Does anyone know how academics (grades and test scores) play into admissions at Penn State for the BFA MT program. For instance, I have read NYU is 50% grades/50% audition, Michigan has a minimum bar to get over on the academic side but then its all audition, Northwestern it is a highly academic decision first etc. . … I can’t seem to find how Penn State generally makes decisions.
Penn State is a state-run college with about 50,000 students at the main campus, and it’s pretty easy to get into academically. It is nowhere near as selective as the schools you’ve listed. However, it is truly a “lottery school” when applying to the BFA MT. In our parents meeting with the director, he said he is looking for only 6 girls and 6 boys. They get thousands of applications, so your chances of getting in are very, very small. To support diversity, he wants more non-white students than white (his exact words). So the chances are even smaller if you’re white. I think people see Penn State as an attainable program when, for the majority of applicants, it is an extreme lottery situation. I’m telling you this because I wish someone had told us upfront. Don’t get your hopes up. But, to answer your question, it’s an easy school to get into academically. They are looking for talent, not grades.
I know how hard it is to get into MT. My black son’s unweighted GPA is on the low end of the middle 50% GPA (and he is OOS), so I am wondering if it is like NYU where that matters (and thus would likely make the school not even attainable as a lottery school). Its currently on his dream school list. (Not that he has a target or safety list.)
I got the sense in the parent meeting that (like Carnegie Mellon) they really don’t care about grades and are looking to find and nurture talent. Especially diverse talent and people who have been underrepresented on Broadway…it is a huge priority for them (and bravo to them for doing it and saying it!) Maybe reach out to Admissions and ask the question directly? But I have the sense that your son’s grades would NOT make this program unattainable. Honestly it’s a wonderful program and I think they are trying to address the diversity problem in a very open and proactive way…not just since BLM, but well before that. Best of luck to your son, I’ll be rooting for him!!
Thank you. That’s exactly what I was trying to figure out. We are just starting to research programs and it’s interesting to me how a lot of them sound the same on paper but once you start to get into specifics different ones stick out as a better fit for certain kids and some of the “top” schools would be a really bad fit!
This is really really true. My son applied for acting not MT but it took a lot of time to figure out which programs were just right and over the year the situation changed many times. The only schools that seemed to use academics were NYU and Michigan but for other good academics were very helpful for merit aid.
Agree, as we went through this process, we were surprised that some programs that seemed perfect “on paper” were not a good fit in real life. Your son’s experience in the audition room will make a huge difference, too. My daughter ruled out some “top” programs because she hated the vibe and the attitude in the room, as well as during the follow-up/offer process. He will be able to tell which schools will truly value and nurture him. Also talk to current students whenever possible!
As an aside: Another program that considers academics is Syracuse. In the parent meeting, they said they score all the applicants, but then Admissions makes the final decision. And they consider grades and SAT scores in their review. Just an interesting note, the MT program is also looking for consistency across singing/dancing/acting when they score. They would rather have students who score moderately well across all three than an amazing singer with a low level of dance.
I wish you and your son the best! You are asking the right questions and already much smarter than we were at the beginning of the process.
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Just remembered another program that looks at academics: UMiami. That program was absolutely terrible at communicating, but it’s clear there is some academic standard that applicants need to meet.
It’s good to have a running list anyway. So the following schools are where academics matter to the decision and my understanding of how they matter, if I know:
Michigan (must have a 3.0)
NYU (admission is 50% academic, 50% audition)
Syracuse
UMiami
Northwestern (must be able to get in to same standards as non audition majors)
I swear I read somewhere that Elon considers grades (but I do not have anything to back it up). People should feel free to correct me if I am wrong or add to the list.
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Add Emerson to the list, they look at both academic and audition.