<p>So I have been accepted into Catholic University’s MT program as a transfer applicant. I really love the school and was impressed with it overall but I have a few concerns.
Money. I only got $10,000 in academic/ other scholarships and I need at least another $10,000 to be able to attend. I called the Music department late last week and they said that they haven’t made their final decisions on scholarships so maybe I’ll get a little more money.
The ability to get cast in shows- I am currently attending a public university in South Carolina where I did not have to audition for admittance into their BA Theatre Performance program. The theatre department has about 150 students (performance, tech/design, and theatre education majors along with theatre minors). They tend to do small shows and have a lot of people audition. I have auditioned for almost every show this school year (3 with another audition tonight) and I haven’t been cast yet (I actually had to do a show at a nearby community theatre to get me back performing). I have realized that they tend to cast the same people in every show. I want my transfer after this semster to be my first and LAST transfer and I am worried that I am going to be going from one crappy pot into another. I was talking to this girl who graduated from Catholic in 2008 and she was only in one university production, her senior year in a large chorus. That worries me. I feel that it is important to get stage experience because you learn a lot of things that you don’t learn in theatre classes.
How accepting they are of transfer students. Is it easy to mesh in within the department? I had a difficult time meshing in with the department I’m in now because they were REALLY selective of who they liked and who they didn’t and they pick favorites. </p>
<p>I would love to speak to anyone who is/has gone here or is the parent of a student. I really like this school and I feel like I belong but I’m still worried about a few things, especially since I’ve gone through the whole college thing once and know what to look for the second time around.</p>
<p>Famousactress2b
My son has been accepted to Catholic, and just today received a really good financial aid package. There’s just one problem - he doesn’t want to go there. Would you mind telling me why you do? I liked it, but he was not impressed, at all. Penn State (accepted) is his dream school, but he received next to nothing there.<br>
Thanks so much.</p>
<p>Jimsmom: Hope I’m not butting in but I would urge you to find the money (if possible) and send him to Penn State – I’m assuming MT? Catholic is a fine program and I have the utmost respect for it. But I think there is a significant difference between the programs. I am from the DC area and my D also got accepted there a year ago (but chose a different school). Penn State was one of her favorite programs but she did not get in. </p>
<p>I’m extremely impressed with the Rome School of Music but I don’t think they can offer what Penn State can. Just my own personal opinion. I will say that a lot of Catholic grads do very well in the Washington theatre scene. They are getting cast a lot.</p>
<p>One of the differences is that Catholic is a BM program and PSU is a BFA and so the student needs to examine the two sets of curricula and see which program appeals to him because they are quite different. There are other differences but just the degree program itself is different and should be thought through.</p>
<p>NewbieMTMom - you are not butting in - I appreciate your input. We are all so confused right now, and any input helps. From what I saw of Catholic, I agree with you, but we are so concerned with the cost right now. Do you think it would help to appeal to Penn State’s financial aid office? I highly doubt it myself, but just wondering. By the way where did your daughter choose?
Thanks.</p>
<p>Soozievt - thanks, yes we are aware of the differences in courseload, which is another concern of ours. What do you think about the marketability of a BFA vs BM degree?</p>
<p>I don’t think the degree on the resume is what markets you. It really is what happens in the audition. So, you have ot look at the training and how it may prepare you for work in the field. Both will prepare you but in different ways. A BM is more heavily music based, whereas many BFA programs (but there is variation among them) tend to balance training in voice, dance, and acting. If your son is already a strong singer and say, he is weak in dance or acting training, he may want to do a BFA to round out his skill development. If he wants primarily music training as an emphasis, the BM might suit him more. But these are generalities and you’d have to examine both school’s specific curriculums and see which one appeals to him the most and also which will help him develop in his weaker areas. But there are other differences to examine like size of program, the general education requirements, the setting, the faculty, the production opportunities, the strength of the peers in the program (this overlaps between programs but sometimes a program that is more competitive to get into, will have a greater concentration of talent even though there will be some with that same talent in a less competitive program…your son is a good example as he got into both and so he may attend either), and so on. So, it is not like one of these degrees is better for your son’s chances at success but more about which program and university fits his personal selection criteria.</p>
