<p>Well thank you jsheesh. The info has been useful and we parents now have to work on getting the best situation for our children as we can. The main thing I take from your last post is how wonderful and valuable and increasingly competitive the theatre program is, and in the current ultra-competitive MT environment, I am very grateful that my D was accepted. Everyone we met within the dept. was extraordinary as well. I tend to be a positive person and have faith that the best thing will happen and that everything occurs for a reason. That may sound naive, but it has gotten me through 50 plus years without TOO many battle scars. Thanks again!</p>
<p>Just to restate....I never thought Jsheesh put down the schools programs...just the housing situation. I am the slow one out of the gate that did not give my deposit early enough...and because of that, my d would have been put on a wait list for a dorm. We just were not willing to take the chance of a hotel or triple. It is a personal choice. If she doesn't enjoy Pace she may even end up at Montclair dance because we did enjoy the feeling of the place a lot. Good luck to everyone and if anyone can help me remember how to find the final decision list...this inept computer person would really appreciate it!</p>
<p>I believe most freshmen are going to get triples regardless of when they hand in their deposits. But, I could be wrong on that. Freshmen usually get the triple rooms.</p>
<p>Also the hotels in my opinion would be a horrible placement, but some students do like it.</p>
<p>The perks are that the internet actually works well, where the internet on campus is horrible. The rooms are also nicer and the hotels provide a nice living environment over some of the dorms (hot water, air conditioning, heat, clean private bathrooms etc).</p>
<p>The downside is the traffic getting to and from school. You're paying full room and board to be a commuter student, which in my opinion was a bit offensive the first year they implemented it and didn't give the parents much notice. The bus schedule is basically useless so you would need a car and would have to fight the commuter parking.</p>
<p>However, I know students who did like the hotels. I even know a few who wanted to move there. Most people I know of were desperately fighting to get out at all costs though.</p>
<p>Being a resident student of a university is all about waking up and being on campus. One of the perks is not having to fight for parking. It also keeps you social. After class you can invite someone up to your room to go over that tough math problem. Or you can invite your group up to your room to prepare a group project. You also have quick access to all on campus students, quickly walk to their dorms, take a shuttle if you need to, etc... meet people for lunch in the dining halls, etc. A lot of the perks of being an on campus student is simply lost being in the hotels.</p>
<p>Also if your child is planning on joining any of the Greeks, being an on campus student makes it incredibly easier. That first year is usually used as a scouting year before deciding which to join. Being an on campus student makes all the difference.</p>
<p>The school paper just did an article about students not getting housing. They featured a theater major (sophomore) who got his housing deposit in on time and was refused housing. Apparently he is not alone, there are many, many students in the same boat. There are now Facebook groups called "Homeless at MSU" and "It's Time to Fight Back!!!"</p>
<p>The article brings to light the housing problems without exactly getting into the details. It takes a little math, but the results are interesting.</p>
<p>First, the incoming MSU 2007 class will consist of approximately 3,500 students. They know this by knowing their estimated incoming student numbers based on how many applications they accept and the average students who accept them.</p>
<p>So for 2007 they are expecting roughly 3,500 students. Of them they know 61.5% will request housing (guaranteed). That comes to 2512.5 new residential students. I don't have the numbers on hand, but I can tell you right now there are nowhere near that many seniors graduating. Each year they accept more and more incoming freshmen and guarantee them housing. Quote from the paper:
"Montclair State University's 2007 freshmen class will consist of approximately 3,500 students. Out of those students, approximately 61.5 percent of them will apply for housing, according to Ragan."</p>
<p>We'll say 2500 new residential students for the next incoming year to make the numbers even. Montclair has designated only 1250 residential slots for incoming students which leaves 900 (the paper's number not mine) students with NO HOUSING! Direct quote from the paper:
"The university currently has 1,250 housing spots available for these incoming students, leaving approximately 900 of these new students with no housing.
