<p>at northwestern, journalism and communication are two separate schools. there’s a reason why they are separate and many people confuse the two. check it out and maybe by looking at the way northwestern differentiates the two, she would get a better idea about where her interest really lies.</p>
<p>Oh well, now that we’re unglued from the East Coast, look at these websites:</p>
<p>Oberlin College and Conservatory (BUT watch out for Marian’s concern there),
in Ohio - great LAC, creative writing major, theater/dance department, but it’s got to be studied for available opportunities for music-loving college students. Don’t assume it’s impossible for them, as there are college-based activities and a music major within the LAC too, but it has to be questioned carefully there. She could take free private lessons from a conservatory student for college credit, but the conservatory faculty is reserved for conservatory students when it comes to PRIVATE lessons. The Con students are heading for work in the nation’s symphony orchestras, but the College is full of music-loving and music-playing people, too. It’s a rich environment for hearing and participating, but as Marian says, investigate those barriers with care. As a college student, she could take courses at the Conservatory, hear great music, and do some ensembles, but for l:l teaching she’d have to be content with a conservatory student, not a conservatory professor. Great to hear the student and faculty recitals, sometimes 3x per week, mostly for free, with unbelievable guest artists for big concerts. Very enriching! Oberlin’s theater/dance department is a serious, artistic atmosphere with good showing in college theater expositions. Again, it is studied within the LAC context, not as pre-professional training. For Communications, there’s no department but the opportunity to major in Creative Writing (portfolio competion at end of sophomore year) is there. Courses are very popular in all the arts, so it can be hard to enrol when a freshman or even sophomoore in some favorite courses. </p>
<p>West Coast: Chapman University in Orange, CA (near Anaheim, 40 min outside of L.A.); see the communications offering (TV based) in the Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, as well as the dance/theater offerings of the University. Newly consolidated departments, and a fine new performing arts center there. Compared to some LAC’s already mentioned, Chapman U is not as high-octane in terms of SAT expecations for the school in general. The additional audition/portfolio requirements of the creative departments can be quite competitive, so read up on each with care. Chapman (unlike Oberlin) really emphasizes a commercial entree into the working professions, which some embrace and others find compromising to their artistic goals.
I met some very smart women planning to go into TV journalism over at the Dodge College of Film, where my S is a freshman now majoring in Screenwriting and considering a second academic major within the university.
It;s got a less stress-filled ambience than some of the East Coast schools, at least among the handful of students I met during freshman orientation. Also, the sun always shines there. Check out airfare deals to Santa Ana airport or Long Beach airport (suburban) and you can avoid Los Angeles Airport.</p>
<p>I disagree with alwaysamom. The ability to sample music classes in most (if not all) situations is open to majors and non-majors alike. Might there be classes that are limited to majors? Yes, but that is true in the non-music scenario also. Might there be stiff competition due to the higher than usual quality of musicians (think Oberlin or Rochester)? Yes, but that makes it more fun! </p>
<p>To the contrary of her post–most LACs have distributional requirements that include the NECESSITY of taking an arts related class</p>
<p>Yes, but the arts related classes are often a lot more basic than this young woman would want.</p>
<p>Northwestern has outstanding Journalism/Communication and Music depts. Here is a link to the undergraduate divisions.
