<p>I have been planning on attending SUNY Purchase for technical design with an emphasis in costume design, but i just received an e-mail informing me I have received a full ride to University of The Arts. I have not visited either school, and am asking for opinions on which would be the wisest decision. I just have no real idea on which is the better program and would love some input.</p>
<p>It would be presumptuous for me to tell you that either program is better than the other but I can tell you that the program at UArts is excellent. My daughter is a junior in the MT program there and I have met a lot of tech theater students and have seen what the costume shop produces for the shows. The costumes for the shows are of professional quality and span the gamut from simple and no frills to complex period costumes to elegant and sophisticated. Students are taught by instructors and professors who frequently work in professional productions. My daughter was recently in a UArts show at the Merriam Theater (an 1800 seat proscenium theater owned by UArts) in which there was a cast of about 45 dancers and actors and the students who did the costumes where directed by the costume designer for a major local professional theater.</p>
<p>If you have been offered a full ride to UArts, in my opinion it’s a no brainer; the education in your chosen area will be excellent and you will emerge from college debt free. Plus Philadelphia is a dynamic, thriving theater town with 8 sizable professional theaters within a 5-15 minute walk from the dorms and several other smaller theaters equally accessible. Night life for students is also excellent.</p>
<p>I have no connection to either school, but teach at another theatre institution, and continue to work professionally in theatre. I believe the less debt you can obtain while pursuing training, the better. Both Purchase and UARTS are strong program. If you can graduate from one of them with zero to little debt I think it is a plus.</p>
<p>Purchase is the “older” program, but UARTS has been established as a program since at least the early 1990s. I think you will find great educational training, and networking opportunities at both.</p>
<p>It is too bad you cannot visit. In the end it might come down to best fit.</p>
<p>Congrats!</p>
<p>PS. Research the faculty you may work with at each. Will you have more mentorship at one than the other, more professional development, or design opportunities? UArts is more urban than Purchase… do you have a preference?</p>
<p>MnK - you have great perspective on UArts. Aren’t there also some considerations about how the students live there? I would think a kid who wasn’t prepared for the independence they need in terms of cooking, etc. might be in for a surprise or even a turn-off. You know most about this of any of us.</p>
<p>I’m wondering about this particularly because of the late admit. Do they run out of dorm space?</p>
<p>Emmybet, you raise a good point about living considerations as does KatMT about the benefit of visiting to determine fit. UArts guarantees housing for freshmen (thereafter housing is limited and by lottery) but the dorms are structured as apartments with kitchenettes (and private bathrooms) and there is no meal plan. Students typically food shop at area supermarkets or eat at food courts, cafes or Uarts’ Cantina which is run by a local catering/restaurant company and offers a variety of breakfast, lunch and dinner items. The school does not have a campus per se but is better described as consisting of series of more than a dozen buildings and theater facilities situated in and about the theater district of center city Philadelphia (and interspersed with professional theaters and concert halls, office buildings, restaurants and retail stores), all within 5 minutes or so walking distance of each other.</p>
<p>For those who strongly want a traditional college campus or even a discrete encapsulated urban college campus, UArts may not be a great environmental match. For students who thrive on city life, are comfortable with the independence and responsibilities of apartment style dorm living and are comfortable with the probability that after the freshman year it will be necessary to live in private apartment housing outside of the dorms, the student lifestyle at UArts would be a good fit. My daughter loves the experience of living independently in a dynamic city environment but I also know of students who didn’t think through how different it is from a traditional college campus and were not happy with the lack of a “campus environment”.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that you may think you know which type of campus you prefer but really it all boils down to the people that make up the campus. My D (freshman) wanted a traditional campus but decided last fall to apply ED II to George Washington U smack in the middle of DC…go figure. It was the students she met during the visit that sealed the deal. Try to at least join a fb group or something to get a feel - although with only a few days left you may have already decided.</p>