This a repost but I felt I might get better advice here than in the general forum.
I’ve “narrowed down” my college enrollment decision to NYU (Steinhardt), Loyola Marymount University, Syracuse, Western Washington University (my close to home college), Gonzaga, and Lewis and Clark. I’m in the Steinhardt college in the LAC (liberal arts core) program at NYU, and not Tisch unfortunately.
I want to major in theater and then double major in something else as a backup, of which I haven’t decided. I got accepted into LMU’s theater program, as well as Gonzaga and Western’s, but I didn’t have time to audition for NYU (Tisch) or Syracuse.
I didn’t get a chance to tour Syracuse or NYU so I’d be taking a risk enrolling.
I’m absolutely sure of what I want to do, but at the same time I want to go to a college I actually enjoy. I regret not finding time to audition for Tisch, but I need advice on the following:
-How easy would transferring from Steinhardt to Tisch (next year) be? Am I wasting my time? I’ve heard it’s next to impossible
-Is Syracuse the best option after NYU for theater and is feasible to switch majors next year if I enroll there?
-If I’m already in the theater program at LMU, should I go to LMU instead of wasting my time transferring?
-Do you know anything about the theater programs at Gonzaga/Western/Lewis and Clark and if I’m wasting my time going to these non-theater renowned colleges?
First of all, what kind of theatre are you interested in pursuing? NYU Steinhardt’s music theatre program is more of a “vocal performance plus some acting” program, whereas NYU Tisch has the many studios dedicated to different acting styles (Experimental Theatre Wing, Stella Adler, Meisner, New Studio on Broadway) and even their musical theatre is more of a “drama program that also includes voice and dance”. I hope that gives a sense of the difference between Steinhardt and Tisch in that regard.
In any event, transferring to Tisch is possible (they even have a web site for it: https://tisch.nyu.edu/drama/admissions/how-to-apply/deadlines/internal-nyu-transfer) but be aware that it is among the most competitive programs in the country. NYU is a great school, and we really liked everything about it. If you are happy with the available majors at Steinhardt then it’s a great choice. But don’t go there if you will ONLY be happy after a successful transfer to Tisch, because that is putting all your eggs in a pretty selective basket.
Syracuse is well regarded for musical theatre, but I don’t know much about the drama program. I can’t imagine that they can have such a solid musical theatre program without excellent drama training, so that is a fine choice. I’m from western NY about 3 hours from Syracuse. In a nutshell the city gets a lot of snow in the winter, Syracuse University is probably the most vibrant part of the city (especially with GE cutting back their major plants there), and they love their basketball and football. The school itself is very large (21,000+) so there is a LOT going on there and a great many resources to draw from. But I can’t speak to the campus culture and student life. Several kids go to Syracuse from my town in NH every year, so word of mouth seems to be positive to at least some degree.
I know nothing about Loyola Marymount, Gonzaga, Western Washington, or Lewis and Clark. But, you are not wasting your time if you go to a college that is not renowned for theatre. My view (backed up by just about every admissions department out there) is that you will do well if you find the place that is the right fit for you. Not the highest ranked in US News or Princeton Review, not the place with the last Tony or Oscar winner, not the place with the largest and most modern theatre. You’ll do best if you go to a place that feels right, and that is impossible to quantify. When you say that you want to go to a college that you actually enjoy, you are on absolutely the right track.
Best of luck with your decision!
My D is at NYU Tisch- one of her roommates this year was a transfer from Steinhardt to Tisch. They had to start in 1st year studio - but will still graduate from NYU in 4 years (they will just have 3 years of studio instead of 4)
@delegator First and foremost, thank you so much for the extremely helpful pieces of advice.
I’m interesting in pursuing straight theater/acting, with eventual hopes to find success on the stage or film possibly. I’ve heard a lot of good things about Stella Adler. As for the tip about transferring, the problem is that I imagine I wouldn’t be happy at Steinhardt if I didn’t successfully transfer, like you mentioned. What are the best alternatives to Tisch in NY if I ended up wanting to leave NYU?
I hadn’t known that Syracuse was more well regarded for musical theater so thanks for the info!
@toowonderful That’s good to know, I had heard it was extremely hard to transfer, so at least I know it’s possible.
@QrtyUiop - I am not directly familiar with transferring at NYU- but I can find out more if you want to PM me questions. My D is in the Adler studio- I can also answer questions about that- including non NYU options with training there
Syracuse is very highly regarded and known for its BFA Acting program but you have to audition to get in and it’s is an intensive 4 year program so I think you would have to essentially start over. Also a double major is very difficult to do within 4 years as a theater student at Syracuse due to the intensity and scheduling - you would need to do some classes over breaks and maybe no SU London program? I think to accomplish what you want at this point it might take 5 years.
@QrtyUiop Anything is possible? Have you spent time in New York City? It’s very different from the Pacific Northwest. You’ve said you want to double major and have a back up plan so it sounds like a BA in theater might be a good plan. Did you get into the theater/acting department for all these colleges? Do you have a favorite so far? As someone else posted Tisch is very competitive but not impossible @toowonderful. Good luck on your decisions.
Agreed that a double major would be extremely difficult (if not impossible) with most of the BFA programs out there, though possibly could be done tacking on an extra year or two. A BA would definitely be the way to go if you want to double major. While Western, Lewis and Clark, and Gonzaga aren’t “known” for their theater (unlike Southern Oregon University), in the Northwest, they are all very good schools. It depends on $/fit/what you want in a school, etc. I know some kids at Western in the theatre/dance dept who love it, but it is true that most of the kids locally who want to pursue theatre end up heading away from WA/OR to study theatre.
I’ll agree with the other posters who say that a double major is very difficult, and often impossible, with a BFA program. Many BFA programs even have a hard time fitting in a minor (BFAs tend to require 60-90 credits in just the major, so the ability to minor or double major depends on the amount of overlap between the multiple disciplines, on the number of electives available in the BFA program, and to a small degree on whether you have AP credits available to fulfill core credits if the college is a liberal arts school. Therefore, I would look at a BA program in theatre at a place that specifically encourages double majors and minors.
Also, as @Ducky312 said, New York City is a whole different world from the Pacific Northwest. Just as Loyola Marymount down in LA is very different, but not in the same way. If you want a college campus…don’t go to NYC. My daughter applied to NYU, Pace, and Marymount Manhattan specifically because she spent 2 weeks in NYC for a summer program and simply loved the city vibe. However, many will find that the city is too busy/noisy, or that it doesn’t meet their idea of what college should be: a quad with kids studying or playing frisbee on sunny days, weekend football games, and a fairly cloistered area apart from the surrounding town or city.
Hi, might be a little late to the party here, but have you considered Whitman? If Western Washington is close to you, it should be close as well, but it definitely has a better theater program and is a true LAC.