I’m currently a junior looking into applying at: Seton Hall, Ithaca, Wagner, Temple, American, UofHartford (the Hartt School), Southern Oregon U (safety)
– list may change as I’m visiting more schools during spring break. I was wondering where my chances stand now and how I can up them coming into next year!
Gender: Female
Ethnicity: Caucasian
School type: Public
UW GPA: 3.9 (not expecting huge change here, realistically will be a high 3.8)
New PSAT: 1390/1520 (770 R&W, 660 Math) – self studying to take SAT in March
Class rank: Top 10%
AP/Honors: Have taken all AP and Honors classes possible thus far, but will probably drop the honors in math senior year.
Two semesters dual enrollment English with the Univ of Washington (Seattle).
Intended major: BFA in either acting or musical theatre if offered, possible minor in English/Journalism or something writing related
EC (a large portion is theatre):
- Officer of French Language Club
- Copy-editor at school newspaper
- Traveled to Tanzania to help/work in a school (assisting teachers in an already established school)
- International Thespian Society club officer for two years
- Participated in 5 musicals at school, leads since sophomore year
- Wrote a play which was published and performered by high schoolers at a professional venue
- Adapted and directed a short story into a one-act play
- Will be directing another (possibly two) plays through school next year
- Acted in 18 plays and musicals overall during high school
- Attended the International Thespian Festival, where I was cast as the lead in the premiere staging of a professionally-written play
- Participated in Thespian Individual Events (competition) where my solo musicals have ranked top 10% twice, and my duet musical once, all of which qualified me for state and nationals
- Costumed two high school-aged shows
Employment:
- Two years paid internship at an idea incubator where I have produced a musical theatre cabaret and collaborated with a team to write a musical (so far, year left)
Recommendations:
Very strong from from theatre teachers.
Probably stronger from dual enrollment teacher, as my academic strengths definitely lie in reading and writing.
What should I really consider a reach/safety and where can I focus on making improvements? Thanks!
What is your budget? What are you folks willing to pay?
Intended major? Will you be continuing with theater?
Why these schools? IMO, it seems like you could do better. For a safety, why not pick something in state that is also a financial safety? I’m assuming you live in WA? Southern Oregon seems like an odd choice for somebody with your stats. And why Seton Hall? It’s alright but I can’t think why you would travel across the country for it. If you like theater, Muhlenberg would be a much better choice, and you’d have a good shot at substantial merit aid. Ithaca, Temple and American are all schools with a lot to offer and if you do well on ACT/SAT, you might meet the auto admit/funding threshold for Temple.
I will be majoring in theatre, hopefully BFA in musical theatre or general theatre.
The amount my parents have saved pays for about 3 years instate at the UW, too far beyond that would be most loans and financial aid if possible. Forgot to add Western WU to my list as a safety! I am hesitant to applu UW, the completely new theatre program is a little too scary…
I chose Southern Oregon because the drama program has a great connection with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and the theatre program doesn’t have a seperate audition program. The drama department’s strong point is educated in all aspects of theatre which is really appealing to me!
I’m glad you mentioned Muhlenberg because I have been thinking about their program and will be visiting there for spring break! Thanks for your comment!
You should look into some better schools, but I understand you are majoring in theater. Have you considered looking into NYU Tisch?
I really didn’t realize I was aiming low! x) i have looked into NYC, but the huge amount of people in the program, high costs, and lack of aid are pretty off-putting.
I know of a number of people who have gone to Western Washington through the WUE program and have been very happy there. I also wouldn’t cross off UW just yet as it’s a superb state university and a good value if you are in state. Maybe talk to some folks in the theater department to see if it might work for you.
Do you know about the WUE consortium (Western Undergrad exchange). It is an arrangement by which you can study out of state at a number of Western state schools for anywhere from in-state tuition to in-state x 1.5. This is partially dependent on academic background (you shouldn’t encounter problems with your GPA and projected test scores) and some schools would want you to apply early. Here is a list of schools - maybe some would be options for you. I see that Southern Oregon is on it, so your tuition would be 1.5 x in state or about 9.5K per year.
http://wue.wiche.edu/search_results.jsp?searchType=all
I am not a musical theater person so I 'm sure other people will have better recommendations for you. I’m glad you are checking out Muhlenberg; I think it could be a really good option for you.
Your gpa and test scores look pretty darn good applying to those schools is good and all but you should definitely aim a bit higher! Best of luck
Yes, the WUE is also a big factor that makes SOU a financial safety.
Hoping to see some shows at the UW soon! Staying /that/ close to home is not something I would necessarily be super keen to do, though, haha…
Thank you all, this is extremely helpful! I will look into reaching for high tier programs.
8 Completely understandable. It's nice to experience another part of the country. UW's a good financial safety for you. Good luck!
I’m not sure if the theater admits/stats are different, but Seton Hall and U of Hartford are definitely safeties for you, as far as I know. For your stats, Seton Hall will automatically reduce your tuition to state level (with a 22.5k scholarship) and will probably offer you other money on top of that. Not sure if that makes it financially feasible or not, but I figured it was important to point out.
@fishgill Thank you for letting me know! That definitely makes Seton Hall more doable. I love the Hartt BFA acting program and I think I have fairly good chances getting in!
And I will certainly keep UW in mind as it is affordable! Test scores can be competitive so I’m working hard for that SAT…