@savedrama4momma we arrived on Monday in Chicago because of a theater competition that ended on Sunday. I looked at schools that had dance calls only on Sunday, and for those schools we either took them off the list or auditioned in NYC. No rules and S auditioned at 6 schools in Chicago. More than 2/day was his personal maximum but every kid is different.
This is indeed an expensive process. Someone mentioned several posts ago about attending master classes and also attending mock auditions. Both sound like wonderful and beneficial experiences. I just want to say that they are “extras,” and certainly not necessary in order to be prepared and do well in the BFA admissions process. My D never attended any master classes or mock auditions, as well as some others I know, who all landed at very well regarded MT programs. Pick and choose the most necessary expenses and the rest are optional, even if of value.
@Luciamom Oklahoma City University’s MT degree is a Bachelor of Music and would definitely be one to consider if looking for strong voice programs.
What @soozievt says is absolutely true! The mock auditions and masterclasses are extras. We had not done either in the past.and have had excellent results from the audition season. We are likely adding in a few extras this year to boost D2’s confidence and do an early test of her audition package.
I think it is super valuable to get feedback early in the process, but there are many ways to do that. My D scheduled 2 auditions for schools that were not “top of her list” (one was a BA safety with a scholarship audition, one was a BFA program 30 min from home- and D did NOT want to stay home). Feedback came from the auditions themselves (adjustments, comments etc) and from results. The BFA notifiednfall auditions in December. D was not accepted, which got her thinking about what she “really” wanted in a school- particularly after a beloved teacher at her PA school sat her down to explain why that program would have been all wrong for her. The BA was positive, though she did not learn she was accepted until March, she was invited to apply for a competitive academic scholarship, and awarded a talent scholarship (pending academic acceptance) which we took as a good sign.
Yes. The good idea of applying early to your “not top of the list” schools is a great one. Thanks!
Hi all. My daughter went through MT auditions last yr. She auditioned for 4 BA 8 BFA MT programs @ 2 non audition safeties. She got in all but 3 of the Bfas. She had a cold at Nyc Unifieds but got in 3 of the 5 she aud for there. Just a FYI when scheduling Rider Keep in mind they dont tell you audition times til 2 weeks before, making it difficult to maneuver auditions and dance call. Try to make it to campus if Rider is top on your list. Awesome campus to see. She narrowed it down to Temple, Rider and BOCO. She chose Rider!
I agree with @soozievt and @artskids about these being extras. Certainly won’t hurt but. But not required.
I will never forget meeting another mom at NYC unifieds who acted horrified that my D didn’t have a coach. I didn’t even know it was a thing. Luckily my daughter had really good results from
Auditions. So I don’t think it is “necessary” to have a coach or do the extras. However I also know these services can be very beneficial. It really depends on your child and his/her individual circumstances.
I will say my D went to a PA high school so she had some “coaching” built in I suppose. At the very least she had good mentors.
Good luck to you.
I think feeling about such things are impacted by our own experiences. Those who had a coach (and were happy with results) can’t imagine making it through without the help. Those who did not have a coach (and were happy with results) can’t imagine paying someone for something that can be done via research etc. Doesn’t make either process “better”.
Well said @toowonderful!
@Luciamom - just be prepared for your kid to fall in love with the “not top of the list” schools where they do their “practice” auditions. It happens all the time - a great way for students to adjust their thinking on what a “top school” really means for THEM…
We just returned from family weekend at CMU (mid-way through the summer program). This year, parents were encouraged to come on Friday and sit through M-W-F classes, and to return on Saturday to sit through an abbreviated T-Th schedule. I was quite impressed - even though the Acting teacher (first class on Friday) began her address to the parents with “some of your kids may want to consider a gap year to mature and train.” Ouch. I know they give very direct feedback at the end of the 6 weeks (D1 had friends who were there for MT that got a note that he should pursue Acting instead) but this one was a cold splash of water from minute one.
A number of the professors did consistently emphasize the increasing competitiveness and explosion in qualified applicants - explaining, in part, why CMU has gone to a prescreen. They also emphasized the need to get very comfortable with taping and editing auditions since many initial professional auditions are now digital submissions.
Does anyone know what schools open up audition sign ups on August 1st?
