@winnieroot thank you for the link, I had not seen that before. I cannot wait to show my D, I know it will make her feel good that several of the BA schools we are looking at, Catholic, Muhlenberg, JMU are all on the list Thanks again!
LOVE YOU @MTRaleighmom!! Congrats to you and your D!! Canât wait for road trips!!
I just wanted to correct my post above, JMU, Muhlenberg & Catholic were not on the Most Underrated list but the article linked to Best BFA & BA programs which they were on. Just clarifying. http://www.onstageblog.com/columns/2015/02/20/the-best-b-a-in-theatre-programs-in-the-country-in-2015?rq=the%20best%20ba
^^Keep in mind that the list in the link is on a blog and doesnât include their selection criteria. For sure, those are all wonderful programs, but not necessarily a âtopâ list beyond the opinions of the column writer. It is also hard to imagine such a list that doesnât include Northwestern on it.
@soozievt true and no worries Northwestern may not be on their list but it is on ours!!
Since I love to read everybodyâs decision process here goes ours.
Applied and Auditioned for: CCM, CMU, Emerson, Ithaca, Juilliard, Montclair, Otterbein, Pace, Point Park, Rider, Santa Fe, Texas State
Prescreens: Ithaca, Pace, Texas State (was invited to audition for MT at Pace and TSU and Acting at Ithaca). She did a walk-in presecreen for Otterbein and was called back immediately for a regular audition
Rejected: Juilliard and Emerson
Academically accepted at all schools
Artistically accepted for BFAâs in MT: CCM, Ithaca (Acting), Montclair, Otterbein, Pace, Point Park, Rider, Santa Fe
Wait listed: CMU, Texas State (took herself off the wait list for Texas and the priority wait list for CMU)
Background info:
My d has been dancing since she was 4. She danced very intensive until she got the MT bug at 9, thatâs when she booked her first Broadway show. She has done shows ever since (not on Broadway, except for one time events) For middle school she attended a Performing Arts School for musical theater, and for High School she attended a Performing Arts High School as a vocal major. To give you a full picture I think her ethnicity is important too, she is African American.
How did she come up with the school list:
We visited a couple of schools and she fell in love with Kaitlin in Texas and the campus in Ithaca. She also crossed some schools off the list because she didnât like the campus, the college shows we saw, or the lack of diversity. Generally speaking she wanted to be in an area in the country where she felt comfortable as a âblackâ girl in a âwhiteâ profession.
One or two schools she left off the list because she ran out of time to apply. We had some family emergencies during the application process, which left her very stressed and limited the time she had to apply. Start as early as possible!
Coaching during high school:
Conservatory style vocal training at school, acting for musicals at school, private vocal and acting teachers, open dance classes, youth theater group, MTCA
Audition process (1/17 - 2/14):
The first surprise we got was that she was invited to Ithaca to audition for Acting but not for MT, which was very interesting because her singing and dancing are considered her strongest qualities. She took it as a compliment for her acting 
Her first audition was in Texas and after the hard winter we had we loved the mild temperatures and the program. Next up was the Unified weekend in NYC. First up was Emerson, they had technical problems so there was long waiting involved, and at the end he just rushed them through the room. That was the one low point for her. She didnât feel that she was seen there at all.
Next day she went for the Pace audition and it was the complete opposite. She totally fell in love with the program and the people. She loved the dance call and everything else. Ready for the crazy weekend she started off Saturday morning with her CCM audition, she walked out and thought it went fine but at the same time she had no clue how CCM felt about her.
She did all her auditions and a couple of walk ins. She felt good about her auditions at all the schools. The one she really felt special about was Otterbein. She did a walk in for them and really connected with the faculty. They did some really intense acting in there and she loved every minute of it.
A week after the Unifieds she auditioned on campus for Montclair and she had a great time there too. I loved the program, campus and itâs close proximity to NYC.
The last audition was at CMU, she had a great time at the auditions, was seen by everybody and sang for 4 people. She knew that for her last college audition she gave it her all.
Final Decision: CCM
We were actually surprised how much we loved everything about the program, the facilities, and the current students. CCM was always the most talked about school when ever we discussed college with people. To a point that it was more of a turn off for us than anything else. But as it turns out my d felt right at home there and she loves that they are a true triple thread school. She sat in on quiet a few acting classes/workshops during this process and she connected the most with the CCM method. She also really likes their approach with ethnic actors and she feels that she would get out the most at CCM.
Not that the decision was easy by any means. A few acceptances she knew right away that she would not go there over CCM, because of reputation, money, or even negative stories she heard from friends. But others she really struggled to let go.
At the end she felt CCM would be best and we all are so happy for her.
^^
Congratulations to your daughter on her fine achievements and hereâs to the next four years!
Thank you so much! Itâs going to be hard to have her so far away.
It definitely takes adjusting as a mom! But if you are in the NYC area, then just think, you get her back in town in four years most likely!
That is very true! I count on that 
Congratulations, @my97MTbaby. I have know doubt your daughter will go far!!! S will miss her not at MontclairâŠbut I know CCM is the right choice for her!!
Thanks so much @16bars, it would have been so cool if they went to school together. As you know we loved Montclair and I know your s will do great there! He is amazing!
Congrats to your D @my97MTbaby! We welcome her to the midwest!
Thank you so very much @mom4bwayboy!
Wonderful story!
Welp, here goes⊠I never posted in 2018 so Iâll start there.
Class of 2018
Schools applied: 11 schools. Still seemed like not enough.
Accepted: Shenandoah and Emerson for MT
Waitlisted: CCPA and Syracuse for Acting instead of MT
Coach: Mary Anna Dennard
Summer programs: none (Gosh theyâre quite expensive!)
