Halflokum, agree with your post #96.
Tramsmom…yes, that list has CAP21 as the MT studio at Tisch, but the size of NSB for MT is about the same as the size for MT at CAP21 in the past. I also think the acceptance rate for MT at Tisch has remained around 6%.
Tramsmom, the list of class numbers for various MT programs has been updated most years on this forum and it would be great if the current admissions cycle could yield updated numbers!
I would like a list similar to the one posted by @toowonderful from 2008 – but updated. Gonna give it a whirl.
Check out post #74 on this thread:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/musical-theater-major/1646310-2014-freshman-class-size-p5.html
I saw that one too- but though the number of auditionees would be of interest- again with NO idea where the numbers came from
A useful list includes how many audition, how many are accepted, and how many enroll (spots in class). To figure the acceptance rate (selectivity), you need the first two, not the last. However, getting the first two numbers isn’t always easy to obtain. Such numbers are available easily for every college as a whole, but not necessarily for the individual MT program. The class size is useful, not so much for understanding selectivity, but rather for determining if the size of a program meets your own college selection criteria.
In many cases the class size is pretty close to the number accepted. We are looking for current (as opposed to 2008) ballpark numbers. Everyone says total MT applications have increased by hundreds, let’s see if that’s true.
Wow I can’t believe some of those numbers were true even for 2008. The people at BoCo were very up front about their numbers a couple of years ago and the acceptance rate was 20-25%. That was directly from the source. They said they had to accept around 160 to get a class of 60 because so many turn them down. Doing the math that means approx 700-800 applicants.
^^Yeah, something seems off to me too about the numbers for BOCO. Even back in 2005, I remember the presentation saying they accepted 110 to yield the class (the class was either 60 or 80 at the time). But what I recall was sitting there (our final audition of the season) and thinking, wow, that is a 10% acceptance rate, higher than the other schools on D’s list (but surely not high!). I even wrote it down. Their acceptance rate was higher, but not because it was a larger program, as much as because their yield rate was not high. They had to accept far more than the number of spots in the class.
@Calliene, can you update the BoCo numbers on the MT admittance thread I started?
It is not clear how accurate the information will be given that a number of schools are limiting auditionees via prescreen. Assume two programs admit 20 students each, School A has a prescreen and invites 300 to a callback; School B has no prescreen and auditions 1,000 students. Statistically, it will appear School B is more selective when that may not be the case at all. Short of contacting the admissions offices and asking for all of the raw data (including # of prescreen), there is no way to answer the question accurately.
I took very careful notes. When my D auditioned at BoCo 2 years ago, they told us there were 776 applicants for MT, and they were going to accept approx. 140-160 kids to yield a class of 50-60. This was told to us by the professors at BoCo. Not rumor, not guesses. This is the exact number for two years ago. So yes, that’s an 18% to 20% acceptance rate, which is much higher than many of the other schools. BoCo is a great MT program…my D seriously considered going there. This is not a statement on the quality of the program or the quality of the students. It just simply has a higher acceptance rate, based purely on numbers. As does Rider, and NYU. They simply accept way more kids than do other schools. Period.
The cost of a school does reduce the pool of applicants. Just as the really inexpensive programs like Texas State see an increase because the value proposition is so high. In 2008 (for example) Texas State was not a player but now because of the combination of cost/perceived training it is likely top 5 in terms of hard to get into. The original OP asked about selectivity and that is what @monkey13 show with the numbers above. No one is saying NYU or BoCo aren’t great schools, they are saying that the numbers do not bare out that they are as difficult to get into (artistically) as some other schools.
Yes @evilqueen
@tramsmom, I can’t update numbers since my daughter did not choose BOCO. But Monkey13 got it right (can’t believe you kept those notes!) for 2 years ago. I remember hearing that and thinking, “Wow, chances are so good!” Yet when I was applying to college, a 20% chance would be a huge reach! I mean, almost 80% don’t get in!! Just shows how relative it all is, and how tough the odds are everywhere. And how nuts we all are. b-(
I have been staying out of this, but I will say that my son did not even apply to NYU because we were worried about cost and lack of financial aid. Also, yes, I think CCPA is easier to get into than the top programs (especially MT dance which has only been in existence for a couple of years), but it is a very good program in terms of training and Chicago theater connections. Also, last year I believe they made 25 acting offers and got 24 yesses, so it is entirely possible that there will not be as many offers this year.
I don’t agree that the cost of a school diminishes the number of APPLICANTS. It may indeed diminish the number of those that accept the offer of admission if they cannot afford to attend once FA packages are provided. If cost diminishes the number of applicants, then why do very expensive schools get a huge number of applicants? AND have very low acceptance rates?
Speaking of universities (not the MT program itself), the number of applicants has risen and the acceptance rates have gone down in recent years to expensive schools such as NYU, Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, University of Chicago, Dartmouth, Fordham, Northwestern, USC, Johns Hopkins, Tufts, and so on. These schools are not hurting for applicants and their applicant pools have not gone down.
Many factors go into college selection. For one person, a school may not be on the list because it is too expensive. For another person, the school may not be academically selective enough or too academically selective. For another person, the school may be in a city or not in a city and they want a certain setting. For another person, they may want to be within 500 miles of home and the school is too far away. Cost is but one factor in the college selection process. Expensive schools have no problem getting huge numbers of applicants and their applicant pools are growing and their acceptance rates are going down.
Jkellynh…MT programs that are “easier” to get into than so called top programs, are still very hard to get into and still also offer top notch training. Getting into any of these BFA programs is no small feat!
But also just the first of many hurdles in a successful theater career.
^^^So very true. This forum is focused on college admissions and the process creates lots of angst. But just you wait until your kid is out of college and the “selection” process is even tougher in this field. Oh yeah.