I am currently a freshman BA Acting/musical theater minor student at Point Park University and looking to transfer out of the program after my sophomore year (I need to spend the next year there continuing to gain credits and looking at new programs.)
I would like to transfer into a musical theater or acting program, BFA or BA that would:
Not be a cut program
Allow me to double major with psychology or education
Have a better and more established academic environment
Be affordable and offer scholarship, as both of my parents work lesser paying jobs and are also paying for my older brother to attend a 60,000 dollar/year school.
Not sure how much they offer in scholarship, but Drake in Iowa has a good program and I know people double majoring with a BFA and psychology. Good luck.
To get two majors completed and to transfer you may have to repeat one of your years, but each school will be different. That said, what about Otterbein, Shenandoah or University of Miami?
I would not call otterbein a strong academic environment (just based on their admission requirement numbers) and I know very little about Shenandoah- but would a conservatory offer an opportunity to double major in psych?
I wouldn’t call Otterbein or Shenandoah particularly strong academically (based on stats, student accounts). Both require very few gen eds, and I doubt you’d be able to double major at either. U of Miami has strong academics, but I don’t know about double majoring. Ohio Northern supports double majoring with a BFA, but I don’t know how their academics are.
Are you ok with starting over in your major after already completing 2 years if you transfer to a BFA? If not, would you consider finishing at Point Park and pursing a master’s degree at an academically challenging school? Or, it sounds like you may really want a BA; perhaps you should concentrate on BAs/like BFAs in strong academic schools.
To be fair, OP only said they wanted a better academic environment, not that it had to be a strong academic environment, so not really sure what they are looking for? Shenandoah is a little better than PP, and Otterbein is better than Shenandoah. At some of these smaller schools with the conservatory approach BA theater students are allowed to take most of the same classes as the BFA students, get equal opportunity to audition for main stage shows, and still have the flexibility to double major. Also, if you are one of the stronger candidates, then merit aid may be better. Lots of factors to balance.
Shenandoah is not a high level academic institution like James Madison or Elon. If that is what you are looking for, we probably are not the right fit. It is also very difficult to double major here. It can be done, but it will probably either take five years or will require summer classes.
Here’s a question I have always wondered about but have never asked; what is meant by high academic institution? If a school has lower admit requirements does that make it less rigorous when it comes to coursework? Or do lower admit requirements just allow those kids in who may not test well but the rigors of the school are still high? Never was very clear to me.
University of Northern Colorado. A respectable acting and MT program. Is a BA that is BFA-like. They also are known in CO as the place to go to school to major in education, also. One of my Ds guest artists at her PAHS was an MT/Education double major there.
Bisouu asks a good question–hard to know exactly what the goal is, just based on the original post. For example, Otterbein has been a solid little college for a long time, and most of the school IS there for academics, but it’s not highly selective and some of the strongest programs are more pre-professional than, say, liberal arts. They have a great education major (also nursing, pre-vet, etc.). While it’s almost impossible to double major in that kind of conservatory program, it might be possible for a transfer student, depending on how many of your original credits carried over into new school’s program; and (to stick with the Otterbein example), I bet it’s quite manageable if you were to transfer into the BA. Interesting questions and very much worth researching!
Also, one thing I’ve heard is that many private universities have higher admission rates than comparable public universities because they need to yield enough kids who can pay full price. Not sure if there’s real validity to that, but I do think it suggests that you should take a comprehensive look at the academics of the schools you’re considering. Admission rates aren’t everything. (Not to say that anyone suggested they are. Just affirming the sentiment.)
While admission rates can be helpful, I find that looking at the stats for admitted students another good indicator. Fro example: Otterbein says that their 25th and 75th percentile ACT scores are 21 and 25. If I compare that to Syracuse, where the 25th percentile is a 23 on the ACT, and the 75th percentile is a 28 - I would conclude that Syracuse is attracting a higher academic caliber student. Now that doesn’t make classes themselves easier or harder- but it’s information. And Northwestern’s 25/75th are 31/34 and so on…
I think it would help if the OP would provide more details of his or her academic history and expectations from a college. For example, do you have an outstanding high-school record and exceptional scores and are you seeking a top caliber academic experience (eg, Northwestern, Penn State, Michigan, etc). What is wrong with the academics at your current school? Are you currently enrolled as a BFA? Would you prefer a BA with access to more academic classes, most likely in a strong liberal arts college? It’s hard to know what to suggest without understanding your past achievements and future expectations.
@bisouu - I actually agree with you, the ACT (and all standardized tests) have a large number of flaws, which is why many schools have become “test optional” in the last few years. But as a “snapshot” of the entire student population- they are a quick measure of OVERALL caliber, and I think more indicative of academic rigor than admission stats. I am absolutely NOT trying to say that you need a high ACT score to be a good student
For more info: I was an honor roll and gifted program student in high school. My grades weren’t Harvard level by any means, but were decent, I had around a 3.0-3.5. and I was thought of by my teachers to be very bright, even if my grades didn’t always necessarily reflect that. My SAT score was around the 1700-1800 level compositely, but I don’t always test well, as the testing environment was sometimes stressful for me. I don’t remember ACT score. The academic environment at PPU is not very strong, and I have trouble interacting with my theatre peers, as they don’t care much for any conversation outside of material life. I believe if I were in a more academically inclined environment, I would be with students I could hold more intelligent conversations with.
If it helps, I was admitted to Temple, Columbia Chicago, and Ithaca for theater. I was academically accepted into PSU and Pace, but not admitted for theater. I was planning on going to Ithaca for BFA Acting until it turned out that my parents and I couldn’t afford it I am currently at Point Park for about 21,000 a year, but they will be upping tuition next year, and the sum for me will be around 26,000. My brother is at GW, and with his scholarship, he’s going for a little under 40,000 a year.
I forgot to mention that I would also be open to MINORING in ed or psych.
I am currently at Point Park for about 21,000 a year, but they will be upping tuition next year, and the sum for me will be around 26,000. My brother is at GW, and with his scholarship, he’s going for a little under 40,000 a year.