MSU offers nine housing buildings with a total of over 3,300 beds."</p>
<p>MSU offers just over 3,300 beds within their nine residential buildings. If we do the math here, they blocked off nearly one-third of the beds to incoming freshmen. Take a guess who gets displaced. Typically it's the non-freshmen. However, this year 900 freshmen are slated to get the axe. In order for MSU to house all their incoming Freshmen (2500) they would only have 800 beds left for all other students. What's going to happen when they accept another 2,500+ incoming residents next year?</p>
<p>MSU is trying to get more hotel space. La Quinta is giving MSU 101 rooms which can house 191 students. That's not even going to put a dent in the housing problems MSU will face. Needless to say the hotels are not even a bandaid. Also, to cut back on costs they have announced they will not be running any shuttles whatsoever to the hotels next semester, but for the first time ever they'll give the hotel residents a free commuter parking pass.</p>
<p>This is just the beginning, just wait for next year... can you imagine the pickle they'll be in. They won't have any new dorms up for at least a few years and they currently don't have the means to house their current students, let alone another incoming Freshmen pack.</p>
<p>Quote from Kathleen Ragan (Associate Vice President for Division Administration)
"The demand for housing is greater ... There is an inherent wait list process."</p>
<p>If you're hoping to live on campus at MSU and can't commute... I wish you the best of luck.</p>
<p>Also based on past experiences with Susan Cole and this administration, when they do decide to finally build a new dorm it will take 2 years longer than expected and cost 2 to 3 times as much as it should, thus making a wonderful brochure picture, yet only housing 1/3rd the number of students as they could have housed if they put the money to better use. And thus will still have housing problems.</p>
<p>I posted this on the other Montclair thread, but believe that it's pertinent to this too. I hope this helps someone else. </p>
<p>Oh My Gosh, get over it! I'm an educator and I helped my daughter pick a school based on the education that she'll get. What fills HER needs. My choice is not the one she chose, because she wants a BFA. I'd rather have her in the small liberal art school with an active campus community and a population that is there on the weekends and that has a very good MT program.
She's going to Montclair because SHE wants an intense program in the field she loves. I'm content that Clay James is going to make this a terrific program. I've learned that a school's attitude starts with administration and filters down. I researched him; a friend's daughter graduated in MT from Miami gave him a glowing report as an educator.
My D figured out HER priorities; if the dorms aren't terribly comfortable, she'll have to manage. If there aren't the 6 a capella groups to choose from, she'll have to start one. She'll have to organize her fun rather than have it be all around her. I'd have chosen the comfortable campus life for her. She chose the program. She'll have to deal with a school whose administrative staff is overburdened and overwhelmed. Every administrative task has been a nightmare. I've dealt with them so far. She'll have to deal next year. But then she'll be on campus with what looks like very supportive faculty advisors. (PLEEEEZE let them take my place)
From my viewpoint, this is a tough field to choose. She'll have to really learn to cope and advocate for herself to make it in showbiz.</p>
<p>All of you MT folks accepted and going to MSU....please keep us "posted" on housing, classes, opportunities, housing, and housing! Being so close to NYC is a real draw for my D, and the day we spent there certainly made the whole package look wonderful. With applications and auditions coming closer all of the time, I'd like to know how things work out for all of you. And I hope all of the news is good!</p>
<p>Will do! My D is getting more excited all the time, and orientation is in July, so we will know a little more then! Good luck during your audition year!</p>
<p>I'll bet things are getting exciting around home...school shopping, good bye to friends. After the orientation and room assignments, do you have an update on the dorm situation?
