Well said @kelseylanelle and congrats!
Way to go, @kelseylanelle!
USERNAME: jenelledrama
BACKGROUND: Part of a nonprofit theatre company for 5 years (4 mainstage shows per year, master classes, storytelling, princess birthday parties/community events), countless plays/musicals, I teach acting classes for kids also. Mostly lead/supporting roles. Also did two Shakespeare intensives at Stratford’s Shakespeare festival. Some high school shows (my school wasn’t very strong in theatre). President of of my thespians troupe - went for two years, 3 superiors and one excellent 
SUMMER INTENSIVES: None
COACHING/TRAINING: None
COLLEGES APPLIED TO: Rutgers, DePaul, Northwestern, Ball State, University of the Arts, CCM, Emerson - all for BFA’s in Acting/Theatre and Performance
REJECTED: DePaul, Northwestern (academically), CCM, Emerson
ACCEPTED: Rutgers (two BA programs), Ball State, UArts
FINAL DECISION: UArts BFA Acting Class of 2020!!
ADVICE: Oh my god this was so hard. It was even more incredibly hard because I was doing this all on my own. I didn’t have anyone help me prepare my auditions, pick my monologues, or even review them before I auditioned (besides my boyfriend, who has limited theatre experience lol). And my biggest advice for those like me - YOU CAN DO IT. Read it again. Read it a third time. Read it until you believe it.
I didn’t end up where I expected to, but honestly I’m more excited about UArts than I was about my original top choice. After the rejections started rolling in, I felt really talentless, but PLEASE do not give up!! You only need one school to accept you.
Also, a quote from my director: “If you can do anything else, do that!”
@jenelledrama Awesome! We loved UArts after visiting.
Congratulations, @jenelledrama !
My D is a very happy Freshman MT major at UArts. 
Excellent!
@jenelledrama you should be so proud of your hard work!!! Congratulations.
USERNAME: maeloving5, which means mom loving 5 in portuguese…
BACKGROUND:
Me Portuguese mom of 5 who loves kids. I just recently retired from 17years of teaching and owning my own preschool. I love camping! lol
Bella Doing MT since 6 years old. Vocally started training professionally at 14, and ballet at 12. Sacramento Theatre Company since 12. I will say we only started in in theatre because while I was coaching her in softball at 5, all she did was sing and dance in the outfield. Even though she played soccer until her freshman year, because that’s my rule… 1 Sport 1 Art, she ultimately choose the ARTS and hates camping!
SUMMER INTENSIVES: Interlochen, and ARTSBRIDGE
COACHING/TRAINING: MTCA… couldn’t speak more highly about the professionals in this coaching program.
COLLEGES APPLIED TO: All BFA MT and one BFA Acting ~Ithaca, Texas State, CMU, Emerson, Point Park, Minnesota Guthrie, U of Michigan, Baldwin Wallace, Penn State, Syracuse, Indiana, UCLA (for me), Elon, Northern Coloardo, and University of Utah
REJECTED: Emerson, Pointpark, U of Mich, BW, UCLA, Penn State and Penn State
ACCEPTED: Syracuse, MMC, Minnesota, Texas State, and University of Utah
WAIT-LISTS: And we will never know, Ithaca, CMU, Northern Colorado, which I stated as a rejection on the other topic page but it was actually not, we canceled ELON and Indian because of costs and timing.
FINAL DECISION: Texas State BFA MT Class of 2020!!
ADVICE: If you have parents that can help, let them help. Bella thanks me daily for teaching her through this process the importance of organization. Most of the kids that go through this are involved beyond their means in the fall of their SENIOR year and if you had to to this alone, you are truly gifted!
Apply to more tier 2 & 3 no matter how talented you are!
Prepare kids for rejections more than I did, and celebrate even the smallest triumph. Also tell you kid daily that this process does not define who they are!
INTERLOCHEN: Bella still claims this as the BEST SUMMER OF HER LIFE! While not as competitive as other summer programs, the memories made were priceless.
