Congrats!! GREAT attitude, advice and perserverance! Best wishes to you, and your family. Prayers for your mom!
Congratulations MTer1997 and FionaDad! Iām in awe of you MTer1997, and you will go far. Sending good wishes to you and your mom.
FionaDad, I really respect you and your daughterās level headed approach to a crazy process. Sounds like your daughter landed in a great place.
OMG MTer1997 I am beyond speechless to think you pulled this all off by yourself while having the underlying concern of your Momās health! Yes you should feel super proud and I hope you will always think of this experience as a success. I love when good things happen to good people and especially deserving people. You clearly have perseverance and that will serve you well in this crazy business. Congratulations! And will be praying for your mom. Having a successful result like yours is probably the best thing you could have done for your Mom, cuz all we Moms really want is for our kids to be happy!
@MTer1997, you are clearly a level-headed go-getter! Good for you for persevering and being yourself throughout this process.
Blessings to you, your mom, and whole familyā¦
Wow, thank you everyone! My mom just got out of her surgery! She is doing well. She had another tumor around her voice box and she was hoping once they manipulated it would make her belt higher. Haha! Only a few more surgeries to go!
Thinking of you and your mom MTer1997. Your determination and attitude are inspiring. Congratulations, best wishes at CCPA (great program!) and especially best wishes to your mom. What a great son she has!
Wow @MTer1997! What an awesome story of perseverance. You must be an awesome young man! I predict great success for you. Go chase your dream! And best wishes and prayers to your mom.
CONGRATS MTer1997! Sounds like CCPA is a lucky school to me. And sending good vibes to your mom!
Wow @MTer1997! Are you sure you are a boy? My S couldnāt remember his dance shoes last year. The fact that you pulled this all off by yourself is amazing. Your mom sounds much better at raising sons than my Sās mom.
Also @FionaDad - accomplishing so much and having such a grounded D. Congrats!
What an awesome thread. Thank you to everyone who is willing to share their highs and lows and everything in between. It has been a pleasure to read about your experiences.
Applied: UNC-Chapel Hill (safety), CCM, Elon, Syracuse, Cornish, Penn State, Emerson, Webster, UNCSA, Minnesota, UMich, Indiana, Boston University, Northwestern
Pre-screens: Elon, Penn, UMich, Indiana (passed all)- just had a friend at school film
Accepted: CCM MT, Elon MT, Syracuse MT, Cornish MT, Boston U Acting (also accepted academically to UNC-CH, Minnesota, Webster, Indiana- cancelled audition)
Waitlist: Penn State, Emerson
Not accepted: UNCSA, UMich, Webster, Northwestern
*mix of straight acting programs and MT
Background: All types of dance since age 3 (ballet, pointe,tap, jazzā¦) 7 years private voice and various choirs, 5 years of piano, mix of school theatre and community theatre to the point that I canāt remember a time when she wasnāt in rehearsal for something, Performing Arts High School Drama program Senior year
Strong academics / test scores
Summer Progarms: OCU, MPulse, ArtsBridge, DB, NHSI Cherubs
Lessons learned:
- For my D, auditions were the fun part of the process. However, it was interesting that the audition she thought was her worst turned into an acceptance, and the audition she thought was her best ended in rejection.
- Start early! These kids (especially girls) have to cast a wide net when these programs take so few kids. We specifically chose summer programs offered through colleges so that she could actually spend time on campuses and get a feel for the type of environment that felt right to her. This also gave us the opportunity to visit other schools in the area or on the way.
- That said, while I hoped these visits would help my D narrow her list to a certain type of school (conservatory, big vs. small, urban...), it didn't happen that way for us because she liked aspects of all of the different types and her list remained extremely varied right down to the final 3 schools.
- I have always been amazed at the number of kids who say they want to pursue MT, but don't make dance a priority. I thought that maybe that was just in our little part of the world, but while there were some incredible dancers at college auditions, I was still surprised at how many kids had very limited dance backgrounds. Dance class will help you!
- This process isn't over when you have your acceptances. There are accepted student weekends, financial packages / scholarships to consider, and re-visits to schools all in April when there are also conflicts with High School Senior activities. I have found this month extremely challenging.
- Once D had decision narrowed down to the final two schools, EVERYONE told her that she would be crazy not to accept the prestigious conservatory, but in my heart I think that I knew where she was going when the accepted call came from the smaller, more liberal arts based program and she burst into tears. It has been harder for my husband and I to let go of the other option, but we have played the role of devil's advocate, helped her identify pros / cons, talked to everyone we know to talk to, and we are confident that D is choosing the best school for her. We know that she's done her homework and we trust her decision.
