<p>I had plenty of schools contacting me, but that doesn’t mean they would have admitted me. I think that many schools send out info packets to students who score above such-and-such a number on the PSAT or things like that. I got plenty of correspondence from schools like Stanford, Yale, and UPenn, but I never thought for a moment I’d be a safety at any of them, even the one where I’m a legacy.</p>
<p>I know NYU did have regional auditions in DC, though I opted to audition in New York anyways, as I was going up anyways and wanted to take advantage of the almost two weeks of extra preparation time (Jan 17 in DC vs Jan 31 I think in NY).</p>
<p>Also, looking over my previous post, I realized that the reason I probably wasn’t admitted to NYU is that my audition just wasn’t good enough. I thought I did my best, but in retrospect, I recognize the errors I made in the preparation process. However, like I said, I am really truly quite excited to be attending USC.</p>
<p>To be honest, when I visited USC last summer, I was just kind of like, eh, it’s a nice school, I guess I’ll apply there. But this winter, I fell in love with it. (I know, the 72 inches of snow probably helped, but it’s not just that, I promise!) By the time I visited campus again in April (when there were actually students there), my mom couldn’t get me to shut up about it. I’m afraid I’ve become a little obnoxious. USC is a great university with a lot of really outstanding opportunities. I applied right out for the BA, I did not audition or apply for the BFA because I knew at the very least that I wanted to study musical theatre (and now I’ve added film as well, and with one of, if not THE top film school in the country, there’s really no better place to do so). When I was at orientation, I met a lot of people who had decided between NYU and USC who had diverse interests, from studio art to film to even theatre. I think there are a few reasons why most of them chose USC
-It’s the anti-NYU, almost–we have amazing school spirit and a beautiful campus, with actual campus life
-the alumni. The Trojan Family is incredible. I haven’t even started there, but I’ve already met Trojans out in the real world, working and doing what they want to do. Stark Sands (BFA class of '01) was nominated for a Tony and is currently on Broadway in American Idiot. When I told him I was going to USC in the fall, he said he was so jealous. Or I recently worked as a PA on an independent film shooting locally, and the second assistant director was a USC film grad who was amazing, and, according to my boss, one of the only reasons the film stayed as on track as it did. She was also really willing to chat with me during the (rare) lulls on set about her work and her life, giving me an idea of what it’s really like to work in the film industry.</p>
<p>USC also has a lot of amazing opportunities. After I was admitted, I received a folder in the mail detailing many of them, but I’ll just describe the two that stood out the most to me. USC has a database of headshots and resumes that the film school students can use when casting their films. So the first place many of them may look when casting their films could easily be your son. USC film students truly do turn out top notch work, and I think it would be a great learning experience for all involved parties to work on some of their films. Also, USC has a partnership with the Center Theater Group for internships, including performing internships. I remember reading that four USC students were cast in Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson as a part of their internship, and that show was just announced to be making a Broadway transfer, albeit not necessarily with the USC grads. However, that was the world premiere of that show, if I’m not mistaken, so those students had an incredible opportunity. Also, one thing I noticed about USC that they don’t necessarily advertise is that Jason Robert Brown (composer of 13, The Last Five Years, Parade, Songs for a New World) teaches there. </p>
<p>So I’m beyond excited about the next four years (which sounds like another Jason Robert Brown musical), and I wish your son the best of luck! I hope he chooses whatever school is best for him.</p>