<p>Not a combination of a music ed and musical theatre degree exactly, but where I teach quite a few BM music ed students minor in theatre, participate in musicals and plays, and take acting, dance, and musical theatre performance classes. Those most serious about performance as an option often take 4.5 years, student teaching in the fall. Some of the students pursue performing professionally… holding off completely on pursuing teaching jobs indefinitely. Others combine teaching and summer professional and semi-professional performance.</p>
<p>However, I believe we may be a slightly unusual environment. We offer BA Musical Theatre and BM in Musical Theatre, as well as opportunities for BM students in VP and Music Industry to take theatre, dance, and musical theatre classes, as well as participate in musicals and plays. This is not the case at all schools, so make sure to check and ask each program if this is possible.</p>
<p>All that being said… just about all of the musical theatre and theatre graduates I know are gainfully employed (both recent and not)… most in the arts, with the exception of those who chose to make a career shift. </p>
<p>I graduated almost 20 years ago with a BFA in musical theatre. I worked as a performer for years, then taught HS theatre (private school), went to grad school and earned an MFA in directing. I am now the artistic director of a summer theatre and the coordinator of a college MT program. People I was in school with are BWay performers, directors, agents, managers, producers, musical directors, teachers, etc… some also made career shifts and are doctors, lawyers, managers and teachera outside of the arts, etc…</p>
<p>My stock response is that I started giving up hope my daughter would be an engineer when she made the stage at American Idol Experience in Disney World when she was 14, and finally gave up when she made Rockettes as a sophmore at her HS. I also tell people this is what she has a passion and gift for MT, and that I know plenty of MBAs looking for work.</p>
<p>I figure she’s smart and talented, so she will make her way in the world just fine.</p>
<p>Forget the $100K in debt - how about just spending that much? The days of ‘justifying’ these degrees are quickly ending… sadly. It’s just way too expensive - not only for college but how about the 10 years after college when your child will not be making an income that can support their standard of living?
College is just way too expensive. Even when you get financial aid.</p>
<p>I’m not judging though. If you want to spend it go ahead. But I do think it’s your parental duty to sit down with your child and spell it out. Life during college and life after college. Just know they will either end up living with you or you will be paying their rent. AFTER COLLEGE!
PS the waitress thing is not too far off the mark after all if your child was THAT talented she would not need to be going to college for MT. Right?</p>
<p>WRONG! Is there a way to block rude and clueless people from this board? It’s fine for you to make decisions for yourself and your own family, but it’s NOT ok to make general judgements on people you know nothing about!</p>
<p>For justamom: The cost of college in general is way out of whack. So is your argument that no one should go to college unless they are going into a field where, guaranteed, they will make the kind of $$ that allows them to comfortably pay back loans without problem or relying on his or her parents? Because that as far as I can tell does not exist. Have you looked at the economy lately? With you logic no one would go to college anymore.</p>
<p>Let’s be real here. MT majors are not strong candidates at the top-MBA programs. They don’t have the strong quantitative skills top schools look for. And those that get in to MBA programs struggle with the accounting, econ, etc. classes. Sure, they have great communication skills, but that only helps in a few classes.</p>
<p>A top MBA is still called the “golden ticket.” MTs are much, much, less likely to be issued one of these.</p>
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<p>I think a straight forward ROI calculation would show otherwise. I’d check out this report that ranks degrees:</p>
<p>JustaMom, although I agree that students incurring huge debt is a mistake, this comment of yours is simply ignorant. So, no, it’s not right. Not at all.</p>
<p>My S is getting the same rude questions and worse (actual comments like "You’ll never get a job) when people hear he is getting a PhD in Art History.</p>
<p>Really, there is nothing else he wants to do and will many things in the field: teach, museum work, appraise, work for an auction house.</p>
