Hello! Yes, I agree, the waiting is so hard! Do you know when Point Park is suppose to notify people of their decision? I think NYU is one of the last to hear from. Thanks!
It took a little less than two weeks for us to hear from Point Park.
@shewants2dance Thank you!
My daughter just finished her last audition and I thought I would share a little of our journey for anyone still in the midst of this process. Her first audition was at FSU where ballet and modern classes were followed by solo auditions- everyone performed a solo- there were approximately 50 dancers trying out. She found the faculty to be warm and very knowledgeable and the facilities were nice- big studios with big windows. She was accepted to their program about a week later. Her next audition was at SMU. The program has a new director- I believe he is from a California school- they took classes in ballet, jazz and modern. The program felt very modern to her and there was a lot of talk about double majoring outside the school of dance, as a parent I think this is great- but she is really looking for a totally immersive conservatory type of program. She did not like the facilities- for such a beautiful campus- she said the dance department appeared to be housed primarily in the basement of a building. Out of approximately 60 dancers about 10 were asked to stay and do solos- she was not asked to stay- they were clear that if you are not asked to stay then you are not accepted to the program. Her next audition was at Point Park. She loved this school. The facilities were amazing- spacious, great floors, live accompaniment and the faculty was awesome- again there were about 60 dancers trying out. They had ballet- followed by an optional pointe class, then a jazz and a contemporary class- no solos at all. She loved the urban campus. She was accepted to the program about two weeks later. Soon after PPU, she attended two auditions in NYC. Pace was by far the audition she felt the least prepared for- after ballet and jazz they had hip-hop and tap- my daughter trains with a ballet company and while she has taken class in other areas- tap and hip hop are her weakest. She was also surprised by all the wardrobe changes- she said it felt like after each style of dance- the dancers would run out and change their entire look- it felt very LA to her- which is not a bad thing at all- just not what she had experienced at other auditions. Pace’s results come out in March- she is not very optimistic. Her final audition was at Marymount Manhattan. She really enjoyed this audition day. There were around 75 dancers. After the usual classes they made a cut down to about 20 dancers, These 20 were invited to interview with the faculty and perform solos. She was really impressed with the current MMC students who shared their love of the school and of course she loves NYC location. She just found out was accepted to this dance program. It is time for her to reflect on the process and make a final decision. Any imput on any of these schools would be greatly appreciated. Good luck to all the dancers auditioning and best wishes to all the parents overseeing these journeys.
@Copper2016 we are deciding between Point Park and Utah. (Still waiting on Fordham which is her first choice but I can’t imagine the merit money will be enough). Very different campuses and my daughter is having a lot of trouble deciding.
Congratulations- those are both great programs- but yes very different campuses and locations. Tough choice!!
My daughter had the same experience at SMU. She thought the facilities were awful and like your daughter mine did not get through the audition. She was actually appalled at the ones they chose to stay. All boys stayed even though one looked like he never took a dance class in his life. The director told the parents that he was trying to get more money for boys. My daughter got through NYU and Purchase but now SMU.
Congrats! My daughter was also accepted into MMC. Now waiting on the rest. This is so nerve racking !
I find the admissions process for point Park a bit confusing. Being in state and from talking to other parents at different auditions I know that they’ve already accepted many students. I have my own reservations about their program, my D hasn’t heard back from them yet but I honestly couldn’t fathom paying their tuition knowing what the program is like. We didn’t look into Utah but depending on tuition I would personally lean towards it! I don’t want to bash PP (some people love it) but I wanted to throw my two cents in!
@cllp2023 just curious what about PP admissions you are referring to? I found them to be like the others we did. And could you clarify what you mean “their program is like? “
@shewants2dance That they’re rolling admissions, each decision comes out 2 weeks after auditions. I know of 6 girls that were admitted just from an audition that took place about 3 weeks ago so I’m not sure exactly what their target number is when they’re admitting on a rolling basis. Most universities say “we’re admitting blank number of students” but they release decisions even before other auditions are completed. As for the program, locally it’s somewhat known as the place dancers train to become dance teachers. More or less girls here find that there is a lack of professional opportunities that you see at other universities. Many girls here look at PP as a plan B rather than a first choice.
Thank you for this input. We are not from the north east- that is interesting that PP is viewed as a training ground for dance teachers- my daughter would not like that at all- she definitely want to be a performer. She did love the faculty and the facilities which were the best she saw of any of the schools. Such a tough decision and we are really just having to trust her gut and to try and get as much information as possible so this is very helpful. As far as the admissions process- it was pretty much the same as every other dance department my D applied to (FSU, SMU, Marymount Manhattan- only Pace makes dancers wait till the end of auditions) . SMU told parents that they looked to have a class of 25-30 so they would admit approximately 60 dancers to arrive at that number. PPU’s program is much bigger- around 80 students so I imagine they extend invites to at least 160.
We are also from the northeast but PPU has a reputation here that it prepares performers for both dance and musical theatre. In fact the dance program doesn’t even have a pedagogy or choreography track - only performance. All dancers choose a concentration (ballet modern jazz) but regardless need to take daily ballet, modern and jazz. Tap is also available as an elective. We were told by PPU they want their dancers to be versatile so they can find work. We did lots of research prior to our auditions and point park always came up as a top ranked college dance program. We live near NYC and usually find someone from PPU in the Playbill. Spoiler alert: my daughter attends PPU and loves it, so of course we are also biased. Do your own research to determine which school best meets the needs of your dancer. Look at the hours they are dancing and what the degree options are plus of course the curriculum. Also as an FYI this year PPU is doing rolling admissions but last year (& the year before) there were two notification dates based upon when you auditioned. Those of you who are awaiting decisions from schools like Pace and NYU understand the benefits of just letting the dancers (and their moms) know where they stand ASAP the process is stressful enough!
I am under the impression that jazz and musical theatre is more the strength of point park. Anyone know how Strong their ballet program is? I just wish Utah was on the east coast and I think our decision would be over!
But if Utah was on the east coast, the skiing wouldn’t be anything like as good 
I agree- I much prefer the rolling admissions- I think it is extremely helpful to the students ( and the parents) I cannot imagine not having any feedback until March. I think these schools know exactly what they are looking for in their dancers and are able to make decisions along the way. Congratulations to your daughter on attending PPU- sounds like it was a great choice!
Does anyone have any insights on comparing Marymount Manhatten vs. Pace Commercial Dance?
Marymount Manhattan doesn’t offer a Commercial Dance. Just compare the curriculum for each concentration and see which you prefer.
I don’t like rolling Admissions. The college can’t make the best decision until all auditions are done. Look at all kids before decisions makes more sense to me.
I think there is value in rolling admissions because they allow you to make adjustments as you are auditioning, in addition allow you to re-audition if you choose. I know there are schools we did not continue to pursue when DD was accepted to one of her top choices (who are rolling admissions) because she “didn’t want to take a spot” from someone else knowing she wouldn’t attend. I already have a sense that the same dancers are applying to the same programs and getting accepted to the same programs. If you are applying to 5, 6 or more programs that is a lot of offers that won’t be accepted. I think schools have a good sense of what they are looking for and who "fits’ and how many to accept to get to their magic number. The ones that are not good at this will become evident as well.