Thanks</p>
<p>Sarahlsmom,</p>
<p>We were not able to see the dorms at orientation, but Freeman Hall is DEFINITELY getting a new $50,000. heating system. My D ended up in a room with 1 roommate with adjoining bath shared with 3 others on the first floor. In the whole scheme of things, she is very happy. Freeman has a dining hall right there, and is very close to the theatre dept. She was very excited after orientation. I was VERY impressed with the parent orientation (a full day including breakfast and lunch), their security systems, computer networking, the 30 man actual police force, cell phone system, and just about everything! The professors and administrators who spoke, from the President of the university on down, were very nice and informative. </p>
<p>Clay James' plans for the dept. are also very impressive and EVERYONE in that dept. is amazing so far! My D met 9 of the 18 MT students, and had a blast and is corresponding with them all the time.</p>
<p>One of the students from Montclair was just chosen for High School Musical and is taking a leave for that and one of the actresses from Spring Awakening is coming to Montclair next year! Also, Christine Ebersole is teaching a class there this year. All in all, when you add in the huge new musical facility they are building and as you say, the proximity to NYC, my D couldn't be happier! They are going to Unifieds this year I think, so the level of competition for the spots available is going to be more intense than everI guess.</p>
<p>I will write more after she moves in on 9/1!</p>
<p>I feel alot better about having Montclair on her list. How were the auditions there?</p>
<p>This year they only held auditions I believe on 3 dates and then had to add an audition weekend because of so much demand. From what I was told, they had about 250 audition and ended up with 18 in the department, evenly split between boys and girls. </p>
<p>Everyone we have met and dealt with in the theatre dept. is extremely nice and helpful. It was pretty much the typical audition process, including the music exam and a pretty intense dance audition, because they have a strong dance department there. We were there from about 9 in the morning until 2 or 3 in the afternoon. As I said before though, their plan I think is to add unified auditions, so there will be more auditionees I am sure. It was difficult last year to schedule them in for us because there were so many conflicts with other audition schools and they started with only 3 audition dates. I would guess that their auditionees would number much higher this year if unifieds are factored in.</p>
<p>PM me if you want!</p>
<p>My son also is going to Montclair as a Musical Theatre major, he got into Bohn hall in a triple. I am very disappointed as we were lead to believe that all theatre majors would end up in Freeman or Newman (both dorms he selected when applying for his dorm) but he ended up in Bohn (he didn't even list it as a desired dorm). Bohn hall was there when I attended Montclair in the early 70s and I don't think they've done a thing to update them. When I asked about the heating and water pressure issues during orientation I was told it was on the list of things that needed to be worked on--very vague. We should have been able to see the dorms during orientation especially when your child is going into a triple--space is going to be very limited if my recollection of the room is correct. They promise you a desk, a bed (one bed is bunked), and a wardrobe for each student--but not promise of floor space in the room. Crowded rooms will add more more stress on bathrooms--water pressure, hot water, etc. I just hope they're right about computer hookups--one for each student.</p>
<p>To add to the dorm situation I was speaking to a friend of mine who lived in South Jersey (Long Branch) when she attended Montclair, she told me she was unable to get a dorm her sophmore year and had to find an apartment (commuting was out of the question). Freshmen are the only ones guaranteed a dorm.</p>
<p>I think the Theatre Department is great at Montclair but too much conflicting information is given out or just not enough information. If theatre majors are not guaranteed Freeman/Newman don't say anything or make it happen.</p>
<p>Thanks for the input. Can you let us know how things are going for your kids? montclair is still on the list of audition sites, but it seems like I may still have a reason to be concerned about living situations. Darn!</p>
<p>Montclair is not the only school experiencing dorm issues, several of my friends whose children are going to private schools are also having the same issues and are paying much higher tuition and dorm costs. Freshmen are guaranteed dorms, if you're unable to get a dorm your second year Montclair does have a lot of rentables available. At least from everything I have heard and seen so far the Theatre Arts program is very strong at Montclair.</p>
<p>Now that my tears have dried I can speak to the dorm issue in a more informed manner, since my D moved in on the 1st.</p>
<p>First of all, the cooperativeness and friendliness/helpfulness I have experienced at Montclair previously were continued on move-in day. My D and I arrived at 8:30 a.m., and received student help and a wheeled cart, which we definitely needed! Her room is a decent size, and she and her roommate were able to pretty easily fit everything in, including a refrigerator/micro unit and still had room to spare in the closet, with the room not being too crowded. We arrived to bunked beds, which was fine, and a five drawer bureau, two desks and chairs, pretty standard fare. She is first floor in Freeman Hall with just one roommate. The adjoining dorm room (bath in between) is the same size with 3 girls, so my D is lucky! There is also a hall bath for general use with several stalls and sinks. The present gym is very close to her dorm, as well as the Kasser theatre, the spectacular new Music facility which is under construction, and all the theatre facilities and classrooms including the dance building. The brand new gym, which is about a ten minute walk, will be completed in January.</p>