<p>I’ll just throw in a couple of thoughts about the environment of the campuses. Catholic is a small campus located in DC and unfortunately, the campus is not in the safest of areas. It is definitely something to consider. Most parents are extremely concerned about safety at Catholic – I was and I live here. The other DC schools like American, Georgetown, GW, et al, are located in what are typically known as “safer” areas. So that is something to be mindful of. However, going to school in Washington, DC is fabulous. I did it myself.</p>
<p>Penn State is a HUGE campus but tucked away in the hills of PA. The college town of State College is really, really charming. There is a lot of school spirit and it is more of a traditional big state school nestled away in nowheresville.</p>
<p>As soozievt says, it’s all about the personal fit for your son. It is easy to be turned off by Catholic’s campus unfortunately. I have a hunch that may be why your son is resisting the program. It was definitely a factor for my D – however the bigger factor was going to school in Washington where she is from!! She wanted to go away.</p>
<p>Oh – forgot to include, my D chose Syracuse for MT. She really, really loves it. She is a freshman. We’re very happy with it. Only bummer is it costs a lot. I hope she makes it in MT only because someone will need to take care of my husband and I when we are flat broke in our retirement.</p>
<p>That indeed is where personal preference comes into play. Some may like the urban setting for college which Catholic has. Some might love the huge campus with all the rah rah spirit and the football games and all that that PSU has. It truly is in the middle of nowhere but the campus is so big that there is stuff going on and the town is a nice college town. I have not been to Catholic U myself. My D got into PSU’s MT program and we visited and my niece is a recent graduate of PSU.</p>
<p>One more thing and then I’ll stop. My D and I LOVED Penn State. We both thought it was a great fit and we felt welcome and felt that it WAS the right fit in terms of MT and the rest of the school. It ended up being one of my D’s top choices but as I mentioned, she did not get in. She was REALLY disappointed. That was one of her toughest rejections and she got it onsite!! Not one of my favorite memories of the audition process as you can imagine!! But she’s happy as can be at Syracuse so it was where she was meant to be.</p>
<p>Not to get off topic, but NewbieMTMom, I think Syracuse and PSU have some things in common and so I think your D landed at a great university and program that I can see matched her if she also like PSU.</p>
<p>Thank you both for all your wonderful insights - there is so much to consider, and the big thing - general education requirements - is where I think my son may have trouble at Penn State, but aside from that I think PSU is best for him in every other way. We are in the process of trying to compare all those things right now, but money is really our greatest problem. Any thoughts on my trying to contact PSU to plead with them? I have heard of people doing that with private universities, but not state schools. What are your thoughts?</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I don’t know about PSU but I do know that you can go back to Catholic and try for more money. A friend of my D’s did last year and did indeed get more money! Catholic is very generous with money in my opinion. And that’s a good thing.</p>
<p>Thanks, soozievt, for the note about PSU and Syracuse! Yes, we are extremely pleased with Syracuse and think it’s a terrific program. I’m so happy she landed there. Plus I really like the university in general.</p>
<p>Jimsmom, you could try asking for more at PSU but I think the chances of it happening are not great unless you have something new in your financial profile that has developed since your son applied (ie., loss of job). My D got scholarships and financial aid from 7 BFA schools and the smallest was from PSU and I think it is due to being a public university. I just don’t see how they will be willing to match an offer by a private school as they are not comparable schools. By the same token, PSU’s cost of attendance is lower than some private schools.</p>
<p>famousactress2b, you might have already made your decision by now, but I want to tell you what we saw/heard at Catholic last week when we visited…</p>
<p>The kids told us of a LOT of performance opportunities, including the chance to perform at great regional theatres in the DC area (in fact, auditioning for them in encouraged, rather than discouraged as outside auditioning is at many schools). We also spoke with a transfer student who LOVED the program - she too, had seen a very different world at her former school and was very pleased with how she was accepted into the fold and the with the amount of stage time she had already had (and she had not opted to audition off-campus yet)…</p>
<p>I have not made my final decision yet. I am still very interested in going to Catholic after speaking to a few students in the department. Another reason why I want to go there is because I have family in the area and I really want to be in my 2 younger cousins lives more, especially since they are going through a lot of the same experiences I went through at their age. </p>
<p>Unfortunatly, they have refused to give us more money to attend, even though I have proven myself at the college level and I have been doing VERY well in my theatre and non theatre classes. But its a cat and mouse game…I’m feeling very much on edge because I need to make a decision soon (I have to notify the school I’m at currently, where I’m going and why through an exit survey in less than 3 weeks). </p>
I called the Music department late last week and they said that they haven’t made their final decisions on scholarships so maybe I’ll get a little more money.