<p>Hi, I'm a junior in high school and I have a few questions about NYU Tisch if anyone is familiar with the school. I want to apply for their drama program. My GPA unweighted is 3.4 (subpar, I know) and around 4.2 weighted; all honors and AP classes. My PSAT was 192, and I'm aiming for a 2100 on my SAT which ill be taking in March. I've always been interested in drama, but all of my experience is minor local theater and I doubt that's very impressive. I've heard that movie and tv credits are impressive to the admissions people at Tisch, and I'm working on that. Basically, I know I can produce a pretty good audition and showcase my natural talent but I'm very worried about my lack of experience. What would you suggest that I do now in order to enhance my prerequisites? And I'd also like to know if my lack of solid experience is going to be a huge problem when applying? Thank you!</p>
<p>Just make sure your audition is the best it can possibly be; the audition is vastly more important than your resume.</p>
<p>Don’t become too fixated on Tisch. There are many wonderful programs out there.</p>
<p>And don’t worry about what you have not done yet, the programs are looking for those who are open and ready to learn. There are many wonderful programs and you must have a list, the numbers are against you if you fixate on one program. There are many threads on cc filled with valuable information, I would recommend taking the time to read through the past threads.</p>
<p>My son is a junior in the acting program at Tisch-NSB. He had stellar grades in high school (salutatorian) and decent standardized test scores. He did not have any community theatre experience or professional experience. He did have a ton of experience with district and state thespians and was the lead in some of the plays at his performing arts high school. Tisch admittance is half academic and half audition. It was the only college where he auditioned that told us that in the audition. They are really looking for hard working kids who also have other things going on. In my son’s case, he has been playing guitar for 10 years. He absolutely loves NYU and it was his number one choice. He went on about 5 drama trips before he graduated from high school and knew that’s where he wanted to go to school. The program is VERY challenging. We are not rich by any means and have to take out loans but I can’t see my son anywhere else. Hope that helps and good luck! p.s. without seeing your talent, it would be hard for anyone on CC to tell you what your chances would be.</p>
<p>Your academic statistics don’t automatically disqualify you from Tisch; they are probably about average. Saying that, it is fiercely competitive, as all the top BFA programs are. I feel it’s essential for every interested student to understand that you shouldn’t get your heart set too intently on any one school. NYU/Tisch does have Early Decision, which many theater schools do not. They do not defer; it’s a straight “up-or-down” decision. You have a solid enough academic record to consider other schools with fairly high academic standards, like BU or Emerson. You might also consider Pace (although they require recommendations from people who are familiar with your theatrical “work”). Fordham-Lincoln Center is pretty competitive,also, but I’d say it’s worth a try. The New School will be opening a dedicated, undergraduate theater school next year - they are just a few blocks away from NYU, so consider them. </p>
<p>All these schools consider students with a broad range of experience. I’d say it’s more important to select and perfect your audition materials than to worry about TV and film experience. Also, try not to set unrealistic expectations, such as raising your board scores by more than 200 points. Your scores are respectable, and meet the threshold for admission, if you deliver a great audition. </p>
<p>You will get into a good college. I suggest that you select some non-audition, liberal arts colleges, with strong theater departments, as well. American University is one option: you can audition for the major as late as sophomore year, if you are accepted into the college. I have inferred from your interest in NYU that you’d like an urban campus. Temple, in Philadelphia, also has a good, non-audition BA. It is certainly not too early to start exploring these options, if you are seriously interested in theater schools. Most students apply to more colleges than their non-theatrical peers, simply because it is so competitive. The most prestigious auditioned BFA programs have lower acceptance rates than some Ivy League colleges, and they are notoriously unpredictable in whom they accept and reject. You should decide what matters most to you in terms of location, academic prestige, cost (if finances will be an issue), curricular offerings, extracurricular opportunities, etc. College Confidential is a great resource for advice, but you have to make the most critical decisions for yourself. I strongly recommend visiting as many schools as you can. I don’t know your family circumstances, but sometimes road-trips can be combined with other vacation plans. Don’t simply accept recommendations from strangers on the Internet. See whether you like the surroundings and “vibe” of each campus yourself. My son thought that NYU/Tisch was his dream school from about sixth or seventh grade onward. He did not apply, ultimately. He knew it would be a long shot, and he liked some other long-shots better, after visiting them. You will find people here discussing how much they, or their children, love some schools, while others haven’t been as happy. Good luck, and enjoy the journey! You will end up where you’re meant to be.</p>
<p>My son felt that Tisch was his dream school at a certain point in time. He did audition and was accepted there, but by that time he had learned much more about other programs, a couple of which he was equally interested in.</p>
<p>He ended up attending a different BFA program, following in-depth investigations once he was an accepted student. This was not a financial decision; he decided that the other school was a better fit for him than Tisch was.</p>
<p>I agree with the people who are telling you to really work hard on your audition.</p>
<p>Some folks are suggesting that you also apply to some “safety” schools. That’s one approach that works for many people, but also consider other options. If you really want to get into Tisch, and don’t manage to this year, you may want to take a year to work on your acting and audition skills, and then try again with the benefit of more experience.</p>
<p>Of course I have no way of knowing what sort of plan would be best for you.</p>
<p>KEVP</p>
<p>Hello all,
I’ll post this here and PM a few of you because I don’t know if you have subscribed to this thread. Thanks to all of you that spend time on CC providing some of your thoughts on this crazy and wonderful career path!
