@owensfolks Great “Final Decision” story. We’ll all be waiting for “. . . the rest of the story” next year! Enjoy your extra time with this amazing girl!
@owensfolks I know it’s not the path she sought off to take, but it sounds like she has a compass and is excited to blaze her own trail. Good for her!!! To thine own self be true!
@owensfolks What a wonderful young woman you have raised! Wishing her the very best in her journey!
@owensfolks my D and I really loved your post, and very much admire your daughter’s wisdom and self-knowledge. We have heard some inspiring stories around taking a growth year and then reapplying for MT. In fact, we don’t know anyone who has made that choice and regretted it. Best wishes to your D! And thank you so much for sharing her story. It will live on in this thread and will inform and encourage everyone who reads it.
wow @owensfolks - didn’t see that coming! Best of luck to your D; I look forward to continuing to follow your D’s journey through the next season!
@owensfolks What an incredibly mature young lady you have there. Sounds like the year ahead will be an exciting and fulfilling adventure. Please keep us all posted on her journey!!
Now that I’ve pressed the button, I guess it’s my turn!
Applied to (in order of audition date): Elon, Emerson, CCM, Penn State, Michigan (MT), Carnegie Mellon, Pace, Minnesota/Guthrie (Acting), NYU Tisch, Syracuse, Michigan (Directing), Boston University (Acting), UMiami, Montclair State, Rider, Temple, Viterbo, Cap21/Molloy, AADA, Baldwin Wallace, Indiana, Northwestern
Prescreens: Passed all but Penn State (sent in months later than other prescreens to try and get last minute extra audition)
Academic Accept: All that were unconnected to artistic decision except Northwestern
Waitlist: Minnesota/Guthrie, Baldwin Wallace, Michigan (Directing)
Denied: Elon, Emerson, CCM, Penn State, Northwestern, NYU Tisch, Syracuse
Withdrew Application and did not receive answer: AADA
Coach: ArtsBridge
Summer Programs: Stagedoor Manor, MPulse, ArtsBridge Summer
Accepted: Indiana, Cap21/Molloy, Viterbo, Temple, Rider, Montclair State, UMiami, BU, Pace, Carnegie Mellon, Michigan (MT)
I discovered musical theater from a very young age and fell head over heels in love. I was the kid who watched the Disney princess movies not for the princesses but because I was so enthralled by the music and how it told a story. After doing my first musical in 4th grade (Gavroche in Les Mis) I was completely hooked. I was put in voice lessons right then and there, dance lessons on and off throughout middle and high school, and acting lessons in high school. I attended Stagedoor Manor in the summers and just focused on my training and how to make myself the best artist I could be.
When it came time to think about college, I became a war general. I created a 16X20 spreadsheet that was printed out, hand taped together, color coded, with notes hand-written on as the season progressed. It was my lifeline. I wanted to know every little thing about each college I was applying to, which is what brought me here. I compiled my original list of 14 schools and with all of the training I had had I went into the early auditions (Elon, Emerson, CCM) fully swinging, bright eyed, and prepared. I struck out, and struck out hard. I was fully denied from all three schools after auditions that I had thought went very well. After a few tough conversations with my parents and coaches, we decided to change everything. I worked with my acting coach every day over my Christmas break to find monologues that suited me better and that I could find subtle realness with. I went to a masterclass that really helped with the interpretation of my songs become stronger. Feeling confident with my new material, I went into the first weekend of the second half of the season with a brighter, more determined attitude. That first weekend’s agenda: Michigan MT and Carnegie Mellon. My two top choices. See, I am from Michigan, I did the summer program, I would be a third generation if I were accepted, and I knew I absolutely wanted to go there. CMU was always the dream that seemed so unreachable, with such low acceptances rates that I just went in and had a fun time. Throughout the rest of the season I had my ups and downs, an insanely hectic Chicago Unifieds experience where I did 6 walk ins in 24 hours, and almost missed my flight to my Minnesota/Guthrie callback.
When the acceptances started coming in, I was absolutely floored. Ecstatic that all my hard work paid off, but nonetheless surprised and honored. Then came the big one: The University of Michigan. When I got that call, all I could say was “Thank you so much” and trying to keep myself from crying. I was absolutely sure I was committing and kept complaining to my parents that I was ready even though they wanted me to wait to hear from everywhere else. Then I got a call from Gary Kline. I was not expecting an acceptance AT ALL and was dumbfounded, but now I had a really tough decision to make. My sense of security and being done with this crazy process was all but out the window. I knew that if I wanted to make the right choice, I needed to know everything there was to know about both schools. I visited both, sat in on classes at both, and I still had no idea what I wanted to do. After weeks of stressing, hearing everyone’s opinions, my own doubts, and going back and forth, I decided that I just needed to go with my gut and go to the school that offered me more of what I wanted.