Also, a quote from her new director which Bella has said to me on many occasions before knowing Kaitlin: “Breath”
Congrats @maeloving5 Wonderful choices and journey!
USERNAME: katieeso
BACKGROUND: I’ve done musical theatre since the age of 9 but have always been a stronger actress than singer or dancer (darn that rhythm)! I’ve worked as a stage manager, techie, prop master, spotlight operator, and actress. Ultimately, I decided to go to college with a focus in performance though I did want to stay well rounded.
SUMMER INTENSIVES: None! All of my summers have been spent camp counseling kids in theatre camps.
COACHING/TRAINING:
COLLEGES APPLIED TO: Marymount Manhattan, Emerson, Point Park, Plymouth State, Columbia Chicago, and University of New Hampshire
REJECTED: Marymount Manhattan
ACCEPTED: All the rest! I did withdraw some unmentioned schools applications once I began to get acceptances.
FINAL DECISION: Emerson College, BFA Theatre & Performance!!!
ADVICE: Have safeties!!! You never know how the process is going to turn out. Also, remember that you contribute something that no one else does. Don’t worry about what other people are doing, remember what it is that’s special about you and make sure you see that. Then, go to the school that sees it best and welcomes it!
Congratulations and best of luck. Emerson is on my D’s short list too.
USERNAME: 4gsmom
BACKGROUND:
Mom of a girl who has performed since the age of 10. Many children’s theater productions; school productions and community productions. Voice lessons for 8 years; dance for 6. Happy doing MT; happy doing straight acting. No professional work; attends a large competitive suburban HS in the NYC metro area, which has a strong acting program.
She’s a “type” - think Ethel Merman. Big kid, even bigger voice, very funny. Is very, very serious about theater though. She’s not in this to be famous. She loves the “work” and is more than happy to hang lights, sweep the stage, paint sets.
SUMMER INTENSIVES: Stratford Shakespeare Intensive (Ontario), French Woods one summer, NYU Summer High School (Meisner Program.)
COACHING/TRAINING: MTCA - a great fit for her. She met with her coaches in person and over Skype. Worked out very well for her (and me, because I was at a loss for this whole process.) They were wonderful with her and wonderful with me.
COLLEGES APPLIED TO: Straight acting - BU, UConn, Rutgers, Purchase, Fordham, Juilliard, Michigan, Syracuse; MT or Acting: Ithaca, CMU, Marymount Manhattan, Emerson, NYU, Pace (auditioned for MT and Acting BFA and BA), Point Park. MT: Penn State. Non audition safety: UVM and Muhlenberg (did audition for scholarship money.)
Passed prescreens at Ithaca, Penn State, Pace. Redirected to acting for Michigan and Syracuse
Didn’t complete process for Point Park and Penn State (once she realized she wasn’t a true MT she didn’t want to follow through for them).
REJECTED: BU, UConn, Rutgers, Purchase, Fordham, Juilliard, Michigan, Ithaca, CMU, Emerson, Pace MT
ACCEPTED: Marymount Manhattan, NYU, UVM and Muhlenberg.
WAIT-LISTS: Syracuse (were part of that screw up where they didn’t move kids to a drama major after they didn’t get past the MT prescreen and it delayed her application); alternate at Pace BFA and BA.
FINAL DECISION: NYU. Was always her top choice, from day one. She thrived in their program last summer and when she was admitted - and they gave her scholarship money - she didn’t think twice about anywhere else.
ADVICE: Make sure if you are an “actor who sings” or a true MT kid. Halfway through the process she discovered she’s an actor who sings. Dance is not a passion for her and when she went to the dance calls she was overwhelmed and realized she didn’t want to spend the next four years dancing. She would’ve done things differently had she realized this earlier.
