<p>My daughter has been accepted into MT programs at BoCo and Syracuse. Which would you choose and why?</p>
<p>Same case with my D - coupled with NYU Tisch acceptance and scholarship for both (but no studio assignment yet for NYU) - and no financial aid data for BoCo yet. One tough decision to make - I agree. Will follow this post, too, for any input from the rest.</p>
<p>And congratulations, too, for your D - great choices, right?</p>
<p>My daughter in very similar situation I think - CCM or Ithaca - similar in that at both ccm & boco they aren’t in straight plays different in that syracuse has great dance reputation and Ithaca doesn’t. My d is struggling w her decision too. Other difference is that at ccm because it’s in the university of Cincinnati she can take her gen eds w non artists - which you will get at syracuse but not at boco. Now that she knows what her options are can she visit both schools and sit in on classes and get to know the students? We are at ccm now and are visiting Ithaca on Wednesday and I’m hoping the visit will clarify things.</p>
<p>Both our girls are lucky to have 2 great options - its going to come down to I think their gut feelings. I think if my D had your choices I’d steer my D to Syracuse - but that’s because my d wants a full university experience - and Syracuse does produce triple threats - but they are both great programs - so in the end she will have to decide what environment resonates for her. Best wishes - and if anyone wants to comment on Ithaca vs ccm I’m all ears!</p>
<p>Thistle 33,</p>
<p>If you can possible get to both campuses, and haven’t yet, you really should, as they are at opposite extremes of each other! Syracuse is a huge, outstandingly beautiful, campus with a huge population of diverse undergrad and grad students. They even have a beautiful art museum right on campus! I would have gone there in a minute, but my daughter thought it was way too big for her! The theatre department is actually located in a repertory theater building right down the hill, but there is constant bus service and it’s definitely walkable in good weather. Thus, the very strong connection with professional actors and opportunities, a plus in my book. We had a fantastic tour there by students who loved the program and were warmly greeted by the new director who was from our state of Oregon and the Ashland Shakespeare Festival, one of the finest theater companies in the nation (who also do musicals). The secretary of the MT department (who we know really runs the place:)) spent 2 hours talking with us personally and made the program sound very thorough and personable. We were also given a warm, private interview in the general school application office. I was impressed by the gorgeous campus and majestic buildings, the happiness of the students, the personableness of the people and program. It does get very cold there, however. </p>
<p>Boco is at an opposite extreme, being very small in a busy and fun town. My daughter loved it! There is no campus to speak of, just connected buildings with some a few blocks away. There are, however, numerous other college buildings in the same area. In fact, students from 3 or 4 colleges share the same cafeteria. Most of the classroom buildings are a little old, and they were just adding on the new theater when we were there. The dorms are also old with rooms of all different shapes and sizes which I guess can get a little cold in winter. I believe that many students move to apartments after freshman year. The community is so small that the lady at the front desk of the main building is who you go to for mail! Diversity here is limited to students of the arts -all very dedicated. We attended an excellent dance class for MT students that seemed to address a range of skills. Excellent instructor! My one big concern here was that I had heard that admitted classes were so large that many students did not get cast in shows often. Last year I went through the resumes of all the graduating MT seniors, and the average number ofcampus productions they had been in, including both mainstage and student directed, was only 2.5-3 over all 4 years. However, many of them did seem to be able to find work in summerstock.</p>
<p>So, you have your choice of a huge campus and population with what seemed like a close-knit theater group, and a very small population in a wonderful city. Visit if you can!</p>
<p>There is a previous thread regarding Penn State, FSU and Syracuse that you should look up. It gives a wonderful description of the Syracuse program I believe by KatMT. My D is currently a freshman MT at Syracuse and loves the program. It is a large campus and population but the majority of my D’s time is spent in the classrooms down at Syracuse Stage. She take one elective right now up on the main campus which is a wonderful break. The weather really isn’t a factor as they rarely leave the building once they arrive for the day. If you have any questions about SU please PM me. Best of luck with your decisions!</p>
<p>ParadiseMT and blueskies1108: congrats to your daughters! It is SO exciting to have such excellent options!!</p>
<p>Christie2: thank you so much for all the information! So helpful! Luckily we will be able to visit both campuses in a couple of weeks and hopefully the decision will be clear.</p>
<p>Lulu63: glad to hear your daughter loves the program at Syracuse! Luckily, the weather does not concern my daughter! I will PM you with more specific questions.</p>