I needed an environment that would allow me to express ALL facets of my artistic life, not just being on stage. I wanted the college experience, I wanted the nurturing, family-like environment, I wanted the best musical training I could find. And it doesn’t hurt that I found that at my dad’s alma mater and an in-state school 
Final Decision: UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN BFA MT
Congratulations @EIS0301 !!
YAY, @EIS0301 ! Congrats! How awesome that you used the early auditions to readjust, and kill it!!
Congrats! Sounds like the best choice for you and an awesome school!
Congratulations @EIS0301 ! How exciting! Great job readjusting and I hope your future is wonderful!
Applied to (in order of audition date): Temple, Point Park
Prescreens: Temple
Walk In: Montclair
Academic Accept: All
Waitlist: none
Denied Artistically: Point Park
Coach: None
Summer Programs: Walnut Street Theatre, Arden Theatre
Accepted: Temple, Montclair
I would like to start by saying that i have been quietly lurking in here for two years and it is nice to finally have a solid decision. Also, I am a transfer student! It all started last year when I procrastinated preparing for auditions and I did not research my schools prior to applying and auditions. Last year, I decided to commit to a BA programs after not being accepted to the majority of the schools that I auditioned for. Two weeks into my freshman year, I realized that I was not happy and I was not reaching my full potential. Everyone told me that I should wait it out a year and see if I still feel that way. I did that, but I also applied and auditioned for a couple schools just in case. I auditioned at the NY Unified’s and walked passed a sign that said “Montclair State”. I heard of Montclair before through my theatre classmates and i had started an application but never finished. To be honest, the two monologue requirement stopped me from auditioning. I don’t think acting is my strong suit, thought I am eager to strengthen it, and as a transfer I was not trying to waste my money applying. I saw a few people asking about walk ins, and something told me to just see if I could because I had some free time before my Temple Audition. So, I asked and the lady stared at me for a second and then said “If you wait a few minutes, I can squeeze you in”. I had to scramble to find recording of my audition music and by the time I was done they called my name. After I finished my monologue and songs, Clay offered me a spot in the program. This meant the world to me because I am transferring from a place that made me feel worthless. Fast forward a couple weeks, and I visited Montclair and fell in love. I was stuck between Temple and Montclair, but I wanted a strong dance program and a place to push me to reach my full potential. I love temple and I made a lot of friends when I visited. But I had to make a decision and the proximity to New York was too great of an opportunity to pass up. Last, I want to say to all the parent of kids and kids that are re-auditioning next year, good luck and everything happens for a reason! I don’t think that two years ago, I was ready to take on an intense program Like Montclair.
*I did not edit this! Sorry in Advance
Decision: MONTCLAIR STATE UNIVERSITY CLASS OF 2020
This thread is my absolute favorite. So many different paths as individual as those treading them. Congrats to you both @EIS0301 and @Aiming4Success !
Congratulations on your decision! We loved Montclair too!
Just curious, @Aiming4Success You wrote Class of 2020 – is Montclair allowing you transfer credits into the BFA major and letting you graduate in three years?
Again, wishing you all the best!
Awesome story, and congrats, @Aiming4Success !
@daughtersdreams I will graduate in three years! I have a lot of gen eds and some of theatre classes will transfer as well. Thank you everyone for your support!
Welcome to the Montclair family, @Aiming4Success!!
WOW two great stories. Congratulations @Aiming4Success and @EIS0301 I think you will be my story… you can get into schools like Michigan and CMU and be turned down by a lot of other schools.
Both of you persevered and came out with great results. I hope you have a wonderful experience at the schools of your choice.
Applied To: American, CCM, Carnegie, Boston Conservatory, Elon, Catholic (canceled), NYU Tisch, Point Park, UArts, Webster, Wagner (canceled), London Studio Centre, Penn State, Syracuse, Ithaca, Michigan, Rider, and Hartt.
Walk - ins: SCAD, Utah, and LIU Post
Prescreens: Passed Elon, Penn State, Michigan, Syracuse. Didn’t pass Ithaca.