<p>But the biggest thing is if he is never employed in his field he will still be happy he spent this time learning. If he ever does have to work at MacDonald’s he will have the satisfaction of knowing he learned so much about something he loves.</p>
<p>Yeah, I would worry less if he were going to med school as he set out to do, but it’s not him. Neither is CS or engineering.</p>
<p>Kids do best in what they not only love but actually were born with the skill set for.</p>
<p>My D is getting the same questions about her PhD in History.</p>
<p>Should we just close up the Arts and Humanities all together and become automatons? I really think transmitting culture, knowledge and providing entertainment are important social functions, and if we value these so little that we can’t pay anyone to do it, we are going to be in trouble.</p>
<p>And how is society going to employ all the kids in STEM if everyone goes into it?</p>
<p>Perhaps your MT kids are better off than my kids, because entertainment is an INDUSTRY that does make money.</p>
<p>What will we do with all these programs and tenured professors if kids stop studying this things? Lay them off? Close the colleges? Can’t run a college with just tech subjects – just a tech school. With no majors these subjects will disappear as electives because you can’t run a department with no majors to employ the faculty.</p>
<p>It seems that instead of discouraging majors that do benefit society as well as the students studying them, we need to find a different way to fund college. Europeans do. Oh, I forgot. We can’t. We use our money for war.</p>
<p>I know BFA MT grads who did get into MBA programs and medical school and did not struggle with the math or science (in the case of med school) anymore than anyone else. And are working as doctors and in business, doing just fine. One cannot make sweeping statements, because everyone is different. </p>
<p>Saying that all who will be successful in the entertainment industry should be ready to enter the profession at age 18 on their own without formal education and training is like saying that all who will be successful business owners and entrepreneurs should be able to enter those professions at age 18 without formal education and training. Can some? yes… but not all. Education, training and maturity are often worth something in all professions. </p>
<p>A college degree in theatre or musical theatre is a college degree like most college degrees. Graduates enter the workforce at age 21 or 22 with knowledge and skills they did not have when they arrived at age 17 or 18. Some choose to stick with the career path they embark upon based on what they studied directly in school. Others do not. This is the same regardless of undergraduate major.</p>
<p>Back to the original topic. Who cares what others think of your family choices. Unless they are paying the bills, or will be attending college for your child they do not get to have a vote. All are welcome to their opinions, but if they are uninformed and/ or not the choice you know is right for your child and your family, who cares what they think or say? Smile and nod… or tell them you have it under control. No need to justify.</p>
<p>Some may also be genuinely curious, since most people only have experience with the arts as audience members and truly do not understand what goes into the creation. Those that do have experience likely only do at the HS or community theatre level, and do not understand what it takes to work professionally. </p>
<p>alwaysmom - no it’s not ignorant, it’s reality. A very talented friend of my dd’s is a new grad. She is moving to Philly and looking for a waitressing job so she can be free to audition.</p>
<p>What is the goal - to be on Broadway? Summer stock… What is the career path - not all (probably not most) spent 4 years majoring in MT.
I have nothing against Musical Theatre at all. But I do think kids and their parents need to be realistic and create a somewhat flexible career path.</p>
<p>If my child were THAT talented I would encourage them to go for it at 18. Take the lessons and go audition, audition. They will know soon enough if they will be successful. One doesn’t need to be 18 to go to college.</p>
<p>mythmom - I don’t know. Perhaps some of these programs will close. Supply and demand. When colleges price themselves out of the market they will change or reinvent themselves. In the meantime, parents and children should not held hostage by the exorbitant costs that continue to escalate.</p>
<p>KatMt - unfortunately today there is such a thing as a ‘worthless’ college degree. Many, many college grads are underemployed - working at jobs that do not require a degree. Fewer employers are hiring college grads with ‘any degree’.
