Unified: List of Universities - Comments?

College Majors Theater/Drama Majors
1

<p>Here is the list of Universities at the 2012 Unified Auditions (at least it is what I found on the internet…will the list grow?). My S & I plan to look through the websites, etc; so please don’t think I’m asking you to do our research for us. But, any thoughts/comments/commonly known information about these schools, which might help us? What thoughts come to your mind as you look through the list? Would love to know what you know. Thank you.</p>

<p>The University of the Arts
Ira Brind School of Theatre Arts</p>

<p>Ball State University
Department of Theatre and Dance</p>

<p>The Boston Conservatory
Musical Theatre Division</p>

<p>University of Cincinnati
College-Conservatory of Music
Division of Opera, Musical Theatre, Drama, Arts Administration, Theatre Design and Production</p>

<p>Cornish College of the Arts
Theater/Performance Production Departments</p>

<p>Emerson College
Department of Performing Arts</p>

<p>The University of Evansville
Department of Theatre</p>

<p>The Hartt School - Theatre Division
University of Hartford</p>

<p>Ithaca College
Department of Theatre Arts</p>

<p>University of Miami
Department of Theatre Arts</p>

<p>University of Michigan
Department of Theatre & Drama</p>

<p>Montclair State University
Department of Theatre & Dance</p>

<p>Northern Illinois University
School of Theatre & Dance</p>

<p>University of Oklahoma
Drama and Musical Theatre</p>

<p>Otterbein University
Department of Theatre & Dance</p>

<p>Pennsylvania State University
School of Theatre</p>

<p>Point Park University
Theatre Department</p>

<p>Roosevelt University
The Theatre Conservatory
Chicago College of Performing Arts</p>

<p>Santa Fe University of Art and Design
Performing Arts Department</p>

<p>Savannah College of Art and Design
School of Film, Digital Media and Performing Arts</p>

<p>Southern Methodist University
Meadows School of the Arts</p>

<p>Texas Christian University
Department of Theatre</p>

<p>University of Utah
Department of Theatre</p>

<p>Viterbo University
Department of Theatre and Music Theatre</p>

<p>Webster University
Conservatory of Theatre Arts
Department of Theatre & Dance</p>

2

<p>Where did you find this list? Just out of curiosity-- it looks great, but I’m worried about it being a sight unseen.</p>

3

<p>This is the website for the National Unified Auditions:
[National</a> Unified Auditions](<a href=“http://www.unifiedauditions.com/universities.html]National”>http://www.unifiedauditions.com/universities.html)</p>

<p>Keep in mind that there will be other programs there as well who are not officially a part of the Unifieds but will be in the same hotel or in the area holding auditions as well. Just something you may want to keep in mind as you are building your audition list. I know Coastal Carolina University and Texas State University were both in Chicago last year - not officially with Unifieds - but holding auditions there as well.</p>

4

<p>Two comments:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>There are a number of superb theatre programs that are not on this list. Probably most of them will be auditioning students in Chicago at the same time as Unifieds, as austinmtmom stated.</p></li>
<li><p>I could be mistaken, but I believe that all of the schools on this list have Musical Theatre programs. There are some students who prefer to attend Acting programs at schools that do not have a MT program.</p></li>
</ol>

5

<p>Thank you. In fact, my S/ is interested in Acting; and, NYC is closer for auditions. Is that a generally true statement that Unifieds are mostly for MT? Appreciate all insight.</p>

6

<p>Other people could probably answer this better than I, but I believe that MT applicants particularly like auditions that are centralized with regard to time and location because of the very demanding nature of what they are required to do.</p>

<p>But everyone, just about, greatly appreciates the opportunity to audition during the period of Unifieds because of the huge savings in cost and time. </p>

<p>The Unifieds are not mostly for MT, although enormous numbers of MT students audition at them.</p>

<p>DramaMamma, I’m sorry I got mixed up and thought you were near Chicago. Being near New York is good because there are so many schools that are not so far away. We live an hour and a half from NYC, and my son did on-campus auditions at SUNY Purchase, Rutgers and Montclair State. He auditioned for Carnegie Mellon, Boston University and NYU/Tisch in New York City during Unifieds.</p>

7

<p>There are so many schools not on the list that show up and most take walk ins.So be prepared have a lot of resumes and head shots and time,one girl I know did not get into any schools that she applied at but the walk in schools she auditioned at took her and gave her a couple weeks to apply to their college.</p>

8

<p>The Unified Auditions provide a wonderful service to applicants who cannot afford to visit each school for their auditions. However, I would recommend that each applicant do their research and compile their college list according to the many important criteria that are discussed here on CC about theatre and musical theatre programs. Then, check and see which schools on your list participate in the Unifieds and/or offer regional auditions at the same time, or in other cities. I would not recommend doing it in reverse and making your decisions as to where to apply/audition simply because the school is on the Unifieds list.</p>

