@CaMom13 Thank you for the school ideas and for the subtle warning re: Fullerton!
The 2 community theatre production that were taking up the majority of my son’s free time ended so hopefully he will be able to crank out what’s needed for the applications!
You’re still in time for Millikin University. The deadline for pre-screen materials is Jan. 15th for the last two audition dates. Millikin is very music-heavy. He would be in the same music theory class as the regular music majors. He’d have to test out of class piano, which would be easy for him, which may end up requiring him to take piano lessons to fulfill the piano requirement. 
And they’re an all-Steinway school. The financial aid there tends to be good and there’s always a few west-coast kids in the program.
I second Baldwin Wallace, especially if he’s not sure what kind of environment he prefers. They’re a small school next door to a big city. That whole area of Ohio is rather pretty.
@lithpool
Thank you, I am very thankful to have found this board…these people are fantastic and I don’t feel so alone and adrift, anymore. I never realized how compilicated and stressful this process is and I feel for all of you who have been thru it!
Honestly, I had never heard about prescreenings…all this makes me wonder how many kids don’t even apply to colleges with all these rules & obstacles. 
Thank your for your advice and kindness.
@Boilermom
Your college suggestions sound promising, tysm. I will definitely check into them.
Thanks for explaining about MTCA. I was hoping to save funds for all the other costs of applying and auditioning and honestly just learned that college coaches existed, today!
i am happy to hear they have Unifieds in LA, that will be easier than Chicago for us. Ooh, video auditions would be super helpful, I’ll have to figure out who offers them.
@janact
CaMom13 was correct and I am too new to pm but I am answering everyone individually and should have 15 posts soon! 
I will pm you as soon as I am able and I really appreciate the offer of help from someone who has a child whose situation is so similiar, thanks so much! Talk to you soon i hope
@CaMom13
NYU’s Steinhart sounds like a great choice and I don’t want to rule out on price especially until I get a better idea of possible financial aid packages, so ty! Hopefully we can catch them at Unifieds and not have to travel.
@MTMommma
Another neighbor, hii!
Thanks for the helpful detailed information and well wishes.
The people on this board are wonderful!
I will add Millikin to our list to check out, tyvm! Hehe, I like the idea of testing out of the class piano and getting put into piano lessons and on a Steinway, too. Also the financial aid sounds promising.
Some have said that Baldwin Wallace is closed for Musical Theatre Majors but perhaps since MT is so competitive my son would consider the suggestion of applying as a piano performance major and minoring in MT.
I feel much more positive about this process tonight and all of you amazingly kind people did that for me. Thanks so much <3
@21stParent Good morning! Just to add to my comment re: prescreens…If you end up doing some video submissions, then you’ll probably have what you need for prescreens (w some tweaking for each school). If that’s the case, and you do do video submissions, then you just need to double check the due dates for prescreen submission. It was all the prep and recording of the videos that was time consuming for us. But, since your S can be his own accompanist, it’s one less thing for you to coordinate.
@lithpool
Ahh, ok thanks. I will work on figuring out which schools have prescreens that have not passed…gosh this is a full-time job and a half.
Check out Rider University in NJ. Their Musical Theater program has a track for Music Direction, which might suit your son. Also look at Oklahoma City University. Their Musical Theater major is a BM, with a lot of theory and piano study.
@FrancescaBennett
Thanks very much for those suggestions.
So, I am getting the impression that a BM in Musical Theatre would suit my son better than the BFA or the BA if available…?
So here’s my perspective and other people can chime in with theirs - each MT program has a main focus. Every one will train a student in dance, acting and music but there’s a huge variety in curriculum. Schools really are different. Some folks come in as strong dancers and therefore advanced dance for freshmen is a must - not all programs offer that. As an example, my D was interested in NYU from the start but she didn’t know whether to apply to Steinhardt or Tisch (you can only apply to one). Steinhart is run by the music school and Tisch by the drama school. After looking at the curriculum it was a no-brainer, Steinhardt’s had years of music theory, foreign language singing and music classes all of which she was okay with but didn’t love. Tisch’s curriculum was acting / speech heavy. Since she is an actor first, she fit in Tisch and didn’t fit in Steinhardt. Because your son is coming in music-heavy, he’ll likely be a better fit with schools that emphasize music - that doesn’t mean necessarily he needs a BM program but a BM for sure will be music heavy. So look for the BM programs but don’t discard the BFA programs - the degree isn’t the only thing that counts, it’s really the curriculum and the focus of the program that matters when it comes to “fit”.
