<p>Sorry if I worded the title in a weird way. I was wondering, how would I go about changing my major from undecided (or whatever it may be when I enroll) to the musical theatre program? Is it easier for a student who is already a part of the school to audition for the MT major as opposed to someone transferring in? I am hoping to attend Ithaca in the fall, but I was rejected from the MT program. How would I go about re-auditioning? Is it possible to speak to someone about auditioning again right away and then being an MT or Acting major (if accepted) by the spring?</p>
<p>I’m not sure, but I doubt it’s that easy. Send an email to someone from the department. I’m sure they’d be willing to answer your questions :)</p>
<p>Okay, I will! I know its probably not going to be an easy process, but I just want to have a little bit of knowledge as to how these things work before I make any final decision. And even if I do go to Ithaca, I won’t just rely on their program. I’m going to audition for a larger number next year than I did this year.</p>
<p>Hi Athena,</p>
<p>It’s possible they will let you do Theatre Arts or a BA in theater right away. They did not allow that as a 3rd choice option last year but I believe that may have changed. Not sure. You would then have to ask permission to reaudition for the BFA but I very much doubt if that would happen this year. I do know people who have done this successfully at other schools. But very few. I don’t know specifically about Ithaca. Anyway, good luck. Ithaca is a beautiful campus.</p>
<p>If BFA is where your passion lies, have you considered taking a gap year to reaudition?</p>
<p>I have considered a gap year, but my mother say if I do that then she won’t support me. I want to take a gap year to train, but I don’t think my family sees that as an option for me, unfortunately.</p>
<p>Flossy- Thank you very much for your input! I think I may call them once I make my final list to see who I would have to go through to re-audition once I am already a student at the school.</p>
<p>AthenaL, on behalf of all the “mom-types” that read this blog and want to adopt you, myself included, you are getting great advice here, including from your own mom that is putting obstacles in front of you for doing a gap year. She knows you better than any of us and probably believes in you more passionately. That comes with the mom hat. Trust her.</p>
<p>My daughter’s theater mentor whom in her mind, walks on water or the equivalent (and he has hundreds of groupies that think his word is THE word) absolutely tells his most adamant theatre students NOT to study theater as an undergraduate. He feels it is much better to go out into the world and experience other things and then bring those experiences to the stage or to graduate work etc… The one caveat he throws out in that speech also says “and for those of you who simply cannot help yourself…” and then goes on from there about specific advice for students that must major in theater now rather than later for whatever reason.</p>
<p>Listen to your family Athena. They know more than the rest of us and the theater world will happily await your arrival no matter what the timeframe.</p>
<p>All the best!</p>
<p>Great advice from everyone here, AthenaL. But another thing to keep in mind (and tell your mom) is that even if you can transfer in to a MT program after your freshman year, you will most likely start as a freshman all over again, thus paying for five years of college (ultimately). So, it may be cheaper in the long run to take a gap year, get a job, and take lessons to improve your skills for next year. The other thing I would suggest is paying the money to get an unbiased assessment of your skills from someone in the business to see what they think you should do. It’s a tough field, and having someone tell you what you need to work on to make it (wither into college or into the field) may be worth it. Best of luck to you!</p>
<p>Athena, this is the type of question that needs to be carefully explored with the school itself. Each school will handle this in their own way. At the school my D attended, it would have been possible for a student to reaudition as an internal transfer but only after the completion of one year at that school. At that point, if accepted, the student would then begin as a freshman in the freshman year of the program. It’s also to be noted that acceptance in this way is likely even more competitive than for freshman admission. Lots for you to think about.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your wonderful advice! I am definitely going to have a conversation with my mom about all of the things you pointed out. Hopefully, she will realize taking a gap year will be beneficial for me! Especially because I live in NYC and I have so many great professionals right at my door step! Hopefully, it will all work out.</p>
<p>Hi Athena! </p>
<p>I am a freshman at Ball State University, and I know that if you come to the school (most start as a Theatre Studies major), you can audition at the first set of on-campus auditions in November and possibly be admitted into the BFA Musical Theatre or Acting option for the following year and possibly even the next semester. I’m not sure if this happens at other schools but multiple students do this; and 3 were admitted into the BFA Musical Theatre option for the graduating class of 2015 (including one of my best friends)! </p>
<p>Still, if you think that taking a gap year would be best; go for it! I just wanted to let you know of another option!
Best of luck!</p>
<p>Taylor11, are you saying that a freshman who attends Ball State as a theatre studies major can reaudition in November of their freshman year? When they reaudition, are they competing against high school seniors who are auditioning for the following year? I’m just trying to get a handle on the size of the competition. Thanks for your insight.</p>
<p>Draco-</p>
<p>Yes, at the November auditions, there have been freshman theatre studies majors as well as other majors from Ball State who audition for the following year. This does mean that they are competing against high school seniors. But for the college students, their entire first semester is one big audition (just as auditioning for shows as a student means that all of the work you do in school is an audition). This can either help or hurt your ‘chances’. If you have any more questions, PM me! I would be happy to help you out as much as I can!</p>
<p>It looks like students in the BA program at TCU can also petition the school to enter the BFA program. This is from their website:</p>
<p>“Shortly before the May juries, current TCU students who are not in the BFA Theatre program may petition the Theatre faculty for admission into the BFA program. The ideal time to make such a petition is in May of your freshman year. If you wait any longer, it will likely be impossible for you to graduate with a BFA in Theatre in four years.”</p>
<p>as someone who had a mother who was completely horrified when i told her i wanted to take a gap year, i completely understand. i know people are saying listen to her, but truly, if you really think it is necessary for yourself go ahead with it. i went against my mother despite her disapproval and we didn’t speak for many many months after, but i did what i had to do for myself. now, however, both my parents are extremely thankful i listened to myself and took the year off in order to get additional training and make for sure theatre was what i wanted to pursue. they see me as an independent young adult and trust that i can take care of myself unless i specifically ask for help. sometimes, kids do know what’s best for them and we are tough enough to deal with consequences of the decisions we make and don’t need the help of a guardian to guide us through every step of the way. think long and hard if the gap year really is something that you think will give you space to grow. if you still think it’s a good idea, really try and convince her that it’s what you need. chances are she will come through and back you up…it may take time, but she will turn around because you’re her child. often times, mother knows best, but there are also numerous occasions where mother forgets that her children will learn from whatever slips and falls they make while learning to stand alone on their own two feet. it’s out of love, but if it inhibits you from making a choice that really matters to you, do what you can to get whatever it is that will give you the chance to grow.
a gap year means more than just training…time to get life experience…time to integrate into the real world instead of being perpetually stuck with young students and only young students. time to explore if there are other things that can make you happy–alternate career options. if you find one, good, you don’t have to waste more energy trying to get in to these programs. if not, then you’ll know to continue pushing yourself to work hard and get into someplace. time to learn about yourself, basically, in a nut shell.</p>
<p>Just a note to future students reading this thread: when auditioning for Ithaca, Lee Byron informed us all that the only student who had successfully attempted making the switch to the BFA path after enrolling as a “normal” student at Ithaca was Aaron Tveit. So, unlikely it will happen again at that school. But still possible!</p>