Also - be aware if you’re a “type.” Ithaca was very straightforward about this. The director of the program said: “if we need piccolos we’re not taking trumpets.” Know that you may have to apply to more schools because if they already have one or more of your “type”, the likelihood of admission is small. She felt with a few schools she walked into the audition room, they took one look at her and they “tuned out.” She felt like she could see in their eyes: “oh, we have one of you already.”
Advice for parents? Enjoy the audition process. We loved our travels together and being snowbound in NYC during Unifieds. Lots of laughs, lots of Dunkin Donuts coffee, lots of “post audition rituals” (milkshakes because she was abstaining for dairy for the auditions.) I considered myself her administrative assistant and coat rack. And one of the MTCA coaches gave me great advice about how to handle it when auditions went poorly: don’t say “Oh, I’m sure it was better than you think.” Well, I wasn’t in the room and she knew how it went. I just said: “I’m so sorry.” (for about 7 hours home from Pittsburgh after a disastrous CMU audition.) So, enjoy the process because March comes eventually and it’s a long, slow cruel month of waiting.
@4gsmom - Woot Woot!! the Tisch summer program was a determining factor for my kid too- and while NYU makes it a LONG wait (last school of hers to notify - plus the additional time for studio placement) it was all worth it in the end!!
Thanks @toowonderful - we can’t wait for her studio placement. She’d truthfully be happy in any of them. (Although ETW would be her top choice if someone made her choose.)
Wonderful, @4gsmom! So happy for your D. “There’s no place like home!” And clearly NYU is hers.
Great job, @katieeso! Congrats and enjoy!
USERNAME:
lovetoact (son)
EDUCATION/BACKGROUND:
Public high school with yearly performance opportunities (play, musical, Shakespeare, student-written productions) but no theater education in school. In-district select vocal ensemble. National Merit Commended Scholar, AP Scholar with Distinction, 2100 SAT, top 10% of class.
SUMMER INTENSIVE:
New York State Summer School of the Arts (summer before 11th grade)
COACHING/OUTSIDE-OF-SCHOOL-TRAINING:
Training: A few community teen productions (mostly musicals) every year, three years tap dance, one year hip-hop, two years of private voice lessons (classical)
Coaching: Three sessions with a recommended local actor/director to review monologues, give suggestions about new monologues, and coach/direct monologue performance
COLLEGES APPLIED TO:
Emerson, Fredonia, Ithaca, Juilliard, Muhlenberg, Point Park, U Minn/Guthrie, UNCSA, Wesleyan
REJECTED:
Juilliard, U Minn/Guthrie (accepted academically and to Honors Program), UNCSA
WAITLISTED:
Emerson, Wesleyan (academically)
ACCEPTED:
Fredonia BFA Acting (and Honors College), Ithaca BFA Acting, Muhlenberg (Dana Scholars program), Point Park BFA Acting
FINAL DECISION:
Fredonia’s BFA Acting Program!
Although he has loved one of the schools since middle school that he was fortunate to be admitted to, the cost just wasn’t going to work. I’m a big proponent of visiting schools before applying (I know that not all agree), but we definitely honed our choices because of visits (saving us money in application/audition fees and also saving us time after his acceptances came in—this is his busy time every year-in two musicals-and it would be tough to visit a school he hadn’t previously seen). Before applying, we visited Purchase and although they have a very well-respected program, it did not click for him so he didn’t apply. We also did a full-day open house at Fredonia. He really liked the program and all it had to offer. He looked at all of the other choices (besides that original unaffordable dream school) and weighed the pros and cons of the types of degrees, types of campuses, and curriculum offered. He also really thought about his audition experiences. He will be the first to admit that, since he’s a boy in a girl-dominated theater world, he has been fortunate in the sheer number of roles he’s played. Without a theater education in his public high school, he has also not had much ‘constructive’ feedback. His summer intensive was a game-changer because there was an instructor who really challenged his work for the first time. It was hard to adjust to, but in the end, he valued that experience and knew that he wanted that in college (another benefit to a well-run summer intensive—it can mimic intro level theater classes and the long days/nights of an ensemble experience, letting a student see if that might be the college life he’d like to experience). At his Fredonia audition, he was given constructive adjustments to his monologue that were productive and stretched him, and he looks forward to more of that experience when he gets to college.
