<p>Halflokum, that’s a brilliant analogy we will all probably use when people ask us “What’s the BEST school for theater.”</p>
<p>Or the “hottest”! :)</p>
<p>Oh gosh - that Russell Crowe singing! Did you know he has a band called “30 odd feet of Grunts”?</p>
<p>Great analogy, and super helpful to all the kids looking at schools. Good luck to everyone as they whittle down or beef up their lists!</p>
<p>“P.S. and there are no safeties. cast a wide net, audition all over the place and pray for a date from a hottie, just be open to changing your perspective of who you are calling a hottie”</p>
<p>And know that sometimes, it’s better to pass up the hottie for the guy who really loves you and shows it. :-)</p>
<p>^^Wish I had thought of both of those comments including the one earlier from M2G. Great and SO TRUE!! The analogy is better with both of them. Let’s pretend I said it. ;)</p>
<p>Thank you all so much for your wonderful feedback (and analogies)! I’m trying very hard to ‘cast a wide net,’ as LeftofPisa put it, but I’m very afraid that I might not be doing that. I fear I might be putting my eggs in one basket by having similar schools–all rather selective, audition schools. Therefore, I’d really like to look more towards schools that at least have a higher acceptance rate, especially considering that my grades are pretty average (my GPA is ~3.2), though I have some solid test scores. Many of the schools on my list currently are huge reaches, both academically and talent wise, so I think I should probably start to aim lower. (Please note that I mean that in as nice of a way as possible! I know there are a million AWESOME programs that have higher acceptance rates, so that wasn’t meant to sound condescending or anything. :)) </p>
<p>Thank you all for the patience you’ve had with me thus far! :)</p>
<p>None of what you have said is condescending or snobbish. All of us here try not to rank schools, or say which one is good, better, or best (or hottest). It’s just not relevant. Some are more selective, but that just means they accept a lower percentage of applicants. No one in this forum could ever tell you how they make their decisions. We can’t even really consider any kind of stats, as opposed to in academic acceptances.</p>
<p>I can imagine it feels weird to say “aim lower.” Maybe you can use different words that will make you feel like you’re not judging a school. We tend to say “have a balanced list.” As haflokum’s metaphor shows, it’s really about finding characteristics you like (which are different for everyone) and seeing if there’s a mutual fit. </p>
<p>We are happy to be helping you - that’s why CC is here. You are friendly, honest and respectful. We all wish you the best of luck and hope you keep posting here.</p>
<p>chimerical96, I didn’t think you were being snobbish, either! Also, your 3.2 GPA will not hold you back at an auditioned school because admissions are heavily weighted towards the audition, not your transcript. But auditioned programs are notoriously hard to gauge, even for fantastically talented actors, so it’s a good idea to have a non-auditioned school or two that you can live with on the list.</p>
<p>Chimerical96, I don’t think anyone thought you were being snobbish or that you said anything wrong at all. The “analogy” was not a reaction to anything you wrote, so no worries!
And personally, I think your original list is very well balanced! Good luck!</p>
<p>Some additional schools that you may want to consider which are also audition schools so they are not safeties talent wise but academically are less selective are<br>
Point Park
Pace
Wagner
Long Island U
Montclair</p>
<p>Did you already explain the ?'s on your list? You have a few of those next to different schools.</p>
<p>How about Sarah Lawrence? A friend of ours just did the summer program and he LOVED it, both the program and the campus/area.</p>
<p>The ?s were mostly for programs I wasn’t sure of, whether I just didn’t know enough about them or didn’t know that I really wanted to apply there. </p>
<p>As of right now, my list is here:</p>
<p>ADELPHI UNIVERSITY
CARNEGIE MELLON
CHICAGO COLLEGE OF PERFORMING ARTS AT ROOSEVELT UNIVERSITY
COLUMBIA COLLEGE CHICAGO
HOFSTRA
MARYMOUNT MANHATTAN
NYU
RUTGERS
SUFFOLK
SUNY PURCHASE COLLEGE
SYRACUSE
U OF MICH
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA</p>
<p>I think that this is perhaps a bit more balanaced, but I’m still unsure. I feel like I need more, but that’s probably silly of me. If anyone has any feedback, I’d totally appreciate it!! Thank you all so much for your help so far! What a crazy process this is! :)</p>
<p>I really like this list. You are almost definitely going to get into Hofstra and Columbia Chicago. They are both really exciting and great programs, and you’ll have a choice. Suffolk seems worth taking a chance on, especially if you can visit. I wished they had been developing their theatre department 4 years ago when we started looking. That would be a hidden gem, for sure, and you would have one more safety in a great city. USC is a terrific reach-type school, for the BA, and you have the BFA option, too. It seems like one of the best schools to have both programs alongside each other.</p>
<p>You have a great auditioned list, and there is every chance wonderful things will happen. We like to believe here that every student (or kid of a parent) who posts is wonderfully talented and will appeal to every auditioned program. Why not? We have no reason to believe otherwise.</p>
<p>I don’t think you need more. The only last thought I have is the University of Minnesota. I’m guessing you would get in for their BA, which is great, and you could also audition for the BFA, if it appeals to you. Twin Cities is an amazing place, with more theatre going on than you can imagine. It’s very easy access by plane to just about anywhere. I’m guessing since you like Syracuse and UMich you’re OK with cold weather :)</p>
<p>Thank you so much! I actually just visited a friend at Suffolk on Friday, and while their program is certainly developing, I think it’s worth it to be at such a nice campus–and my mom would definitely like for me to stay in-state!!</p>
<p>I’m so glad to hear that this list is secure enough! WHEW! What a load off my shoulders!! </p>
<p>Thank you all so much for all your help. I am endlessly grateful. :)</p>
<p>Unless Columbia College Chicago has changed since I was there, it’s a perfect safety. They basically take anyone with a H.S. diploma or GED who can pay for classes. If you have CCC, you don’t need any other safeties.</p>
<p>My D had several safety/likelies because it was very important to her to be guaranteed to have a choice in the end. Most safeties don’t quite meet a person’s entire wishlist, so if you have safeties that each meet some of the desired characteristics, come spring you can choose among them - and your other acceptances - to decide just what is most important to you. Many seniors’ feelings evolve throughout the year, as they apply, visit, audition, etc. One safety seems too few, unless it is spot-on perfect for you.</p>
<p>The other thing about safeties is that (unless you are wealthy) not all might be financial matches. CCC is an expensive private school, so you might want other choices. I would recommend looking into Temple University’s BA program. Temple is a state college, so tuition is lower, even for out-of-state students. Also, they give tuition reductions automatically for SAT scores, GPAs. The GPA you listed would earn some merit money.</p>
<p>^And Temple has rolling admissions so you can know early in the process that you are in to at least one fine school. As glass noted they offer significant merit aid. The cost of attendance at Temple would have been less than attending our instate school. They also have an Honors program with special housing and classes. It is a great safety option.</p>
<p>They do have auditions to move into higher level courses. [BA</a> Acting Concentration | Department of Theater | Temple University](<a href=“http://www.temple.edu/theater/undergrad/acting.html]BA”>http://www.temple.edu/theater/undergrad/acting.html)</p>
<p>
That was my daughter’s strategy. She applied to Temple as soon as applications opened. She was accepted soon after and did not need to worry about a safety.</p>
<p>I’m lovin’ the list, too, chimerical96. Now, start those essays!</p>