@divastagemom first of all congratulations—such amazing choices. Your daughter must be amazing all around! Has she looked at the curricula of both schools? That can help her to see which school aligns with her goals. NU is a trimester (or quarter if she does a summer session) school (the school year is three terms starting in mid-September and going through June) so that may impact summer stock availability. But it also has some fantastic alumni. My son’s friend goes to NU (MT) and he and his acapella group got to go backstage at a Tony-Award-Winning broadway musical because an alum (someone with a known name on bway) was in the show.
@DivaStageMom Congratulations to your D on her fine acceptances. I’ll be honest that I’m not quite understanding why a deposit was put down on BU before getting all of her results when the deposit is not due until May 1. I understand BU was a favorite, but she didn’t have all her options on the table and couldn’t weigh them equally yet, as she had visited some and not others. I’m also having trouble understanding that she doesn’t really know anything about Northwestern, because she chose to apply. What drew her to apply? I don’t know your situation, but I do observe many people who apply to schools because they offer MT, but they do not research them thoroughly first before deciding whether to apply. I truly understand wanting to learn MORE to help make a decision, but hopefully she did her due diligence in exploring each school before it made it to her list, and she had reasons for putting it on the list. She even had to write a Why NU essay and so I imagine she had reasons, yes?
You ask what would I choose but that is truly irrelevant! And both are fabulous schools and programs for theater. What matters is which one your D feels fits her selection criteria the best. Both are very selective schools academically speaking, though NU is even more so than BU (not saying that matters, but it is just a fact). The settings are different. One has a campus, and one not so much. I know quite a number of alumni from NU’s program who are now working professionally in MT. I don’t know many from BU working in MT as the MT track is newer there, though the program is very well regarded for drama/acting. I’m not saying this matters. But you mentioned that your D doesn’t want to work at Goldman Sachs but that seems kinda silly if you knew how Northwestern is a top rated program for theater and for MT. I know quite a few highly talented MT kids who wanted to be in a great MT program that was also in a selective, academically challenging university and opted for Northwestern. These kids had the talent to be admitted to top BFA programs but preferred Northwestern. That said, I think BU sounds like it fits lots of what your D appears to want and she had a good gut feeling there.
She needs to talk to current students in theater at NU, as well as alumni in their 20s to learn more since she can’t visit. Like someone else said, she should put the curriculum of both programs side by side. I’d also look at performance opportunities which I know are in multiples at a NU. I don’t know the MT opportunities at BU, but again, it is a very strong theater department! Boston is an exciting place to be for the college years (I went to college and grad school in Boston). Chicago is a fantastic theater city and I know some very talented NU grads who have opted to remain in Chicago and are booking jobs constantly in the theater scene there. Others have moved to NYC and are working (the ones I personally know).
I don’t think anyone can or should tell you or your D which college to pick or which they would pick if they could. I think your D should explore each option fully to see how each matches her selection criteria (and gut too) and compare them with one another as well. I don’t think she should listen to others’ opinions of where to go. She should talk with students from each program though to make a well informed decision. All that said, however, your D seemed to have BU as a first choice and went so far as deciding to enroll and deposit before even hearing from all her schools (reaches, whatever) and so maybe she feels good about that, and her heart settled and it brought closure to her apparently, and so there is something to consider.
@soozievt - thank you so much - you really put things in perspective. She did have an instinct for BU - she met the head of the department and she also auditioned for her and she just felt a connection to everything - the students, the school, Boston… it was a home run - I think it still is. That’s why she wanted to put down the deposit - it was her top choice since that audition - I think its where she belongs.
In terms of NU - its a great school - it wasn’t audition - so in a strange way it seemed “easy” to apply - she did have some supplementals - she has been in a summer program since she was 10 and the head of the program and regional theater it’s associated with is an NU grad - so NU was always held in very high esteem in the program - so that’s where the inspiration for her “why NU” came from - it didn’t come from her per se… its someone elses story.
Right now she is getting pressure from a lot of non-theater people that she is crazy to turn down NU - but thank you so much for your pointed questions - they opened my eyes that she needs to follow HER heart and not some academic selectivity statistic of what school is “better” - she needs to do what’s better for her.
And I apologize to everyone on this thread in advance for dragging you all through this - this took me for a complete loop - and I love and appreciate all the great advice I get here - :).
My D got got into Northwestern! Totally didn’t expect that! We knew it was possible but it just wasn’t in the forefront of our minds during this process–probably because it’s non-audition. Now we’ve got some serious decisions to make. I haven’t got the financial aid stuff yet, and that will likely make the decision much easier for us. My D is a National Merit Scholar finalist but NU gives 500 dollars a year for that. Yipee.
Also looking at TCU, Rider and OCU. I know it’s a highly-regarded school, but if it ends up costing too much we’ll have to turn it down. Also a bit afraid of the “audition after you’re there” thing.
@SavsMom if you get artistic admission to OU you need to look closely there. Older D is in different field but really likes OU. NMF is automatically a full ride at OU.
@soozievt yes, sorry… my main point was that the program is part of the School of Communications and even if admitted as a theatre major the true MT program is the certificate program that students audition for during their freshman year. After looking at so many schools everything starts to get mixed up, and we toured in March of 2019 - which seems like a lifetime ago.
@MTisNutz The OU NMF deal is a super cool deal at OU, but we’ve been waiting to hear about artistic acceptance, and the longer it takes the more I think it’s likely a no. But if she gets in (not counting on it) it will be a strong contender for sure. We are blessed with some great choices.
@SavsMom - D spoke with a student at NU in the MT certificate program last night. I don’t want to take up more space on this thread about NU - so I would be happy to share either in a PM or we could start another public thread to inform future applicants as well.
Net-Net she has decided to stick with BU.
Thanks again everyone for their congratulations and advice - theater parents are the best!!
@DivaStageMom Would you be willing to either post here, in the NU forum directly, or PM me as well. My kid is a 25, but NU is at the top of their list for many reasons. Would love to hear more about the certificate program.
I hope you guys will post detailed stories in the final decision thread!!
These trial, tribulations, victories and heartbreaks will be super helpful to the classes behind us…at least I found those from 2019-2023 super helpful in taking our path
@rainbowparent and @SavsMom - so apparently I am not skilled at starting a new thread - I posted to the wrong place - I am crazy at work at the moment and don’t have a chance to move this post - so don’t post anything to it - sorry
The thread makes more sense if placed in the MT Forum, not the College Selection forum, which is not geared toward MT. It also could be in the MT subform for Northwestern MT.
By the way, I totally respect and support your D’s choice to go to BU, which seems to be a great fit for her wants. I read your new post on NU, and don’t totally agree, however, that if not selected for the MT Certificate program, that a student would be “stuck.” The student would still be in the theater program, a highly regarded theater program, with MT production opportunities, MT training (voice lessons, dance classes), and so on. It wouldn’t be like they were not pursuing this field.
My daughter got a call with an acceptance from BOCO this morning! She is so happy as it was her top choice. They said she should be getting her letter and financial aid within a week.
For those waiting on Miami, we got this email today:
Dear xxx,
I hope this email finds you and your family well during these unprecedented times. I want to provide you with a quick update that my admission colleagues and I plan to post Regular Decision (RD) admission notifications this Friday, March 27 after 5 p.m. ET.
Once RD notifications have officially been posted, you will receive an email prompting you to view your decision in the CaneLink Message Center.
Thank you for your continued interest in the University of Miami. Stay well, and all best wishes.
Sincerely,
Nate Crozier
Assistant Vice President
Undergraduate Admission and Marketing
