<p>I really, desperately want to go to Tisch, for all the opportunities it provides and the excellent training. The problem is the price (besides whether I’ll be accepted or not…) How did YOU or your child afford it? And what was the audition process like? I have some money set aside for college, but not only will it not buy more than two years, it will be hard to convince my parents to let me go there (“So, you get a degree from prestigious Tisch, and then…what if you can’t find work? What then?”) AUGH. Help please! :)</p>
<p>Hi - I'm a parent of a CAP21 student going into her sophomore year, and let me tell you, it's a HUGE struggle paying the 50K per year bill. I have a lot of loans out; Perkins, Stafford, and mostly Parent Plus. My daughter DID get 9K per year Tisch scholarship, but when you add in books, etc. we'll just say it's around 50K per year. I told my daughter (who's been wanting to go to NYU since age 12) that if she wanted to go to NYU, she'd have to pay back 1/2 the tuition, which means she'll probably have to live at home for a couple years after graduation. Luckily, we live within commuting distance of the city (1 1/2 hours by train) so when she starts auditioning, she does NOT have to live in the city. I figure if she makes $40K per year after she graduates, she can pay me back about half that (since she'll have very few living expenses), and when she moves out/gets married/whatever, she'll have to pay me part of the bill monthly. At that point, she'll only owe 1/4 of the tuition and it'll be a little more manageable. Still a steep debt, but we feel it's worth it. Hey - you only live once; you need to at least TRY to reach your dream of being on Broadway! She's getting excellent training, and many of the so called "top" schools are at least 30-40K anyway. Even if she doesn't make it professionally, she will have a degree from NYU and she'll have other options. A cousin of ours went to school for MT and while she just graduated and hasn't gotten anything professionally yet, she's teaching voice and probably making $85 per hour. (At least, that's what my daughter's voice teacher charges!)
Anyway, good luck to you! It is a tough sell for parents, though - let me tell you from experience!</p>
<p>My situation is similar to above's.</p>
<p>I got 9000 scholarship from Tisch, Perkins Loan, Stafford Loan, and after we've exhausted the savings fund (16000 plus my personal contribution of 2000 after working this summer) the rest is in loans. This year loans will run us about 15 to 20 thousand. The rest of the year's most likely more, depending on what my parents can contribute from their salary's and how much I can earn during the summer. I'll probably be using a total of $90000 to $100,000 in debt (loans) by the time I graduate. I know some students, though, who go completely 100% loans and come out with $200,000 debt. Their reasoning is that it is worth it and most NYU students have jobs coming out of college, especially w/in Tisch because of the location and the myriad internship opportunities Tisch offers.</p>
<p>I'm fairly assured that I will have a job within one month of graduating, if not when I graduate. I plan to Intern my senior year and am hoping that will turn into a job.</p>
<p>It's all about comprimise, though. My mom still doesn't want me to go (she thinks I'll only go for a semester and then come to my senses and move back to TX to live with her and go to community college...so trust me I understand the whole "parents not supporting me" thing) but I am very lucky that my dad is, like rossji, willing to work with me (and like rossji's daughter, I've told my father I plan to pay off my loans at least 50% if not on my own) and get me to NYU.</p>
<p>As far as auditioning, I'm going to assume you mean for Drama (as opposed to dancing/singing/writing). I auditioned Early Decision and flew up to NYC (thank god for frequent flyer miles). They ask you to prepare two contrasting monologues (don't do shakespeare and try to stick to contemporary). You go to the audition, sit in a room with all the other prospectives, and wait for them to call your name (I took advantage of the bathroom mirror since I was close to last to go and run over my monologues). When they call you "on deck" you go stand outside of your auditioning room, and wait for the next person to finish. Once they are done, you go into the room (a studio work space) and it's just the auditioner sitting at a table in front of you, and a chair. Give them your supplements (photo & resume, usually) and then they will ask you to perform your monologues. I performed comedy first (to warm her up to me) and then drama (to end on a strong note). Then I sat across from her for the interview. The question's I can remember were something like: "Other than the location, why NYU?", "How important are academics to you?" and "Is there anything specific you would like me to know about you?". There were others, but I can't remember them. On the specifics question, I told her about my involvement in activism and how it is my second passion, and she seemed very impressed by that. She then asked which studio I wanted to be in, and I was probably the least prepared because I had decided I wanted to audition about two weeks prior (I even gave her my resume and headshot, which still had tape on the back from being posted on a wall for a show I had previously done, in a manila folder), and didn't even know we were supposed to give a studio, or what the studios even were. I just kinda tried to laugh it off and say "whatever/whichever you think is best". And if you are undecided after researching the studios, it's probably better to let your auditioner decide because they are very good at judging which studio is the best fit for you. (PHTS for me!)</p>
<p>Then you're done. I remember as I was leaving my auditioner saying, "See you later!" and I said, very awkwardly, "I hope so!". She was very nice, and thinking back about it, I think she is one of the major reasons I got in...she really liked me for some reason...haha.</p>
<p>Hope that helps...although it was a novel, haha.</p>
<p>Does anyone know the likelihood of receiving more aid after an appeal, or to get low cost housing after you apply? </p>
<p>My daughter and I are still trying to make the decision to attend Tisch, and it would help us to have some idea if these things are fantasy or reality. The official reply is "we'll try to help you in whatever ways we can."</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Help! Can someone please direct me to any information about the feasibility of work study at Tisch? I know people have written about it, especailly Soozievt, and I'd value anyone's opinion. The college "estimated" $4000 for my son, and I'm trying to figure out how much of this, if any, is possible. Thanks so much!</p>
<p>PS--If there is anything already written, I'd appreciate if someone can direct me to where it is. I've looked and looked, and though I remember reading opinions about work study at Tisch, I can't find it. Thanks!</p>
<p>Good luck with that. My d was supposed to get work study, but for 2 years she wasn't able to get anything, mostly because of her M/W/F studio schedule from 9-6. Has anyone else had luck with this?</p>
<p>Raphael, I am pressed for time at the moment but I know this was being discussed on this NYU/Tisch forum in recent weeks, so if you read all posts here from the past few weeks on Tisch, you can find the discussion about how hard it is to commit to work study as a Tischie. Some likely do it. You could call and see if there are any students they can put you in touch with who have fit work study into their Tisch schedules. But the hours of school are very long for Tischies, as well as evening commitments. While my D is on financial aid, we declined work study as we don't feel she could have fit it into her very very packed schedule. However, my D earns money in NYC doing a few different jobs related to musical theater and at good pay per hour (more than work study pay) and the point is that it is flexible work...some can be done on her own time, some she can say yes or no to depending if she can fit it into her life. In fact, she was offered an excellent job today by a well known person whom she'd love to work with even for free because of the opportunity. So, the point is, there is work that a student could get that is more flexible, might earn more per hour, and also might be related to their field and thus pay off in experiential and resume ways as well. I just know that committing to job for the whole school year with regular hours was impossible for my D to fit in. There are days she goes to school from 9 AM through to 10:30 PM when working on a show and also weekend commitments. Working in summers is another way to save up. I don't know which marketable skills your son has but perhaps there are ways to find work while in NYC that pay better than work study and are more flexible in terms of the commitment each week depending on his schedule or shows at the moment. I am not as familiar with work study, sorry to not help with that so much, because we declined that for both our kids as part of their financial aid package. But I imagine that a call to Tisch might help you to connect with a student who has fit in work study and to discuss how that worked into their schedule, and what not. Best wishes. </p>
<p>Susan</p>