MT additional costs while in college- what should I expect?

College Majors Musical Theater Major
1

<p>I found this post on a different thread and am curious about the answer too so I am reposting from Dadintraining</p>

<p>My D is going into MT Musical theater and looking at a range of colleges from Ithaca to Montclair and we are budgeting right now costs so we can determine loan options and how much. Tuition,room and board is one thing and the basics of living, but we are not sure of what hidden or unknown costs might come into play that we should consider in a yearly budget? Are things like lessons included in most cases? Any input is always welcome.</p>

<p>Dad in Training</p>

2

<p>Whether there is an additional performance studies fee for voice lessons, accompanists, fees, studio classes, etc… will vary from school to school. This is usually available on the bursars web page for each school. If you cannot find the information contact the programs.</p>

<p>Other things that come up… costs for dance shoes and clothes, headshots, audition conference registration fees, travel to audition conferences and individual auditions, seeing shows, buying plays and sheet music, art supplies for design classes, etc…</p>

3

<p>Hi Dad In Training:</p>

<p>I have a feeling your question has as many answers as there are programs!</p>

<p>Our daughter is a west coast kid in a mid west school in a BFA MT program. For her:</p>

<p>*Real winter clothes.</p>

<p>*One 1-hour private voice lesson per week has been included from the beginning. Some schools don’t have private lessons until 2nd semester or later of freshman year. Acting majors at D’s school need to pay extra for private lessons.</p>

<p>*All dance classes are included.</p>

<p>*Piano lessons are included. Group lessons for the first semester and private thereafter. Note my D was WAY behind in piano…i don’t think anyone else in her class had group piano.</p>

<p>*The tuition for the BFA MT/Acting and other performance type majors is more than the standard tuition at the university, so “free” is kind of a misnomer.</p>

<p>*Dance clothes/shoes are requirements, but your D likely has those already.</p>

<p>*Our D had to wear all black for certain classes. She had some black stuff, but we did spend some $ on some additional clothes for those classes.</p>

<p>*She spends very little “going out” as she is SO busy…and most of the social stuff is happening on campus.</p>

<p>*Auditions for summer stock can involve airline tickets and shared hotel stays, if not at least pitching in for gas if someone else is driving.</p>

<p>*One cost that surprised me, that a has nothing to do with studying musical theater, was the cost of “outfitting” a room to live in. Because we were going 2/3 of the way across the country we couldn’t just bring everything from her room at home. I really got sick of Target!!</p>

<ul>
<li>Students need IPods or similar recording/listening devices.<br></li>
</ul>

<p>*Although we know kids/families who don’t use cell phones at home, in this business you definitely need to be reachable.</p>

<p>*There are def some food costs outside the meal plan.</p>

<p>*Because the distance is far for us, we have to budget airfare. My brother’s kid is only a couple of hours away from home, but there is no reliable public transport for her to get home, so he figures in the cost to go get her/bring her home and is now considering the cost of a car on campus.</p>

<p>*All schools require that your kid is covered by health insurance. Yours or theirs.</p>

<p>*Books and supplies have varied greatly. She is a sophomore and there are less books this year than last year, and more “stuff” like music and dance wear…plays, etc.</p>

<p>*Our D does not have a keyboard in her room and likely will not. But i know some do.</p>

<p>One of the things i have noticed this year, is that across the board most typical BFA students, whether MT or Acting have CRAZY schedules. Daughter is in school from 9am until 5 with a 1 or 2 hour break in the middle and then rehearsal from 7-11pm and then sometimes has additional meetings/rehearsal for things like in-class scene work. So as a parent i have wanted to make life simpler/easier for her. sometimes costs are incurred in that process.</p>

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<p>Although offered at a reduced cost to theatre and dance majors, d does buy a subscription to the shows performed there. Touring shows come to the area as well, and although student discounts are nice, there are some ticket costs. Buying additional music, sheet music or downloading new soundtracks, although not different than when living at home, is real.</p>

5

<p>I posted this on your thread on the Parents’ Forum, but I’ll put it here, too:</p>

<p>My D is in Acting, not MT, but I would say that yes, there are definitely different extra costs for her compared to her Bio major sister. She needed clothes - black outfits for Acting classes, specialized practice shoes, etc. I am willing to help her with makeup and hair costs, because for her, those are professional supplies. We also are willing to pay for voice lessons and probably would consider other extra classes if needed. We consider these academic expenses just like there would be in another program.</p>

<p>Very important, in our opinion, is making sure she can afford to go to the theatre. It is essential to an Actor’s training to see productions (and many schools require it) so we subsidize that to a certain extent, especially since she is so good at getting discounted tickets.</p>

<p>On the flip side, her cost for books and other academic supplies has been minimal. In the long run, she might actually be costing us less for incidentals than our science major. And because many arts programs are located in lower-ranked (i.e. often cheaper and with more merit aid) schools, her base cost is so much less that it’s virtually incomparable to her sister’s, so we’ve been happy to help her with her “theatre” financial needs.</p>

