<p>My S has been accepted for MT pgm in the 3 colleges mentioned. We are looking at what is best. All schools seem to have strong MT pgms, OKCU and PTPARK have best scholarship offers. OKCU location is a drawback as the environment outside campus did not look too inviting. </p>
<p>Can anyone tell me more about the surrounding communities? As a parent, I am most concerned about safety. Please help.</p>
<p>Maybe you could clarify. I have no idea what MT, OKCU, or PTPARK mean. (ITHACA I think I get.)</p>
<p>MT = massage therapy?
OKCU = Oklahoma City University?</p>
<p>Sorry. MT is Musical Theatre, OKCU is Oklahoma City University, and PTPARK is Point Park University.</p>
<p>Ithaca - great school, great program, can't go wrong there</p>
<p>OCU - great program; Kristin Chenowith went there; the Elphaba we saw in Houston went there; don't know about the area; we talked to the Elphaba at the stage door entrance for about 20 minutes, she said it's a wonderful school with no down sides; i think you should go visit</p>
<p>Point Park - in Pittsburgh; our D is at Pitt - the city is WONDERFUL!!!!! very easy to get around public transport, don't need a car, easy nice airport (has a mall in it, no sales tax on clothes); a college town (lots of colleges) in a big city; safe; Carnegie Museums; beautiful downtown area; a friends D goes to Point Park for ballet; go visit or do it sight unseen.</p>
<p>also have a friends S at Ithaca; pm me if you want more info</p>
<p>I see you're new to CC. Welcome! And definitely check the Musical Theater Forum here; they are bound to have good insights.</p>
<p>hey. i can add this about point park. do they have dorms? i seem to recall my friend saying her D had an apt. the school should be able to let you know about housing options. and about OCU (well really all three) post this on the Musical Theater Forum here and you might find someone with personal knowledge about OCU's living situation/safety. but Pittsburgh is a great town and my friend's D loved point park.</p>
<p>I agree. Go over to the MT discussion group. There is a lot of knowledge about all three of those colleges over there. I can tell you this -- Oklahoma City Univ is probably in the top 5 in the country for Musical Theater. </p>
<p>Secondly, the dorms at Point Park are in the same building as the college. It is all located downtown. When we were in the elevator, two of the students were talking about their dorm rooms being on the 15th and 17th floors of the building.</p>
<p>Thank you very much for your replies and suggestions. I will go to the MT discussion group for information. This is great!</p>
<p>I think OCU is amazing. I have not seen a facility like the New Wanda Bass Music School anywhere!! My son took a try out lesson and the voice teacher was beyond amazing. </p>
<p>He is in a spot that maybe others can help with. He has great money 2 schools OCU being one of them but just received a call from NYU-Musical theater that he was accepted as a transfer. He was all set to go but now is totally confused. Does NYU-Musical theater really live up to its reputation? Do kids work after they graduate because of connections they make there. This has really thrown a wrench into things and any advise or thoughts would be helpful.</p>
<p>NYU was his first choice but he thought it almost impossibe to get into the musical theater program so kinds wrote it off.</p>
<p>S has friend who was accepted to NYU / MT program and changed majors after freshman year. She is tall, naturally blonde, gorgeous (seriously), very talented and has an amazing voice but discovered that the uber-competitive environment which she described as cut throat and dog-eat-dog was not to her liking. If this is an environment he can stomach let alone thrive in then go for it.</p>
<p>Some kids want it so bad that they can take or dish out anything;others decide that they aren't willing to make the sacrifice or compromise their values. This is a very hard call that those of us outside the MT world can't really understand. Good luck!</p>
<p>MTMomof4:
Congratulations to your son on his wonderful acceptances. I gather he was accepted as a transfer to all these schools. In my opinion, I would not select a school based on your perception of which graduates from which program get work and which has better "connections." It is a very difficult field to get work and those who have a chance, are well trained and talented and it comes down mostly to the auditions, not the name of the degree on the resume (even IF there is a degree at all). So, the point should be which program and school best meets what he is looking for in a MT program and where he can get the type of training and experience he seeks. A talented performer from either of these programs has a decent chance of getting work. I don't think his chances will be more or less depending on the name of the school. </p>
<p>I think your son should list which criteria he seeks in a MT program and college. Then, he should list the pros/cons of each of his schools separately, noting what he finds appealing about each, any special or specific attributes of the program, and also write out the BFA or BM curriculum for each. Then, he should compare these lists with his original criteria and see which school most closely correlates and fits that criteria, particularly with regard to the criteria he cares the most about. He should compare the curriculums at each school. There are differences. OCU is a BM degree in MT program in a Music School and NYU/Tisch/CAP21 is a BFA in MT in a Drama school. OCU has a heavy emphasis on music, including classical voice, over acting and dance. CAP21 gives equal training to voice, dance, and acting. The dance curriculums vary between these two schools as one example. The size of the programs differ. The locations surely differ. The level of challenge for the liberal arts component between these two universities truly differs. He needs to examine many other factors, as well. You say he had NYU/Tisch/CAP21 as his first choice originally. Why was it his first choice? If he had well articulated reasons, this may be the way to go. I have a child who goes to NYU/Tisch/CAP21 which was also a first choice and she LOVES it. I don't recall her reasons for attending having to do with where NYU graduates can go for work or connections. Once she did pick NYU over her other BFA options, there are some plusses to being in NYC and the various opportunities and networking they come in contact with there. But this is not essential, just an added facet to the location of the school. She picked the school due to its program and other criteria she wanted in a college. That's what I advise your son does. </p>
<p>Eadad, all BFA programs are very intense and they are not for all kids. In fact, at every top program, as well as ones a tier or two down, kids leave the MT program, often after the first year, once they discover it is not for them. It is nothing like regular college in terms of the commitment and time involved alone. And yes, the talent level of one's peers is very high, considering it is like taking the "top" kids from all these local communities and putting them into one class. Quite humbling indeed. Been leads in the past in professional theater? Oh well, so have so many others. Deal with it. However, I have to take exception to the second hand account that the BFA program at Tisch is dog-eat-dog and cut throat. It isn't. That has not been my child's experience. It is a competitive field with many talented people in it. But the atmosphere of her program is supportive and not cut throat. People are not trying to out do one another. The nature of the field is intense and competitive as it is chancy to make it and also there is constant rejection via casting and so forth. But the atmosphere at Tisch is not different than elsewhere. Perhaps this girl about whom you speak would have felt the way she had in ANY BFA in MT program, not specific to Tisch. There are SOME BFA programs that are more competitive within the program.....the ones that have CUT policies, which involve survival of the fittest. My D would not consider BFA programs with CUT policies and indeed, NYU/Tisch does not use cuts. Rather programs that nurture the student and try to help them succeed, as long as they are doing the work is what Tisch and many other BFA in MT programs are about. The field itself is a competitive one, yes. But the program is not cut throat or where one is up against the other. It is collaborative and nurturing. But it IS intense. This kind of very hectic schedule is not for everyone. The immersion and intensity of the work is not like a BA college experience. Some cannot hack it and choose to leave. It is more due to the nature of the intensity, rather than competition amongst the classmates, that causes some to re-evaluate pursuing a BFA degree program. Unless one is thoroughly passionate and commited to this type of intense work, it is hard to put oneself through the grind. The grind is a pleasure for those who love it. If they don't love it, the grind is very difficult to maintain.</p>