<p>I cannot speak to the competitive nature of the audition / acceptance process. I can tell you that there are excellent programs out there that offer the B.A. and there are dreadful programs that offer a B.F.A. The nature of the degree offers nothing more than an indication of number of credits received within the major. There are no guidelines by which the designation of the degree is determined. N.A.S.T. (National Association of Schools of Theatre) does offer guidelines, but the majority of schools who offer theatre degrees are not accredited by N.A.S.T. </p>
<p>If you want to know how good the faculty are, have your student contact the acting teachers. Email them. Ask simple questions about training, about amount of time spent with students, what method(s) do they teach, etc. Also, have them ask what kind of professional work they do. Most of the best teachers will write back, and answer the questions. Teaching acting, for that matter teaching theatre, is about collaborative relationships. If an educator does not answer, give them another chance (production schedules can be brutal.) If they still don’t answer, chances are they won’t be that receptive in and out of the classroom either. </p>
<p>All websites are designed to accentuate the positive and hide the programs flaws. We all write them to draw in students. That’s why those emails are so important. I submit that the relationship between mentor and student are at least as important as the name of the school on the degree, or for that matter the letters that precede the major. You want to make certain that your student gets good training, and gets the opportunity to gain connections in the professional world. The first, is a bit of a crap shoot, and is difficult to determine. The second can be gleaned by the amount of professional work the faculty are doing. </p>
<p>Speaking to the students already in the program is extremely important. They know more, and have a better feel for, the faculty / student relationship. Talk to them at length. But you can always talk to the faculty, too. Call them and ask them questions, email them and ask them questions. The vast majority are happy to help. If they won’t speak to you, that should tip you off. </p>
<p>I guess I’ll leave you with this. You are less interested in what other actors have to say than in what directors have to say. Actors don’t cast, directors, artistic directors and casting directors do. Most will tell you that there are programs that are dependable (I will not name any of those) and will graduate students with a specific skill set. (They will also tell you that it isn’t the name of the school that got them the job.) </p>
<p>Directors are looking for good actors. I know that sounds completely simplistic, and probably maddening. Acting is an art form, and if I may paraphrase Picasso… “I can teach any idiot to draw, I cannot teach anyone to be an artist.” You are looking for a mentor to teach your student to “draw.” Each student is different, each teacher is different. The difficult part is getting those two things to come together. Check the relationship first. </p>
<p>I hope this helps. If it sounds like I’m advocating a B.A. over a B.F.A., I am not. There are excellent versions of both degrees, there are awful versions of both degrees. I have taught in both, and have students from both programs who are very successful and make a living in this rather difficult business. I also have students from both programs who have never made any money in professional theatre. So does every program. </p>
<p>Finally, please remember that this is undergraduate education. The overwhelming majority of college graduates never work in the field in which they obtained their undergraduate degree. This is very, very true of theatre students. The percentages are brutal. </p>
<p>(Oh, and that “percentage of acceptance” thing you mention isn’t really true. There are MANY B.F.A. programs that will take most every student that has even reasonable talent. Except for the elite programs - and there are only a few of those - the rest deal with numbers. They have x amount of faculty who need to generate x number of credit hours. Math and money dictate large incoming classes. The key of course, is what is “reasonable talent.”)</p>