Down to the Wire- Choosing Between Two Schools

College Majors Musical Theater Major
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This is my first post on here! Super excited to get to this point but my DD is feeling stuck. She was able to narrow her acceptances up until this point. Anyway, Both are Top BFA MT programs. Option A vs Option B. Which would you pick? Ultimately it is her decision but trying anything I can to help!

General Information:

Bottom Line Cost is roughly the same for both and very affordable- one costs more in tuition/room and board but when you account for flights/travel to the other they equal the same.

Curriculum for both are amazing- they do have slight differences but overall they offer her just about everything she’s looking for- strong acting base, strong vocal training, strong musical theatre training, especially strong dance training, and opportunities to write and direct and they support student produced work. They appear to both be very committed to DEI (diversity-equity-inclusion). Their classes are quite diverse. Lots of performing opportunities. Amazing connections and feels both will def propel her forward.

In terms of area, they both are larger traditional campuses in a suburb that also has access to a nearby city- for some reason this quality is super attractive to her. She eliminated most of the city city schools and also eliminated schools that were on the “remote” side with no city access. She likes refuge but also likes to have things to do when she wants.

Visited both schools. Talked to people, parents, students from both schools. I think we got as much information as we could but we are still stuck. :slight_smile: Hopefully you guys can help!
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Option A: BFA MT

Pros:
*dance opportunities: + rigorous ballet, modern, jazz and can take with dance majors

*close to NYC- this will be advantageous when it comes to post-graduation as she would already be familiar with the area and the people that are there

*directing and playwriting opportunities are strong here

*committed to diversity and wellness

*she actually knows a handful of people who go/teach here so + for familiarity

*school and area VERY lgbt friendly

*this school is more flexible in terms of professional auditions/requirements; lets their students do an independent study if they book something significant

Neutral:
*medium sized program: roughly 20-30 students so less individualized attention but not a deal breaker

Cons:
*she’s been reading through confessions accounts on Instagram and is questioning the quality of the college as a whole; it’s excellent in her field and I think it is one of those schools where you really DO get out what you put in

*Lots of complaints about dorms, food, administration, and overall students (as a whole, not MT particularly) not feeling that happy to be at the school. Dorms- mold and leaking complaints; Food- a certain food place on campus gets talked about a lot as a place to avoid.

*Administration

*Stigma from friends about going to a “commuter school” and lots of “couldn’t you do better” comments and “why not ____” comments- again she knows that social life is especially what you make of it here and she isn’t personally bothered by commuter style (just resigned to it- you can’t have everything) but again just the STIGMA of possibly going to a “commuter school”- poor thing wants to look good in front of her friends. Industry professionals aren’t helping either.

Option B: also BFA MT

Pros:

*the leadership there is AMAZING

*their commitment to DEI

*more opportunities to take directing and playwriting classes than any other option

*the campus and the area

*students as a whole are generally happy here- the community there is amazing

*the acting is especially strong

*she LOVES the people there

Neutral:

*When she sees other ppl commit to Option B she feels SO SAD because she feels like she would be missing out. However, this feeling alone wouldn’t automatically make Option B the right choice.

Cons:

*Option B is great all around but 100% has qualms about the area, the state, and the culture- it doesn’t seem like the area where a queer female can thrive. Was OK upon visit but felt she had to “mask” herself a bit. This has nothing to do with the program or the people or nothing to do with the school; like I said it offers everything she is looking for- but it is this factor that may tip the scales. I know that 99% of time will be confined to the campus and a bit of the surrounding city, which are lgbt friendly but still- it’s risky to risk it for 4 years. She’s already talked with other people- they appear happy but also confine their time on campus.

*otherwise she is worried about agents/being away from industry work and losing momentum in that regard

*the dance training is a tier or two below Option A and a couple of the other options she ruled out but since classes are leveled she can still be challenged, and program director creates amazing oops for the students

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I think it seems that Option A might be a bit better fit, based on what you wrote. However, I am the person who only reads negative reviews on Amazon to see if I can live with the flaw that draws the most complaints. The thing that stands out the most to me from what you’ve written is that your D doesn’t feel free to be herself at B. To me, that would be a dealbreaker. Four years is a long time to “hide” but is not too long to have a stash of granola bars in your room for nights when the dining hall doesn’t cut it at A.

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Also, FWIW, I have issues with the administration at D20’s school. I choose not to pay attention to much of what they say and do. D and her friends complain about things but we have come to realize her time there is already (almost) half over and before we know it, she’ll be out.

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So the one thing I wouldn’t worry about is what people think who aren’t in MT or acting. My S goes to one of the top BFA acting programs in the country and when I mention the school’s name it is 20 questions to realize what it is. Also, the food and dorms are terrible there. He deals. That seems to be an increasing issue at many schools, we just budget for a lot of meals out.

