college visits in the summer? Spring Break?

mybroadwaybaby · 09-22-2009, 12:02 PM

Good Morning:

Our junior daughter is eager to see some of the schools that interest her for next year. Never having been through this before, am wondering if summer visits are helpful at all, or if it makes more sense to plan a run of places over Spring break.

i guess i should just solicit opinions about how helpful it is to visit prior to being accepted, etc......i now some folks seem to visit once their student actually gets in.

We certainly cannot visit every school......but have been considering trying to do some.

Schools on the radar are: Michigan, CMU, CCM, Otterbein, Penn State, Emerson, Syracuse, Elon, Purchase, Evansville, Muhlenburg, Chapman, Webster.

There are a smattering of straight theater programs mixed in with MT......and this is by no means "the list" as we are just starting out.

D is a high achiever academically with ok test scores so far........hardest course load possible, with a 3.8. She is in a competitive drama program, not a magnet or performing arts, but one with a full complement of courses and productions.....and is succeeding.

I would appreciate any thoughts on other programs that we might add as well as thoughts about travel.

thanks much!

*KatMT* · 09-22-2009, 03:39 PM

You will get the best sense of a program if you plan a visit when school is in session. Your spring break may not be at the same time as the university's spring breaks, so your spring break may be a good time to schedule a visit to some of her schools.

You could also visit a few in the summer. For most MT programs you will need to audition. Many of these auditions are on campus. Perhaps figure out if you think you will do a combination of on-campus and off-campus auditions (such as unifieds), and try to visit the schools you think you would audition for off-campus over your Ds spring break.

mybroadwaybaby · 09-22-2009, 04:55 PM

Thank you KatMt.....helpful advice.

xatty · 09-22-2009, 06:06 PM

My D did not make any visits prior to auditions due to time and money constraints (and, frankly, lack of organization!).

We decided to choose 10 schools to audition for. We figured 10 was high enough to increase the chances of acceptance without being too many to handle for auditions at unifieds. We did extensive research on the schools and programs (including getting a lot of invaluable info here on CC). In picking the schools we focused on those that had programs where my D felt she would get the experience she wanted and where my D's academics would be a fit. We then looked at other issues important to my D and got our list to 10 (the list started with about 20 potential schools).

After receiving her acceptances, my D picked her top two schools and spent a couple days on campus at each, attending classes, meeting faculty and students, and getting a real good feel for the program and school. Her choice was easy after spending those days "in the program."

This process worked for my D. I'm sure other ways worked just as well for others. I mention my D's experience because of what she told me after unifieds. She told me that at several of the auditions, other students would be talking about how this was their dream school and they were so anxious/nervous to do well at that particular audition (actually it was more like "I'll die if I don't get in here" or "I visited this school and it's so perfect for me I've just got to make it in here"). My D said she was really glad she was not that focused on any one school before auditions because she felt a lot more relaxed in all the auditions.

So, there are as many ways to do this as there are students out there. Good luck to you.

mybroadwaybaby · 09-22-2009, 06:25 PM

Thank you so much, Xatty.

You brought up a really good point.....one that would not have crossed my mind........need to add that into the mix of decisions! Gosh there are a lot of them coming up!

chrissyblu · 09-22-2009, 07:24 PM

I have to agree with KatMT. If you go when school is in session, you get a much better idea of what a place will be like. For example, Boston is a very different place during the summer than it is when the students are there. We first went with our D during the summer and the students were largely gone. She didn't like it so much. We went back during her auditions in November and the students were there...she loved it. First time she saw UCLA, it was a Saturday... not many students around. Not such a big fan. Next time, it was on a class day.. busy busy... she fell in love.

This is not an easy thing to do, but it does make a big difference. To get a sense of a school, you need to see it "in action."

We did not visit all her schools until she had narrowed it down to the four finalists who accepted her. But do keep in mind that some schools consider it a "factor" that you have visited the campus. It shows that you have a true interest in their school.

mybroadwaybaby · 09-23-2009, 12:48 PM

Thanks, Chrissyblu.....good idea.

onstage · 09-26-2009, 10:05 AM

Something else to keep in mind (as if you didn't have enough to consider!): it can be difficult to find the time to visit schools after acceptances go out. For my daughter (who is now a senior in the Syracuse MT program), acceptances came at a time when she was rehearsing for her school musical, and also preparing for AP exams. She had already done her school visits, many of them during her junior year. I do agree with the other posters who recommend visiting when classes are in session -- it can make a huge difference, and in fact played a big role when my D made her final decision.

By the way, if you have any specific questions about the Syracuse program, feel free to PM me -- happy to share!

NJTheatreMOM · 09-26-2009, 12:47 PM

Most schools (NOT all) are extremely accommodating toward accepted students and will let you schedule a visit on any day of the week to shadow one of the current students and get a really in-depth sense of the program.

(This is different from the "accepted students day" that is usually on a weekend. Those are nice but could be skipped in favor of the above approach.)

Things can still get extremely hectic in April of the senior year, but if you have one or two schools that it would be hard to visit earlier because of distance and finances, spending a day immersed in a program's activities as an accepted student could be the way to go.

mybroadwaybaby · 09-26-2009, 01:27 PM

Great thanks for all of your responses!

Onstage i will PM you about Syracuse....thank you!