Hi! I’m a freshman in a BA acting program that boasted “BFA level training in a liberal arts setting”. It ended up being… not great, and pairing this with myriad other issues I have with the school, I’m looking to transfer. I know that BFAs would pretty much never let in a transfer student from anywhere, let alone a BA, and I do like the lib arts vibe, so I’m trying to find a BA program that’s maybe a little heavier than most. I know it won’t be BFA level, but can you think of any lib arts schools (or non-lib arts schools) with BAs that offer good, quality, intensive training? I’m thinking Vassar, maybe? My grades are good (34 ACT, 3.75 GPA in HS and 4.0 so far in college) so that shouldn’t be too much of an issue for many schools.
Fordham has a terrific auditioned BA program
Son shifted from mostly BFA to mostly BA schools at the end of Aug, and once his show ends this weekend we’ll be visiting Beloit, Knox, Illinois Wesleyan, Kalamazoo and Lawrence (in addition to some Chicago area favorites that are not exactly LAC). We have no idea how intense/good the theater depts are in these schools, but I’ll come back and provide some updates. Really looking for a place that embraces the “march to a beat of a different drum”.
@DropOfSun – It is not necessarily impossible to transfer to a BFA program (if that is what you think you would like), but you may not be able to graduate in just 3 more years. Some BFA programs will consider you as a transfer, but ask you to go through all four years of sequenced training.
Some programs (BA & BFA) that you might want to look at…
American
Brown
Connecticut College
Fordham
Hofstra
Illinois Wesleyan
James Madison
Loyola Marymount
Marymount Manhattan
Otterbein
Pepperdine
Penn State
Skidmore
Syracuse
Trinity (CT)
Tulane
University of Evansville
Vassar
I am not certain whether or not the schools above offer a more intensive training experience than where you are currently attending, but they are worth looking at, and talking to the programs to see if the environment and structure may be more what you are looking for in a program.
Also, remember that at some schools the training will become more focused and intense, and the opportunities more abundant as you move through to more upper level classes.
Some of the schools above are BFA. If what you really want is more structured you may want to focus on more BFA programs that will accept transfers and allow you to possibly graduate in 3 years (if that is important to you).