<p>I'll be a senior this fall, and I've been doing tap since I was 5, but I've never taken jazz or ballet classes before. I've been in my studio's tap competition team too. But I was wondering, is it silly of me to major in dance if I've never done ballet or jazz before? I will be taking a beginner ballet/jazz class this summer (1 hour a week) and will take a ballet, contemporary, and jazz next school year (intermediate, 4 hours a week). So, do I have a chance of getting into any dance programs (not necessarily the top schools, I mean decent)? </p>
<p>Look for a school with a non-audition dance major and go for it!</p>
<p>My DD came from a studio where ballet was not required at all. We realized early on (around 11) that if she was going to have a career in dance we needed to get her into a ballet school ASAP. Long story short, she just signed a contract for a ballet company for next year after spending 2 years at University of the Arts. </p>
<p>My point is that most colleges will require a good amount of ballet for a dance major. My DD has friends from the old studio (where she continued dancing through HS in tap and clog in addition to staying with the ballet school) who are in your shoes and felt very behind when they eventually got to college and realized how much they had missed out on. I feel like you are probably better off taking your ballet and jazz classes at another studio where ballet is actually considered important as a foundation for all dance. Believe me, I have seen it time and again (girls from the old studio call my DD for advice and coaching quite often once they realize what they have missed by not taking ballet all of those years). </p>
<p>Good Luck and one thing I would consider after you get your ballet foundation in this next year is to audition for Juilliard (I swear I am not joking). I know a couple of dancers who have gotten in just on their raw talent without having had a huge ballet background. Use a tap solo for your audition. (I want to mention again that I swear I am not being snarky I am dead serious).</p>
<p>My DD had trained in many styles, tap and musical theatre being her strong points. She felt she needed more work in ballet and modern since she had a strong foundation in the other styles already. So she focused her auditions and her choice of schools who were ballet and modern based so she could grow in those areas. She has done really well at her university and will graduate in December early with her undergrad degree in dance and will get her masters in Adaptive Physical Activity in the spring. She has been working ahead. She goes to Slippery Rock University. Also, in case it wasn’t mentioned, tap in college is harder to find if that is your only focus, Akron has some tap, so does OKC.</p>