<p>Soozievt,</p>
<p>Did UMich say anything about the extent of their financial aid? Their out of state tuition is very high, so it really would be unafforaable to us if lucky enough to get in unless they gave a substanial scholarship.</p>
<p>Jamimom, don't worry about it. We are all here trying to bounce info. and perceptions off one another and share experiences. I have learned a lot here and just over time. I know a bunch about NYU/Tisch because my D knows about a dozen kids who attend, about another half dozen who just got in and we did a comprehensive visit there last year, and then just what I read here and so forth. </p>
<p>The "old post" I was referring to, is NOT on this forum but on the parent forum which many on this forum do not read, I don't think. You were kinda posting back and forth with me and Cap and other stuff came up and I wanted to get back to you on lots of stuff but at the time, was inundated with work and then travel out of town to CA and what not and am backlogged now. I have to find that post at some point and talk to you. I gotta run and be "taximom" to all my D's activities today which entails about 170 miles of driving and lots of sitting on my part and waiting. She is picking up her license this week, however. ;-)</p>
<p>I am curious how your son already auditioned for Tisch if he is a RD applicant (or did I read that wrong and he did not yet audition?) because the Nov. auditions were for ED applicants and then the RD ones audition during the month of Feb. By the way to anyone else, we will be there Feb. 12 for the audition date that includes the optional dance audition, let me know if anyone else will also be there then.
Susan</p>
<p>Actor465 asked about wearing a dance belt and tights to college dance auditions. If you are not a dancer, you might feel uncomfortable walking into a college dance audition wearing tights. Wearing something in which you feel self-conscious will only add to your stress on audition day. I'd skip the tights unless you have taken ballet and are used to wearing them. Instead, I'd suggest that you boys wear a pair of jazz pants and a reasonably close-fitting white t-shirt. The jazz pants should be cut close to the body. You don't want to go into a dance audition wearing baggy pants that are falling off your hips and dragging the floor. I think that purchasing and wearing a dance belt to your auditions would be a very good idea. Do give it a trial run at home! A pair of soft leather jazz shoes or ballet slippers should also be in your wardrobe. It is very difficult, if not impossible, to dance in a pair of athletic shoes. I and others have mentioned in previous posts that professional dance attire will be a necessity once you are enrolled in a college MT program. You may as well purchase and wear the basics for your auditions. You will be using them in the future.</p>
<p>Susan, my son signed up for the NYU audition as soon as the boards were up with the thought of applying early, something he was going back and forth about. He literally changed his mind right at the part where he had to sign on the line and send out the app. He then called to change his audition, but they had no problem with him keeping the date and not applying ED and in fact, did not want to change the audition date as they already had things set. So he auditioned with the ED kids, but is not ED and has not heard. </p>
<p>We did all of the auditions as early as we could, and had thought that only CMU and CMC would be the done after the new year. But then we saw an early audition date for CMU, and he was free that Sunday, so we went ahead with that option. The advantage was that we were done by Christmas. The disadvantage is that we sank all that time and money into it, and now that it looks like he is not going that way, well, the money is just gone. Had we scheduled the way you have, we would be many thousands richer, but that is all water under the bridge. Also, there is a lot to be said to splitting the auditions so that some are before and after Christmas, as the student can assess what he is doing, and make changes if necessary. To blitz through 10-12 schools in the fall, could easily end up with all denials if you are doing things in a way that need improvement. Several kids we know who have been denied have gotten some valuable feedback for future auditions. They do learn by actually going through the process. </p>
<p>It makes more sense now that S knows so many kids accepted to CAP21--it seemed crazy to me that all of those spots were gone already, but with so many more spaces available, it is not so bad. All I remember is that at a tour, when someone asked about CAP, the Tisch rep said that it was one of the smaller studios and very much in demand, so that many kids who request it cannot be accomodated there. I did not ask for a specific number breakdown. Of all the schools, I have the least number of applicable stats for NYU as many of the stats I have are either for all of NYU or for Tisch which is not helpful when the school is so darned big, and the stats are not necessarily in proportion, a situation for most MT programs. Heck all of our kids would practically be *********s if some of those school stats held for this program. But CAP21 is apparently much bigger than I thought it was. I thought it was 60-80 kids total, not for the freshman class as that number was more in line with the other programs. </p>