<p>One last item is that we are more inclined to travel to see our theatre kid, to see her in shows. Sometimes I think this seems a slight to our science kid (with both schools being a plane ride away, these are expensive trips), but I think most people realize that when someone is in the performing arts you do try to see them perform when you can. Again, though, for us the reduced cost of the education overall makes it easier to afford the increased travel.</p>

<p>Yet another issue in the arts vs. STEM journey is employment. D1 was able to work during the school year; D2 finds that difficult, because of rehearsal schedules. D1 also had very well-paying summer research jobs; D2 may be faced with forgoing pay in the summers in order to get valuable work experience with organizations that have no money. So far it works for our family to subsidize D2 in ways we did not with D1, because of the nature of her program and career needs, and because of the difference in COA. But these are tricky questions for any family to answer, and if D2’s school were expensive, we’d probably be making different choices.</p>

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<p>This is a great question and one I wished I"d asked. Another factor besides all the above is to factor in the cost of living at the location the college is set in. For example, your cost of living in a rural town is going to be very different from living in New York City. When my S went to a New York college, we didn’t really factor in just how much it would cost. The college gave us a list of what to expect, but most of the things looked to our untrained eye as choices–for instance, he could walk most of the time rather than take the train all the time so we reasoned he didn’t need monthly subway passes, which were really expensive. What we didn’t factor in is the day to day expense of living in a city in which it is extremely easy to spend money, being surrounded by students who have the money, and then to not be able to do things (go to shows, eat out, go to museum, ride the subway) with them or with the same ease. Furthermore, professors gave class assignments that cost money, eg going to a museum or shopping for a costume, or as the above poster noted, dress wear assignments. My son couldn’t find a work study job either. Because of our lack of awareness of these costs, my son was always stressing about money, and knowing I had none, he didn’t want to ask me for any either. </p>

<p>Oh, one thing I do have to disagree with–dorm decorations really depend on your child. I invest <em>very</em> little in dorm stuff. They need very little-a bedspread, a fan, computer, maybe a lamp. In my experience, most of the things they think they’ll need - microwaves etc - are already there. My older D likes her room decorated really nicely, so she just took stuff from her room and bought stuff at church sales when there; her friend from Texas had her stuff shipped at not much expense (mostly posters). My kids don’t have iphones (can’t afford them). They listen to music on their laptop.</p>

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<p>We are also west coast with a D on the east coast. Be sure to check specific airline rates for your budget. My D is at PSU which is kind of in the middle of nowhere. It is VERY expensive to fly in and out at peak times (holidays, when school starts, etc.). I think the airlines know that the majority of people using the airport are students, so they kind of have you over a barrel. </p>

<p>My D took very little with her when she first moved- we bought bedding/linens/etc. there. We have spent very little on “decorating”- she is a thrift store kid. </p>

<p>She might need more dance stuff then she may currently have only because the kids often live in their dance stuff- it seems like 24 hrs/day. Seems like most kids have LaDuca shoes which are very pricey. </p>

<p>Misc. costs- downloading sheet music, extra money for food on campus once they are in off-campus housing since they are away from home so many hours per day, attending shows, possibly master classes, piano or voice lessons (depends on the program), senior showcase depends on the program), headshots, website, summer auditions, parking if applicable. Good luck!</p>

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<p>I wanted to add that many colleges now have a link to a Net Price Calculator. You plug in your own stats (eg salary, number of people in household) and it gives you a rough idea of expenses of that particular school. For instance, I was just looking at a particular school that estimates $13,000/year in <em>additional</em> expenses over tuition, room & board. These include all the stuff listed above, and as I’ve said, living in a city such as NYC or Boston is just going to be more expensive. This is not meant to discourage people from applying to these schools—just to not be blind to the additional costs as I was the first time my oldest applied. It was foolish of me not to ask the questions you’re asking. I realized there were additional expenses, but I had no idea of their extent. If you’re blessed to be financially comfortable, this may not matter as much–but if you don’t have the additional money then this is extremely important info to consider in weighing your options.</p>

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<p>I agree that you are wise to ask this question in advance, and think you’ve gotten many fantastic answers. </p>

<p>I particularly agree that it’s smart to check the cost of living once your child moves off campus, as that can vary widely from school to school and is something many freshman parents (including me) forget to check on. It is also worth checking on the neighborhoods kids live in when they move off campus. Our D is fortunate to be able to live in a lovely quiet neighborhood, for less than she spent last year for her dorm, while friends in some other schools are living in off campus neighborhoods where they feel unsafe and are spending more than they did for a dorm.</p>

<p>One pleasant surprise for my husband and I (our last degrees were in Engineering) has been how little MT kids need to spend on books. In our engineering days it wasn’t uncommon to spend $600 for a single textbook and many classes required multiple texts. Plus since many of those texts dealt with modern technology many were quickly outdated and so had little resale value. </p>

<p>We consider the $ our D needs to spend to attend professional performances (many of which are assigned work in her classes at Northwestern) to be her “book” money, and even though she sees many amazing performances around Chicago that part has been far less than I’d anticipated.</p>

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<p>I’d add summer storage costs if your student is somewhere that they won’t be loading up the station wagon (wait… I’m dating myself). Not sure what that costs but in major metros I’ll bet it isn’t cheap.</p>