The deposit is in and the t-shirt has been bought! We are finally at the end of this grueling process, and I am delighted to say that the decision is ELON!
Boy this was a tough one @limbo2019 - Congrats as D starts down HER right path!
Elon is a great place to go to school and a fantastic program. She is very right to go where she feels fits her best. Itās always good to hear others opinions, but ultimately, you need to go with what you feel is best for you. Only you know what fits you best and what is important to you. Youāve chosen a great program. She will thrive. Congratulations!
Congrats @limbo2019! Also congrats to your D. Iāve noticed several on this thread whose children passed on the ābigā program for the place that was right for them. Iām pretty sure those students will all excel wherever they land, but being in the ārightā program is just the icing on the cake. I like that this years class is defining what is right for them.
@MTer1997 You should be so PROUD of yourself! Iām all choked up reading your story! Sending positive healing vibes to your mom!! And BIG hugs to you!!
Congrats everyone!
Applied: So Dakota, Nebraska Wesleyan, Rockford, Western Illinois, So Illinois, Western Michigan, Ball State, Indiana University, No Kentucky, Western Carolina, Texas State, Montclair, Pace, Emerson, Millikin
Prescreens: Nebraska, IU, Texas State, Pace, Baldwin Wallace
Passed prescreens: Nebraska
Still waiting to hear from: Baldwin Wallace (not joking!)
Broke foot during dance: Millikin
Auditioned: So Illinois, Rockford, Nebraska, Western Michigan, Ball State, Emerson, Millikin, Western Carolina
Academically accepted: Except for Emerson, all of them.
Musical Theatre BFA Acceptances: Southern Illinois & Nebraska
Background: Dance classes as a kid, community theatre since she was 7, had a Chgo agent from around 7-11 and did some minor professional modeling, private voice w/ a PHENOMENAL teacher for 4 years.
Summers: IUās Midsummer Theatre Program after sophomore year (she was on the front of their advertising brochures & didnāt pass the prescreen ā¦ all I could do was laugh!) and Berkleeās Musical Theatre Intensive after junior year.
Coaching - None. Itās my biggest regret.
Random ā¦
- The schools that are talked up here on CC are the Ivy League of MT schools. And acceptance odds are far lower than any of the Ivies. I didn't completely wrap my head around that until mid Jan & it was by the grace of God and many GREAT parents here on CC that I was able to get some additional options on the calendar. I pride myself in being a great researcher and planner - and I am! Except this process is like no other ... if you can afford it, get a professional to guide you.
- Prescreens. If you don't like the way they turn out - REDO THEM!! I hated D's prescreens. We taped them in a church with her voice teacher and an accompanist ... I felt rushed, D felt rushed .... it wasn't good. And shocker - she didn't pass any of her prescreens. We re-taped one in our kitchen with a piano backing track playing off her iphone for Nebraska - and passed that one.
- Rejections are MUCH more common than you think. The kids here that are represented in are the cream of the crop & I think there are several kids here that should just skip that BFA altogether & head out to NYC and start working tomorrow. But it's the same thing on the Ivy boards here ... the people who post and are most vocal are the ones who get in to several and have to decide between HYP. I'll cut to the chase: most kids get several rejections & lots of people are shut out everywhere .... the kids you see here with lots of choices are rare in real life! CC just seems to draw in the most highly motivated parents & uber talented kids from a nationwide pool. (In our real life world, D knows TONS of kids who got shut out of BFA programs. She knows no one who has to choose between 4-10 top programs.) I wanted to be brutally honest on here about all of D's rejections - it broke my heart to think that there was a kid lurking & thinking that something was wrong with THEM - why were they getting rejected when all these other kids in the interwebs were getting acceptances everywhere? CC IS AN ALTERNATIVE UNIVERSE - IT'S NOT REAL!
- Because of the low acceptance rate, I really drilled into D that she might not have a choice of where to go. It could be urban and huge, it could be rural and small ... but if this is what she wanted, she had to be open to anything. Our attitude was focus on the program, not the school.
- Grades. 3.5 + 27 ACT = cha ching. Those numbers are roughly where the bigger $$ start rolling in for merit scholarships. D figured out early junior year what test (act or sat) she tested better on - and then focused on that. All standardized testing was done by the end of junior year - I don't know how we would've fit in Saturday testing come fall - glad it was done and over!