There were only 2 on campus auditions and all the others were done at either Moonifieds or Unifieds. She actually loved the energy and excitement of the unified auditions, but by the last day in Chicago, she was extremely tired and it showed in the last couple of auditions.
The D was accepted to the Doah right after her audition which was the first audition date. As rejections trickled in, it seemed as if it would be her only acceptance so I suggested that she spend a day in classes.
Pause: She discovered this school at SETC in her junior year. It was one of her callbacks and while she submitted a prescreen, she didnât pay for it.
Back to it: She sat in on three classes that day and really knew then it may not be a best fit for her but could be her only acceptance. What to do? Well, nothing since it was March. Two days later she was accepted to Emerson and then in the coming weeks, was waitlisted at CCPA and Syracuse. She was eventually rejected at both.
Emerson was quite expensive. Iâll say here that single parents with only one child really get the short end of the financial aid stick. We visited mainly so that I could meet with financial aid and show them the full picture that I guess I felt the FAFSA and CSS Profile couldnât give them. The D had received the most need based aid that they give. Theyâre known for being stingy on the aid, but after spending the day there, I realize that they just donât have it to give. Everyone thought the financial aid officer that we had was mean as parent after parent walked out of a meeting with her, but that wasnât the case. When she saw that a student who really wanted to attend wouldnât be able to due to finances, her eyes welled up with tears. There was nothing more that she could do and she hoped that we gained something out of the visit even if The D couldnât attend.
The evening was spent talking about what had happened. I offered all sorts of alternate scenariosâgap year, different major in a school academically accepted to that still offered lessons to non-majors. That just brought frustration and arguments. SoâŠ.
Final Decision: Shenandoah
A pro/con list was done and she felt that she would be okay there. She moved in with excitement to start college 300 miles away from home and make the most of her new home with her new MT classmates. Then two weeks later she asked about transferring.
Class of 2019
Applied: Otterbein (only repeat from the 13/14 audition season), Montclair, Point Park, Marymount Manhattan, Penn State
Accepted: Marymount BA with MT Minor
Waitlisted: Point Park (BFA MT, but after speaking to the artistic director she also put herself on the BA waitlist as well)
Coaches: an acting coach and repertoire coach found online. The rep coach was found because I was fascinated with a blog/song directory that he created. Neither of them mentioned anything about working via Skype but they both said they would do it and both were really great. The D had rarely heard songs in her rep that some of the auditors just ate up!
Since fit was an issue, I told her that it would be better to do each audition on campus. It would help to get a feel for the campus vibe and faculty. Thankfully, there were only 5 schools on the list so it was possible although not easy. I drove 4.5 hours from home to her campus and then on to the next location. I left work half day on the Friday and we drove to the audition location that night and we headed back to school after the Saturday audition. For some reason, I thought I was Wonder Woman and could barrel right back to NC on Saturday night. Yeah, dunno what I was thinking! I stayed in VA and drove back to NC on the Sunday. Taxing and exhausting would be good words to describe the process, especially when there were three auditions in back to back weekends.
The Marymount acceptance came during spring break. She was home and her mail went to school. We also thought her Point Park decision would come during spring break but it didnât. After the audition day Marymount came off the list. It was an obvious bad fit, but itâs in NYC so that was a tough one. No way she was going to another school knowing it was a bad fit. Three rejections also trickled in. In that time, I decided that she would not go back to Shenandoah so she was really left feeling like she just didnât know what she would do. She applied to the local state school with a great theatre program (and CHEAP). Looked at CUNYs (City Us of NY) and looked at perhaps trying to book work.
Final decision: Point Park! GO PIONEERS!
On April 30th, I said, April THIRTIETH, she was accepted into Point Parkâs BFA MT class of 2019. WHEW! Talk about down to the wire! The cost was very similar to Shenandoah so the deposit was made and the entire village took a deep breath (or cried or both)!
A couple of key lessons learned:
- Itâs really okay to take a gap year. While we didnât fully discuss the why, I think The D was caught up in all her friends going to college and she would be staying home. I believe she also thought 1 year would be come 2 then 3 then never.
- They donât always end up where they belong and itâs OKAY! If you want to transfer, change majors maybe come closer to home, whatever, ITâS OKAY!! Again. IT. IS. OKAY!
- Itâs hard as HECK to transfer into another MT program even though the student will tumble back down to freshman status. She couldnât really get solid answers from anyone, but I believe most schools take one or two transfers a year and we all know that males are usually in high demand. Not so easy for a transferring female. I will add that weâre minorities and I donât think itâs all that easy for a transferring minority female either. This is all opinion and speculation as it was next to impossible to get concrete info. I would highly recommend the gap year with training and possible core classes keeping in mind how many credits will make the schools in mind classify the student as a transfer. Each school is different so research every single one.
So here concludes audition season numero deux! I feel like an expert. I wanted to write a background post because there isnât much talk on here about the transfer student (plus The D had been hounding me to do one since last year). There is a lot of talk about kids landing where theyâre supposed to be and that could be why no one shares when they transfer. I am pulling back the veil and saying âhey, we did it and we survivedâ although barely!
If anyone is looking at transferring MT programs, holla at me! Iâm willing and happy to be part of your village!
@GSOMTMom Iâm so happy for and proud of you and THE D!!! Great words of advice!!!
So glad it worked out for you and your D! Pittsburgh is an awesome theater town.
What a happy ending! So glad things worked out, even though it took two rounds and came down to the wire! It all paid off. Best of luck to your daughter!