@SoCalPops I understand that the process can be frustrating; however, equating “less demand” with a “red flag” because they “come up short in one or more significant ways” could be inaccurate. Less demand could be the result of a program being new or revamped, for example. They could be more of a regional program or have a new director. Additionally, even “top tier” schools (such as Ithaca, Otterbein or Texas St) could have unexpected openings due to travel issues, illness, or a variety of other types of cancellations.
Does anyone at Unifieds happen to know the names of the auditors in the BOCO room? Would like to send a thank you and haven’t been able to obtain contact info.
True! When we went through the process not to long ago, “top tier” schools had walk ins. I do not think it’s a red flag. I suggest each do what works best for themselves.
Texas State was taking walk ins when they could. shrug
We had cancellations on our schedule last minute because of the weather. Students who had prescreened for us missed their appointments because they were at other auditions - we saw them later in the day to accommodate them. We then saw people in those times instead of just sitting on our hands. So- take that all for what you will.
If reaching out, recruiting and trying to make OUR time as a school worth it is a red flag (it costs a LOT of money for school to be here)… then ok. Your prerogative to pick the school you’re interested in. 
College is a business. I don’t begrudge any school for taking the walkins, not for making offers to talent they like that whenever they find it. There are advantages to going early, doing the prescreens, applying early or in time, etc. I think the process favors the most prepared students. And the schools in the most demand are that way for a reason.
@socalpops thanks for the heads up! The good news about Carnegie Mellon is that there isn’t a dance call. That favors my son immensely.
@SoCalPops I categorically disagree that walk-ins indicate caliber of program. Like @alexaMT expressed-schools that travel want to see as many kids as they can. If I remember correctly, your D did not pass at least one prescreen: Some would argue that only prescreen schools are of highest caliber: And they would also be wrong. Lots and lots of parents & kids checking in here would be thrilled; given the odds, with an acceptance into any auditioned program. The schools “in the most demand” aren’t necessarily that way for a good reason: Perhaps they have one or more “success stories”; but perhaps those stories are from a decade ago. Perhaps they are an epic MT program; but not at all an epic Acting program. Or vice versa. That happens A LOT.
I hope that your daughter is accepted into; and pursues her degree at HER dream school- but that my be different than your dream school for her. And that may be different next April than it is today.
Have heard rumors that VB may not be at BW much longer - does anyone know anything? If she is not there, not sure the program would have the same appeal.
@onepercentmom oh that WOULD be interesting. Let us know if you hear anything!
Good luck to all you class of '23 folks! Walk-ins, no walk-ins let’s keep it in perspective. Too many kids and not enough spots! I was thankful for every opportunity, every passed prescreen, and every potential diamond-in-the rough program that came along. Every time I see one of those class photos from a “top” school and the entire class consists of 14 kids and 1900 auditioned, it hits home how very low the odds are.
Add to that the talented kids that somehow get shut out every year. We always said, “all we need is one”.
My D only did one walk in because she came down with a cold on Sunday and didn’t want to push her voice any further than necessary, but the one she did - she loved! The one other school she wanted to get a walk in was full and she tried back several times with no success. It was on her short list after the summer, but difficulties with the application (it’s Royal Conservatorie of Scotland) caused her to just say forget it and hope for a walk in at Unifieds Chicago. Now, she regrets just counting on a walk in opportunity because they were full. Lesson learned - she gambled on it and lost.
It was a roller coaster week for her - she didn’t love her first four auditions and got a little discouraged after Sunday and Monday. Schools she thought she would love she felt zero connection with. However, come Tuesday…it all changed! She loved every single experience from her first audition on. Hallelujah! I think it’s important to keep things in perspective. Not everything will go as planned, but keep going and keep a positive attitude. Things will work out as planned, and if you try to analyze or get frustrated over things you have zero control over, it’s going to be a long season for you.
So my D got the first slight of hand pressure email yesterday. One of her fall auditions that admitted her emailed offering a talent scholarship - great! And said she’d need to accept and commit by Feb 22nd to get it - not great! She actually likes this school and it is a possibility, but there are others she’s waiting to hear from that we know won’t have an answer before Feb 22…
@after89 - You should have until May 1 to accept any scholarship. The NACAC Statement of Principles of Good Practice, which almost all schools are part of, require schools to permit candidates to choose among offers of admission and scholarships until May 1 - and the May 1 deadline “applies to any academic major or special program to which the candidate has been offered admission” (see excerpt below of the NACAC rules below). I believe the part of the rule stating that this “applies to any academic major or special program” was added within the past few years, so some theatre departments may not be aware of the rule and still believe that the May 1 deadline only applies to offers of admission to the university, not offers for specific majors (the old rule) or talent scholarships, etc.
A good first step might be to contact the department and politely request an extension as the deadline approaches (I don’t think there is any benefit in attempting to address the issue at this point).
If you want to push the issue, you can contact the admissions office for the college, inform them of the situation, and ask them to intervene with the department. Admissions counselors should be happy to work out a solution to a problem like this.
@EmsDad Thank you very much for the information.
@afterp89 Agree with @EmsDad. At D’s DePaul audition info session they told us not to let anyone pressure us to make a decision before May 1- legally we have until then.
WOW @owensfolks @beachymom @EmsDad @toowonderful ( & others) lots of " legends of the musical theater CC threads" weighing in on this walk in debate . Thanks for constantly coming back & contributing…
@onepercentmom - credit this research to insomnia 
. Check out Page 320 of this thread…
So glad your D persevered past the no-connection auditions to the good ones @carriemc95 ! Now it’ll be very interesting if some of the auditions where there was no spark turn out to be “yeses”… It happens!
Congratulations to all of you finished or finishing up Chicago Unifieds - what a marathon! And BAL to all the LA Unified auditioners - I remember this time last year very clearly! It goes fast and it’s fun. Just allow time for traffic if you have to leave the LAX hotels… and if NYU is at Long Beach again know that the parents get a couple of hours “free” - it’s a pretty pleasant area to walk around.
Are these the MT programs with either a “recent change” (i.e., in the past couple of years) in MT leadership (director / chair) or where a change is rumored to be imminent)?
Ohio University (newly formed program - Alan Patrick Kenny)
USC (newly formed major - part of school of dramatic arts in partnership with schools of music and dance)
Wisconsin - Stevens Point (Joan Karlen)
Baldwin Wallace (rumored - nothing officially announced - about Victoria Bussert)
CCM (rumored - nothing officially announced - about Aubrey Berg)
@afterp89 My D was in a similar situation last year. She had a walk-in at Unifieds and they loved her. She was invited to attend an on-campus “audition” and was accepted shortly after. They told her that she needed to commit within 2 weeks of her audition or she would give up her spot. I called the school and talked to someone in the department and explained that she should have until May 1 to make her decision. She told me that they were looking for a verbal commitment, they did not require any type of deposit to hold her spot. This was a big red flag to us that they were requiring an early acceptance. It turned out that she did not attend that school and we are very happy that she didn’t. It was a great school, but no school should require you to commit before you are supposed to. Maybe just call the department and talk to somebody and see what they are looking for to hold her spot. Good luck to you and your D! This is a wild ride!
My daughter received an acceptance last month with a March 17 deadline. We didn’t argue the point at this time because we didn’t want to cause an issue, but she simply replied with a thank you, we will be in touch once a decision is made without agreeing to the date.