- Dance. If your kid isn't a dancer, START NOW. Actually, that's not soon enough: start yesterday!
- College Confidential: USE THIS FORUM!! It's probably one of the most valuable tools in your arsenal. Use the search feature. And use the parents who've been through it!! Don't be afraid to private message someone ... every single person I've spoken to privately has been wonderful. People I will most likely never meet in real life bent over backwards to give me info and ideas - and I am forever grateful!
- Be open to smaller, less known programs. I was able to find great things about most of them .... SIU is a true meld of the Music & Theatre Departments and has the McLeod Summer Playhouse, Rockford has an equity theatre on campus and a great semester in London program, Western Carolina has Terrence Mann and the Dept. of Stage & Screen, Nebraska Wesleyan has a 40,000+ piece costume shop and does a crazy amount of shows a year. I fully believe every program is unique and can offer something really special ... you just have to find it!
Final Decision ā¦
SIU was her first audition in October - and she was waitlisted (more like āon holdā) since then. I had a feeling she would get in ā¦ she kept in contact w/ the head of the department (who is a really nice guy!) via email over the upcoming 6 months. She applied and was accepted to the Honors College ā¦ I really thought that this was where she was meant to be. All signs were pointing to SIU!
In the meantime, she was still auditioning - she visited Nebraska Wesleyan in mid March and, to my dismay, did what I told her she couldnāt do: she fell in love. In love with the campus, the program, the professors, the professorās dog Henry, the kids, everything and everyone. At the end of her audition and day of classes, she came bounding out of the theatre building like she happiest chick on earth w/ a grin from ear to ear. And yet, it was horrible - I didnāt want to see my kidās heart broken by another rejection. They told her she would have their answer within 2 wks. While waiting, D hears a yes from SIU and sheās THRILLED! So thrilled (and more than a little exhausted) she decides to cancel her upcoming Western Illinois & Northern Kentucky auditions.
I am now thinking that Nebraska is going to be a no - itās been 3 weeks since she auditioned and ā¦ crickets. So Iām talking up SIU ā¦ and it really is a good program, make no mistake! Before we head back to Southern Illinois for her second visit and to sit in some classes, D decides to email the powers that be at Nebraska just to check in ā¦ and hears back that sheās been accepted. Woohoo!! She has a choice!
About an hour after dropping her off at SIU w/ one of her friends (a theatre major) I start getting texts about how talented and friendly all the other BFA kids are. And how the dance training is fantastic. And that there are several hot, straight boys. But after a great day at SIU, D gets in the car and immediately starts crying: the poor kid is now terrified she is going to make a wrong decision. But then she says something pretty profound:
āIf I choose Nebraska, Iād be missing out on the dance training that SIU offers ā¦ but if I choose SIU, Iād be missing ā¦ Nebraska!ā
As I repeat back to her what she said, I could see the realization in her eyes and her decision being made right then and there.
So, to quote the songstress Lady Gaga in You & I:
āSomething, something about just knowing when itās right
So put your dreams up for Nebraska
For Nebraska, Nebraska I love youā
D is thrilled to be a member of Nebraska Wesleyan Universityās Class of 2019!
I cannot thank this community enough for all of the kind words, prayers, BAL shout outs, alternative school ideas ā¦ this has not been an easy road - for most of us! But it wouldāve been total catastrophe if it wasnāt for YOU. So thank you thank you THANK YOU!! I will most definitely be sticking around and trying to pay it forward.
@KaMaMom Bet THAT feels good!!!
@lojosmo ā¦ omg, YES!! I also just realized that one month ago today, D was visiting Nebraska ā¦ very appropriate for me to post Final Decisions today! Yay!!!
@KaMaMom ā woo hoo! I was waiting for you to post, since you had the roller coaster ride my D and I had last year! So very happy that it all worked out for you and your D, as I knew it would. BAL at Nebraska Wesleyan!
Ahhhhhh @KaMaMom!!! I am your biggest fan! Congrats to you and D! You stole the heart of so many of us!
Number 3 is so very, very true! My S has not shared his acceptances in our local community at all because he knows more kids without choices than with. I also agree about the schools here being the MT Ivy equivalents (the 15 most talked about here). There are a few others casually mentioned here or pinned in the schools thread that I would also consider pretty competitive, but most kids will never attend these schools! So insightful, thanks for sharing!