The New School for Drama Vs. Columbia

<p>I really need your help deciding which will be the smater choice.
BFA at The New school for Drama or BA at Columbia University?</p>

<p>You can audition for BFA at Columbia sophomore year. </p>

<p>We visited there in April, and while I understand that its take-all-comers approach might be chaotic, they certainly had a lot going on. I really liked the energy of the place. </p>

<p>Though I do hear that classes are too big and there’s not as much personal attention as you’d get at an auditioned BFA program like the New School.</p>

<p>ooe, what are you looking for in a program? Hard to answer this question without knowing that…</p>

<p>I think Jkellyn might be referring to Columbia College in Chicago, not Columbia University in NYC–which one do you mean, ooe1234?</p>

<p>I mean Columbia University in NYC. (and thank you for your comments!)</p>

<p>Oh yes sorry, don’t know anything about the Columbia in NYC except that they’re an Ivy.</p>

<p>FYI - The Department of Theatre, Barnard College, is the theatre department for all undergraduate students at Columbia University.</p>

<p>What do you want to do/be?</p>

<p>If you want spend the majority of your college years in the studio honing your stage craft, attend the New School. If you want to spend the majority of your time in the classroom getting a broad based liberal arts education, attend Columbia. Actors succeed and fail with both approaches.</p>

<p>They are very, very different schools, and both are very selective. I hope you have a longer list of schools to which you’re applying!</p>

<p>The New School is not a typical conservatory program. The kids take 25% of their courses outside of the Drama school.</p>