<p>Sounds like UMich is a good match for your D with her music background. I did not stick around much for the auditons that day and we took off immediately thereafter, and the only feedback I got was from a couple of kids. I did talk to some of the students helping with the auditions, and got the idea that they take a varied group as far as piano and dance ability, since I met several kids who were assigned to pre piano and had never had dance before. I felt the program was an excellent one, and S like the fact that it was nestled within a major university and that there appeared to be interaction among the MT students and the rest of the students. So many opportunities there, and not just the MT dept. We did watch "Water", its opening night which was in need of major work--the students and faculty were not happy with the long version which we saw. THe next night which our friends saw was a bit better, I think as they cut it down and debugged it. Mich and Syracuse ended up the favorites for my son, which was not is initial take at the visits, at least for Syracuse. It was valuable for him to have two visits to the schools as he was more discerning about some things the second time around and was actually trying to place himself at the school. I was a bit concerned, since the odd are such that it looked like it would be more of what was going to accept him, not the other way around. The kids were almost all solidly talented, well prepared and with fantastic resumes, and it is frightening to me how few are going to be taken from these groups. Knew the numbers but when you actually see the bodies and count how many can be accepted from the group, it is scary. But I will tell you something that I did not quite get was that two of the kids I spoke to in the program, said they were accepted in April, and I think at least one was from that huge class. It seems like there were two large classes accepted, not just one, and one very nice young man from Virginia said he was accepted off the waitlist. I could not get an actual number breakdown, though I did ask. I was given the same infor as you have which is the number in the program for a given years vs the number auditioned.</p>
<p>Cato,</p>
<p>My information is from last year, but I suspect that not much has changed. Brent Wagner told parents and students that there is very little scholarship money available in the MT program. He said that only the top 2 or 3 candidates would be offered a scholarship. There used to be more talent scholarship money available, but the university has noted that there are plenty of very talented students clamoring to attend U.M., therefore, they don't feel the need to dangle a scholarship "carrot" to get students to enroll in the MT program.</p>
<p>I've also heard that there is not a lot of grant money available for out-of-state students. Michigan is a school that gaps big-time. Basically, parents and students have to cover the cost of a U.M. education with savings and/or loans. My D was in the same boat as yours. We would have been very hard pressed to afford U.M. much as we loved the program.</p>
<p>All you parents who went through this last year -</p>
<p>Thanks so much for sticking around - it's so helpful. But a request - could you put in your user profile the school that your S or D attends? Often when you are discussing various schools, I have to keep trying to remember where your kids actually attend, or look up the old thread, and it's slowing me down!! </p>
<p>Chrism</p>
<p>My son has a friend who was accepted to both Tisch and UMichigan, but when it came to the $$$, just could not swing either. She is in a smaller less known program, where she does get aid but is still taking about $10K in loans each year which is rough. Neither NYU nor UMich have much in the way of merit scholarships, and they do tend to gap in financial aid. But a poster here did say her D did get a nice scholarship from Tisch, so sometimes it does happen. It's just that there should be some sort of financial contigency school, maybe your state school if the dollars do not work out. I don't think this is field that one wants to enter with heavy loans from college.</p>
<p>jamimom, you're right about NYU gapping bigtime, especially at Tisch. The merit scholarships available at Tisch are very slim indeed. I saw that previous poster who indicated her D received one for 'almost one third of tuition'. Even at that, it would be roughly $10,000, and when you consider the annual costs they tell you to be prepared for at Tisch falling at around $45,000+ (and I can attest to it being that much and will be more each year), even $10,000 doesn't look like very much. It seems that NYU and UMich are very similar in many respects for these kids. Susan is correct in that CAP21 generally accepts 80 for 60. Some years more than 60 accept and the class is a little larger. People shouldn't worry about size, though, compared to some of these programs which take far fewer. Studio classes are generally in the 15-17 student range. </p>
<p>Susan, sounds like you had a great visit to UMich. I hope your D gets good news from them soon. When is it she auditions at Tisch? I forget, sorry my 50+year old brain isn't working well today. Is it possible she'll hear from Michigan before auditioning for Tisch?</p>