ADVICE: Make sure you have a safety (non-audition, in your academic range, in your price range) school that you’re very willing to attend, especially one that gives admissions notifications early in the process. Even if it’s not your dream school, it’s really nice to have a ‘yes’ at the beginning of the process (I’d advise this for non-theater kids too). Even getting an early academic acceptance at a safety school that he didn’t end up with an artistic acceptance (U Minn–the university itself was an academic and financial safety, and has a BA theater program outside of the Guthrie program) was a boost—it was good to know that he could go somewhere!
Know your financial situation and talk to your kid about it if that’s an issue. Make sure that you’ve discussed that certain schools may be off the table if the finances don’t come through. Even if it’s his dream school. There is no point in taking out a ton of student loans that the kid will be responsible to pay back for a performing degree. It doesn’t matter if it’s the hottest program around. Lots of kids go to the top programs and don’t find success in the field, and even many who’ve found success didn’t find it right out of the gate. If he has to get three survival jobs just to pay the loans, there won’t be any time to audition anyway. My son got nice academic and/or talent scholarships at every school he was admitted to and it still wasn’t enough at the school he fell in love with in middle school (although I can’t say enough good things about the amazing program director through the entire process—even when we discussed financial limitations).
When deciding on a school, remember that your child will be in a degree that performs and that you’re going to want to see him perform. If he’s a day’s journey or a plane trip away and that would be unfeasible for you to travel that distance, keep that in mind. That might not be a good fit, or you may decide that the level of training is more important than your ability to see the fruits of his labor. But at least think about it.
Also, if your kid has a history of being very rational person and strongly knows his own ‘type’ and what kind of training he is interested in, listen to him. We did not always do that, and with hindsight, he was right more often than we were. His three artistic rejections were schools that he didn’t want to apply to, but that we strong-armed him into because they have excellent track records for after-school employment (in our defense/rationalization, we didn’t expect anything from Juilliard, but it’s a short train ride from our house so why not, right?). He also maintained from the start that he wanted a BFA on a ‘real’ college campus (as opposed to an urban setting in most cases—he says that in this field, he’s likely to live in an urban area when he’s working after school, and when else will he have the chance to have an experience like college?) in a school that he could also have non-performance-major friends, rather than in a strict conservatory (and those rejecting him were conservatories or at least separated from the main campus).
At some point, learn about each program’s curriculum. All of that info is readily available on each school’s website. Even if there’s no ability to sit in on classes, looking at the map of what the school expects to teach the students is a helpful tool to help you choose programs. It’s great if you’ve done that before you audition because then you can ask meaningful questions. My son was fortunate to have some stage combat training with a well-regarded fight director in his summer intensive and learned that he loved it. Some schools offer training that leads to stage combat certification and that was a great piece for him to discuss with auditors (and to help in his final decision).
Above all, parents, try not to freak out if things aren’t going well during the application process. This is your child’s process not yours, and it’s likely that he will take the rejections and bumps in the road better than you will. Although I know that Fredonia will be a kick-a** program for him and he will have an amazing college experience, I was sad for my son that he wasn’t going to able to go to the school that he’s talked about since he was 12, but the second he decided on Fredonia, he was all in! He immediately announced it on social media, asked us to buy him some swag from the bookstore, and he’s already wearing his new college shirt to school today!
Great news!
Congrats @lovetoact! That is a great story, great advice and a great outcome. My daughter also visited SUNY prior to applying and it didn´t click with her either. Although it is obviously a wonderful program. She also felt the early BA acceptance to Minnesota was a nice safety in case a BFA didn´t work out. Sounds like your son is very smart in his thought process about this - with good guidance from you. Congrats!
Thanks @bfahopeful best of luck to you!!! (my son was an old man from the moment he was born) ;))