I also have a dancer daughter (ballet and contemporary) - I can tell you a lot about schools that DON’T meet her requirements, mostly because we can’t do full pay and won’t qualify for need-based aid. So those 60K+ schools that don’t have merit scholarships aren’t on our list. Here are some we are considering:
Five colleges has reasonable dance offerings - I think Mt Holyoke or Smith has the best course offerings, can’t remember which. If you want quirky (with some limited merit-based aid available) then try Hampshire. If you are want to keep costs down, cheapest and easiest point entry (from admissions standpoint) is U-MASS Amherst.
In PA, Muhlenberg and Dickinson (affiliation with CPYB in Carlisle). If you’re willing to consider Ohio, College of Wooster has a reasonable dance program. All of these offer merit scholarships.
SUNY Purchase, Hofstra, and Fordham all have great dance programs. She’d probably be eligible for good merit money at Hofstra - it’s less well ranked academically than other options listed here. Fordham has merit money but hard to get and entry into the dance program is not a cakewalk. Don’t know about the academics at Purchase but know a graduate of their dance program who is very talented.
If you qualify for need-based aid at upper-end schools, Bowdoin, Vassar, Wesleyan (emphasis on world dance) and either Swarthmore or Bryn Mawr (can’t remember which) might be worth a look.
@mamaedefamilia , you sound like you’re in the much the same boat we are. D is looking for contemporary dance, but the schools need to have decent academics in whatever she decides to actually major in.
In running the numbers last night, I think we would qualify for some need based aid at the very high end schools, but she would get very little or no merit aid. I would prefer she find some place that might give her a little more merit aid, without sacrificing on the academics. I will not let her take out huge loans to attend a ‘dream’ school.
She has yet to see UMass Amherst, I actually think it’s ok, but she doesn’t want to go where a good part of her high school class may end up. I am putting together a spreadsheet to show her what the realities of these choices are.
I did put Hampshire on the list, I’ll check out the others as well.
@lalalemma I think she would do best at a quirky school, as she is a quirky person
@lalalemma Bard does NOT have merit aid. Website is a bit ambiguous, I wrote to them to verify.
@martina99 Right now, of the schools that I mentioned, my D is likely to apply to Muhlenberg, Dickinson, and Wooster, and possibly might try for UMASS, even though we are not in-state, there is some merit money to be had there and the Honors Program is attractive. If you end up deciding that Ohio is not too far away, we have a few other options we are considering there.
There is a great video on youtube about Mulhenberg’s theater and dance program. I don’t know if I’m allowed to post the link here - should be easy to find - it’s about 7-8 minutes long. My favorite part was about the in-house physical therapist that all dancers can see free of charge! It is also very strong in the health sciences. Dickinson is a quality, all around LAC with strong study abroad and internship options.
@mamaedefamilia - thanks for the additional info. A shame about Bard, it looked nice. I will definitely have to check on merit before we go any further with these.
My family would love an excuse to go to Hershey Park, and a side trip to Muhlenberg will be planned.
My son went to Umass Amherst for chemical engineering, it was a great place & value (especially for in state!) and the honors program was awesome.
Someone from D’s dance company is there, she is a freshman, not a dance major, but she is in the dance company. I will ask D to follow up with her on how she likes it.
Spamming my own thread again, I think her SAT scores will be better than I thought. Her school has her PSAT to SAT projection messed up in naviance, so it was flagging all of her choices for being below average. If so, that may help her merit chances more than I originally thought.
@martina99 There are also dance videos from the 5 colleges on youtube as well. My impression was that they were decent, perhaps not quite up to the level of my daughter’s current company, but good enough to appeal.
Vassar really sounds perfect for her. We attended several dance performances and they were great! Quirky fits in well at Vassar and she could easily double major and dance since there are few distribution requirements. You may be surprised at the aid from Vassar so check it out and visit. Also, I second the five college suggestion. You also could consider Ithaca College and the Hartt school at the University of Hartford. There are merit scholarships at Hartford especially if you major In the college of arts and sciences. Just be sure to check if she can partcipate in dance if she is not a dance major or minor.
@chemusic - thanks. We have Ithaca on the list .Vassar looks great, but I’m not sure if my daughter’s stats are good enough for Vassar, especially since she would need some merit for it to work. I am trying not to overload our list with wonderful schools that may not work out for us.
I hadn’t thought of University of Hartford, my son had applied there years back but for science. I will check it out, not sure if it would be too urban for her.
Bard’s merit aid is quirky - they do offer scholarships which depend on merit - but ONLY if the family also has financial need. For instance, my understanding is (and I’m just an alumni parent) to receive the full tuition Distinguished Science Scholarship or the Levy Economics Scholarship - one also needs to show some need. But not necessarily so much need that one would otherwise be awarded a loan free grant for full tuition. My own son received full tuition for five years from the Bard Conservatory of Music - and it didn’t change when my salary increased. So, unless the student would otherwise be full pay, it’s worth taking a chance to see what comes.
@martina99, I’d recommend you take a look at Bates, and in particular the Bates Dance Festival. It would be an easy way to check out not only the Bates program but some amazing faculty from other schools. Many of the performances are free so you could drive up, observe as class or two offered by dance profs from Bates or other schools she’s considering, and stay for a performance before driving home or staying the night in Portland.
Bates has a major and minor in dance as well as a non-competitive dance company, is 2 1/2 hours from Boston, and has a student population of 1,800. Psychology is the most popular department and the school has a strong law school placement record. I would describe it as middle of the road to slightly quirky on the quirkiness scale. Not as quirky as a Hampshire or Sarah Lawrence, less preppy than Conn College. Unfortunately, like all the NESCAC schools it doesn’t offer merit money although it does cover 100% of determined need.
@sue22, thanks for the info, will check into Bates.
@SpiritManager - thanks for the follow up info. Bard seems really great. We would show some need (prices have gone up since my son started college in 2010!). Not sure how much merit my D would qualify for as she would not be a dance major. Her grades are high and I project her SATs to be decent, but not exceptional.
I have quite a list going, unfortunately, many of the choices will hinge on if she can get some merit money.
I suppose dance isn’t really a hook like an athlete…
Don’t shy away from Skidmore based on its “preppy” vibe. This is not at all our experience, if anything, D describes it as “intellectually quirky”. It is an artsy school that is most recently putting more focus on STEM offerings and thus is currently providing a more well-rounded student body. Good luck in your search.
Don’t overlook Drew, in Madison, NJ, as a potential low-match/near-safety. It’s list-price is brutal, but your daughter might qualify for a generous merit-aid package. They have a Dance minor, and easy access to NYC by train, if she ever wants to go into the city for classes on Saturdays.
Just in case you do decide to look further geographically, Goucher has very generous arts merit scholarships and a well-respected dance department. We went to the arts scholarship audition day so students in music, dance, and the visual arts were all there. (We were there for music.)
Dickinson might be possible, they give merit up to about $20k per year. The dance program has an affiliation with the Central PA ballet school, not sure if it would otherwise offer the type of dance your daughter is interested in.
Bryn Mawr College also gives merit, and historically had a strong modern dance program.