Yes, it’s entirely possible for a BFA to gain entry into med school. Medical schools don’t care about majors - just per-requisites. Same with law school but there is a glut of lawyers now too.</p>
<p>^^^^^You miss my point. I think supply and demand a poor model to decide everything. And what happens when our economy shrinks so much that it can employ far fewer educated people than there are and everyone works at MacDonald’s?</p>
<p>Out sourcing is destroying jobs in many professions. </p>
<p>We need a WPA to grow the economy so our society is rich in all kinds of thinkers and achievers.</p>
<p>European countries pay for college because they see it as a social value, and their countries are not being dictated to and strictly run by the 1%. As long as we pay CEO’s 450 times what their workers earn (in other countries it averages about 25 times) we are going to struggle.</p>
<p>The gap between poor and wealthy is going to grow, and unless we are multi-multi millionaires none of us will be able to educate our children.</p>
<p>That is not the world I want to live in.</p>
<p>And if kids don’t study history, philosophy, etc. etc. we will lose all our standing in the world and our ability to understand our situation. Our kids will have a third world education which just perpetuates the power of the 1% and opens the doors to fixed control by a government of the wealthy serving the wealthy and powerful.</p>
<p>It’s important that kids study things you don’t think are supported by “law of supply and demand.”</p>
<p>JustaMom, sorry but it is ignorant. It may be your opinion, but it is an uninformed one. Very few kids are ready to be out auditioning for professional shows straight out of high school, regardless of how talented they are. For most auditions,they’d never even be seen at Equity calls. With no agent to arrange for an agent submission, again out of luck most of the time. Not to mention, the number of roles available to an 18 year old in professional theatre being very few. I know hundreds of actors, literally hundreds, and the number who work as servers, I could probably count on one hand. </p>
<p>Anyone who’s spent any time at all on the MT or Theatre forum here knows I’m very much a realist about the likely future for kids who major in these subjects. And, no, Broadway shouldn’t be looked at as the goal or the measure of success, for kids who want to perform. A very small percentage of actors will ever grace a Broadway stage. If that’s what your daughter’s talented friend is thinking, then she probably should have made the decision to go to college.</p>
<p>I would hate to live in a country, or a world, without the arts. AS JFK said, “I look forward to an America which will not be afraid of grace and beauty…an America which will reward achievement in the arts as we reward achievement in business or statecraft.” We need the arts to feed our spirits and to learn how to empathize. Without the arts, how “human” are we?</p>
<p>JustaMomof4–would you say that about other professions? If they’re so talented in piano…drawing…painting…architecture…business…computer science…why go for a degree? </p>
<p>It was an ignorant comment.</p>
<p>Plus–ESPECIALLY a field that depends on not only on the brain but on vocal maturity, most voices are not ready at 18. They are not what they will be after 4 years of growth and training.</p>
<p>The list you chose to quote has engineers in most of the top ten professions for salary. My daughter has the math and science skills to be a great engineer. But she would hate every day she goes to work. Are you postulating we should have a society like that? As far as you statements about MBAs you talk about the “top” MBA schools while ignoring the fact there are many MBAs from less acclaimed programs that are out there struggling.</p>
<p>I have told my daughter many times she needs to go into an MT program with her eyes wide open. Which she will. And I suspect many here have said the same to their children. They will go to college, learn a lot, learn about themselves a lot, and then they’ll take on life. Some with more success, some with less, some will decide on one career path, some others. As it should be. And as it is for pretty much any major you want to pick in college.</p>
<p>How did we come to be “justifying MT” on the “tired of justifying MT thread”?? Anyone else see the humor in this? I am nodding my head and smiling:-)</p>
<p>alibabba - Pretty funny right? I think you either get it or you don’t. And life is WAY too short for me to worry about the people who don’t get it.</p>
<p>Thank you, this thread has been hilarious. Years ago, in CO. I remember a few restaurants with questionable food, but getting a good production from students and first rate entertainment from all the MT’s. If you can afford to sink $$ for your kids dream, than go for it, at least my D just graduated, will be going to college with a math/physics background and IB theatre helped her from the pressure of maintaining a 3.98 GPA.
Hopefully , she will follow in her brothers footsteps BS Eng Physics/2011.<br>
My S graduated from a small school, debt free, internships in SE Asia, and now shale gas engineer, no Taco Bell or Mc D’s.</p>
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