<p>We just got back on Wed from D's audition and interview at Muhlenberg. She is in LOVE with this school! She said Charlie Richter was wonderful and that she felt he really liked her audition. I keep hearing others talk about going along on the theater tour & audition...we thought it was better for her to go alone and show her independence. Should we have gone along and shown Charlie our interest as parents, or did we make the right call? Charlie also invited her to attend a rehearsal that night (she was the only prospective there, even though we saw others who were auditioning that day)...anyone think this was a good sign, or just a courtesy?</p>
<p>D really enjoyed her admissions interview. She said it was very relaxed and fun. From what she said, her and the Director of Admissions had a lot in common and their conversation was really enjoyable.</p>
<p>D has decided Muhlenberg is her first choice and she wants to ED, but finances are an issue. We are so hoping for scholarship/grant money. For those who were offered full tuition or near full, was it mostly based on academics?</p>
<p>Glad the audition and visit with Charlie went well; he is truly a nice guy. My D, who is now a sophomore at NYU, auditioned for Charlie in November two years ago and also felt very supported and that he was interested, and she did get offered admission, so I guess that <em>is</em>/<em>was</em> a good sign! I came with my D to the school that day but of course did not sit in on the auditions (yikes, NO!) or on the tour of the department. The adcoms at Muhlenberg are just lovely (very friendly) and I would strongly recommend anyone who wants to go to Muhlenberg do an admissions interview. Muhlenberg really seems to want to admit kids that want to be there, and one way to “show the love” is to show up for a campus visit and do an interview. Best wishes to your D! MC seems like a wonderful program. </p>
<p>Oh, yes, the scholarships are based mostly on academics. I think Charlie has a little bit of money to throw to talent scholarships, but the bulk of the very nice package my kid was offered was for her scholastic record.</p>
<p>Everyone I know who has auditioned at Muhlenberg over the years has loved their experience there. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a single negative! It’s truly a great school and their program works well for many kids. I will say, though, that ED is not a wise choice for any student (at any school!) for whom finances are a concern.</p>
<p>Thanks NotMamaRose for your reply and well-wishes :)</p>
<p>She was so nervous during her audition, and she did feel she wasn’t her absolute best, but she said he praised her performance and his only critique was a little more time transitioning between monologues, so we felt that was a good sign.</p>
<p>D said that both Charlie and admissions seemed <em>very</em> surprised that she came all the way from Arizona just to see them. If that doesn’t show love nothin will! LOL </p>
<p>She is a very good student (should end up with a 3.6 unweighted and lots of honors courses) but her first round of ACT/SAT’s weren’t really strong. She is re-taking in December. Hopefully, if she does really well on them, it will help with the package. I know she’ll be just crushed if she isn’t able to go there. She doesn’t even want to visit any other schools now :(</p>
<p>I keep hearing wonderful things too. D wishes she had known just how comfortable she was going to be with Charlie…she said she wouldn’t have worked herself up so much and therefore would have done better. It was only the 2nd audition she has ever done outside of high school theater, and her 1st for a college, so she didn’t know what to expect.</p>
<p>Her Admissions Director told her that we could submit paperwork and get an “early read” before committing to ED, so we are working on that right now. She only thought of EDing because they admit such a high percentage of their ED freshman AND we’ve heard they also may give more generous financial packages to the ED kids. It’s so hard to know what college your child wants to go to and not know if you will be able to send them there!</p>
<p>realjoy, it’s wonderful to see your child excited and enthusiastic about college but I think every parent here on CC would caution you that it isn’t a good idea if they are so set on one particular school. The odds are against any student at being accepted, because admission to these programs is so competitive. There really is no way to know until that letter comes in the mail as to whether or not you will be one of those who are accepted. How the auditors react to you is not always an indication of what the outcome will be. Please read chrissyblu’s post about “my hopes for you as you audition”.</p>
<p>I have never heard of any opportunity for an ‘early read’ prior to committing to E.D. at any school. Is this “Admissions Director” at her high school or at Muhlenberg? That’s something new to me, in all the years I’ve participated here on CC. For anyone who has concerns about financial aid, it is never a good idea to apply E.D. I haven’t seen confirmed admission or f/a numbers from any school that would change my opinion there. If you apply and are accepted, you have committed to attend, and if you don’t get the f/a you are counting on, then there can be problems. It’s always a wise decision to apply widely and then in April be able to compare f/a packages and make your decision at that time, if your student is fortunate enough to have several options. The other issue your D may have is that schools will not be able to accept December SAT scores if she’s applying E.D. One other question - hasn’t the deadline for E.D. already passed?</p>
<p>Please encourage her to continue whatever plans she had prior to Muhlenberg for visiting and auditioning elsewhere. Students should always have a list of schools that is appropriate for them, considering artistic and academic strengths and weaknesses, and finances. Only applying to one school is a recipe for sure disaster/disappointment in almost every situation.</p>
<p>Best of luck to her, and to you, on this journey! :)</p>
