<p>Hi everyone –
I am looking forward to hearing from those folks who have seniors this year – it would be great if you would let us know when you receive admission decisions. My daughter is a HS junior (probably will be a sound design major) so any info we can gather will be really helpful. </p>
<p>For anyone who might be interested, we did visit CCM at Univ of Cincinnati a few weeks back. She sat in on two sound classes, spoke with the sound design professor, had a tour of CCM and of the university and met with CCM admissions/scholarship staff. Even though it was very cold (we live in Southern California), she loved the school. The facilities are truly impressive and the staff/students couldn’t have been more informative or welcoming. We stayed one extra night to catch the opening of “Anything Goes” (directed by an MFA candidate) - we thought the cast was pretty terrific and the production elements were top notch ( a few minor sound issues, probably fixed by the next night). Overall a great trip, and CCM continues to be high on her list. They mentioned that they get 100-150 applications for TDP, and take 4-5 sound designers. Highly competitive, but a girl’s gotta dream, right? I suspect most of the BFA conservatory programs are going to be just as competitive – am I correct?</p>
<p>From what I know, Sound Design is perhaps the least competitive concentration for any theater design major. I suppose there just aren’t too many applicants interested in sound design (or have the opportunity to get exposed to sound design in HS), and with the fact that most schools have close to equal number of spots available in each concentration (4 sound, 4 lighting, etc.) your chances are greater, I believe.</p>
<p>As a random side note, on my BU interview, I was told that only 3 students (maybe 2; I forgot the exact number) applied for a spot of 2 or 3 in sound design.</p>
<p>My son is also a junior and we are looking for programs to apply to next year. We would also love to hear where students get in and any other advise. My son is interested in technical directing. He wants to do the carpentry, welding, fly, etc. Have only been to look at North Carolina School of the Arts so far. He loved it.</p>
<p>Hi all… I’m currently a junior in high school and I’m looking to go into theatre design or scenic design.</p>
<p>I’ve been active in my school’s theatre program in more of the carpentry and being a stage-hand, but I’ve also helped out with the art and props crews. </p>
<p>Next year I’m going to be a stage manager and when all is said and done, I’ll have participated in 8 productions overall. Next year I’ll have my first chance at assisting in the design of the set.</p>
<p>I’ve also been accepted to and am planning on attending the Carnegie Mellon Pre-college Drama program this summer.</p>
<p>I’ve been looking into USC, UCLA, Pepperdine, CalArts, CMU, and UNSCA.</p>
<p>Can anyone recommend any other schools to me?</p>
<p>Also, has anyone been (or has your son/daughter been) to the Carnegie Mellon pre-college program for theater design? How did it prepare you/him/her for college?</p>
<p>Thanks in advance!
This is a really helpful thread for a very confusing major/track!</p>
<p>My daughter went to the CMU pre-college drama program in D/PTM last summer. I don’t know if it helped her prepare for college; I’ll have to get back to you about that because she doesn’t start until fall. (In fact, she hasn’t decided where she is going yet.) However, it was a big help with the application process. </p>
<p>Pre-college gave my daughter a good idea what to expect in a BFA program, and this was very helpful for interviews and essays. Also, pre-college students prepare a portfolio and interview for CMU as a final project at the end of the summer. As a result, my daughter already had some of the ideas and materials she needed for her portfolio and interviews during the winter.</p>
<p>Other schools to research: (BFA) NYU, BU, Emerson, SUNY Purchase, Ithaca, University of the Arts, DePaul; (BA) U Mich, Northwestern, Fordham. Much depends on your particular interests. </p>
<p>Emerson, DePaul, are some of the other schools by son who wanted tech applied to. He ultimately decided on attending CMU. The important thing to remember is to keep up on your portfolio.</p>
<p>I just wanted to get back to those of you who asked about this year’s results. My daughter had an easy time of it and, from what I’ve heard, so did most tech theater students. She was accepted everywhere with good financial aid offers at many schools. In retrospect, her list could have used fewer safeties and maybe a few more competitive choices.</p>
<p>All of her tech theater friends did well, too. Of course, it is difficult to believe before it happens but many tech theater students get their pick of schools. If you search this forum, you will see that most are happy with the outcome.</p>
<p>You may also want to look at University of the Arts. It offers a BFA in Theater Design and Technology which includes internships at Philadelphia area professional theaters. There are about 7-8 school productions a semester including productions at UArts’ own 1800 seat proscenium theater. All of the faculty work in their crafts at area professional theaters and the tech students also have the opportunity to be directed by outside professionals.</p>
<p>I’ll second the shout out to UArts. My daughter was interested in their Directing, Playwriting, and Production degree. Most schools combine Production with Design. To my knowledge, UArts is unique among BFA degrees in combining Production with Direction and Playwriting–a choice that makes a great deal of sense because all of these disciplines require a broad knowledge of theater. </p>
<p>As MichaelNKat said, there are many opportunities to learn by doing at UArts and in the surrounding area and most grads are able to find work. </p>
<p>UArts is not inexpensive but they are very generous with scholarships to good students.</p>
<p>In the end, though, my daughter chose CMU over UArts and her other choices. CMU offers a structured curriculum with equal amounts of instruction and experience. It is a good choice for those who want theory as well as practice. </p>
<p>The facilities are extraordinary. Much of the equipment is cutting-edge. </p>
<p>Many schools help students to make contacts within a particular region but CMU students work nationwide. This was a big plus for my daughter who wants the option of returning to the west coast.</p>
<p>CMU is very expensive but very generous with financial aid. In many cases, they will match or exceed offers from other schools.</p>
