@Jasklo, Congratulations on your D’s wonderful acceptances! Please do share, at least on the “acceptances” list - it’s great to see good news!
@onette So you advise our kids avoid the accepted student days and visit on a regular school day? Do you think the event days are too scheduled to give the kids a real sense of day to day life? I was just planning to visit on the weekend accepted student days, especially since my D has missed so many days of school already.
@actorparent1 On the acceptances thread?
@QballMom if you can only make one visit, I would try to go on a normal day (cleared, of course, by the department!!). Accepted student days are fun but I have heard feedback over the years that they are not a realistic “view” of day-to-day life. There are usually wonderful things planned and often financial aid (extra scholarship) tied to it, so if you can, do both! Sometimes on a regular day, they might let you shadow another student. Which can be really helpful to get that view of the school, its programs and campus life.
I imagine @actorparent1 meant this thread http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/musical-theater-major/2171686-class-of-2024-mt-artistic-acceptance-notifications-how-when-where-p48.html
Congrats on the CMU acceptance. Going back to lurking
@Jasklo - I don’t speak for everyone, but I’m glad you are sharing the successes. Makes the rest of us see what’s possible, and we’re all part of the same community. Now hurry up and release one of them…lol
@QballMom I would advise going to visit on a regular school day if possible (not only on accepted students day unless you can do both), unless there is a very specific accepted students day for students in the theatre program (or a general arts accepted students day if the itinerary looks good). General accepted students days are fun, the schools showcase the team spirit, and give swag (it’s their turn to sell their school), but our kids need to know how the program will fit with their needs, and in many schools they won’t get a sense of that from the bigger accepted student days. If that’s impossible to do, I like the idea of checking out a department performance if possible (which could fit better if you can only do a weekend).
Last year, we contacted three of the schools my son was accepted to in order to try to visit over his spring break. Two of them gave kind of standard, business-like responses, but for one, the head of the department emailed back within a half hour (on a Thursday at almost midnight!) then followed up within a day to say that he had a student set up to shadow and details for our visit. The visit was comprehensive and extremely welcoming. It was a regular school day, so my son could shadow a dance class, an acting class, and even a gen ed. They had breakfast and lunch together at the student’s favorite spots, then three of the professors took time to meet with us and answer every question we had. Walking across campus after those meetings, two theatre students stopped my son to say that they saw him in their classes that morning and gave him their contact information in case he had any questions. On the ride home, he decided that was the place for him, and when he posted on social media that he had committed to the school, several professors and current students were the first ones to like his post and comment welcoming him.
Without that very personal visit, I don’t know that my son would’ve chosen that school (and I know that I would have been pushing him toward the other two more affordable in-state school acceptances that he got).
@CMB625 As a parent of a daughter who is NOT able to go to one of the big schools because of financial concerns, thank you for this! I’m going to forward it onto her. It’s perfect!
@StanfordAI2019 - my D was accepted to SDSU on the 2nd. No notice by email, she just checked the portal and it had been updated. We don’t know much about the BA Performance / MT program she applied to. We threw in the application because we are in CA. We were not expecting an acceptance because it is an impacted program. Now that we have an acceptance, we need to find out if they have a quality program, but it is very hard to find info on it. Anyone out there have any thoughts on San Diego State MT?
@Looney2020 Do not personally know anything about SDSU but I did see they are connected to La Jolla, which is one of the top regional theatres in the country. And…after reading the faculty bios, I found this for the department head:
“Prior to his appointment at San Diego State University, Mr. Meffe served as Director of Music for the highly acclaimed BFA Musical Theatre Program at Pace University.”
A story of hope and encouragement…
I was out to breakfast this morning with my D and she received a text from an friend she met at a previous audition. The text said they just got accepted into one of the “top” programs. All my D and I could say was Oh My Gosh… we were shocked and amazed at the same time and caught up with emotions because of how excited we are for them! Here’s why…
My D met this individual at an on-campus audition earlier in February. This individual had only auditioned at one other school because of their family situation in which the parents decided they were not going to help with this process at all. I can’t even imagine a child going through this alone. This individual had slept in their car the night before this particular audition because they could not afford a hotel. My D and this person hit it off immediately and spent most of the day together before their audition. They started talking about their dream school and where they had dreamed of going since they were little. My D asked if they had applied to that program. They said yes but even if they got a call back, there was no way they could afford to go to it. This individual did in fact get a call back and were about to let the dream die until my D offered some words of encouragement to her new friend. She said you are really good, at least send in a video audition, that way you’ll never regret it plus you never know what will happen. Within the last week, this individual did get the phone call of acceptance into this “top” program based on their video audition. This individual had no coach, no voice lessons, very little support and now has this great story to tell.
The reality of this process can be overwhelming. Lots of ups and downs. The talent is amazing all over our beautiful country. Rarely do we know any of the back stories but we were able to experience this one first hand. Everyone’s situation is different. Treating others with kindness and encouragement, building people up is so important to our children going through this process. Unfortunately, my D did not get into this “top” program but she will always know she was able to help someone else achieve their dream through her words of encouragement.
Prayers for all S’s and D’s : smile
@Jasklo , I meant this one: http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/musical-theater-major/2172071-mt-acceptances-by-school-for-the-class-of-2024.html#latest
@MT85 I met a similar kid at CAP Atlanta who was scholarshipped. I saw her again - ALONE - at the Palmer in Chicago (with zero scheduled auditions) and she was more than overwhelmed. Didn’t have all the lessons and the “inside info” but she was determined to do it. I sat with her a few minutes and helped her figure out some walk-ins to go for. And she traveled to Chicago ALONE and made it happen. I can hardly wait to see where she ends up. I know she got a few acceptances from CAP Atlanta but his kid was determined and motivated and I love everything about that! Your D sounds amazing and a great friend/mentor!
@MT85 that is a wonderful story! I had heard about people forming friendships at Unifieds and auditions and I didn’t understand how, but my D definitely made a good friend or two with people during all the waiting around, and they have kept in touch throughout to support each other. They were literally like two peas in a pod. I love this community so much. Even with all the drama and highs and lows I’ve found parents who are kind and supportive, totally doing whatever they can to help their kids and the hardest working, funny and interesting kids around. Hugs to all as we get thru the final stretch.
@MT85 - Oh how I love this! Thanks for sharing. (Lurker mom - MT 2026)
@Looney2020 - We had the same experience but I found notice from the school in the spam folder. The only thing that hit the actual inbox was a “check your financial aid profile” Super surprised that my kid was accepted there as well because getting into CA schools being from CA is unexpected. Glad to have a CA option. Still researching myself. Congrats to your student and @StanfordAI2019 !
@NeensMom and anyone else interested in info on Molloy/CAP21, we are a pretty active group of parents. Head over to the Molloy/CAP21 school link and join in the thread there. We’re all happy to answer questions and tell you about our kid’s experiences.
@lovetoact Thanks! I am going to have my daughter start contacting the schools about visits. I appreciate your insight and that of @onette. Hopefully, my D will have a similar experience to your son and know right away which school is her choice!
@actorparent1 Gotcha.
Here is the link to the Molloy/CAP21 thread that @speezagmom mentioned in post #2256 that is most active:
http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/molloy-college-cap21-conservatory/1645653-bfa-at-molloy-college-cap-21.html#latest