@penny1234, sounds like you and your D had a great experience!
My D and I are both fond of Arcadia. It’s a small, private school right outside Philly. The training there is largely acting focus, with great voice and music instruction. Dance is on the lighter side, but there are dance studios nearby. They are generous with scholarship money.
They bring in working actors from Philly to do some of the shows. And I think next year, they are doing 4 plays and 2 musicals, one of which is “Indecent,” which is on my D’s dream list to do.
My D and I both really liked Mark Wade, the head of the department and Aaron McAllister, who leads the music part. And, we both loved the students we met who were down to earth and kind.
And, the school has the #1 study abroad program in the country. A lot of schools like NYU, UArts, and other schools use their program for at least some of their abroad experiences.
Anyway, please PM me if any other questions and if I know anything, would be happy to answer
@WeRnutz- I get it! I never imagined how costly this was going to be! I do have to confess- had I known some schools that we paid for applications and prescreen fees early on were doing walkins—I would have maybe rolled the dice in hopes of a walk-in vs spending that…but we never would have known that right??
@WeRnutz it’s kinda embarrassing the amount of schools D applied to, and I was told it was the average for MT. She got through some prescreens and some rejected. I allowed her to do a few Walk-ins. The walk-in schools only gave feedback that she should get her application in to be considered. One school said the application/fee needs to be in by 5pm and you need to come back and show us a receipt. -This application included an essay. None of the schools said she was accepted but only that she get her application if she really was interested. There was no guarantee to any program but more like they gave an extended deadline and she is now in the pool of applicants. Hindsight, I wish we held on some prescreens and did walk-ins for financial reasons. Like get a feel for the people and if you like the vibe of the room.
@SoCalPops Texas State which is considered a Top tier school and has prescreens was offering walk ins yesterday and today. In general I don’t necessarily have issue with walk ins. I could see that some would be upset with schools that require prescreens offering walk ins. I also understand that the schools have already paid for their staff to be here and if all their slots aren’t filled for whatever reason, it benefits them to try to fill them. I have heard that some of the better schools that have openings had cancelations due to the pending ice storm, some people got early acceptances and have canceled as well. The schools are now opening those slots up.
I would hope like the Coastal Carolina rep said that schools are making walk ins pay the same fees as scheduled appointments and require an application before giving an results
To the people talking about Rider auditions a couple of weeks ago - my son auditioned with them today. I asked if they were rude and looking at their phones. He said that they were looking at his dance reel and had his prescreen in front of them… so perhaps that’s what they were looking at.
Thanks @NewToThis13 ! I know what a stressful week this is for everyone involved and I just hope we’re sometimes given the benefit of the doubt when things get crazy! I just did this process approx 10 years ago (yikes) so I definitely feel for the students and we want to give them a good audition experience no matter what.
@penny1234 I would echo everything @artandtechmom said about Arcadia. My D did an on campus audition during a campus tour and loved the session with Professor Wade and the current students. We also saw a show, and while the space was fairly small, it was very well done. And if study abroad is an interest, it is huge there.
I may not understand your story entirely…did your son say “no thanks” in the room directly to the auditors? or just his general feeling and he canceled it outside?
Would just caution that saying that in the room might not be the wisest (even if warranted?) only bc the business is very small…the school directors all talk to each other and could say “guess what one kid did to us today?” and they say “which kid?” then from there on not too good…just err on side of caution thats all. I’m sure your son handled himself well just maybe good antidote to remember.
Same as when in the city they say no “elevator” talk b/c the director/ directors g’friend etc could be right there in the elevator with ya. Used to tell my kids no talk until we get to the car/subway.
Ithaca audition for my daughter today. This year 1900 applicants. 16 spots. So 0.8%. And probably lower for girls. Holy cow. Definitely need to keep perspective on some of these “reach” schools and have backup plans. Although we visited and loved Ithaca…I think she’d have a much better chance of getting into Cornell than Ithaca MT! But sending her positive vibes anyway!
@canadad The numbers are actually better than 0.8%. For 18 spots they admit more, because not everyone takes the admission. Just guessing, but they probably take somewhere between 25-50 to fill those 18 seats. Also Ithaca prescreens. So they probably only live audition 400-800 (again, just an educated guess). So once past prescreen, odds might be as high as 10%+.
Attaboy, @Kristiern1’s S! My D only had one audition she didn’t like but she really didn’t like it - it was for Acting and she felt the auditioners were hostile from the get-go, patently insincere (poor actors, lol) and the interview was just plain strange. It was the only school in her “won’t go even if admitted” pile. In general I wouldn’t write off a school for one bad encounter but sometimes you just know that there’s not a fit. I get that schools need to be efficient and I don’t blame the auditors for not being friendly but basic kindness and respect within those limits is not that hard and should be a requirement when you’re auditioning high school students. They worked hard to get here - they deserve that much.