<p>The answer to financial aid at Michigan was pretty much answered already. The only thing I disagree with is the reason to not give that much scholarship did not seem to have anything to do with not needing to attract the applicants who are admitted (they have a high yield) but Brent Wagner mentioned that being a state university, that they do not have as much scholarship money available as privates, regrettably, though things are improving on that front. The admissions counselor mentioned that there are merit scholarships that often go to the top three or so students they admit to the program. </p>
<p>Regarding NYU, as Alwaysamom states, when IN class, the class sizes at Cap are similar to these other MT programs. However, the total number of MT students per grade/class level is greater than many of the other programs, though Boston Conservatory is also a larger group too. </p>
<p>Alwaysamom, UM indicated that the group who auditioned this past Friday should hear a result in 2-4 weeks and in fact, not all on the same day but as the admissions counselor goes down the pile of files on her desk, including the results of the audition, as well as all the other materials sent. The outcome can be either accept, deny, or "maybe" and maybe indicates being held until all the auditions are complete because they cannot fill the slots this soon. If you think about it, that means very very few will get an accept at this juncture. A maybe sounds pretty good actually. The final outcome for everyone would be after March 11, if on a maybe pile. Then there are a handful on waitlist at that juncture in case someone does not take the offer. They accept maybe two extra girls (so 12 or so total to yield ten) and two extra boys and then if slots are not filled with those accepted, then they will look at a mini waitlist. Don't confuse the waitlist with the earlier "maybe" pile....I hope I am not confusing anyone, lol. My daughter is auditioning for Tisch Feb. 12, no matter the outcome of UMichigan. She chose one of the optional dance audition Saturdays (there are two). She has two auditions before then though, so one at a time for now! Looking forward to being back at NYU though as it will be close to a year at that point since she came to campus. My daughter is begging to stay an extra night in the city to visit all her Tisch friends, plus others coming in for the audition, as if this is not costing enough. Can't think about that at the moment. As I told you, her boyfriend is so thrilled to have gotten into Tisch for acting. I hope something develops for my own kid but also for all the kids on this forum who sound very talented. It is scary to know these difficult odds when there is so much talent out there. </p>
<p>Susan</p>
<p>Susan, I am sure that your daughter will have some choices at the end of this process. You and she chose your batch of schools well, with good variety in them. She may not get exactly what she wanted initially, but I think most kids are flexible enough to make the most of what they do get. Every college you picked has a solid program and there are some alternatives within the schools as well. She has high academic stats which will help her as well. When there so many talented kids, every little bit makes a difference in making the final decision. I would not want to be the ones having to make the pick, that I can tell you, By the way, is she accepted to the acting major at Emerson? S's friend was deferred to both the college and the MT program. No mention of the acting option. This can get really confusing, can't it?</p>
<p>Gosh, I just looked at my earlier post further up the thread, and I must have used a "no no" phrase. And I have no memory what the word or phrase could be. No intent to be vulgar there. Sorry about that. Am racking the brain on what I said that got censored.</p>
<p>Soozie,</p>
<p>"The only thing I disagree with is the reason to not give that much scholarship did not seem to have anything to do with not needing to attract the applicants who are admitted (they have a high yield) but Brent Wagner mentioned that being a state university, that they do not have as much scholarship money available as privates, regrettably, though things are improving on that front."</p>
<p>When I stated U.M. only offered talent scholarships to 3 incoming MT freshmen because the university found they did not need to entice well-qualified applicants, I was quoting Brent Wagner. In his talk to parents and students on my D's audition day he told us that in the past his department had more scholarships to offer. At 1st he said that he did not know why they didn't have as much money to offer as in the past. Then he ammended his statement, saying that the university recognized that there were more than enough highly qualifed applicants for the limited numbers of spots available in the MT program. He said that there were more than enough applicants who were willing to pay full freight so his department did not receive as much money for scholarships as they had in the past. He told us that he felt the situation was unfortunate, especially for those highly talented students who come from families with lesser means. </p>
