<p>S is interested in doing a double major in theater and something else... he doesn't know what. He is interested in theater along the lines of avant garde, comedy and improv. Not musical theater.</p>
<p>Columbia has given much better financial aid than the other two (costs 44k less over 4 years), but he probably couldn't double major there because of the core curriculum. Anyone have comments on the Columbia theater department (which is actually at Barnard, I believe). </p>
<p>Also any comments comparing these 3 schools? Do you think the professional training at Northwestern is worth the extra money?</p>
<p>DH attended Columbia for engineering, and although he also acted professionally he says he heard NoTHING about the theatre program during his years there.</p>
<p>$44k is significant, but I can say our D is finding the theatre training at Northwestern to be fantastic, plus thier quarter system makes it very easy to double major and they have many world-class programs. If you had to spend a 5th year on a double major elsewhere, that would cost both $ AND time! I’d also expect the off-campus cost of living at NU will save you some $ over the years.</p>
<p>DH attended Columbia for engineering, and although he also acted professionally he says he heard NoTHING about the theatre program during his years there.</p>
<p>$44k is significant, but I can say our D is finding the theatre training at Northwestern to be fantastic, plus thier quarter system makes it very easy to double major and they have many world-class programs. If you had to spend a 5th year on a double major elsewhere, that would cost both $ AND time! I’d also expect the off-campus cost of living at NU will save you some $ over the years.</p>
<p>Vassar has an excellent theatre department, though its not in the same league as Northwestern. If you look at the listing of theatre courses at Vassar, it makes you want to take all of them, though I think there are a fairly limited number you could actually fit in. This would bear investigating.</p>
<p>A boy attending Vassar would probably have some pretty good casting opportunities. </p>
<p>If you do a search of this forum, I’m sure you can find some posts about Columbia theatre. I remember seeing some.</p>
<p>I also forgot to mention that NU has an amazing track record for producing successful comedians including Seth Meyers, Jane Curtain, Cloris Leachman, David Schwimmer, Stephen Colbert and many others. I’m guessing part of that is a combination of amazing training, easy access to Second City (the Harvard of Comedy), and also a long tradition of very strong improv troupes on campus. We got to see Mee-Ow, a student improv short sketch group, on campus during Family Weekend and they are very talented and generally hilarious.</p>
<p>Another thing to keep in mind is the sheer volume of theatre happening all the time at Northwestern. They do in excess of 60 productions per year (including mainstage and student-produced theatre) so it is a vibrant theatre community unlike what can be found almost anywhere. Plus the faculty includes several recent Tony winners, so the quality standards are very high.</p>
<p>Thanks for the comments! It is a hard decision because finances are a big factor. I have searched for everything I could find here on Columbia theater. S is going there in person in about 5 days, so hopefully talking to the professors will help. </p>
<p>The schools are all so different and so wonderful. The money and academics at Columbia are very tempting, but with the core and demanding courses, I don’t know how much time he would have to be in shows. I looooove Vassar and its atmosphere. And of course it would be hard to pass up Northwestern. </p>
<p>Part of me just thinks he should go where he would end up with the least debt because they are all terrific. I will check back for more comments later.</p>
<p>I have a strong personal affinity for Columbia (Barnard grad married to Columbia alum), unless your son wants to seriously pursue an undergraduate major - in that case, go with Northwestern. There’s no place in the country like NYC, and anyone can audition for plays on campus at Columbia/Barnard. There’s probably more going on there now than there once was, with the expansion of the graduate School of the Arts (ie. Directing and Playwriting MFA projects), but there’s not much of an undergraduate academic theater program. Your son would probably have to major in English, with a Drama concentration. The Core Curriculum limits the scope of electives he can pursue, but it will provide an unparalleled intellectual foundation for the future. Congratulations on having such terrific options! He cannot go wrong with any of those choices. I know several very accomplished actors who graduated from Columbia, and credit their strong comprehension of classical texts to the Core Curriculum and English Department there.</p>
<p>We visited Columbia a few years back -so this info may be out of date - but found the theatre program to be pretty much nonexistent, or perhaps on the level of a regular public high school, nice, fun, but nothing big. When we asked about the program, we drew blank stares or silly comments (“This is New York!” Expansive gesture. “You can go anywhere!”). </p>
<p>Barnard has a better program, and we investigated that too - talked to a few professors in theatre - but our impression was that it was weak. And I was unsure how much a Columbia student could participate in Barnard’s program anyway (I was more optimistic than my son, who came away determined not to go to Columbia at all!) </p>
<p>However it really, really depends on what your son wants. The money is huge. Is he set on majoring in theatre? If this is his interest, can I ask, Why did he apply to Columbia at all? What did he see there when he applied that interested HIM? Are there e/c’s he is interested in? Could he make it work for HIM? If he wants to major in theatre and seriously study it, then NU is the best choice if finances are equal to Vassar. If Vassar is significantly cheaper, then consider Vassar as it has a great program too; NU is the best, though. (For instance, my own D was accepted into both NU and Vassar and isn’t even considering Vassar now; also NU offered a better financial package than Vassar, believe it or not) </p>
<p>What I’m trying to say is that this is really a personal decision for you. HOw much of a hit are the finances? IF they are very significant, then perhaps your son could carve his own way in Columbia, although I’d strongly suggest he have a definite plan. Has he re-visited? Ask current students what sort of venues there are for his interests. Do not rely on it ‘being NYC’ as our tour guide implied a few years ago. He’s in school, not in an apartment in the city. When he graduates, or in the summer, he can perhaps do an internship, but while in school he is getting an education. Best of luck with this decision–this is a tough one.</p>
<p>Hi Hoveringmom. Thanks for your reply. As far as I know, the Barnard and Columbia theater programs/major are joint, so there should not be any problem taking the classes and majoring. S will visit Columbia in a few days and meet with professors, hopefully that will give him a better idea.</p>
<p>Interesting that you got more money from NU than Vassar. I wonder how they figure these things. In our case we got a lot more from Vassar than NU, but Columbia’s financial aid was the best of all.</p>
<p>S loved Columbia when visiting it initially, and it has lots of different things (including ECs/minor-concentrations) that he is very interested in. </p>
<p>It is a tough decision with a lot of factors. Finances are very important, but I just don’t know if that should be the top factor. We’ll just take it step by step, see how the Columbia visit goes, etc.</p>
<p>If the offers from other schools were need based, you could contact NU’s financial aid office and ask why other schools were more generous than they were… that’s not often the case so showing them specific offers might have some impact. NU doesn’t give Merit aid (aside from a small amount for NMS), but it wouldn’t hurt to ask the questions.</p>
<p>Does your S also plan to visit Northwestern?</p>
<p>I know someone who is majoring in Theatre at Northwestern and she LOVES it, to the point where I’m considering transferring there if I can get my GPA up and get the financial aid. As mentioned before, there are over 60 productions a year, including a freshman musical and other great opportunities to jump right in. </p>
<p>The downside, in your son’s case, is that it is a 23 credit hour program and double-majoring would probably be very difficult there, although I don’t know for sure.</p>
<p>LOTS of Theatre majors at NU double major… we even met a triple major during our tour! I’ve even heard it said that MOST theatre majors double major, though I don’t have data to support that.</p>
<p>All of the kids I have met there would not trade their program for anywhere else.</p>