Also wanted to add that schools may accept applications after published deadlines. You can always call and ask.
@AnxiousNovice It is not too late to apply to University of the Arts BFA in MT program. The application must be received at least 3 weeks prior to the audition date. They have campus auditions in March and April. If you live on the East Coast, and I think you do, this is another option. Also, they have a MT Minor that can be done with the BFA in Acting track.
@AnxiousNovice BFA or BA depends upon the programs. At Mililkin BA are not second class. Compare the two programs and most of the classes are for both. Those their BFA ad BA’s will spend four years together every day. Everyone has the same opportunity to audition.
@AnxiousNovice We are in the DC area so if George Mason is still an option, as someone above said it was, it is a good choice. DC has a healthy theatre scene, both professional and community. And, theatres hire from the local universities. D was in a production her senior year of high school that had a George Mason student intern working for the theatre. Catholic is another university that puts their students out there.
@AnxiousNovice I think Cornish College of the Arts is still accepting applications. You can submit digitally. https://www.cornish.edu/admissions/
Does anyone have info on the BFA-MT at Nazareth “Naz”. I cannot find much about it.
Also BFA dance at Montclair? My d got a my redirect to dance at Montclair.
Advice?
I looked at Hofstra. Here is their information for the Drama program. It is still a viable option for this year.
“While there are no auditions for admission to the Drama program, we do hold scholarship auditions and portfolio reviews each March (usually the third Saturday of the month) to determine initial offerings of Activity Grants for first year students only.”
The scholarship audition is this Saturday, February 29th, but you can submit a video audition.
https://www.hofstra.edu/academics/colleges/hclas/dd/dd-a-grant.html
@AnxiousNovice have you checked out U of Tampa ?
@AnxiousNovice Plymouth State in NH is still accepting applications, and has audition days on March 6 and April 16. There is no application fee if you use their application.
@AnxiousNovice another non-audition program that I hear very good things about is Bridgewater State University, in Massachusetts. I know a couple of incredible performers who are graduates of BSU who are now working consistently in regional theatre. Worth a look…they offer a BA in Theatre Arts with a minor in MT: https://www.bridgew.edu/department/theatre (and the price is around $30K a year for out-of-state residents). Best of luck to you and your daughter…this is such a challenging time!
@TimeToFindInfo d was super excited about Millikin because Jodi Benson herself recommended her. Also it was a stones throw from Illinois Wesleyan which was another program to which my daughter was accepted. We really liked at the people, and were disappointed when she was deferred to the vocal department (BM)? or the non-audition theater department. They emphasized the fact that both of their Phantom of the opera leads came from the non-audition department. But once we really got in there and looked at curriculum we found the programs to be incomparable as far as quality. We did not consider them further, and this year my daughter had a Millikin sophomore transfer to her program with nothing nice to say. Usually those can be sour grapes individuals who don’t get parts, but this individual is beyond talented and I can’t imagine at apartment letting go of her. Of course these are just our personal experiences and the reputation of the program is terrific. Good luck on your journey!
@4angels - thank you so much for your perspective. I appreciate your willingness to share!
@AnxiousNovice North Central College has a non audition MT program in Chicago with an excellent reputation. My d has friends who attend - they chose to skip the crazy audition process due to money - and clearly they’re not insane like the rest of us. They love it and all were in summer jobs in Chicago theater companies after their freshman year so I feel like that’s a good sign.
@AnxiousNovice Check out University of Rhode Island. They are a non-audition BFA. Website says they are still taking applications this late. I think it might too late to apply for the BFA scholarship audition in March, but you can ask. They also had great academic merit scholarships though.
@AnxiousNovice I second taking a good look at Hofstra! My daughter is seriously considering Hofstra since we just got back from a visit. (and she has a few BFA options in hand) You can submit prescreen videos and resume by the end of this week to be considered for scholarships and an early admit into their BFA in drama and minor in MT before freshman year. They typically audition into BFA their sophomore year, after entering the BA freshman year.
We were pretty surprised how much we loved Hofstra’s campus! It truly checks off a lot of boxes for what my daughter is looking for in a school. Although Hempstead is not the nicest area, (industrial town), we really loved the campus! Lots of trees, courtyards and squares, beautiful arts facilities, campus not too big or too small, lots of school pride and spirit, sports and other strong academic programs (including communications with great internship opportunities in NYC) , and just a short train away from the city. Hofstra seems very up and coming to me, and they have a strong dance department.
We live on Long Island, so it’s an 8+ hour drive for us to Fredonia. When setting up our list of schools to apply to, it was nearly impossible to visit them all, so we started with visiting ‘types’ of schools. By that I mean, we visited a very urban school, a very rural school, and a suburban school; visited a rah-rah school spirit school and one that’s quieter, etc. Fredonia is a rural school. It also can get a lot of snow for an extended winter time period and be very cold. If cold, snowy, rural doesn’t work for your kid, this might not be the place for them. Socially, the theatre kids are pretty close and end up hanging out together a lot even when there’s not an official event. Many/most older students live off campus and friends gather in each other’s homes. My son, who has never had a car on campus, has lived off campus for two years, and his house is actually closer to his classes than he was the one year that he lived in the on-campus apartments.
Despite being cold and rural, it also has great things to offer, both on and off campus. Besides all of the official departmental positives, the students themselves are all supportive of each other. They are constantly working on each others’ pet projects, and attending and performing in each others’ senior recitals. There is a chapter of Alpha Psi Omega, the theatre honor society, with older/younger student pairings for support (like bigs/littles), activities on and off campus, and a fun spring formal. The older students pass down fun (and also meaningful) awards to the younger students. There’s time/opportunity to be involved in other activities too, such as music groups, gender/sexuality groups, faith groups, etc, and time to work a part-time job as well.
If you return to visit, here are some restaurants/quick bites you can check out. About a five minute drive north/northeast of campus is Pizza Hut, Applebees, Subway, El Azteca, Bob Evans, Denny’s, Wing City Grille, etc. and if you go south of campus into the adorable middle of town, there are Heenan’s Pub, Mustard Seed, Domus Faire, DP Dough, the Spaghetti House, Ellicot Brewing Co, and even an adorable tea shop that has a Harry Potter theme. Food delivery to campus, friends with cars, or the shuttle are options for students without a car.
Best of luck with your decision! Remember that fit is the most important thing for your student to have the most rewarding college experience!
@CBSQandA @SingerDancerMom Thank you both so much for the late and digital submission school suggestions! Will get on these tonight!
@soozievt Yes D applied to Muhlenberg and I am praying hard that her academics will get her in there and maybe one of the remaining places that use academics as half the decision. Would love her to have a choice of two but will take over at this point!
Thank you !! For all the information I’m definitely showing this to my daughter and husband! Ferdonia sounds like it has a lot of great things to really think about !
@soozievt I actually got an email from a couple of others on this thread last night about U of Arts and started working on that app with my D early this am so thanks. She does want east coast (at or north of DC, at or East of Chicago) but for some weird reason no PA schools ever made it to the lists of suggested schools from all those People here that we consulted (One of the hazards of being new and knowing no one in the field and being in a non-arts school) but thank goodness for this forum cuz we have added so many schools from what we learned here.
The light of day has helped me move from frustration, anger and a bit of despair to a tiny bit of hope and a whole lot of gratitude. Thank you to everyone who has either posted or emailed either suggestions or support. You are all amazing! Wish I had such a sounding board and support group for the other parts of my life!