<p>Of course you are correct about the underlying reason that U.M. does not have as much scholarship money to offer as some other schools. They are a state university, not a private school. I'm glad to hear that Prof Wagner believes that things are improving on that front at U.M.</p>
<p>Broadway32nd/alwaysamom-</p>
<p>Thanks so much for your advice. I understand about the characterization thing now. Maybe it will now be easier to find something. I think we were being too particular. But how do you know if they are considered "overdone"? (Other than the "do not do" list on college audition forms) Thats the only thing im still unsure of. </p>
<p>In answer to your question, no, she doesnt take voice anymore. She took lessons for awhile (2 Years) when we lived in Denver, but when we moved here, she went the serious ballet route. She auditioned and got into the Pittsburgh Ballet, and so we drove 90 min each way 5/6 days a week. There really wasnt any time for anything else, as her sister decided to do the same and fortunately got in, too. After dancing serious ballet for two years she decided that she missed the acting and singing too much. She said she didnt want to "Just dance". So she went back to the local dance studio and did plays and sang in school choral groups, but did not take private voice lessons. She was happy so I thought it was the right thing at the time. She is also in a quartet that sings barbershop/sweet adelaines (sp?) type music so she is actually singing a lot, but private lessons would have been so much better all these years. She always loved theatre but she always planned to major in something academic and get a job then pursue her dreams in her spare time. She just decided to go this route in Nov/Dec. after she realized it was the only thing she was passionate about. </p>
<p>She met with a music/voice teacher today and she is referring her to a friend of hers that is a soprano and a voice teacher/coach at a nearby college. (She helps with auditions all the time.) The teacher today actually thought she could do any of the ones she tried, so I guess in my uninformed opinion maybe thats a good thing? At this point with all the money i'll be spending on auditions, i just want her to have something prepared!!!</p>
<p>I took your advice and called her director for the play. He said he would be happy to work with her, and would even help find monologues. He is a recent hire, graduated with a theatre degree from Marshall in WV, and has performed professionally in Chicago in the past. He is looking for plays to read and will bring them to practice tomorrow. It looks like it's working out!</p>
<p>Thanks again, I'll let ya know!</p>
<p>Dancersmom, no problem and I understand you got this information last year when your child had auditions at UM. Just saying what Brent Wagner said this year and he regretted that there was not more scholarship money but only mentioned it being due to being a public institution that did not have those same resources for grants but I believe that is something they are trying to build up. In any case, you are right that such merit awards are to their top rated admitted students, as the admissions counselor explained in the presentation that was for parents (separate from Brent's presentation). Of course there is the regular needs based financial aid based on FAFSA, which they encouraged all students to apply for. </p>
<p>Jamimom, regarding Emerson, my D's "decision" is different than your son's friend's one. She is admitted to Emerson but is deferred until April to hear if she got into BFA for MT. The admissions counselor said they only accepted a handful of kids into that BFA program at this point as they do not yet want to fill up the class until all auditions are completed. She said that this "accepted to Emerson but deferred for BFA in MT" pile is a small percentage of those who auditioned and that from this pile, they took 50% last year come April. You asked if she is accepted into the "acting major"....well, I have no idea what she is accepted into but to Emerson itself ;-). If she did not get in for MT BFA (still to be determined), I am not sure what that means she would be in......I guess BA in Theater Studies. But she wants a BFA in MT. If she wanted a BA in theater, she would have applied to various colleges and universities for that but she is going for BFA in MT. So, I can't tell ya what she is in there but got the whole acceptance package that accepted students get but in the letter it mentions not yet determined if she is in BFA or not. So, that is all I can tell ya. It so happens that she has heard of four who have gotten into BFA in MT there, one her best (summer) friend (Freelance's D), JerryLaurie's son, a theater friend from here in VT (who was at Mich this past weekend), and a girl she met at UM auditions. Not sure if there are any more or not, as I think they are waiting there to do all the auditions, kinda like UM does but then again, UM does not have this "admitted but deferred" status thing that Emerson has. UM uses a "maybe" pile which is like deferred....and is that what your son got? </p>