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I would opt for A. Creating professional relationships with working actors/directors/etc in and around NYC is very valuable. Also, as others have said you can basically ignore what other non-MT students are saying about the university. Its all about the program and there really is no such thing as a commuter school when it comes to MT, since most will be from out of state and not traveling home much at all. Honestly we specifically chose a “commuter school” since weekends will be more quiet and will allow these MT kids a chance to catch their breath and also attend the weekend rehearsals for things without being drawn to parties and such. As far as attending a school people have heard of, again it doesn’t matter because many of the best MT schools I myself had never heard of before starting this process last year. Sure, everyone knows the Michigans and Penn States of the world, but how many normal people have even heard of places like Molloy, Shenendoah, Baldwin Wallace, etc? Also, as politics will continue to get more and more toxic in red states over the next few years, you might want to make sure she is in a safer blue state.

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Great point! My friend’s child had a fantastic experience at Baldwin Wallace, a school I had not heard of until he started there.

Re student reviews of colleges… many students only ever post to complain.

“A” sounds like a great option.

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Regarding the cons of school A, we’ve been there. My student’s top picks last year were a contrast in many things - aesthetics & academics in particular. And my student hears from friends who go to schools where the food is better etc.

However, the program is incredible and a better fit; and there are several other arts/performing arts majors, so there is a community of creative students and diverse artistic opportunities to explore at the chosen school. It’s also a train ride away from NYC and Philly, which has been utilized repeatedly this year! Huge bonus for my student.

I would recommend your student ask themself if it is the place where they can grow and thrive as an artist, because that is what will matter more than the dorms, food etc.

Best of luck, it is not easy!!

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New York, New York! It’s a wonderful town!

But seriously, if everything else is pretty much equal, then how could she possibly not choose to be near NYC, when that is the center of the theater world, at least in the US?

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Sounds like A is the better option. My kiddo is also lgbtq and would not be able to thrive artistically if they had to mask at school. It is so important for them to be nurtured and supported for all they are! I’m not big on the nyc proximity, I think there’s plenty of time for that and most programs have the kids so busy anyway! Also, for the class of 20-30, do they not split them into smaller groups? I would guess they do for at least some classes. I’ve found it rare that doesn’t happen. Most programs that are smaller can’t grow without doubling faculty, you can’t add a whole new teacher for 2-5 kids, so they have to keep it small. There are positives to both small, med, large, but I think especially for lgbtq kids, larger means better chances you’ll find ppl to click with and hopefully also identify and not feel isolated.
But all else being equal plus stronger dance I’d go for A!

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As a parent I have a strong negative option towards B.

It’s just our opionion but our family 100% wouldn’t support the area/state/culture you describe in option B. It seems ridiculous we’ve made so much progress in the last decade to have to hide who you are.

I’d encourage my kid towards option A and made sure to inform option B that one of the reasons was because of their location.

Good luck no matter what the future brings!

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It’s been a while since I’ve been on CC, but happy to chime in as a queer woman. I moved from one of the most diverse cities in the world (Toronto) to Wisconsin for college, and honestly, being several years out of school now, I can say looking back that I regret that decision. While I think I got a lot out of my BFA program training-wise, I don’t know if the training made up for the cost of living in a place where I felt like I was the only lesbian for miles, where I never had anyone to date, and where I felt very disconnected from any kind of queer community.

This is just my personal philosophy, but I think that getting a BFA is about more than just the vocational training (because if training is the only thing that matters, the better option is absolutely to just move to a major market and to start taking classes). In my case, I think I missed out on a lot of interpersonal growth and a lot of experiences I wish I’d had in college because I chose to believe that a good musical theatre program could transform a school that wasn’t the right fit for me a into livable, happy environment. That wasn’t the case for me. In my opinion, no musical theatre program is good and all-encompassing in its student experience enough to turn a school that isn’t the right fit for non-program-related reasons from a pumpkin into a carriage. At the end of the day, no matter how great the training is, no matter how great the people are, you still have to live in that ENVIRONMENT for four years…and I think a lot of people underestimate how emotionally taxing that can be and how much that takes a toll on you, especially as you’re trying to figure out your adult identity and come into your own.

My advice to your daughter would be to go to option A if that’s where she feels like she can be the best version of HERSELF as a person.

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I have a sneaky suspicion which school A could be and if I’m right then most of the commuter complaints and lack of friend groups do not apply to the arts/music students. A few videos I’ve watched was a stem student very dissatisfied but was jealous of the kids in the arts program. They were having a completely different experience than she was. I’d go with A in a heartbeat if for no other reason I’d never want my daughter to feel like she’s the “other”. That’s the antithesis of being able to fully embrace who you are and express yourself through your art.

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What did your daughter decide to do, if you don’t mind sharing?

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