<p>Also, we did end up getting an electric piano (which was just delivered today actually) because there were no pianos in my daughter’s dorm and the competition for them in neighboring dorms meant trying to snag one really late at night. They range in price but hers was around $400.</p>

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<p>Halflokum is right about storage fees for the dorms. Once they move off campus, many of the apartments are on a 1-year lease, so they can store their stuff there over the summer.</p>

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<p>I’m a freshman and so far the extra costs I’ve had are extra costs for voice lessons and each dance class (I added more once I got to college), money for public transportation, masterclass, and dance shoes (I’m not a dancer, so I didn’t have everything already). Speaking of dance shoes, you also might want to check if your school requires La Ducas…mine didn’t but next year they will for the freshman, and those shoes are really expensive, even if your school has a discount.
I also have had to go into the city to see shows, which, although you can get discounted tickets or see pay-what-you-can previews, still costs money for transportation and the show itself. I’ve bought concert tickets as well (and again, had to pay for transportation). I’ve also gotten pretty sick so I had to buy things like more tea, emergenC, cough drops, ibuprofen, tissues, etc.
I definitely did not have to buy as many textbooks as other majors, but once I got to school, there were a few surprises because some of the teachers did not put their books online.
Also, there are outside food costs! Although your kid might have a meal plan, it’s not likely that they will eat in the student restaurants all the time. I personally have spent money on easy mac and granola bars for my dorm room. I have an 8am every day, so I don’t usually wake up in time for breakfast, so I just eat a granola bar. We also have a Starbucks on campus, and although I don’t really drink coffee very often, a lot of people I know spend a lottttt of money at Starbucks.
Also, another tip is when buying for your dorm, really consider if you need a TV. I bought one but my roommate and I (also an MT) are so busy that we hardly ever use it! If I have time for TV, I just watch it on my laptop.
Also, invest in some rainboots and an umbrella!!
And if you have a printer in your room, don’t forget costs for paper and ink! Also, people will try to use your printer…my roommate and I don’t charge people to use ours, but we have a friend who charges $10 a page!</p>

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<p>*oops I mean 10 cents not $10 :)</p>

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<p>Not exactly an in-school expenditure - but my D was accepted to a summer training program in NYC this summer (auditioned through the university) - and it was not cheap!!</p>

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<p>lalamusicmuse, Haha, when I read the $10, I actually <em>believed</em> it–I thought, wow, that kid really knows how to price the market! :slight_smile: My Ds have both had printers in their room - it’s not absolutely necessary but it definitely is a convenience for assignments - and you’re absolutely right that this is another expense. My D keeps her headshot on her computer, so when she did auditions recently, all she had to do was print out something like 15 copies of her resume and headshot from the computer. They didn’t mind the headshot was on regular paper.</p>

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<p>Additional college expenses - After your child gets into a lovely MT program, there are more auditions ahead for summer theatre work. Popping around the country to audition during the school year can add up. Some students fill up a car, rent one hotel room, sleep sidesways on the bed, etc to save on costs. Others may have parents who will spend the weekend driving them cross country as if it were college auditions all over again. This travel is probably not much of an issue for NYC area students - they may have additonal expenses due to the cost of living there but at least most of the auditions come to them.</p>

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<p>Ditto what classicalbk said. These all add up! This weekend my D and some of her classmates will be driving to SCTA to do their prescreening audition for SETC. So there were conference fees/audition fees plus travel to SCTA. If she is passed on to SETC, then there will be more fees, more travel plus hotel/meal costs. She sent in her application to StrawHats, so that was additional application/audition fees. Again, if she is given an audition spot, there will be travel costs to NYC. She also just submitted a resume/headshot to try and secure an audition for some summer 2013 work. If she gets an audition spot, she will have to fly up to NYC for the day. This audition is next week so it will be a quick turnaround for airfare and day of travel expenses. I have gotten very good at finding travel deals!</p>

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<p>Gosh maybe NYU’s tuition, room and board is a bargain after all :).</p>

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<p>One interesting thing about room and board that I’ve found out: the "expected room and board’ is not always as high as it will be for most of us. Colleges post the lowest possible price: cost of room with multiple students and lowest food plan, so that it can be tied in legally with the scholarships it provides and such. I don’t really understand it, but had to find it out due to wanting to pull money from my d’s 529 plan for her use in a dorm room with kitchen this year. 529’s allow you to use funds for grocery purposes IF they are not more than the college’s stated cost of room and board. Was I surprised to find an amount published that didn’t match with my daughter’s freshman year cost of a double and 3 meals a day!</p>

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<p>I’ll cover the following costs:</p>

<p>Room/meal plan
cell phone
Health insurance
travel to/from home
clothing</p>

<p>If my son goes to school in a college town then there’s the cost of owning a vehicle. Call that $125 a month in gas and insurance. <em>If he goes to school in a city then sell the car and spend those funds on a monthly mass transit pass.</em></p>

<p>For beer & pizza money I have aspirations of sending my son $200 per month if he’s in a college town. Bump that to $250 if he’s in a city. Am I generous or cheap?</p>