<p>My D is dead set on applying to some very competitive BFA programs; I honestly don't know whether she has "it" or not... while I want to support her, I need her to keep other options open, like a BA program in a LAC. Friends say, "Let her audition for the BFA; if she's in, she has it, if not, she doesn't, and you don't have to be the bad guy!" Problem is, I'm dismayed about the cost and commitment about traveling to auditions while still ensuring she put her best effort into essays, etc for her LAC applications. She's a rising senior and time feels short! Anyone else struggled with this two-track application process? She could go the unifieds in NYC but she hears that it's an easier experience at the college, but I really can't afford to gallavant all around the Northeast on what might be unrealistic to begin with. It seems like this whole process is difficult enough without auditions!</p>
<p>We are all in the same boat as you and the boat is about the size of a cruise ship! I am also struggling with this, and as I look at a few school visits we have planned for Sept./Oct. I’m wondering now if it wouldn’t be just as easy to apply and do the tour when we go for the audition (rather than going for the tour, then back again for the audition). We don’t have to fly any place, but gas and hotels aren’t cheap. Coupled with the fact that I do not get paid for taking a day off of my school to go with my son, so I am losing money.</p>
<p>Another thing I am working on is really chopping the list down - I know, that goes against all the good advice on here, but application fees, audition fees (so mad about this altho I can see that they need to cover their expenses, but the old double-whack stinks), SATs and ACT fees, travel, etc. It all adds up! I want my son to go for it, but we are realistic with reaches, targets, and safeties - but not five or six in each category.</p>
<p>Time is also an issue, and I am sad to realize that lots of these schools (Purchase, Hartt, for example) are not part of the Common App, so it is more paperwork. I know college apps are important and necessary, but senior year needs to be fun, too!</p>
<p>I’m glad my hair is already solid gray . . .</p>
<p>The process is very intimidating–and we’re still a couple of years away from it. At least I’ve been warned by all of you of what we’ll face if my son stays on this track.</p>
<p>Hi All!</p>
<p>I also have a S who is on this track. He is only a rising Junior so REALLY happy I found this thread early enough. I have a whole year to gain wisdom and advice…YAY!! </p>
<p>I am on the same page as newbie. I don’t know if my S has “it” either, and am going on the same assumption that if he doesn’t make it into a good BFA program on his audition he should probably go toward his other passion… physics. He loves acting though and has spent his summers in some VERY intensive programs and each time comes back more sure that this is what he wants to live and breath. He is a pretty
good student so far… but has a REALLY tough schedule this year with a full/tight schedule of 5 academic classes, and 2 intense, demanding classes… acting and singing, that take tons of out of school time. Most kids at his school can only handle 1 of these electives… he is one of the few who is going to be doing 2. I am worried.</p>
<p>We live in CA, and my DS really would like to be in either, NY, Chicago, PA, or Boston. I will take him to look at USC and UCLA, for obvious reasons. </p>
<p>So far he has some LAC’s with strong theater programs on his list… Muhlenberg, OXY, Skidmore, Vassar, Oberlin, Lawrence and Kenyon… will adjust after this years grades and SAT scores are more firm.</p>
<p>Any other less selective LAC’s with strong theater programs that I am missing?? He would really like a city close by if possible… or at least that he could get to in an hour or so.</p>
<p>By “Lawrence,” do you mean “Sarah Lawrence?” If not, you should certainly add it to your list. Temple University is bigger than the liberal arts schools you have mentioned, but it has a good, non-audition BA, along with very solid programs in traditional disciplines. Eugene Lang College at the New School, in NYC, is another option, but they are very weak in sciences. Fordham-Lincoln Center has solid liberal arts departments, and sometimes accepts strong students for general admission even if they reject them from the Theater Performance major. The drawback there is probably that it’s tough for non-majors to get cast in most performances, but I understand that some opportunities exist. They have a science requirement, and have physics courses available, but no chemistry at the Lincoln Center campus on account of public safety regulations (no hazardous materials, etc., allowed in densely-populated midtown-Manhattan). If your son has a bang-up junior year, and performs well on standardized tests, you should also consider Northwestern, which has a great theater department. I don’t hear much buzz about Tufts University on CC’s theater-related threads, but it had a very strong theater department a generation ago. American University requires students to audition in order to major in Theater, but they do not have to declare a major until sophomore year, and prospective actors apply to the regular college.</p>
<p>That’s a good list, 5boys. I’d add Goucher as a likely LAC. If he’s interested in Vassar and Skidmore he might as well look at Bard, too.</p>
<p>I want to tell all of you that you are doing great!!</p>
<p>No one can determine if a kid has “it.” For me, the real “it” was how much she wanted to be in this world. She wanted it, she worked for it, and she’s seeing how it goes. I am grateful my D is not determined to be a star - it’s easier on a mom that she wants to perform OR anything else she can do to be involved in theatre. </p>
<p>A strong program - BFA or BA - is going to give a student lots of experience and education, training or otherwise. Having a good list with lots of options is the key. Making what you can out of where you end up is the most important thing.</p>
<p>Really isn’t this the same for anyone who wants to go to college? Do we tell a kid who gets Bs and doesn’t test well that they can “never” be a doctor? Or ever be in the medical profession at all? Does anyone get told they don’t “deserve” to study other fields - not “good enough” for math, English, languages? There are so many opportunities, so many schools, so many options. There is room for anyone who will work hard and who cares.</p>
<p>Enjoy the journey, and work all you can not to let your kids get hung up on the judgments that will strike them at every turn. Life is not linear! </p>