Another BM highly rated is University of Central Oklahoma
OCU and Belmont don’t go to Unifieds but OCU does take video auditions. Belmont takes video pre-screens and I remember they have a late deadline. Both of those schools have a heavy music curriculum in their program and have minimal core, as they are conservatories within universities.
@CaMom13
Oh, that is very helpful!
We had been hearing about and liked both Tisch and Steinhardt but didn’t realize those differences or that you could only apply to one. Tisch removed from list! And BM preferred but depending on other factors BFA definitely considered.
@Notmath1
Thank you, will check out University of Central Oklahoma
@loribelle
Ohh, pertinent details, thanks for your continued help!
Everyone is so knowledgable and helpful I hope you don’t mind a few more questions:
Is it true you usually have to apply both to a college and the conservatory within it? 
I read something about you can schedule an audition without applying first to a school. (Perhaps because deadline passed…?) Is this true of only a few schools? Would this be only auditions thru Unifieds or even at the school?
Since I have noticed many here apply to more than 10 schools but how do you get financial aid if the FAFSA only will take 10.
Is it worth doing the common app for Musical Theatre Schools or do most need individual applications?
Anyone know which of these schools take the common app?
I have never done this but I am trying to figure out how to make a public accessible spreadsheet for all this application information and hope people will contribute their knowledge. After I get son sorted out with colleges, it could be expanded/altered to be helpful of all Musical Theatre majors and their overwhelmed parents.
All BFA MT programs are going to require Music Theory and Piano, but usually a somewhat less rigorous sequence of Music Theory, Piano, and Aural Skills than BM MT programs. In addition, a BM MT typically offers the following courses not found in BFA programs: Vocal Diction, Conducting, Performing Ensemble, Musicology/Music History and sometimes a Foreign Language Requirement (with, typically, commensurately fewer courses in Acting, Script Analysis, and Dance than a BFA MT).
There are far fewer BM MT programs than BFA’s, which may factor into your hunt for programs at this point.
BFA MT programs that permit substitution of the Music Major sequence for Theory, Piano, and Aural Skills or require BFA MT’s to take the same Theory sequence as Music Majors may end up being functionally equivalent to BM MT programs for those wishing additional depth in music beyond a typical BFA MT but who may not wish to take the entire Music Major sequence of coursework in areas like Music History/Musicology and meet all the Ensemble requirements for Music Majors.
As noted in a previous post, look at the curricula and extracurricular opportunities for various programs in some depth to see what matches your student’s interests.
A BA will tend to have more core curriculum and a BFA will tend to have more classes in the major, but not necessarily heavy on music. A BM in MT curriculum will have more music theory and class piano and some schools level these classes based on ability, along with the traditional MT classes of voice, theatre and dance. Some BM’s also may require group choir, conducting and may also offer composition.
If the MT program is through the school of Music, it typically is a BM and a BFA if through the Dept of Theatre. Some schools do have MTD (music, theatre and dance) departments, which are all encompassing. Florida State offers a BM and a BFA in MT and they are under separate departments but the curriculum differences are only a couple classes.
Is it true you usually have to apply both to a college and the conservatory within it?
Yes.
I read something about you can schedule an audition without applying first to a school. (Perhaps because deadline passed…?) Is this true of only a few schools? Would this be only auditions thru Unifieds or even at the school?
It is possible at some schools to schedule an audition before submitting your academic application, but this is not that common. For walk-ins at Unifieds, this is certainly the case (but only a limited number of programs offer walk-ins at Unifieds).
Since I have noticed many here apply to more than 10 schools but how do you get financial aid if the FAFSA only will take 10.
You submit to 10, then you basically restart the process: delete your previous entries, and submit up to 10 more.
Is it worth doing the common app for Musical Theatre Schools or do most need individual applications?
Anyone know which of these schools take the common app?
It is definitely worth doing the Common App if you have more than one school that uses the Common App. You probably won’t have a choice for some schools. There are so many MT schools that I doubt anyone can list all the ones that accept the Common App.