What are your opinions???
Both great. BU probably a bit more academic.
Hi, my daughter goes to UNCSA, so I am highly biased. BU is definitely more academic. UNCSA is barely academic at all. But, I think UNCSA grads are more sought after in the business, or at least that is the word on the street. ( There are a few articles out there that suggest this to be true.) I will say that UNCSA was the only college that was willing to say how many of their graduates were signed with an agent immediately after graduation. (65%). No other college would state their statistic on representation.
I say all the above with total respect for BU. I’m just a proud UNCSA parent, so I mean no offense to anyone… Either way, you have two excellent options!
Hands down UNCSA. Its a great value and theatre professionals feel their Drama graduates (Acting & Tech) are well prepared for the real world. ( I heard this directly from the general manager of a major regional theater co. & the artistic director of a highly regarded NYC theatre co. )
thank you @YardleySisa @MilouForever and @Jkellynh17 ! i’m asking for a friend, not myself, but happy to be able to pass along all this info!
My friend is currently just trying to decide where to apply next year. Such an exciting process!
@YardleySisa if you have any links to those articles, we’d love to see! 
@interestinglamp, here is a link to the magazine the article is in: http://editiondigital.net/publication/?i=234963#{%22issue_id%22:234963,%22page%22:20} You have to scroll until you see the article “Do Your Homework.”
It's a pretty tough article, and was controversial here on CC when it came out. So, I am reposting because you asked for the article. (Please, CCers, I am not trying to stir anything up again!)
@YardleySisa I’ve seen this one!! Wow! I’ve also heard the author had a financial tie to UNCSA and that’s why he wrote it. I know nothing of this but saw someone commented that on CC. do you know anything about that?
@interestinglamp - The author of that article actually works at a totally different BFA program that isn’t even mentioned. So his ties should be to a different program. As YardleySisa mentioned - this created controversy here before. Everyone has there own opinion on what program is the best. In the end, it has to come down to what is the best for each student (and, of course, where they get accepted). Both BU and UNCSA are competitive - although BU accepts a larger number from research I have done. UNCSA has a huge number of studio hours …much like Juilliard (and I hear SUNY purchase, too).
I can give my opinion on which is better…but it is just that - an opinion. I know what is a better fit for my daughter, but that doesn’t mean it is the right fit for someone else.
The best advice I have for anyone starting out is to really research the programs and curriculum. Schools my daughter thought she would really like (even after visiting) turned out not to offer the curriculum she wanted. Some kids want to audition day #1, some want to double major, some want to be in a true conservatory that spends the first two years in intensive training vs. performing for the public. Some schools offer a variety of coursework in different areas and others are super focused solely on acting. The actual classes offered are very different between different BFA programs and this makes a big difference. Is location of a school the most important thing or is the program?
I also recommend thinking about what a student wants after college. Of course this may change, but if a student wants a MFA - look for programs with high placement in top MFA’s. If a student wants to work regionally, look for a program that has success with that. If a student wants to work in LA or NYC - look for a program that has alum actively working in those areas.
My last bit of advice is to keep an open mind. Look at many schools in a variety of places. We know a bunch of students that went through auditions this year and were totally shocked at results so far. It is 100% more competitive than we thought (and all us parents thought we knew based on watching previous years). A few students are having regrets that they didn’t apply to more places. In the end, your friend should probably apply to both BU and UNCSA, plus many, many others. And, hopefully, he/she will have some good options at the end. Good luck!
Forgot to add that we, too, know of current agents for broadway shows and directors of other drama schools that give the advice of going to UNCSA if one is lucky enough to be admitted.
@YardleySisa thank you for reposting that article. I’ve read it several times and wholeheartedly agree with what he’s saying, in a fishbowl-sort-of-way. I think it’s super-hard for our kids who want to perform envisioning a life that doesn’t involve supporting themselves by performing. And in the sense that most of them aren’t going to do that is a hard reality that Mr. Jory discusses. So in that sense, yes.
I also like the questions he suggests that you ask yourself about a program you’re considering. Excellent.
However, I can think of many people my age who aren’t doing now what they thought they’d be doing when they were starting college. I know several women who went to law school and when they had their babies, stayed home and haven’t practiced a second of law since then. But no one I know looks at them and thinks that they’re failures, or that what they learned while in law school was a waste of their time. I know of a couple, one of whom attended a well-regarded acting program in college and one of whom wasn’t allowed to. Both auditioned and worked and traveled and struggled after college. And one now works in behind-the-scenes-production, while the other got in on the cutting edge of an industry that isn’t acting, per se, but in which she uses what she learned in her acting life every single day of her working life. Both travel to distant places and meet super-exciting people, and use what they learned. AND they have a lovely family and home. I doubt that either one imagined that they’d be doing their current professions when they were in college and dreaming of performing (one profession didn’t even exist!), but they’ve both grown and learned and are happy and successful.
Heck, I’m a speech pathologist and other than the weeks I took off after the births of my children, I’ve worked in my field straight through for well over 20 years. When I first graduated, all I wanted to do was work with babies and I traveled to their houses and loved knowing that I was instrumental in their development of skills. But then, I got sick of lugging my 9-months-pregnant belly onto the floor to play and being unable to chase them when they escaped, I moved to a preschool, where there were tables! And now, I’m working with high schoolers and spend most of my time chairing special education meetings. We all evolve professionally!
The world is too quick to say that someone who goes to school for theater is a failure if they’re not on stage or screen. That’s ridiculous. I know that our kids with their dreams and teenaged egos aren’t going to listen to us if we try to tell them that there are other options, but studying and working (or trying to work) in the field can show them a lot more of what the world has to offer than what they know right now.
And depending on the school (but this is true of any college and any degree–some are solid educational experiences and some aren’t, but there’s a lot of learning that liberal arts students can do even if they don’t go to an Ivy), I disagree with Jory’s premise that acting students aren’t going to strengthen their general trove of information. In my daughter’s script analysis class, she’s learned a lot from some really terrific literature. It may not be in the form of novels, but the Pulitzer committee thinks that Stephen Adly Giurgis and Jeanine Tesori and Ayad Akhtar have something relevant enough to say that they feel comfortable to recognize them alongside Harper Lee and William Faulkner.
And to say that acting school won’t tremendously increase their understanding of the world around them?!?! What is art if not a way to help people understand the world around them?
Yes, his basic premise that most of our kids won’t be working in the field for the long run holds weight, and yes, there are hack schools that will give a degree in theater, but to generalize that all schools other than the three well-known conservatories convey an education that is without worth is irresponsible and certainly makes me suspicious of anything else he’d have to say.
Thanks @lovetoact Very well said! I agree that there are many, many schools that offer exciting opportunities to learn and grow. Many mentioned on CC and many not (as related to the theater world).
I agree that we should not bring all the Jory drama back… But I would point to another thread here which lists schools of actors working on Broadway as evidence against his assertion that there are only a couple school schools that matter. And that is not meant to disrespect UNCSA - which a fabulous program, but there are lots of great programs out there.
Agreed - ones success lies in hard work and is not guaranteed by any program. Some programs may be recognized more than others, but it is a lot more than the name of a school that gets you the job.