<p>We all should print and read daily CCer2014’s post #28 on the True Conservatory thread. It will help anyone going through this to remember the grand mystery of it all.</p>
<p>Thanks stagemum! I actually meant Lawrence in Wisconsin… because of it’s vibrant music program… my DS would also really like some music options as well. I have had mixed feelings about suggesting Sarah Lawrence to my DS… mostly because of it’s m/f ratio… although my DS would probably love that… so we will see… he also has some other maybes… Conn College, Bard, Macalester, St O. He is creative, REALLY outgoing, and can just about hang with anyone…but likes theater types the best… I think because they are all so quirky, and fun. He is somewhat balking at the Midwest schools… so am planning on taking him to OH, to visit a few before he makes judgement.</p>
<p>I hope you all haven’t forgotten what it is like to be a young person.</p>
<p>Young people need to follow their dreams. That’s what the reason is for being a young person. Us old folks really should encourage them to do so. A young person needs to give their dreams their best shot. Because otherwise they will spend the rest of their life wondering “what if”. It’s only after giving their dreams their best shot that they can say, if their best shot doesn’t succeed, “Okay, I definitely gave THAT my best shot, now what can I find that is more realistic?”</p>
<p>I think EmmyBet is correct that “it” is mostly how much a student wants it and how much that motivates them to work hard to achieve their goals. And I do feel that forcing someone to apply to Liberal Arts Colleges that they really don’t want to go to is only going to detract from “it”, not help.</p>
<p>Education isn’t going anywhere. These LACs are still going to be there a year from now, two years, etc. If your D does not have the time and resources to apply BOTH to the colleges she wants to go to, AND to these LACs she is not interested in, it really makes more sense for her to devote her energies now to the programs she is interested in. (I have also advised students here not to go to colleges they didn’t want to–even when that college admitted them!!). If the very worst happens and she does not get in ANYWHERE, it is not the end of the world. It is OKAY to take a year off, and find some employment (or do something else) while continuing to apply to colleges. If she really doesn’t get in to ANY of her preferred colleges, she probably will realize that she had set her goals too unrealistically high, and so will come up with a broader list the next time.</p>
<p>But maybe she does have “it”, and maybe she will get in. After all, SOMEBODY has to be the person who has “it” and gets admitted, why not your daughter?</p>
<p>KEVP</p>
<p>KEVP…Great post! Are you sure you haven’t met my daughter? Your comments describe her approach to college theater programs perfectly.</p>
<p>We did the two pronged approach with dance programs–conservatory programs, competitive audition programs and on the other side, selective colleges and universities where dance would be possible but was not a competitive admit. If your student is capable and focused, I wouldn’t worry too much about the auditions interfering with writing the essay. That gets taken care of very early in the fall semester for most kids, and having a faculty member to consult with helps a lot. As for the expense of the audition process, yes, it is pricey, but so worth it to see the schools and figure out whether they fit the student. We just kind of gave ourselves up to the process and found it strangely enjoyable. My daughter did some local auditions for the schools that came to our city, I’m guessing that the unifieds would be similar. We had heard that admission is more difficult from auditions not held on campus, but we did not find that to be the case, she was accepted to all the programs that she auditioned for off campus. In the end she had a nice selection of dance and non dance schools to pick from in April. We did lots of campus visits junior year and over the summer to narrow down the schools. And if you are visiting Ohio, I highly recommend taking a look at Kenyon. They have what seems to be an excellent drama program. Paul Newman went there, and they have a good amount of the salad dressing money. Great academics. Nice merit scholarships. Gorgeous facilities. My daughter did not end up going there, but she might have if drama was her interest.</p>
<p>RealKEVP, beautifully written!! I am one who has had the “what ifs” all my adult life. I so wanted to be a theatre major, but at that time in the deep South, no “good” girls majored in theatre (or so thought my parents). My daughter may or may not have “it” in her tech world, but she has the passion, desire, and drive. There is no way I’ll squash that now. We will apply, interview, visit, and hope for the best! I’m going to print out your post and keep it with us, so that when those doubters start voicing their opinions, I’ll have the words to express my thoughts! Thanks!!</p>
<p>So many wise words…thanks to all, especially REALKEVP, for reminding me that it’s not a matter of making it happen for your kid, but rather, just getting out of the way! I see my role now as more of a facilitator than as an orchestrator; I am happy to step back and support her wholeheartedly but really hope that the drive and passion that runs in flood tide thru her dreams at night translates into research and knowledge about what it takes to make it happen by day. REALKEVP helped me recognize that there really isn’t a downside… (except destitution and NEVER being able to retire!) Whatever the outcome, some great personal growth (for us all) is a pretty sure bet. For clarification, I would never force her to apply to a program that she wasn’t interested in, I just want her to keep an open mind about a BA in Acting rather than strictly a BFA. There is certainly (albeit maybe sadly) no Business or Economics DNA in our family!</p>
<p>There’s a big difference between making someone go to a school or a program they’re not interested in, and applying to a range of different types of places! It would be a pity to not have a well-distributed list so that come spring of Senior year your D will have – as you put it in your subject – options. </p>
<p>This advice would go for anyone, theater major or not. </p>
<p>I agree that whatever the outcome of the BFA process, to view these decisions a determination of whether someone “has it,” is ridiculous, and to say that a student should forget an acting career because of not being accepted into a BFA program is very sad. Strength, determination and resilience in the face of constant rejection are the skills every actor needs most!</p>