<p>OK, so here we are – the summer before my daughter’s senior year in HS. Time has flown and many of you on this thread have been very helpful as she has been deciding which schools to consider. Frankly, her top choices have me very concerned about finances. She wants to apply early decision to NYU. I don’t see how she can do that because we cannot make a $220,000 financial commitment at the time of her early decision application! I am also under the impression that Tisch students are not given much help with financial aid, even though NYU seems to publish some encouraging statistics for financial aid in general.</p>
<p>So as we argue about NYU early decsion, the more practical issues surround her portfolio as a sound designer. I am just trying to gather some general information as to what should be included and how it might be best formatted for sound design. She is working full time this summer and has an hour commute each way, so there isn’t much time for her to focus on this right now-- I figure it I can give her a general starting point, she can take it from there.</p>
<p>So – are there any sound design students who might be wiling to share some portfolio advice? Any Tisch Tech Track sound designers who might have some insight into that specific program?</p>
<p>If anyone is interested, the other schools in consideration are: CCM, DePaul, Syracuse, Boston U, UCLA (we live in Cal) and Cornish. She has a 3.6 unweighted (AP curriculum) and quite a bit of experience in sound with a local professional company. She is working this summer as a production assistant for a film and television commercial company in LA. I think she has a decent shot at CCM and DePaul (and Cornish), not so sure about the others. We visited CCM this spring and loved everything about it.</p>
<p>“She wants to apply early decision to NYU. I don’t see how she can do that because we cannot make a $220,000 financial commitment at the time of her early decision application!”</p>
<p>No commitment is involved. NYU accepts the Common Application; its ED rule:
<p>If the FA offer is insufficient to support attendance, she just says thanks but no thanks (perhaps after an appeal, sometimes successful), and applies elsewhere RD.</p>
<p>If NYU doesn’t work out, Emerson in Boston might be an option.</p>
<p>Right, vossron, forgot about Emerson!
Thanks for the reply – that was my understanding until we received a mailing from NYU which indicates otherwise. They mention that students can apply either with the NYU app or the common app, but they also say: </p>
<p>“Most schools, including NYU, consider Early Decision a moral contract that must be honored by the student if accepted… Your family needs to feel confident that you can work out financing for the college… If your family needs to compare financial aid packages offered from several different colleges…early decision may not be the best option.” And “the student and one parent must sign the Early Decision Agreement Form indicating that they understand the binding nature of the Early Decision option.” </p>
<p>So I guess, an additional question might be – has anyone NOT attended a college after being admitted early decision, and if so, has that had any negative effect on other applications? I will go to the general college confidential boards and post the same question – thanks again.</p>
<p>The problem with NYU is the gapping, making it harder to predict what your FA will be. I do agree that if the FAFSA-calculated aid is met at ED time, there is a moral obligation to attend, and if a family wants to compare FA packages, ED is inappropriate.</p>
<p>I’ve heard of consortiums where reneging on ED can mean no RD at the other schools, but with the consortium FA offers being the same, it’s a moot point; none are affordable.</p>
<p>I’ve also heard the rumor-warnings about negative effects, but I think we haven’t heard of an actual case. I’d like to know of one, too, especially if a school is violating the Common Application ED rules, so we can warn applicants. Years ago our HS was “blackballed” for a time, but it was because a naive GC allowed a student to submit two ED applications.</p>
<p>At CMU precollege, sound designers were told they should submit some combination of the following: CD of your designs, plot of a sound system, and/or a sound cue sheet. They said not to include the plot or cue sheet if you were just on crew and not the designer. Also, it was fine to make a book of production photos for the interviewer to look at while you describe what you did. Check each school. For example, CMU accepts a lot of collateral and might also be interested in a CD of music performances.</p>
<p>My D had only a 3.5 UW at a school with a college prep curriculum and was accepted at UCLA so your D is probably competitive there, as well. They require a supplementary theater design essay that may be heavily weighted. Anyway, my D put a lot of work into it and it may have been a factor. </p>
<p>However, UCLA is not a great tech theater consevatory. The program is designed to provide a good, general background in theater design and, to this end, requires students to take a year each in two design specialties. Also, the gen ed requirements are extensive and don’t leave much time for theater studies in the first two years. My D was excited to be accepted there but did not really consider it. Based on the fact that all of the other schools on your D’s list are BFA conservatory programs, she may feel the same.</p>
<p>I don’t know much about Syracuse (cold!) but financial aid could be limited at BU without a higher GPA. I ruled Cornish out based on the fact that they do not have any on-campus housing. I didn’t think my D was ready to live off-campus in freshman year.</p>
<p>I forgot to add that there is a good book on tech theater portfolios. </p>
<p>Developing and Maintaining a Design-Tech Portfolio, by Rafael Jaen, is a guide to professional theater (+ film + TV) portfolios. There is not much about stage management and some of what is shown clearly exceeds what would expected of a student but there is also plenty of useful material. There are dozens of photos of working portfolio pages as well as many suggestions about materials and organization. </p>
<p>Be aware that for Tisch ED, it is either rejection or acceptance, no deferral. I have no insight into the admissions committee decisions, obviously, but I would guess that they take only the strongest candidates early; a school with such a high yield would not need ED decisions to ensure a full class.</p>
applies elsewhere RD.</p>