<p>She visited Bohn Hall, in which 3 or 4 of her new MT friends are living, and thought it was pretty nice. I haven't had a chance to talk to her in depth about it though. She and I ate in the campus Diner (pretty authentic!) and thought what we had was very good. She ate at Blanton last night and was trying Cafe Diem today for lunch.</p>
<p>She goes to NYC on Monday to take dance class from one of her previous dance instructors at Broadway Dance from 3 to 6, which she is excited about. Tuesday is Red Hawk Day, with activities all day. There is a pool party today, and then she starts classes on Wednesday. We picked up her new Campus Connect phone yesterday, which is so impressive security wise. It makes us so much more confident about her safety that she is in such a nice place as Montclair with a 30 person police force (I talked to 4 of them yesterday and they were all great) and a phone from which they can find her with the GPS system on it and all her info is there for the police to help her if she needs it. That is only the beginning of the Rave wireless system they have in place there, which has garned Montclair an award for being so cutting edge security wise.</p>
<p>All in all, the dorm situation at Montclair has been greatly exaggerated in my opinion thus far, and my D said to me on our trip up there on Friday that she could not imagine going anywhere except to the New York area for school in her major. What she likes about Montclair also is that it is a real college (we watched a football game yesterday) in a beautiful quiet suburban area, but just a hop, skip and a jump from NYC, which she loves and where quite a few of her friends go to school. She said likes the fact that the town of Montclair is so beautiful and peaceful.</p>
<p>I miss her so much, but am thrilled for her. I will let you know how her classes and life progresses. I am so grateful that I learned about Montclair from CC because I do believe that it is where she is meant to be. Hope I am right!</p>
<p>Dancermom,</p>
<p>So glad to hear that move in went so well for your daughter! I wish her so much success at Montclair and know she will do so well there! Her dorm sounds awesome...room to spare in the closet??? You can't beat that! </p>
<p>Kaysmom :)</p>
<p>Thanks Kaysmom! I will e-mail you with updates as they occur. I was so glad to read that your D is enjoying everything so much as well. Mine is in the City as we speak with new and old friends. She had an adventure getting the bus on a holiday, but they are all learning experiences, right?</p>
<p>My son moved into Bohn Hall on 9/1 and I am happy to report that the room and the experience of moving in was much better than I expected. The students who were helping were friendly and informative. The room has a view of NYC you wouldn't believe, although he has 2 roommates they are both very friendly and nice as were their parents. Since they're in a triple my son and his roommate immediately decided on what to share and how to split up the room--there are 2 wardrobes, bunk beds, a raised bed, 3 desks and 3-3 drawer dressers that fit under the bed. The bathroom was immaculately cleaned the day we moved in as was the dorm room. My son took a course at Yale this summer where I spend a small fortune for a dorm for just 5 weeks and it was not as clean and nice as Montclair's--the course was great but the dorm and the food had much to be desired. So far I have not received any complaints from my son about the food. He had his 1st class yesterday and he really enjoyed it. One thing he has said repeatedly since starting at Montclair (orientation, purchasing books at the bookstore, etc.)--everyone is so helpful.</p>
<p>Spanishmama,</p>
<p>So glad everything is okay with your son! My D met him, and as with all the MT and acting and dance students she has met, she said he is very nice! Her experience with the food has been good - she has eaten in I think 4 of the eating places and her only comment is that Freeman is the best, but they are all good. Her first classes were well received as well.</p>
<p>I think the poster on the problems at Montclair was somewhat helpful with a heads up on certain aspects of the housing situation, but as is often the case, he/she must have had some gripes with the school and things were rather overblown. As you said previously, ALL colleges are experiencing over demand for their housing and are having to handle the situation as best as they can. Just too many of us having children at the same time 18 years ago!</p>
<p>I hope to meet you at the performances our children will be in in coming years! I am excited because I just HAVE TO visit my D the weekend of the 15th because I have some things to bring her. I am hoping to take in a Broadway play while I am there with her. Just one of the benefits of having a student near NYC!</p>
<p>I have a couple quick questions about MSU auditions. First off, are dance auditions done individually? I think I read somewhere that they do do that :/</p>
<p>Also I read on the first page of this thread that Montclair is a 15 minute trainride from NYC. So is it humanly possible to travel down to Montclair while I'm in NYC for the weekend during Unifieds?</p>
<p>And if it is possible to travel there during the Unifieds, do they usually do auditions the Monday after or the Friday before Unifieds for people that want to audition there?</p>