sualabama

That is so good to know, thank you. So, for NY unifieds that were the weekend of Feb 1st, my D should receive a letter soon indicating her current status?
We did receive a Course Catalog and Academic Interest flyer today, but no letter. Thanks,

UAmom

Sualabama - no it isn't Alabama though I wish it was now as we are freezing up here in Ohio!

UAmom

Sorry, about the confusion - I didn't mean wait list - just still being considered. MTaussie described Otterbeins procedure miuch better than I did.

doctorjohn

In the old days, we used to wait until March to notify everyone. That meant that my administrative assistant and I had to generate 300 letters in about two days after our selection meeting. We were paranoid about making mistakes, as you might imagine. We also realized that we were keeping a lot of prospective students waiting longer than necessary.

So we changed our procedure. We now release students whom we know we won't be considering at our selection meeting. It means a smaller group for us to look at more closely in March.

Students who auditioned for us in November and in January have received letters already, as UAmom described. Students who auditioned for us at the Unifieds in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles have not yet received letters. The selection team is looking at videos now, and we'll be reviewing them together next week and deciding whom to keep for consideration. Letters should go out by Friday.

After our last audition day--we have three more--the selection team will review the applicants we've kept for consideration. We'll look at the videos, review our notes, and put together the class. As I've said before, it's much like casting a show. There's no question that we could put together our class in 20 different ways, based on the talent that we've seen this year.

No later than April 1, we'll mail letters to the students who have been kept for consideration. Some will receive offers in Musical Theatre, and some in Acting. Some will be told that while we don't have a place for them in MT or Acting, we'd like them to come to Otterbein as BA Theatre majors, or Dance Minors, or Music majors. (We do these "redirect" offers based on our assessment of each student's talent and interests. It's one of the reasons that we interview all of our candidates.)

Some will be put on a waiting list. As MTaussie described, for every student we invite into the program, there's one person on the waiting list who would fill that spot if the student decides to go elsewhere. Several students from the waiting list will be accepted eventually--we don't have a 100% "capture" rate. No school does (although some come close, I'm told.)

Most students unfortunately will be told that we don't have a place for them. Does this mean that they don't have the talent to pursue theatre? Absolutely not. It just means that we didn't have room--or that we missed seeing the talent that was there, as we obviously did with UAmom's daughter. UAMom, please congratulate your d. on her callback to the Guthrie. It's one of the best BFA Acting programs in the country.

I hope this helps. Don't hesitate to post if you have more questions about our process.

NotMamaRose

Thanks so much for laying this all out for us, doctorjohn. It is appreciated. Nothing can take away the anxiety of waiting, of course, but it sure does help to know when to be looking for news!
As an aside, it was lovely to be able to meet you in person at the Unifieds after "talking" to you over the last two years here on CC.

hushinfazen

Yes, thank-you very much. Now I have another reason to stalk the mailman.

letsfigureitout

From a parent's perspective. . .it is great to have the kind of "feedback" that Otterbein (as well as a few other programs) gives following an audition. That is, it helps to be able to "move on" in the case of "rejection," or have a reason to be hopeful if your S or D is still being considered. The only things better are the "rolling admissions" situations. Funny, the schools that have ABSOLUTELY NO CONTACT with the students following the audition have seemed to "fade away" from conscious, ongoing (as in everyday) consideration! I suppose that will change come mid-March. . .

doctorjohn

NMR: It was nice meeting you, too. I just wish I had more time to visit when I'm on the national tour.

LFIO: Thanks for the note. I'm pleased to know that our new system is working. You all should know that we would do rolling admissions, if we could take 20 students in MT. But since we only take 8 or so, we just don't think it's fair to those who are auditioning later in the season. We're scheduled to see 86 MT prospects in March.

beachmom24

Dr. John, just wanted to say thanks very much for all the great information you share on these boards. Your insight has made the whole process a little easier...although still nerve racking! My son enjoyed meeting you in Chicago and was happy to know some sort of information would be headed his way end of next week...the waiting is just so hard and I wish all schools were able to at least let the students know if they are still being considered. Helps so much in the planning of where to visit, etc.
Anyway...thanks, again, for all your insight!

doctorjohn

beachmom: You're welcome. I just wish that there were a way to make this easier for everyone.

NotMamaRose

Believe it or not, doctorjohn, you *do* make it easier, just by posting on these boards. The way you share information so openly is refreshing, and it's clear to everyone who reads here that you actually care about these kids and *get* what they go through. That is appreciated by us all.

UAmom

Thank you doctorjohn about your kind words for my daughter! Anything positive that she hears now is very much appreciated! Her fear is, that she won't get into any program? And what would she do then? She does have a safety but has zero interest in attending there - so do we spend $30,000 to send her to a school she has no desire to go to? This will be a stressful month and a half until we hear back from all of the schools. On the other hand it has been a tremendous, character building experience that she will carry with her for the rest of her life as well as help to prepare her for the theatre world which is where she believes she belongs. I have also loved having the opportunity to spend all of these weekends with my senior daughter who will (hopefully!) be heading off to college in the fall.

beachmom24

UAmom...we've batted that around too. What happens if?? Is it best to go to a school and just get a year under their belts and then try to transfer or would a "gap" year be better where they train more at what they love and then try all this again next year? Very good arguments to be made on both sides. Hey, hopefully none of us will have to worry about it...but this long waiting period and the slow rejections trickling into some of his friends (who are very talented) is making it a question my husband and I keep thinking about
Congrats on Guthrie...very big step...best of luck.

DisneyDirector

My daughter did the audition rounds last year very last minute and was not accepted into any programs - she got into all of her schools academically but not the BFAs. She was accepted into a local college but her heart wasn't in it. So, we decided that it would be best to take the gap year, use some of the money we would have paid for college and intensify her training - classes, coaches, etc. Thus far this year she has been accepted into two BFAs and all of the 13 schools she applied to academically. It was definitely the right decision for her to take the gap.

beachmom24

Thanks so much Disney...I know it is different for everyone, but it is great to know that is a good choice. So happy it is working out for your daughter.