[Undergraduate</a> Programs, Academics, Northwestern University](<a href=“http://www.northwestern.edu/academics/undergraduate/index.html]Undergraduate”>http://www.northwestern.edu/academics/undergraduate/index.html)
USC has outstanding Communication [ Annenberg] and Music [Thorton] depts, [and I believe it has a good dance program
<a href=“http://www.usc.edu/academics/schools/am][/url”>http://www.usc.edu/academics/schools/am][/url</a>]</p>
<p>My D was a pre-professional ballet dancer and an excellent student who also wanted to major outside of dance. As much as she loved NYU, she ended up not applying after learning she would be unable to take dance at the level she was used to unless she was majoring in it. Back 4 years ago, their dance department did not encourage the double major option. Implications were that you might have limited performing opportunities, and other disadvantages if you weren’t seen as a “regular major”. </p>
<p>It may be different now–we’ve heard of things that have changed a bit at several schools she initially considered just since 4 years ago. Ultimately, she decided she wanted a program that allowed a double major (and was DO-ABLE) or a dance minor where she could also still perform.</p>
<p>Four years ago, Indiana University was a school that did indicate it was common for dancers to have another major (“Area of Outside Interest” they called it). I believe some of their policies regarding non-majors taking more classes, having a minor, etc may have changed since then.</p>
<p>However, it is true that it is brutally difficult to be accepted into the ballet program at IU. The year my D was in the hunt, they only took 10 new freshmen out of hundreds who auditioned because that was all the space they had…in the past they kept the number of dance majors quite small considering the size of the university. </p>
<p>It’s very important to look beyond the websites and contact the schools directly and ask all your questions. Knowing what I know now, I would have suggested she email/phone at least a couple people at each school. We also experienced differing answers, although well-intentioned, at the places where we did inquire. </p>
<p>Since some of these “rules” can make the difference between dancing at the level you want, or not, it’s important to really understand the vagaries of the programs.</p>
<p>triguena, I’m not sure what exactly you’re disagreeing with regarding my previous post. I never said that ALL schools handled their arts major classes that way, I said many, and many do! I gave the example of NYU because it has large populations of students interested in the arts, and one of my Ds is a grad. Sampling classes is certainly possible, but not the classes which a longtime student of music, dance, drama, film, or studio art will likely be interested in taking. That was my point. The girl which the OP was inquiring for is a talented musician and dancer who wanted to continue to take dance in a challenging dance program while majoring in journalism. She wouldn’t be looking for beginner/Open Arts type classes, which is all she’d be able to take at NYU.</p>
<p>Thanks again, everyone, for the helpful insights and suggestions. alwaysamom, your point about strong arts departments often limiting non-major participation is exactly what I was thinking, too. NYU is a prime example. Others we’ve come across, specific to dance, are U-M, Fordham (fantastic major but extremely limited options for non-majors), IU, etc. Throw music into the mix and it’s even harder to find possible schools.</p>
<p>At first it seemed to me that a LAC might be the perfect place for access to arts and communications classes across the disciplines, but dance, especially ballet, is often not a strong department at a smaller school. And the strongest communications departments seem to be in their own departments at universities.</p>
<p>I’ve spoken to the student in question, who clarified that she is thinking about concentrating on communications (esp. journalism), but wants challenging ballet classes several times a week. She’d prefer a good-sized campus (5K-up), and would love to be in/near a city. And finances are going to be a major factor - as they are for almost everyone, I guess. This girl’s mom thinks she’ll regret not pursuing dance more avidly - and she really is very good - but I don’t think anyone can go full-bore after ballet and her other areas of interest.</p>
<p>I think an academic/financial safety would be SUNY Buffalo, where classes in communication, dance and music seem to be open to non-majors, and there is good off-campus ballet instruction available. I’m putting together a list for her of the other schools that have been mentioned in this thread. And thanks again for taking the time to share!</p>
<p>I’m arriving late at this party, but wanted to throw in a few suggestions.</p>
<p>(This is with the caveat that I’ve looked into schools from a dance perspective rather than considering the communications programs…)</p>
<p>Chapman is unlikely to have a strong enough dance program for this person.</p>
<p>Emerson does not have any dance classes to speak of.</p>
<p>Ithaca is light on dance, but the instructor looks good, offers pointe, and has a separate school in town.</p>
<p>University of Miami offers only minimal dance, but I do believe the city offers options to take class.</p>
<p>Tulane appears to have a reasonably strong dance program, certainly offers more and longer classes than most.</p>
<p>Consider also Southern Methodist University and Texas Christian University, both in Texas. I believe especially SMU has a strong dance program with the opportunity to major in something else.</p>
<p>SUNY Purchase where the arts are incredible, but they also have a credible journalism program.</p>
<p>This is what I was addressing:
Let your friend know that at many colleges, classes in the arts - drama, music, dance, studio art - are often reserved for majors only.</p>
<p>My son is an accomplished vocalist who is likewise looking for a school with strong communications program coupled with the ability to participate in the arts but not major in music. I have yet to encounter a school where participation and classes in music were limited to majors only in anyway that would constrain his dual interests. Not surprisingly the schools at the top of his list are the ones already mentioned here: Ithaca, USC, Northwestern.</p>