@marysike most schools require the application for the school be complete before you can sign up for an audition. There are quite a few that open August 1st for the app. so depending on how quickly you finish the essays is how quickly you can sign up. There are some that don’t open the app until September 1st like Penn State and BOCO.
The other part of the equation is those that request prescreens which you must pass before signing up for an audition. This list is by no means complete but here are some that require prescreens.
U of Michigan, Marymount Manhattan, SUNY Fredonia, PACE, Carnegie Mellon, Penn State, Illinois Weslyan
Hope this helps
Kind of fun to read your posts now that we survived the past year. My S is so excited to be starting in the MT program at Indiana University in a couple weeks. We did Chicago unifieds, auditions on campuses, college tours, quite the whirlwind…but all good. He got into 8 of the schools he applied to, and turned down some higher ranked schools because IU has such a great program for him…and is really up and coming. Let me know if anyone has questions about their program. Only 14 were taken this year…pretty selective. Impressive connections.
Only two pieces of advice…
.let the student drive the bus.
Check out Michael Feinstein’s great American songbook academy. Google that. You will find it. It’s a weeklong intensive vocal/stage program with master’s classes, coaching, and training with some of the best in the business. For high schoolers including graduating seniors. The connections these kids make is incredible and the support even after it’s over continues. Forty kids selected nationally to participate. Because the foundation has such great donor support, the week is less than $1000. Auditions will be online starting in January. Message me if you want more info.
Besides the obvious reason for knocking out a bunch of auditions at once, is there any other advantage to auditioning at Unified rather than at the actual campus? I would imagine the stress of such a large cattle call could potentially work against some of the kids, but what do I know? Just wondering if it’s worth the effort, especially since only three of my child’s schools of interest seem to attend Unified.
Here is my take on things and truly am no expert. Those schools who have rolling admissions I think the earlier you audition the better. LA Unifieds is the last one and I think admission spots fill up and you have less of a chance getting in if you audition at LA unifieds for schools with rolling admissions. Those who admit all at one time I think your chances are equal. The one school my daughter got into was an on campus audition at the beginning of the season and the others she auditioned for were at LA unifieds. She did not get into any of those.
If schools didn’t get kids they wanted from unified auditions, they wouldn’t go to them. I get what Bisouu is saying, and though I have 0 experience with LA unifieds, i know fewer schools attend, perhaps indicatiing that they’re done. I do think the type of audition (campus vs. unifieds) can be a factor for kids. All of my D’s BFA acceptances (she had 3) came from attending Chicago unifieds - though interestingly - none of them where from schools that audition at Palmer house, so they were not actually “unifieds” schools. She liked that she only had to focus on auditions for those days- felt she got “in the zone”. But she felt most comfortable away from the massive groups. D found the Palmer house crowded and chaotic (as did I - old hotels are tight on hallway space etc) many other hear have posted about how their kids thrived on the energy. It’s very personal. I think the best advice is- know your kid.
Thinking about the upcoming season’s craziness of applying and auditioning, I’ve had a question keep popping up for me. How many of “us” are there? How many kids in total are auditioning for MT? I feel like this may have been discussed before though I can’t find a thread with this. I also don’t know if there is data anywhere to support an answer. However, I know one school I recently visited receives roughly 2,000 applications for MT each year. When you see posts from prior years many students get into several different programs. So… is the total number 2,000? Is it 5,000? Is it more? I keep wondering what the stats are. I suppose if anyone has figured it out, it would be @EmsDad as you are typically the one with the best data and analytics. 
Anyone have any stats?
Last year we attended both Chicago and Los Angeles Unifieds and my daughter did 5 on campus auditions as well. She received 5 acceptances from Chicago, 2 from LA and 2 from her on campus auditions as well as wait lists from all so I think you can be successful in any of these arenas. I will note that she saved the most competitive programs for LA knowing she would be on her home turf and used to auditioning at that point and she did more auditions in Chicago because it was over 4 days instead of 2 so that impacted the results I’m sure. But the point is, that if the schools are there auditioning students, they are doing it with the intent of admitting the ones they want, regardless of whether it is at Unifieds in NYC, Chicago, LA or on campus.