@mabel15 your not alone. My D won a huge competition right before unifieds but alas no acceptances to the schools she really wanted. They were somewhat of a reach for her. This was a great experience for her (and me). She will attend a school here on a freshman MT track and try again next year, where we will be waaaaaaaaay more prepared.
Wilkes University still has an audition date of 4/8 for their BFA program. http://www.wilkes.edu/academics/colleges/arts-humanities-social-sciences/performing-arts/performing-arts-request-for-audition-form.aspx
@ginja17 I am a little late to your question, but I will add my opinion since my D goes to Montclair and was also accepted to Rider and Hartt. While only one third of the undergraduates at Montclair reside on campus, it’s still over 5,000 students so it’s not a small community. Additionally, the MT kids are mostly out of state so they are always hanging out together whether on campus or in NYC. As my daughter’s declining bank account will attest to, she is not hurting for things to do. 
While there are two NJ Transit train stops on campus, they do not run on the weekends, but the bus stop is only two blocks from the dorms and is only 30 minutes to the Port Authority Bus Terminal. All three schools you mention are wonderful and can provide great training, but the campuses are very different. A lot will depend on the kind of experience your D is looking for.
We are still waiting on Western Michigan as well for acting. 
Thank you so much. We are going to visit and audition this weekend so we will check it out. Thanks for your input, I really appreciate hearing about your Ds experience!
@LBSMOM BW audition slot was a miracle for my D… All slots were full so she asked to be put on a waitlist for the preferred date. She asked where she was… Number 15. Yikes. No hope, but she kept checking in. About a week before, while at Chicago unifieds, they told her she was fifth. Then second. At that point, expecting some no-shows due to illness or whatnot, we made plans to drive up and just be there, just in case of an opening. Because hey, it’s a great program and only 2.5 hours so what the heck? Fortunately she was scheduled for real during the week before but there’s a glimpse into the mindset we had… We were honestly just going to show up, lol!!
Any thoughts at all??
My D has a 4.45 GPA, ACT 33, SAT 1410.
What can you tell me about these schools - Hartt MT, Montclair MT, Rider MT
I know I am over thinking this but I want her to be successful and happy with her choice. I have received some feedback - thank you @MTDadager - but still looking for any more information!
When I was going through this process with my daughter, I often would think to myself - is this worth it? So I wanted to share a text my daughter (freshman) just sent from college - she attends a small private University that has a big focus on the performing arts. They do have a small greek system that is filled with a lot of the MT/VP/Theater/Dance and Music majors. Honestly - she says she feels sorry for the Nursing and Business majors as the performing arts students kind of rule the school…
Anyway, she wrote “I went to the Kappa Sigma formal last night and they played that fun song in Legally Blonde where Elle puts on her pink dress and the Irish step number and we all ran to the dance floor and everyone was performing. It was so funny and amazing. The boys were doing turns and leaps and running around. I love my school.”
To me, finding the right school was partly about setting her up for success after … but part was finding a place where she would connect to her peers. She is surrounded by students and faculty who share her passion. She says she is inspired by them every day to work hard and learn as much as she can. She understands that it’s a gift to be able to study what she is studying and is truly grateful.
@japbmom thanks for sharing a glimpse into what we all hope our kids will find! I have reiterated this thought to my d many times, choose the school where you will learn but also have fun!
@ginja17 I don’t know much about those schools at all-but obviously your D is a strong academic. Did she get a full tuition scholarship at any of the schools? Is she someone that wants to continue with rigorous classes outside of her MT curriculum?
@ginja17 I don’t know about Hartt, but the academics at Rider and Montclair are not strong. I made a chart of the schools we were looking at and Rider has an average acceptance GPA of 3.3 and Montclair’s is 3.24. The book I was using didn’t do average SAT, but instead the % of accepted students over certain scores. For over 600 on reading and math, Rider has 13% reading & 15% math and Montclair is 7% & 10%. For comparison, American University - where your daughter would still blow past the requirements - is 3.71 GPA, 71% reading and 58% math.
@ginja17 Did your daughter get admitted to the Honors program at Hartford? I only know that it exists - nothing more!
@bisouu & @freddieggirl - I’m working on it! Even though she’s made a decision, there’s a few last pieces that need to be buttoned up-and I have visions of posting her Final Decision, and then it not being final. Because she’s 18, lol. I have noticed that she’s not celebrating on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc. So I guess I’m following her lead?
yes, she did receive scholarships, and she would like to continue to be challenged academically and by her peers.
I guess that is partly my concern, I really want her to be happy not just with the MT program but socially and academically as well.
@ginja17, my son was also an academic kid who ended up going to a school not known for its academic rigor (to put it gently). He continues to use his brain in all kinds of ways…has taken up playwriting, is active in politics, reads constantly, etc. He’s found a few kindred spirits. You and your daughter will have to make a decision about what you want, but self-motivated kids will always find a way to challenge themselves.
My S’s situation is very similar to @Jkellynh17’s S’s. He finds that the lack of, um, academic, er. . .rigor, makes it possible to delve deeply into more creative pursuits that give him a much broader perspective of the theater world - which is a reflection of the greater world we live in. As parents, H and I were very concerned that he would not find a like-minded peer group and his brain would turn to mush. We needn’t have worried.
I will freely admit that adding intense academics into the mix does tend to make things complicated. D spends a LOT of time reading/writing papers for her “non” theater classes - and that does diminish time she could be doing other things.
Ginja17 Most MT programs do not leave a lot of time for other academics. It really doesn’t matter what program your child chooses of those three, I am confident that the rigor your D is looking for will come from her MT studies.
@ginja17 my son who went to Rider has similar stats to your D. Back in 2012, he entered with 32 AP credits and passed out of a lot of 100-level courses, essentially entering as a sophomore by credits, even though the BFA MT is a 4 year program. He was accepted into BHP at Rider, but opted to skip it in favor of adding 2nd major in Arts Administration. He graduated with TWO diplomas (so cool!) – a BA in Arts Admin and a BFA in Musical Theatre. It was rigorous and required a lot of careful scheduling, juggling and some summer online courses, but he did it. (In hindsight, he may have just done a minor, simply to have more free time.) He also included J-Term (winter break) “Arts Abroad” trip for credit, which was arts-focused trip to London and Istanbul. At the time, I, too, was concerned about academics at Rider, but I’ll share that the kids the program attracts for MT skew higher than the Rider average stats – many are on Dean’s list and Rider Scholar each year. And the kids don’t let the moss grow beneath them – they are busy all the time with rehearsals, class, cabarets, theatre fraternity, going to NYC, master classes, etc. I’ve posted here about Rider many times over the years, so feel free to search my posts or PM me for specific questions. There are also current Rider parents on here as well. Hartt probably would have been my Rider son’s 2nd choice, but Rider came in with more $$. Montclair wasn’t on our radar at all, but absolutely would be today b/c of in-state tuition. Hope this helps. 
I charted the schools sort of for the exact opposite of @ginja17 worries - I wanted to make sure it wasn’t too challenging. My D has done well enough with grades and SAT to get into harder schools, but I didn’t want her to be overwhelmed with academics while pursuing the performance components. Also, she was able to get great merit scholarships at some of these schools, which helps.