwork and historical sites. She is getting a hands on, wonderful education.
You are saying UMich is successful b/c they “get it.” Are you saying CMU doesn’t get it? Are they not successful? CCM? Ithaca? BoCo? There are plenty of successful conservatory schools (if success means getting kids working in the theatre, whether it be on Broadway, off-Broadway, national tours, West End, etc.). If you and your child want a LAC education, with lots of gen eds, then by all means go for those schools. But that doesn’t mean that the conservatories are less successful or not as good.There are many paths to success, and for some, that path is a BFA conservatory. When someone figures out how to rank the schools and the educations they give accurately, I will read it with interest. Until then, everyone should do what they feel they need. But please, don’t dismiss conservatories as places where the kids aren’t getting a well-rounded education. Because it is simply not true.
I also have to say at times I feel that colleges with a lower academic threshold for admission are not getting a fair shake on CC. There are schools like Ithaca, OCU, Otterbein, Texas State and many more who can offer your student many challenging academic classes and great opportunities outside of their theater training. This could be through honors programs, study abroad opportunities, leadership programs, or other things the school has to offer. It is not only Michigan and Northwestern that can provide challenging academic classes. So make sure the school is a true fit for your student in every way.
My best advice is to ignore the letters of the degree and concentrate on the actual curriculum you will be taking. There are some BA programs that operate more like a BFA program than some BFA programs. There are BM programs that operate like BFA programs. The letters truly don’t matter. What matters is that you are getting the training you seek, and the additional educational opportunities you desire, at a school that provides the type of environment you need to succeed. What that is will be different for each student. But don’t get caught up in the letters of the degree and the name of the school. Find what truly is the best fit for your student.
Guppie, no I specifically meant the BFA. A BFA and the training you get in a BFA program gives you a number of marketable skills. I would encourage you to look at the SUNY Fredonia website; there is an article about the skills one gets as a performing arts major that are valuable to employers of all types. I know it gave me comfort as my D entered her BFA program!
Thx jeffandann. I am with vvnstar. Of course the most challenging thing is how to figure out what truly is the best fit.
I think @vvnstar said it best. Ignore the degree. Look at what the education entails. No two BFA programs even look the same. Also take into account what the student brings when starting college. A student who has completed a number of AP exams or college courses in high school may eliminate some/all core/gene ed requirements (obviously this won’t matter in a true conservatory like Juilliard, etc…). In a BA program, that might mean that the student can take additional courses in the department that wouldn’t have fit otherwise. This could give the student even more credits in the major than a BFA student might have.
@Monkey13 - I certainly can’t speak for @ohmtmom (though I feel kinship within our shared state 
) But I don’t think she was maligning CMU or anyone else. When I read the post, I took “the best of training” to mean - Michigan is a fantastic program that offers extremely high quality training (which I think would be hard to argue) not that they were THE top - meaning all others are less.
It seems to me that much like any of the other choices in the performance world - BA/BFA is really subjective. And even WITHIN each group- you can’t really compare apples to apples - because every program is different. And education comes in many forms- you don’t have to be a STEM major to be taking “real” classes. (Which I have sometimes been foolish enough to try to argue on the parent’s forum on CC- I don’t recommend it) And as for what is a “real” college experience- it depends how you define THAT too. Does it have to have a football team to be “real”? My kid’s school doesn’t. But it isn’t a conservatory experience either.
Guppie I agree with vvnstar as well. My D is in a BFA program but also in the honors college at her school, and has had the opportunity to take a number of courses outside of the BFA MT track. And I absolutely agree that having experiences outside of theater is important for development of the performer. In fact, this semester one of my D’s faculty told her and some others not to worry about auditioning all over for summer stock, etc, but to go out this summer and find something fun to do that gets them out in the non-theater world. Which she is going to do.
There is a right fit and a right place for everyone. My D found a great fit for her and I suspect most here will see the same thing happen for their student.
I agree that some people get carried away by the competitive aspect of the BFA audition frenzy and can lose sight of what they personally really want from their four years of college. We were very glad that D’s participation in a summer program gave her more clarity about that, and in her case steered her away from conservatories and most BFAs and moved three BAs to the top of her list. Many very talented kids in top BA programs never hit the BFA audition circuit, as they aren’t interested in those programs. I think we hear from fewer of those folks here on cc since the focus here tends to be on BFA auditions.
One thing I can say with total confidence is that those four years will race past and for most kids will be the last time they get the luxury of a college education. Based on what I’ve seen, whatever type of degree you choose rather quickly receeds in the rearview mirror after graduation in the context of auditions. D just graduated in June, but I wouldn’t be surprised if all college theatre has already fallen off of her resume. The experiences she had in college, however, will be with her for life, so I’m very glad she drew her own conclusions about what she wanted from her college years.
In full disclosure I should add, though, that based on what I observed “down time” is not in the vocabulary of students at Ds alma mater (Northwestern).
I agree with all the viewpoints posted here - especially that one person’s “perfect” path is totally wrong for someone else. When my S was going through this process, H and I tried to encourage him to consider a more well-rounded program than strictly focusing on conservatory-like BFAs. He was adamant. Now as a sophomore he “gets” the drawback of intensely focusing on MT skills to the near-exclusion of mind-broadening academic explorations. He sees how endless rehearsals interfere with the “normal” college life experience (He’s been fortunate to be cast in all the MainStage musicals since freshman fall). But he STILL wouldn’t go back to make a different choice of degree program or school. And he can’t seem to stop himself from adding an extra dance class here, squeezing in another acting class there, saying “yes” to ONE more student-initiated production shoe-horned in between main stage shows. It’s in his DNA.
Is he tired? Yes. Has he learned to manage his time? Oh, yeah. Has he learned that he misses “stretching” his mind and doesn’t want to be pigeon-holed into “dancing chorus member” forever? Yep. He’s EXACTLY where he should be at this “sophomoric” phase of college. There are still endless choices for “where do I go from here?” I can’t wait to see where his path leads.
And like @jeffandann’s D, he’s coming home this summer to get a “muggle” job (had a great summer stock ensemble experience after freshman year), maybe mow the lawn and hang out with friends.
I have noticed the past few years than MANY stage actors list their BFA degrees in their bios. They seem to be very proud of the distinction. I have noticed it here in L.A. where we live and in N.Y. My S has always wanted intensive training in the arts and I think the BFA is the best way to get that. Also, he’s never had a lot of interest in things outside of theatre, music, acting, performance. This really seems to be what will be the best route for him. He’s uninterested in Greek Like or many other college-y type things. To each his own
Again, worry less about the letters of the degree and more about the content of the program. All BFAs are not created equally. Make sure you will get the training you want regardless of whether it is a BA, BM or BFA degree.