I am graduating high school this year, and am starting to narrow down college decisions and wanted to get some people’s thoughts on the matter, as I really haven’t come down to a deciding factor on my own. Right now these are my top 3 options:
Point Park University - B.F.A Musical Theatre with Fast Track Master’s in Business Administration or Marketing
DePaul University - B.F.A. In Acting with Combined Master’s in Marketing
The Institute for American Musical Theatre
My deciding factor WAS going to be a numbers game, but all come out to be around the same cost, give or take a difference of $2k-$5k/yr. As far as long term goes, I definitely want to perform/work primarily in Broadway musicals but am open to exploring Film and other options. Some of my other school options are UT - Austin and Baldwin Wallace University for a B.F.A. In Acting, but those aren’t as high on the list for me right now.
If any alumni have any insights, or any working professionals know anything about these programs and the students that come from them, I’d love to hear from you!
Are you instate for UTA? Is your family giving you $10k a year? Or a one time gift? Regardless, you can’t afford these colleges, sorry to say. You will not be able to get the money together.
I suggest you start at Community College and transfer after two years. Stay in state and attend a public university. Commute from home. Work as much as you can and save up.
Your career goals are fine. But you have to deal with reality. Your career plans are not going to earn you much, so you don’t want to start out with that much debt. We hear of adults all the time, grown people with families and mortgages, who are still paying off college tuition. You want to avoid that.
Thank you for the replies. I want to add at this time that all of my in-state schools in Texas have given me aid packages, and have had about the same results. (For example, UT Austin would cost me $35k/year). As for Junior Colleges, most of these programs only admit Freshmen to my understanding, so I would be unable to transfer in. Also, the $10k from parents and family would be reoccurring, and could potentially go up to $15k depending on circumstances. While I do agree that no situation is ideal, almost anyone I know pursuing the major that I am going into are paying anywhere from $25k-$40k+ to go to school, which makes me question if it is entirely impossible. Yes, graduating without debt/minimizing debt would be wonderful, but that is simply not an option for any of my schools I was accepted to, even in state. My major concern is with the programs and what I will get out of them, with cost being a factor, but with my options my greater concern is what program will best serve me.
Frankly? Nothing out of all of them except Bachelor’s degree, but no advantage for career in Broadway. I knew one person who could not afford anything after graduation and traveled all around country for some acting opportunities.
Further clarification! Sorry, I’m all over the place. If I was to attend IAMT, it would cost $40k/year, HOWEVER, the school itself would cost me $20k/year for 2 years, and the other $20k would come from rent, groceries, and other personal expenses. I have already planned a budget for that, and the cost of the school itself would be cheaper than my other schools if loan limits are an issue. DePaul would be $36k/year, not including the money from parents, and Point Park would be $48k/year with the same circumstance. Again, my concern is more the quality of the programs for the price points, not as much the price points themselves.
You say graduating without debt would be nice - but if you can only get $5500 the first year - how are you going to pay the delta to $36K? Your parents give you $10K and you still need $21K.
In any situation, I am going to have to take on private loans to help pay for my schooling, and I will also be working while I am in college to help pay for it.
Where are you getting your numbers from? You say that UT-Austin would cost you $35k/year. Looking at UT’s page on the cost of attendance, it seems as though you might be looking at the full Cost of Attendance numbers. Schools vary significantly in how generously they allot for transportation, books, and personal expenses. Thus, when doing a price comparison, I find it best to look at tuition and fees plus room & board expenses (sometimes referred to as direct-billed expenses). So, you say that UT is $35k, but I would call it $29k based on the above information. Looking at the expenses for DePaul in College Navigator, it looks as though they include about $8k in non-direct-billed costs, so perhaps DePaul comes out at $28k? So you’d be looking at $18k in loans for DePaul and $19k in loans for UT (i.e. after the $10k from your family is applied). Is that correct?
Did you apply to any other in-state schools? I suspect that if you got into UT-Austin that you would be likely to receive a scholarship at other in-state publics. Additionally, is your family PELL-eligible (i.e. eligible for a Pell Grant)? If so, Texas has some very generous programs that will cover all of your tuition and fees. In fact, at Tarleton State it would cover tuition and fees, a book allowance, and a meal plan (source).
As a frame of reference, these schools with musical theater or well-reputed arts programs have sticker prices about $4-6k less than at UT. When you’re trying to close a big delta to afford college, every dollar counts.
Sam Houston State: About 18k undergrads at this primarily residential college where 83% of first year students live on-campus. Sticker price of a bit under $24k (source).
Texas State: About 35k undergrads at this school that is classified as a commuter school but 85% of first year students live on-campus. Sticker price of a little over $25k (source).
U. of North Texas: About 34k undergrads at this primarily residential college where 77% of first year students live on-campus. Sticker price of a little over $23k (source).
And although it may be possible for you to take out private loans for up to $20k/year, I would consider it extremely inadvisable in your circumstances.
I’m staying out of the financial nagging here and answering your intended question. I don’t know much about the other two, but I do know that DePaul’s program is quite esteemed. They will set you up with strong contacts in the industry. There are several quality agencies in the city if you choose to stay. Additionally, DePaul is connected with Cinespace, so you will have opportunities to develop a film reel if you choose to focus on film (though there are loads of theatres in town if you prefer stage). Although their degree is not MT, their music department is top notch, so you will easliy get excellent vocal training there. Locally, there are several regional theatres, and a few of those even post their casting calls publicly, so even if you don’t have an agent, you may be able to audition while you’re in school (I know some schools don’t allow you to audition while in college, but I think DePaul might allow you to do so.). Hope that helps!
