Last May dd declined all offers as she decided she really wanted a conservatory program (musical theatre) and the conservatory program she was accepted to cost way too much. (She only applied to one as I steered her toward Liberal Arts programs). She had a great offer from Bard but we had a disasterous visit on accepted students day (just…one wrong thing after another) and in the end she just said no to everything. I offered to help make a plan for Musical Theatre applications/screening videos etc etc. for this year. OK She got PT work (and a small film role!) and has not responded to my offers of help.
NOW. She asked me last week if I thought Bard would accept her again and offer good Financial Aid. She has realized she does not necessarily need a conservatory to become an actor and would also like to explore her other interests.
I really did not see this coming. I advised her to write out a description of her whole experience with college applications and try to sort out what happened and why she has changed her mind. She will need to understand this if she wants to approach Bard.
Please advise! I have no idea whether it is a possibility or not but I would value any and all input. Thanks in advance!
She should get in touch with her Bard admission rep. Hopefully you kept some traces of your communication with him/her. She should make it clear she’s been on a gap year and has not taken any college classes. He might want to explain that lady year the visit was a disaster because (…she fell into a mud ditch…the cafeteria food gave her allergy hives… Her host was high the whole time… ) but he’d like to return and see the campus, hopefully under better auspices.
Then, arrange for another overnight visit.
Run the NPC on all colleges she’s considering.
Thanks for your reply. Do you think she should call admissions or write?
It seems touchy to be honest.
Problem#1: Google maps sent us seriously wrong and we were hours late. Managed to keep relatively positive though. But, seriously, hours.
Positive note: She really loved the Chemistry demo.
Problem #2: The rep for the theatre department on accepted students day did not respond well to her question, how will this program help me develop as an actor? Rep was the dramaturg and said, this is not a conservatory, you won’t get that training here. I myself could think of many responses to this question that would be honest and wouldn’t shut down an 18 y.o. , like actors need to learn the world, for example! Anyway, it wasn’t a helpful response.
Problem #2: In an attempt to rescue the situation we went to the theater for a tour and to meet some actors. We were offered tickets to a faculty written play which was a serious, heavy, experimental dive into Streetcar Named Desire. Lol. Bad timing for us.
So, how to tell the story without making it someone’s “fault”? It may be a hilarious story one day, with us spiralling lower and lower, hope dashed…
Just explain bad googlemap directions and an encounter with an experimental play that wasn’t the best fit for a high schooler resulted in a less-than-optimal visit?
Hm, perhaps her story (and it seems like it would work better in an email) would be about her reflection and decision that a conservatory is not the path for her after all, but she thought it was last year when she declined their offer. In other words, what you said in your post: She has realized she does not necessarily need a conservatory to become an actor and would also like to explore her other interests. Then maybe some some specific things about Bard to flesh that out.
At first read, I’m not seeing any way to tell the details of the visit in a way that puts her reapplication in a good light. (She didn’t like the answer from the dramaturg, we didn’t like the show…not that those weren’t her legitimate reasons, but IMO those don’t sound great when going back and asking for another offer).
Contact admissions and the head of the department. Maybe on the same email. No letters you want to track this. Tell them with self reflection she knows this is the perfect program for her because of X, X and X(yes 3 positive items). She wanted to take a gap year to do X.
See if you can visit and have a meeting with them.
My daughter was in a BFA theater design. After two years missed academics. Transferred schools to go into another direction. Bard teaches like theory. Definitely not a conservatory but seems to have an interesting program.
Never mention the negatives. But also ask yourself. If you didn’t care for the play /production, what’s going to make her enjoy their plays going forward?, Many schools do experimental type productions.
Bard may not be the right place for her (it’s very theoretical and experimental) but another LAC might be. Have her visit Muhlenberg?
Upon reflexion, mentioning the visit probably isnt the way to go.
Thanks, she really is thinking more broadly now, and I’m happy about that. I do think Bard is a good fit in many ways, and there is room to combine her interests in creative ways. I will suggest an email to that effect. She has been working and not attending any college, except a non- credit hip hop class, so she is still applying as a freshman I suppose. We’ll try an overnight visit with actual classes. I really appreciate your thoughtful responses and will post an update when we have one.
Wow, what a journey. I think there’s lots of good ideas here on how to approach bard but I would also hope she’s opening her mind to Bard like schools? It seems to me she should look at Skidmore, Sarah Lawrence, Connecticut College … There are so many good smaller artsy schools and she might actually find one of them is a better fit than Bard, especially if she really isn’t into avant-garde theater?
My son graduated from Bard (although not in theater) and I’m a huge fan of the school - but it’s unclear to me why your daughter now wants to go there. Is it because they wanted her last year, but she was the one to turn them down? It sounds like the visit gave her an accurate picture that she didn’t like. It’s really not the place for an actor looking for conventional musical theater, for instance - and yet the current award winning Broadway production of Oklahoma was developed at Bard starting as a student production. But no one will say that production is mainstream.
Honesty is probably her best bet in approaching them. Many schools will accept a student a year later and keep their applications open just in case.
Not sure she can do an overnight - they never used to offer them unless she has a friend there she can visit?
My advice would be to get her to articulate why she has changed her mind now - and what it is about Bard she finds so appealing. And what it is that bothered her - to be sure those same things still won’t rub her the wrong way.
Will definitely advise her not to complain (she wouldn’t anyway), and I wouldn’t dream of doing this for her, for so many good reasons. I don’t mind advising though.
She was waitlisted at Skidmore and Sarah Lawrence last year so I am not sure reapplying is advisable. Thoughts? If not advisable will return to the LAC drawing board with her.
I agree she needs to articulate more why she wants this now. The only thing she has mentioned is the science program. She does have a (male) classmate at Bard she might stay with overnight–I’m assuming that would be OK with admin. She felt comfortable with the students she met but would really like to try some classes. It’s a serious investment of time, money, energy for her, her family, and teachers at Bard. Would like to get it right.
It seems to me she should look at Skidmore, Sarah Lawrence, Connecticut College … There are so many good smaller artsy schools and she might actually find one of them is a better fit than Bard, especially if she really isn’t into avant-garde theater?