I have a question about the Tisch program that my D is interested in:</p>
<p>I have heard from someone in the industry that in the past two years NYU has been accepting perhaps too many Freshman for their instructors to handle long term and are thus requiring a further audition after the Sophomore year. While I knew the students had the opportunity to change studios after their first two years I was not aware it was a situation in which one’s future prospects in the school were at risk. Is that the case? </p>
<p>Having said that, I can see how a student who is not performing well/ working well in the schools’ studios, should indeed be redirected somewhere perhaps more appropriate, and I am aware of at least one college that makes students audition for many of their classes. I am not certain of the policy at NYU and what it means for the students. Is it a weeding out process? Are students really required to audition to remain in Tisch or is it more of a formality/process of ensuring the kids are in the right frame of mind for their studio going forward? Hope this question makes sense.</p>
<p>One other thought, I had also heard that in order to handle this “too large a Freshman load” NYU had to bring in more instructors in a non permanent status… but that information sounded rather vague but was suggestive of a situation that was not altogether stable going forward. Perhaps ‘stable’ is not the best description but I think you get the idea of what I’m asking? In a more blunt way of putting it, Is NYU biting off more than they can chew then spitting some out after two years? Or is this something every college does now and then?</p>
<p>Thanks for your thoughts.</p>
<p>Here is one response from my son when I forwarded this post to him. I’m waiting for him to respond to other questions. Here goes: “This is definitely not true. Tisch Drama is not a cut system. Students are naturally weeded out of studios for various reasons, but they aren’t required to audition to remain in Tisch Drama. If you want to switch studios, you will have to audition for the studio you want to switch in to. Once you’re in Tisch Drama, the only way to get out is through personal choice, extremely poor performance and work ethic, and graduation.
I have not heard of anyone having to audition to remain in Tisch Drama.”</p>
<p>There is no cutting. And I don’t believe the other things about size are true either. There are only a certain amount of studios and I know my daughters classes have anywhere from 12-18 kids in them. Even her academic classes at Tisch are that size! Her high school classes were a lot larger than that.</p>
<p>Thanks Supportive and Mommy5,
I’m glad to hear that. I think the person who gave me that information was confusing the ability at the 2-year point to change studios and thus the need to audition again. </p>
<p>And also the class sizes, glad to hear they are not too large.</p>
<p>I am curious about how successful the New Studios have been vs the old contract they had with CAP21.</p>
<p>Thanks for the feedback, Ladies!</p>
<p>MosDad- I hope you have read my e-mail to you. Here’s some other info I will just post here. My son said he knew nothing about accepting too many freshman or hiring outside professors but even if they did, they get the best. It would be hard to compare NSB with Cap21 because NSB has only been in existence for 2 1/2 years. I know one of my son’s classmates had to leave school to star in a Nick movie and go on tour with Victoria Justice. From what I’ve seen, the NSB kids are VERY talented!</p>
<p>You grades are not “subpar” for Tisch. And even if they were considerably lower, you would have a shot. I know that Tisch loves to stress that applicants must double pass both the greater NYU admissions process, and qualify with a sound artistic review, but my experience with Tisch, and many others I knew who have gone, did not line up with this assertion. </p>
<p>Should you be as strong academically as possible? Absolutely. Every little bit counts. And if you are on the borderline, as many are, it can make all the difference. However will your academic prowess be the primary determining factor as to whether you end up as a Tischie? Absolutely not. That would be your audition/portfolio.</p>
<p>Tisch does fight for incredible artists, even if they are well below the academic standards of the typical NYU incoming freshman/transfer. I’ve seen it happen time and again. If you walk into a Tisch audition, and blow them away, they are on your side. This hardly means automatic entrance, but when heading for Tisch, they are the ones whom you have to impress, because they are your greatest ally. </p>
<p>I am going to give you an admittedly rare, and outlandish, but true example. I went to high school with this visual artist who was a grade or two ahead of me. This kid was an incredible artist. And I am not talking incredible for a highschooler, I’m talking incredible by any standards. A very unique talent. He applied to Tisch, sent in his portfolio, was accepted, and got a healthy financial aide package (so unusual for NYU). The clincher? Turns out his academic grades were so poor during his senior year that he didn’t end up attending NYU…because he did not graduate. Yep, Tisch wanted this kid so badly that they got NYU to accept an academically subpar student who didn’t even graduate HS.</p>
<p>Do your best academically, build what credits and experience you can, try and get killer recommendation letter; again, every little bit helps distinguish you. But know that your biggest make or break moment is the AUDITION. </p>
<p>The odds of getting into Tisch are slim, for anybody. But I would never discourage any artist who really wants to be there from at least giving it a go. Because when it comes to Tisch, you truly never know what will happen…</p>