<p>Quote "then there's the problem of never getting the BA which is a pass back into school if you change your mind, plus you never get the cultural currency of a liberal arts education."</p>
<p>A BFA can be just as useful in terms of switching fields, going to graduate school, etc... I went to Syracuse with quite a few people who are now lawyers, producers, business managers, doctors, social workers, therapists, etc... in the case of medical school they had to take some additional course work before applying to medical school, but any student who did not do a pre-med prep in undergrad would most likely need to do this. It may help your parents to understand that you are not "throwing your life away" :) and that you will have the background to go into other fields if you so choose.</p>
<p>rocket6louise--FYI all the programs my son applied to last year actually had more girls than boys. In his program at Syracuse University there are only 3 boys total in the SM program, 2 freshman and 1 senior. When he looked at Penn State there was only one male SM student.
Best of luck. I am so pleased to see a thread on CC for SM. It was very quiet when my son was applying.</p>
<p>JudyL...thanks for the boy/girl stat
and i was wondering-what all did your son include in his portfolio/resume to get into such great schools?????</p>
<p>JUDYL: I'm curious about your family's response to Emerson. We visited last year and my daughter loved it because (a whole school dominated by theater kids!) but later we heard that Emerson is not well-represented in NY theater. Would love to know why it was not your first or second choice. </p>
<p>Another question: I'm assuming the male/female disparity was only for SMs, not the crafts, right? I assume lights and sound and maybe set design are more male-dominated?</p>
<p>I would also like to know anything else you can say about the portfolios/presentations. Did your son have similar experiences as RONIT who was asked to talk without prompts? Or did he get any feedback that would be useful?</p>
<p>Here is a question for everyone. From what I can see on the websites, none of these programs are racially diverse. Some of the schools get high marks for diversity (for example, CMU and Hofstra) but, again, from the photos on the websites, it doesn't seem to extend to the theater programs. A YouTube video by Emerson students on the lack of diversity there is behind this question as well. Is this really true? And if it is true, is there some exception to the rule?</p>
<p>theatre mom-Emerson was one of my son's top 3 choices. He loved Emerson facilities but wanted a school with a campus and more diverse student body. The SM program had the most students in their program. More than the other schools he applied to. Lastly, it was the only school that did not give him scholarship or financial aid.
I don't know the break down of male/female ration for the other tech disciplines.
My son did bring his prompt book form the musical at his high school as part of his portfolio review. He did an internship at a community theatre the summer between junior and senior year. The SM at the theatre helped to critique his portfolio. I was never in the room when he presented so perhaps I can get him to comment on that aspect. He is currently home on winter break.</p>
<p>Theatremom
, I think that a lot of schools have done away with formalized cut programs (programs that intentionally enroll more than they intend to graduate planning to cut a certain number of students.) CMU no longer cuts students in this fashion from what I understand. I think that this tends to come up in acting programs more. I have heard that depaul may make cuts, but I am not sure if this extends to the stage management or design and technology programs. I think that Emerson, and I know Syracuse may move performing majors into the BA (or in the case of Syracuse the BS) if they do not pass a sophomore evaluation, but again I am not sure if this impacts the stage management or design and technology students. However, these students are not cut, simply counseled into a more appropriate major track. Many schools may "cut" a student who is not working, or making the expected progress in the major, but this is different than schools that purposly enroll more students than that intend to graduate. I would suggest asking the schools on your list if they have some sort of mid-point evaluation, and/or a cut system. Good luck!</p>
<p>I could be wrong, but it is my understanding that CMU does not cut in the way they once did -- they used to accept twice as many performers into the program than they intended to graduate knowing that they would cut 1\2 of them. This was at least the way it was presented when I auditioned for CMU 20 years ago... The dark ages :) This does not mean that students may not still be let go from the program -- they may still do this, but from what I understand it is not formalized the way it once was. Maybe a current CMU drama student could jump on? Thanks!</p>
<p>You might be right KatMT...my friend was at CMU for MT and failed two consecutive judgings..so maybe that is why he got cut
but like i said-i know CMU and Point Park do not cut for tech
neither does Shenandoah, Seton hill, or BW</p>
<p>I'd like to repeat a couple question asked earlier. First, would love to hear from students like caseyscott actually enrolled in tech programs about how it's going. </p>
<p>Second, are any students or parents willing to share detail about portfolios? Ronit said, "My portfolio consists of random art projects i started for the purpose of my portfolio, and plays (basically scrapbooked with any production scripts attached)."</p>
<p>I would love to hear about the random art projects. (After interviews close if necessary.) And did you include whole scripts or just excerpts? And what did you scrapbook? Photos? Tech info? Or something else?</p>
<p>By the way, I would also love to hear how you all do when you hear from colleges.</p>
