My Interest has changed... a lot

Colleges & Universities Stanford University
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<p>Okay, So for most of my life I have been brainwashed into believing that I should be a doctor. And I know that If I work hard enough and achieve the M.D. I would be happy as a doctor, but it’s not my “dream”. I recently decided I wanted to do something a little strange… Stand up comedy, Improv, and screen writing. Basically, I’m interested in being a creative mind in the entertainment industry. I know that my chances are VERY slim at succeeding… but It’s something that I know would make me happy- with or without financial success. I used to take acting classes as a kid but when I turned 12 I stopped because I wasn’t into the “drama” and “singing” of middle school and high school theatre.</p>

<p>I guess I basically want your guys’ opinions on whether or not Stanford is a school that could help me get closer to my dream. Are there other schools that might help me more than Stanford could? And how do I break it to my asian mom that I want to pursue something that probably won’t give her much to brag about to her asian friends? I don’t think a back massage and an A+ on a calculus test will help me on this one.</p>

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<p>Yeah Stanford can help you out. I know a few people going into showbiz, no whether they succeed is another question. Sigourney Weaver graduated from Stanford, and a host of other famous actors went and dropped out. </p>

<p>As far as theatre goes, there’s StanShakes (Shakespeare), Ram’s Head (two mainstage musicals and a one act compilation show per year), SImps (improv), Robber Barons (sketch), and the Theatre and Performance Studies Department (dance and drama, musical every other year or so). There are smaller groups too, like Flying Treehouse (children’s theatre), AATP (Asian theatre group, mostly contemporary and student work), and a few others I’m forgetting. As far as film goes, there’s Stanford Film Society (SFS) and they’ll watch films and help each other with individual projects. There’s a few screenwriting classes you could take. </p>

<p>Lots of people are involved in these pursuits at Stanford. I was rarely at loss to find something to get involved in. And if you interact with the drama department, whether through classes or productions, you will meet professionals with professional connections. </p>

<p>As far as the creative industry goes, you’re going to largely make it on your talent. For instance, many of the professional improv troupes require you to take a progression of classes, each one harder to pass than the one before. Prior experience will help out, sure, but it’s mostly going to come down to talent. That’s why it’s such a hard industry to break into. You don’t need a degree to go into those things, so it’s open to virtually anyone. </p>

<p>Now is Stanford as good of a school for what you want than NYU, or USC, or Northwestern? Probably not. But Stanford theatre is very democratic. You don’t need to be a theatre and performance studies (TAPS) major to be in one of their shows. </p>

<p>If you want to convince your parents, you could say you’ll major in something else (say, English) and do this other stuff as a side passion or double major. Of the people I know going “pro,” I would say about 4/5 are theatre and performance studies or film majors. Almost everyone in those majors goes pro, but only a handful of graduates each year major in TAPS or film.</p>

<p>Also if you want to go to Stanford, and you get in, you wouldn’t have to declare your major until the end of your 2nd year. So that gives you a lot of time to convince your parents.</p>

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<p>I think I would have been a more interesting applicant if I had written essays and shared the ECs that displayed this interest a little more. </p>

<p>Thank you for your response, It was really helpful!</p>

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<p>OMG. I’m in a similar situation. I also have a mom who wants me to be a doctor!
anyways,
If you don’t get into Stanford, which is SO SO hard, you should try USC. It’s pretty strong the areas you seem interested in.
Good luck.</p>

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<p>Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. In the comedy/writing biz, it’s not a question of accepting a lower income to do what you love. If you are not having a pretty high degree of success, you are basically making nothing. So unless you have a trust fund or parents willing to support you forever, you have to find a career that will support you, and find time for writing or performing on the side. If you do find success – not stardom, just success – you will do OK financially. That kind of success, though – meaning any kind of success, making enough money to live on – is probably somewhere between winning a Rhodes Scholarship and getting admitted to Harvard Medical School in terms of how tough it is to achieve.</p>

<p>And as for it making you happy . . . have you ever met a screenwriter, or a stand-up comedian? Those professions are not known for engendering happiness in their participants, even the most successful ones. The misanthropic clown and the depressed writer are standard cliches, but they are cliches with a firm grounding in reality.</p>

<p>Meanwhile, if you are going to need a day job, being a doctor isn’t such a bad one. There is a long tradition of physician-writers, from Rabelais to William Carlos Williams and Paul Celan to people like Samuel Shem, Michael Crichton, Robin Cook, Khaled Hosseini, Abraham Vergese, or Oliver Sacks, Lewis Thomas, Perri Klass . . .</p>

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<p>^That’s a good point. Unless you have some outside financial support or strike it big in a few months, you will have to find a “day job.” There’s really no other way about it. Wealthy people drive the demand for the performing arts, so most acting jobs you will get will be in expensive parts of the country (NYC, LA, Chicago, SF). </p>

<p>Yeah a backup plan is probably ideal. Lots of doctor-writers, as mentioned above. Also the Hangover Asian guy is a doctor. Just because you take a “9-5” job doesn’t mean you can’t create creativity in your life. Lots of community theatre. Also I think almost every professional improvisor has a “day job.”</p>

<p>Re the happiness point:
My cousin had a lot of talent, probably more talent in his left leg than you do (no offense, he was just the prototypical triple threat you see every day on Broadway and never was in a show where he wasn’t the lead). He took a summer job at a major regional theatre, and was convinced by the end he wanted nothing to do with it. Behind all the glitz and glam of the Hollywood and Broadway actors is everyone else. Acting is a demanding profession, and it seems pretty easy to be miserable with it. If you’ve done a handful of shows, you probably had one that you couldn’t stand going to rehearsals for. Now imagine that’s your job, and 1/5 of your job sucks.</p>

<p>I loved theatre, but after four years of it at Stanford I realized it wasn’t for me. A few of my very talented friends came to similar conclusions. A few still love it, but don’t have the talent/drive to do it for a living. And the rest go pro.</p>