<p>You mean an early FA read, right? I’ve heard of them but don’t know how well they work. I know a young woman who didn’t apply ED because of FA need…she didn’t get into her first choice while others with lesser stats etc (who applied ED) did. In the end, every school she applied to gave her about the same amount of aid, and it seemed as if ED would have been a much better bet. Your financial situation is your own, and you know best what level of FA risk you can take. If it were me, given Muhlenberg’s ED acceptance rate, I’d be very tempted to go that route. (And I’d comb the FA board for more info, and maybe consult a banker too.)</p>
<p>Please keep in mind that admission to Muhlenberg, even for kids who want to study theater/act/perform is really based more on academics than the audition, although it’s pretty obvious that Charlie has some influence (he heads up one of the biggest, most-well-funded departments on campus!) in who gets in, and that’s why it’s a great idea to audition if you love Muhlenberg: because it can help tip the admissions scale in your favor if he thinks you are talented and wants to work with you. But there are no doubt theater/acting majors there who did not even audition and got in by their academic record, interview and so on.</p>
<p>It used to be that Muhlenberg did not require an audition to be accepted into the theater department; the audition was optional, and strictly used to determine scholarship recipients. I believe acceptance is based on scholastics only, unless things have changed in the last few years.</p>
<p>I totally agree with you (and others) about not being set on just one school…it’s convincing her that is a challenge! lol To be serious though, we have told her all along what our situation is (financially) and she knows she has to be prepared to either (a) not be accepted at schools that she applies to and/or (b) some schools may be out of reach financially. She knows all of this, but says she cannot help the fact that her heart is set on Muhlenberg. She already has full tuition scholarships at two of our state universities as safeties, and is applying to other colleges/universities as well.</p>
<p>Thanks SO MUCH for the suggestion of reading chrissyblu’s post! I can’t believe how basically everything she said mirrored what I had said in my own post. Very wise words and lots to think about I agree (and believe) that each one of our children will end up where they are meant to be. In fact, I keep saying that to my D about her #1 ;)</p>
<p>The ‘early read’ info came from Admissions at Muhlenberg. I’m sure it’s only to give the person a very basic idea of what aid they <em>might</em> receive, and wouldn’t include grants, etc. She is applying to several schools (reaches, matches, safeties). Our biggest concern with waiting is that they admit a much higher percentage of their first years ED. As far as her tests, she has already taken the SAT in June and took the ACT once early in her Junior year, so she is taking it again to improve her score. The scores may or may not be available in time, but we figured it was worth it to try. Some school’s ED dates have passed, but some haven’t. Muhlenberg’s deadline is Feb 15th.</p>
<p>Thanks again for all of your helpful info and your well-wishes!</p>
<p>realjoy, thanks for clarifying about the early read. I misunderstood you and thought that the early read was of the application itself. I happened, coincidentally, to be talking to a friend last night whose D attended Muhlenberg and who has another D who will be applying this year. Her understanding of the early read is that it takes place once the student is accepted so that the f/a information is quickly available. She sent me this link, which you may have already seen:</p>
<p>That makes it pretty clear that although they will provide you with the f/a info in a timely manner, they do expect the student to honor the E.D. commitment, withdraw other applications, and enroll at Muhlenberg. As they say, not a promise to take lightly.</p>
<p>I understand how tempting it is, particularly when a school does tend to accept such a large percentage of their freshman class through E.D., to take the chance and go for it. I still wouldn’t recommend it if finances are an issue. It’s interesting that the E.D. deadline is so late. Many/most schools R.D. deadline is earlier than that! I guess I’d be curious to know if Muhlenberg waits until long after Feb. 15 to even bother looking at any R.D. applications. That set-up just seems weird, and a little too crafty, to me.</p>
<p>I am currently a senior in high school applying to Muhlenberg Early Decision. </p>
<p>I went to the Senior Open House and was extremely impressed. At first my parents and I were very hesistant to persue ED, but after the information session on financial aid were soon persuaded otherwise. </p>
<p>Muhlenberg offers up to $4,000 in talent-scholarships for any of the arts programs, in addition to the money offered by the school itself. In fact, I was online one day searching the pro’s and con’s of ED and came across a website that used Muhlenberg as the counterexample to the con’s of ED’s binding agreement because of the incredible amount of money they offer to their ED applicants. Muhlenberg is a school that wants people, not numbers.</p>
<p>As you were saying before, they do have an early read that you can request. What you have to do is contact the admissions office and they will help you with what you need. </p>
<p>I go for my interview next thursday, and because an audition is not required for admittance to the theatre department (only for scholarship money), I have yet to schedule it. </p>
<p>Hope that helps! Let me know if you have any more questions. I have practically every piece of literature they’ve given out and visited many times. </p>
<p>Cait, no tips for the interview other than to be yourself and know why you want to attend Muhlenberg. Be specific. Show them that you know the school.</p>
It’s truly a great school and their program works well for many kids. I will say, though, that ED is not a wise choice for any student (at any school!) for whom finances are a concern.</p>