<p>And like you, I also would not want to be these folks who decide because from what I can tell, there are a lot of talented kids out there. It is mind boggling and the odds are so difficult. The general public has no clue how low the acceptance rates are in this field when they ask where your kid has applied to college. It almost makes the Ivy League and elite college admissions that my other D went through a year ago seem a lot easier in comparison and that was NOT good odds either and many talented kids of that type are also declined. I also find it a bit mind boggling how it comes down to this fairly short audition and it is not like they see the body of the kid's work or the kid in any shows and stuff like that, which of course is how this field operates (via auditions) and everyone is in the same boat. But for folks unaware of this process who have seen a kid in this and that, they don't realize the colleges don't see any of that but simply that one audition slot and lots ride on that moment. I think with any audition, as long as your kid walks away and says, "I did the best I could do", then it is positive and I am grateful so far for that experience. I also think that parents must talk to their kids about this whole thing and be very very realistic and not make everything ride on any one school. I think if you are in the ballpark talent wise and academically, then hopefully there will be a place for you and you just can't say which one will go your way but one should work out. I also think there are many fine programs out there that a kid could be happy at. Sure, when you find one or two that seem like a perfect match, you want that school to work out but with these kinds of odds, you just have to hang in there and do your best and in the end, something will work out some place.</p>
<p>Thanks, all, for the great info on Cap21. </p>
<p>Mama02girlz, I'm so glad everything is working out for you daughter and you found a coach. It took me MONTHS to find monologues that I like... so I totally understand your frusteration! I am going to the Unified Auditions in Feb as well, and I'm still working on my monologues... I am just not happy with them at all. They are the hardest thing for me. What schools is your daughter auditioning for? </p>
<p>Any info that anyone has on AMDA would be appreciated... I've heard a lot of not-so-good things about it, and the application is due Feb 1st. I know I'm accepted to Point Park, so if it would be better to just go there, I should probabaly cancel my audition so I won't have to pay the AMDA app fee! I just am not sure what to do....</p>
<p>Yes, he is deferred. He first received a request from admissions for his Mid Year report. But for him that is a moot point. I asked about Emerson because my son's friend did put the Acting program down as his second choice if he were not accepted to the MT program. But my understanding was that the acting program was also audition based and that you would be offered a spot there if they felt you were a go for the acting but not the MT, but I could be mistaken. He was not offered the acting program option either, but seems to just be deferred to the regular pool. Strange, how they have all of these levels of acceptances and programs. Was just curious how it worked. I know that at CMU, that you can be accepted to the acting program, still very selective, from the MT audition, as the spots for MT are particularly limited there. In addition, you can be accepted to the University in another school, but you did have to stipulate that option. I believe Syracuse had that option as well. </p>
<p>And absolutely, people have no idea how slim these odds are, and what terrific resumes are out there auditioning. Just not enough programs for the number of kids aspiring to do this, I guess. The odds of getting into Michigan's School of music are not bad at all, I remember, except in this MT major which is very tough. Incredible that it is even more difficult than classical voice.</p>
<p>Soozie - emerson accepted 12 students for the MT program early</p>
<p>Shrek, thank you for that information. May I ask how you know? The admissions officer at Emerson said they only took a "handful" so far into BFA for MT and that a "small percentage" was admitted to the college but deferred for MT. Twelve is a big "handful" ;-). Others said last year this "handful" of EA admits to MT BFA was just three. Congrats to your friend by the way!!
Susan</p>
<p>Jamimom.....my D did not put a second choice option down for Emerson. Yes, there is an audition based BFA for Acting program at Emerson. My D's boyfriend auditioned for that, in fact, though got in ED to Tisch for acting shortly afterwards. So, no, my D is not admitted to that program, nor tried. I believe you can also get a BA in what I suppose is Theater Studies (I could be wrong?) and I guess that is what my D could do there if she did not get into BFA for MT which she is waiting on, but for now, her thrust is being admitted to BFA programs for MT and so as far as Emerson goes, she is interested and hopes to make it in for BFA once auditions are done. She has so many auditions still to go and we shall see what happens, like all the rest of you guys out there!</p>
<p>Susan</p>
<p>Chrism,</p>
<p>I like your suggestion to us old timers to put the name of the school we or our kids attend in our profiles. I have complied. I know it's hard to keep up with who's who. Sometimes I've felt like I need a score sheet to keep track of everybody's information. I hope some other people will follow suite and amend their profiles.</p>