Academic Accept: All
Waitlist: American
Coach: MTCA (wonderful!)
Summer programs: Kirov Academy of Ballet (2012), HARID Conservatory (2013), Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre (2014), Boston Ballet (2015), Boston Conservatory MTDI (2016).
Accepted: London Studio Centre (BA Hons MT), University of Utah MT, SCAD Performing Arts BFA, LIU Post Acting BFA, Rider Dance, BoCo MT
My D is mostly a dancer… she’s taken ballet since she was three and since then has added on tap, jazz, modern, and hip hop. She grew up with a strong interest in musical theater. She even wrote in a fifth grade paper that her dream was to dance on broadway (oh boy), so she attended various camps and performed roles during elementary school, but once she entered middle school her dance commitments became more and more intense, and she wasn’t able to do as much theater. For her, ballet’s allure had long related to a love of storytelling and character, and she grew up with a deep love of the musical theater canon, so midway through high school it became clear that the pivot away from a career in ballet would be toward the MT stage. She performed in the musicals at her high school and in the student-written variety show. In her pre-professional dance ensemble, she was largely known as the actor; in the theater crowd at her high school, she was regarded as the dancer. To herself she was always a deeply theatrical dancer!
The process was difficult, and we are incredibly grateful to MTCA for the coaching they provided to help her prepare her songs and monologues. She started private voice lessons late in her junior year of high school, and her teacher was a huge help as well. It took her a REALLY long time to make her list of schools. She wanted to find a true triple-threat program, one that would deepen her dance training but bring up her skills in acting and move her a considerable distance in her vocal training. But she also wanted the experience of auditioning for a school like CMU, because why not? Around November, she decided she might want to leave the country for school. That was when she found the London Studio Centre and fell deeply in love. Finally a program that valued dance just as much (if not more) than acting and singing (this discovery only became more important to her after New York unifieds where at most of her dance calls adjudicators said, “Don’t worry! It’s okay! You don’t have to be a dancer at all.”) She understood that this reassurance was important for actors and singers to hear, but it was also frustrating and discouraging because she loves to dance! She wanted to be in a challenging dance environment! After New York Unifieds she received her Penn State rejection and then headed to Chicago Unifieds, where she would audition for all of her favorite schools, particularly BoCo, which had been her absolute top choice since the summer program. Overall, she says her best auditions were for the schools that were most known for being selective. (Michigan, CCM, and BoCo were all her best auditions.) She thought her better performances were due to the friendly atmosphere within these audition rooms and the ways these schools endeavored to put students at their ease. Generally she found the next-tier schools seemed less friendly, but we realize others had very different experiences. The process is so bewildering! We then flew to North Carolina and she auditioned for Elon and FELL IN LOVE. The faculty was so welcoming and kind! (Unfortunately, her singing wasn’t that welcoming or kind.) We then traveled to D.C. for her last audition at American. Thenm… the waiting! She got into Utah in early March and could breathe again. Then she got the yes from London Studio Centre and we went to Barnes and Noble and bought a map and began to dream of her three years in London. Somewhere along the way she got into SCAD and LIU Post Acting BFA. Rider threw in an offer for their dance program. But the wait for BoCo extended until the afternoon of March 31 and finally, that yes from her first choice. All the rejections melted away.
Final decision: THE BOSTON CONSERVATORY AT BERKLEE, BFA in MT
A final note to those of you embarking on this process: My D weighed her chances via certain College Confidential posts. She’d read final decisions and decide… “if I get in here, I’ll get in here. If I’m rejected from this school, I certainly won’t get into that one.” THESE ASSUMPTIONS WERE NUTS! It comes down to your audition, what they are looking for, luck, and perspiration! At the beginning of this process, she didn’t understand the idea of a bad audition. The same material can go well in one room and badly in another! We don’t really believe in fate, or the idea that “everything happens for a reason,” but we do think the school that’s right for you will see you. We do agree with the many people who have posted that you only need one yes, and it does work out, and a year of incredible learning followed by a gap year and another round of applications and auditions can be an incredibly successful pathway. If you are reading this decision as a new applicant, we wish you a year of learning, and the fun of parent-child travel and adventure, and the knowledge that if you love your art form, your art form will reward you with true joy. Thank you, CC!
Another great success story! Congrats to your D, @1bamom . I love how “individual” everyone’s stories are. There’s no “one right way” to do this, is there?