So I know no one wants to rank schools, but how do you find out who is the easier to get into programs are?? You go to
the websites and all the MT programs sound fab, and you look at the numbers, that you can find, and it sounds like they all see 500 kids and accept 10, and they all sound fabulous. We are looking for a program with a strong vocal training, strong acting and some dance. Our daughter can already dance, is a gifted but new to singing "singer"i.e. Opera folks like her as well as MT but has mainly been in church choir, she is weakest in acting, mainly she is just not a kid who has done this intensely forever. We need some safety audition schools with good voice and acting programs. If any established people are willing to give feedback please do. Academically she can go anywhere, so just need the focus on a program. We also do not need to consider geography. She is happy to go anywhere with a good program.We can not go and visit a million places, she is a senior and still has a heavy academic load. Thank you.
Whoops I just posted, and it should have said “she has not done this intensely forever”, i.e. she and we are new!!!
The short answer is there is no such thing as an “audition safety school”…
I would urge you to get a college coach, quickly. If she’s a senior she has very little time. But a coach (like MTCA in NYC) can help you choose the best list of schools for you. They do have coaching sessions (and initial evaluations) via Skype, so distance from NYC is not an issue. But, as @toowonderful said, there are no safety audition schools. If you have to audition, it is not a safety. There are schools where your odds of getting in are better simply b/c the sheer numbers that the school takes (e.g., Rider, NYU, BoCo), but they are by no means safeties, nor are they easy to get into. If you have an unbiased person assess your daughter’s chances, they can help you tailor a list that will increase her chances of getting in somewhere. But there are no audition programs with strong acting and strong vocal training that are easy to get into. Good luck.
I would go back to previous years’ acceptance threads and look for the schools that have lots of acceptances rather than just one or two. These are mostly audition schools, so there are no sure things, but there are definitely some schools that more people get into than others. (No offense to anyone whose school meets this criterion. I would include my son’s school, CCPA, in that category, even though I believe that the quality of the program is very, very high.)
I agree with @jkellynh17 - looking back over previous threads can provide a larger picture. The tricky part with calling one school artistically “easier” than another is that no matter how carefully you word it “easier” seems to imply “lesser”. And that is going to bruise feelings. After all, we already hardly an objective source- we are parents, talking about the places we have trusted with our children’s futures. And to agree with jkelly on another point, I don’t know that difficulty of acceptance has a direct correlation to quality of education/training. Plus, everyone has different priorities. When making our list - we tended to took at programs that take “more” kids b/c we wanted more variety. D went to a PA HS where the same dozen kids (and she was one of the dozen - so no sour grapes) were the leads in every show. It got claustrophobic, and it got ugly. She wanted a very different college experience.
@sbc, is your daughter certain she wants to do musical theatre as a major? Is she looking at a BFA or a BA?
An “easier” to get into program would be one that does not draw from a national pool. That would eliminate those at Unifieds and those “top” programs that everyone is trying to get into. Look at schools that have a more regional draw and audition only on campus (but are not one of the top programs). None of these are “easy” to get into, but some do have less competition in terms of numbers and talent.
First off I agree with everything above.
If she is interested in academic rigor in college as well as MT training, and has very strong academic stats, she might want to consider adding some academic reaches with strong Theatre programs to her list. At the reachiest end that might include Northwestern, Yale, Brown, maybe now Harvard (I think they are adding a new major), and NYU but there are no doubt others (Muhlenberg comes to mind) where the applicant pool may also be thinned by an academic hurdle. This doesn’t mean these programs are “easy” for anyone to get into (they aren’t) but it might allow her to compete more on an area of strength.
@sbc The programs that are “easier” to get into (but by no means a sure thing) are the ones that you don’t see mentioned here over and over. 
Any school that has an audition process cannot be considered a safety.
Programs that may have better odds: So Illinois University, Northern Kentucky, Western Carolina, Rockford, Nebraska Wesleyan, Western Illinois University. (All of these have BFA programs.)
I’m not sure I’d put IWU in that category. Fewer students audition there than the places that are at Unifieds, but they only accept about 12, they prescreen, and they are a tougher academic admit than many others.
NKU was, we thought, a wonderful addition to D’s list because they only audition on campus (making the numbers smaller), and they admit however many fulfill whatever requirements they are looking for (which is something like drive, ability to handle the rigorous BFA program, talent, and potential for success in this field) instead of a set amount.
BTW, we found both programs to be caring and focused on the individual, big pluses to us.
Good info about NKU…
Thank you everyone for your suggestions. First yes yes she wants to go into MT, we her parents have been the ones putting up roadblocks over the years. I know asking for less competitive programs can be an open mine field on these types of sites but I truly do not mean or assume a less good program, simply one that is not as well known or not as actively sought out due to location, US news college rankings:), etc. etc. The suggestions about looking at past acceptances, regional schools, non unifieds, or focusing on more rigorous academic programs are all great. Her dad went to an Ivy league,(undergrad and grad) and I went to everything from good and mediocre state schools and a great private graduate school and also attended a community college program along the way, we both know so well that there are so many incredible colleges out there with fantastic teachers. Any and all ideas are welcome and thank you so much for the help.
There is another thread a couple down on the feed (can never seem to link properly when using my phone- sorry) about “most underrated programs in the Midwest” that would seem right up your alley 
The list includes BAs and BFAs. One of the ones mentioned- Denison (BA) was one of my D’s non auditions safeties - and was a really cool program
Coastal Carolina University is a program that can be considered less competitive in terms of numbers of students auditioning. This is a post from Ken Martin, the department chair at CCU, from December 2014.
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/17932851/#Comment_17932851
Also, here’s a nice review of the audition process at CCU.
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/coastal-carolina-university/1742833-audition-day-review-2015.html
^ LOL, yeah easy-peasy, @austinmtmom! :))
Yes, 900 prescreens is a lot, plus walk-ins at Unifieds, some of which are genuinely interested (my D was one). I say that’s quite competitive. Sure, it’s not the tippy top in terms of competitiveness of admission, but it’s not anywhere near less competitive, IMO.
Some kids get into the “top” programs and don’t get into the less competitive ones….I would not count on any programs that are auditioned based. And I promise I am not being bitter…
That is realism @bisouu A balanced list is key for ANYONE going through the process. And for me, one of the most fascinating parts of reading the “backgrounds” posts is that even people who get into the best schools have some rejections too. It’s so interesting (at least when it isn’t you/your kid ) “they got into X but not Y”. Shows the subjectiveness, and randomness of the process
@bisouu raises an interesting point…I always wondered about that. Part of me thinks it’s the yield dilemma…some of the less competitive programs thinking that Kid X is most likely going to get into a top program, so they are not going to waste a spot on them, b/c Kid X will probably end up going to said top program. But who knows…it is a very strange phenomenon. Maybe it is simply that they have enough of that type already. But honestly, doesn’t EVERY program want to pick the kids that have the most chance of making it? B/c that’s what gives the schools much of their reputations and the applicants…their successes.