<p>My S is a freshman at DePaul this year and loves it. Compared to a lot of students, he decided late in high school to major in design/tech. His portfolio reflected a wide range of work and experience, including art and music performance. When I called the admission office at DePaul to ask about portfolio requirements, they told me they used the portfolio more as a springboard to start a discussion with the student. They did not seem to have as specific of requirements as other schools. If in doubt, call or email them. I found them very nice and helpful.</p>
<p>DePaul was my Ss first choice of schools. I think it helped that he went to the Theatre School Open House last winter. He had a chance to meet a lot of other students and to attend a performance. He was originally put on the waitlist at DePaul, but the letter was very encouraging. It said they only accept the number of students they want in each concentration and usually go to their waitlist to fill the class. He received his acceptance in early April, I think.</p>
<p>The DePaul campus is in Lincoln Park, a nice, urban neighborhood of Chicago. It is about a 15-20 minute walk from Lake Michigan which has nice beaches and walking/biking paths. He is in an apartment style dorm with a lot of other theatre kids. There is a train stop right on campus so public transportation is very easy. My son has enjoyed all the energy and excitement of Chicago (especially during election season!) and has had the opportunity during the few times he has not been busy with school work, to take advantage of other music and performance opportunities in the city. He thinks Chicago will be a good city for summer internship opportunities.</p>
<p>I know DePaul has cuts for acting, but not for tech/design. I think it is just the opposite they only accept the exact number they need/want, so they want to make sure students will stay through the whole program. You can double check that with JudyL.</p>
<p>If you PM me, I can put you or your D in contact with my S. Good luck to you.</p>
<p>Does anybody know anything about Savannah's Program for a BA in production design? The course seems somewhat limited and I was wondering if it really worth while. I love the idea of being there, but I am not sure the program is extensive enough.</p>
<p>Ultimately I want to be a scenic artists though I believe I may have to go further in my studies and do Stage/Production Design since that is what the schools seem to be offering. </p>
<p>If anybody has any other suggestions, I would love to here them. Georgia is about as far south as I am willing to go, I am from Connecticut. Thanks.</p>
<p>Has anyone attended the CMU precollege program or Interlochen summer camp in design/production? My daughter is applying to both for the coming summer. She has some fall-back plans but is hoping one of these will work out. In the MT area, there is a very long thread about some MT students who attended CMU precollege in 05 and 06 and it was interesting but almost nothing about design/production. Anyway, we would love to hear from anyone who has been there OR anyone who is also applying for this summer.</p>
<p>Thanks for the info, SOUNDMOM. Lots of students seem to love DePaul and my daughter likes the website but I think a lot depends on where she wants to wind up. It would not make sense to go to school at DePaul if she wants to work in New York. I'm curious if the problems with performance spaces in RONIT's post (#7 on this thread) didn't bother your son (for example, small loading doors)? </p>
<p>APRILNEWCASTLE: I think even Georgia is too far south for us. Sorry, I don't know anything about Savannah.</p>
<p>I remember when touring CMU last spring with my son who is applying tech as a light designer, that about 6 out of the 9 freshmen we talked to in one class had all attended the summer program. This rankled me a bit as the summer program is very expensive and it just seemed...a bit privilaged is all. However if that is a "dream school" for your kid, it definitely seems that the summer program offered a leg up to acceptance to the tech department at CMU.</p>
<p>Well, sure, it's privileged, GREYBISCUIT, but so is the school, which is quite expensive. Without going into details, while we don't have the money lying around, we're fortunate that we can probably manage it. We're hoping it will help our daughter with all of the schools on her list because they say they help students build their portfolios. I do think it's interesting that so many of the students who go to the summer program are interesting in going back to go to college there. Also, there are some scholarships to the summer program. </p>
<p>Yes, CMU is very privileged environment...I loved it and my son loved it, so much my stomach hurt because we way cannot afford it! But let me be frank...had it ended up his first choice I would have moved mountains to try and get him in that summer program! That is just what moms do :) I guess I just felt it was odd that with the numbers most conservatory programs take (about 12) that so many came from that program. But I get the portfolio part, the boy attends a School of the Arts so has had 4 years to build one, that isn't available to everyone. Ultimately he fell in love with CCM. Because we are out of state, it is pretty expensive but tuition is about half of CMU. We are still applying to CMU and ideally he would do his graduate work there because their alum resources are amazing. He is applying to CMU, CCM AND SUNY Puchase. He has been accepted to CCM and his auditions for the other two are coming up. One thing I have to say is after I got over the dazzlingness of CMU, I realized that 50K was a LOT to pay when he was going after a BFA. I could see it if he were going to take advantage of what is likely one of the finest liberal arts colleges and actually DO some of the liberal arts but he is on a conservatory track and wanted only a conservatory program. He would get very little use of most of the bells and whistles of such a place.</p>
<p>Greybiscuit - when did your son interview with CCM? And was he applying for light only or for Technical Direction? I only ask because we are waiting to hear from them and wondering.....</p>