Is it necessary/worthwhile to do a summer program before your junior year? I’m wondering if it would instead be more beneficial for me to get a summer job and do a community theater show this summer and save up money so that going to a summer program the summer into my senior year could be less of a financial burden for my parents approaching the audition season. But I also guess it would be more impressive to have two summer programs on my resume and it would be a great learning experience to attend two different programs. What do you think?
Don’t do summer programs to “look impressive” - your resume won’t affect whether you get into a BFA program or not, it’s all about the audition.
Do a summer MT program if a) you want a taste of what it would be like to attend a BFA program to see if it’s what you want, b) you want additional training, help selecting monologues and songs, and possibly a “mock audition” with useful feedback and coaching, or c) you want the opportunity to work with faculty from the colleges and have them get to know you and your work a bit beyond a one-minute audition.
I second everything @actorparent1 said. My daughter found them helpful in terms of understanding what a BFA program is and also preparation for college auditions. The summer programs vary a lot in terms of what their goal is so you should look carefully at that.
Depending on your exposure beyond school and pay for play community theaters, these programs also offer you the chance to see how you “measure up” against generally a very competitive pool of applicants and participants, depending on the program. It can be a big confidence builder.
Summer programs are nowhere near as competitive for admissions as the BFA programs at those same schools, though. I have known a couple of students from our area who over-estimated their chances of success in BFA applications after doing well in different summer MT programs at big-name schools. I wish my D had done a summer program for the reasons given by @actorparent1 : to know better what the BFA life is like and to be better prepared for auditions.
@magictodo - I reread your question and just to comment a little - BFA apps aren’t like normal college apps. You don’t have to fill the EC section with impressive programs, you need to impress “in the room” when you audition. And it’s a expensive process so my advice for you would be to work this summer and save for a program after your junior year!
My daughter was able to do a 2 week summer program and work and do community theatre before both junior and senior years. But she chose programs that fit this schedule and gave her insight into what a BFA would be like and used sophomore year in particular to make sure she really wanted to pursue this path. Everyone’s journey is different and as other’s have said it definitely isn’t a requirement to do a summer program. And I would add in to weigh the expenses with the benefits. But my daughter found it very useful and is glad she chose the path she did. But I agree it doesn’t increase your chances of acceptance. One caveat is be careful because your kid can become awfully attached and it makes later rejections that much harder!