Last year DS had narrowed it to three schools he thought were a good fit. He had only visited one of the three One of the schools that was in contention had given us an April 1 date. We called and told them that we were coming to tour on the last weekend in March and the other school the first weekend in April, could we give our decision by April 6. That school granted the extension , especially knowing we were coming for a scheduled visit.
What is the deadline they are giving? If it’s April 1, I would just wait to communicate until you see how the situation plays out
The deadline is by the end of this calendar year, as in end of fall semester . . . nowhere near what we had envisioned when planning out the whole audition season, travel, submitting applications, doing prescreens, etc.
The school is one for which we would definitely like to keep our options open. We just don’t know if it’s THE school at this early date. So much uncertainty is still left to unfold.
This situation in March/April would be great. In December . . . not so great. If it was the #1 dream school with finances in order, then I guess we would take it all in stride. Student is distraught over the options. I had always pictured a “yes” being accompanied by great joy. There have been tears.
@MarciaMarciaMarc I dont know the school you are referring to @vvnstar has commented on this in the past on many threads, sounds really unethical to me. my D has 1 yes in hand from an early audition and the program director sent an amazing email today about seeing a spring show shadowing a student and gave her cell number if she can answer any questions…to me thats the kind of place/person I want my kid the next 4 years…end of year commit or waitlist seems very unethical or at least unfair.
@KatMT and @VoiceTeacher are both warm, open people, MT faculty, and active contributors on CC. Perhaps they might have time to share their perspectives regarding a ‘revocable’ offer.
It has already been pointed out such an offer is against NACAC rules. If I recall, there was a discussion of this gun-to-the-head approach in last years MT thread as well.
IMO, if the program isn’t willing to abide by the rules all are supposed to play by, what else might happen once you enroll? Seems more apropos of a used car salesman than a reputable MT recruiter.
@MarciaMarciaMarc - a typical first step would be to contact the theatre department and ask for an extension to a date that you feel comfortable with, based on financial and other factors involved in a final decision. If that doesn’t work out, you can try contacting the university admissions department and tell them about the situation. They may be able to clear up the problem. Many schools assign an admissions counselor to each applicant, if so, that would be a the best place to start.
Some schools that try this approach will offer relief as soon as you contact them and explain that you are really interested in attending, but need some more time to work on financial issues and other factors in order to make such an important decision.
A last-ditch effort would be to quote the NACAC Guidelines in a formal letter or email.
A question about schools asking for more songs at an audition. If it’s a school that requires recorded tracks and not an accompanist, how does that work? Are you supposed to have extra tracks?
Also panicking a bit because we are under a foot of snow already and haven’t gone to even one audition. Hard to imagine that all this travel is going to go without a weather glitch. It’s going to be a long winter. ?
Some schools will just have you sing a capella (although, I don’t recommend planning for that). For college auditions, you should try to have a few more songs in your book than what are required. Have both 16 and 32 bar cuts of your required songs (as well as the entire song) recorded. I would also have a “spare song” (for example, both of my D’s songs show her soprano range, but she also has a 3rd song ready to go that is pure belt). Additionally, it is good to have a cut of a pop/rock song. All of these need to have both sheet music and recorded tracks.
@MTSthistime - you definitely should have additional songs in your rep book along with accompaniment tracks in multiple cuts (i.e., 16 bars, 32 bars, full) ready to go for any audition. It is relatively common for schools to ask for an additional song - for example, they may ask for something that pushes you to the limits of your range if they think you have more than you showed, or they may want to hear a different style (rock, jukebox, modern MT pop, etc.).
Here is a suggested rep book list from Matt Edwards at Shenandoah:
a Golden Age uptempo and ballad
a Contemporary uptempo and ballad (around 1970-2010)
an appropriate role from a show that has been on Broadway in the last five years
a comedic song
a Pop/Rock/Country song
If this presents a large burden or seems like overkill, then have at least one or two additional songs in different styles, and maybe a larger range.
As your student moves forward in this profession, they will need to build a substantial book of rep, so, while this may seem like a pain, it is good practice for what lies ahead. It is also indicative of the highly competitive nature of this domain.
@NYYFanNowMTdad my D is a freshman MT at Catholic and loves it - BAL to your D! My D also auditioned in the fall, and Catholic was her first acceptance (they notified her about 2 weeks after)
If you’re going to be in town the night before check out the Christmas Concert for Charity at the National Basilica. It’s truly magnificent, and all MT students are in the choir
@NYYFanNowMTdad it starts at 7:30. I’m sure if you wanted to slip in for a bit it would be fine - You may have to stand though. There are no tickets, just donations at the door for charity.
Hi! Long time lurker, first time poster. D has completed four in person and one video audition. Acceptances from Belmont and Auburn (video audition), rejected from Indiana (which really hurt—we live there!), and waiting on OCU and BW. This process is so stressful!
My question has to do with OCU.
D is classically trained singer, so I think would be a good fit for her. She only auditioned MT—so they do redirects to VP?
@midwestmtmom82 I’m pretty sure OCU does not do a redirect for VP if you only auditioned for MT. You would need to apply for both (many double major MT and VP there) before the audition.
There is currently a one-year moratorium of enforcement of the May 1st rule due to an investigation from the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice. The division has been really going after professional organizations in the last few years. So technically the rule is unenforceable. Start with the program head and go from there. If they are rigid and refuse to compromise, its probably not a good fit.
We are in a similar situation well not quite!! But I feel for you and good luck! My son He hadn’t even auditioned yet ha!, but has an audition this weekend and Got an email yesterday with schedule information that included “you’ll get results in two weeks and if accepted you have to accept in 30 days or be placed on waitlist” We were shocked! This is high on his list but not his top choice and we feel good about his chances there compared to other schools BUT it’s his first audition of 7 so far (and still haven’t gotten all the prescreens back. Plus accepted to some BA with MT minors considering). He would not be ready to make a decision in January. We always though May actually. They have an audition on Feb. 29th but not sure if they’d let us move it at this point and we’ve heard less kids are selected by that last one so we are not sure what to do. Plus he wanted to audition here first as he heard it was a less intimidating audition, less kids than other schools he’s going to. This email has just thrown us and need to decide ASAP. This is all so stressful.