9

<p>Is there any advantage to auditioning on-campus, as opposed to at Unifieds or other regional auditions? I know TCU will only offer merit-based arts scholarships to those who audition in Fort Worth; are there similar provisions elsewhere?</p>

10

<p>TCU has one ten thousand dollar award but, I believe it is offered on campus.My daughter auditioned off campus was accepted on the spot and got a small amount of money TCU does not offer large scholarships. As for other colleges I believe they offer money where ever you audition.</p>

11

<p>Loads of students (and parents) appreciate the great economy of time and expense afforded by Unifieds where you can audition for a large number of schools in one trip. As a counterpoint, on campus auditions give you the opportunity to tour the campus, visit the department and see the facilities, meet students and get a more complete picture of the program and college life. In addition, spreading your auditions out over several dates at different schools (whether on campus or at regional auditions) enables you to sequence your auditions in a manner that enables a student to gain audition experience, make adjustments and be better prepared for schools that are higher on their priority list. Further, not having all your auditions scheduled for a single day or weekend minimizes the risk of illness or other vagaries of life impacting adversely on your auditions. There are numerous accounts on CC of students who relied entirely on Unifieds having a disaster because of illness. If you think about it, the audition season corresponds to the prime cold and flu season! Just some things to think about as you decide how to allocate auditions between Unifieds and individual college auditions on different dates.</p>

12

<p>I’m surprised at how few of the colleges on my daughter’s long list are going to be at the Unifieds. But it seems, from the conversation below, that many schools do hold regional auditions around the same time as the Unifieds. In our case, we live 2 hours from NYC, so I am hoping we can do as many auditions there as possible, on day-trips. I’m all for on-campus auditions if practical, but traveling around to more than a dozen schools is not only expensive, it’s really hard to schedule around work and school obligations. One of my kids did music conservatory auditions in winter 2010 and it was stressful for all of us to travel all over the country. Two of the auditions occurred immediately after blizzards, making travel hellacious for all auditioners. Twice, she was assigned for auditions at two different schools on the same day, and we had to request rescheduling. (Ironically, after all that, she ended up at the school that is closest to where we live.) </p>

<p>I do have a question about regional auditions. For music conservatories, there is a definite downside to doing a regional audition: you do not perform for the same faculty panel, but rather do a taped audition in front of an administrator. Often, the taped auditions are much longer. (Musicians prepare programs that can be up to 45 minutes but are typically only asked to play 7-10 minutes in a live audition, at the discretion of the faculty judges; an administrator will, understandably, tape a much longer portion of the program to make sure the panel will be able to see all it needs, even though in reality they may review only a few minutes of the tape.) So the regional auditions are draining, and you don’t get the same audience vibe as you do in a room with live judges. Musicians avoid regional auditions when possible.</p>

<p>Are there similar reasons for actors to avoid regional auditions? My impression, reading this board, is that the acting faculty does travel to auditions. Are there some schools that merely tape auditions for on-site review by faculty at a later time?</p>

13

<p>Glassharmonica, you don’t have to worry about the taping concern. Acting faculty members do travel to the regional/Unified auditions, and there is no reason to try to avoid them.</p>

<p>It sounds like after your experience with music auditions, this coming year is going to be relatively easy for you.</p>

<p>Although we also live somewhat near New York, we scheduled my son’s NYC auditions over two days during the period of Unifieds and stayed at an inexpensive hotel (the Wolcott) in New York rather than making day trips and/or having auditions scheduled really close together. If that would be doable for you, it results in much less stress on the student.</p>

<p>However, if there would not be a concern about missing school, and your daughter is used to popping up to the city on her own, and finding her way around there, a more spread out schedule of day trips might work.</p>

14

<p>I will just throw this one out there concerning Unifieds. On the positive side, it is extremely cost effective to attend Unifieds. We chose Chicago because there are three days of auditions. My S did eight auditions in Chicago. This year, most of the auditions were at the Palmer House Hilton. There were also auditions held at the Hyatt (5 min walk) which included BU, UNCSA, Purchase and a few others. NYU was not in Chicago if I recall correctly.</p>

<p>On the negative side, you are putting all of your eggs in one basket so to speak in the event of flu, illness, etc. My S was ill with a fever of 102-104 while we were in Chicago. We found out a few weeks later that he had mono. Fortunately for him, the auditions in Chicago netted him four offers of admission though it could have easily gone south based on his illness, the numbers of applicants, etc. He did interview on campus at a few schools - one in November, one in December, one in January - which we thought were much more informative and had less of a cattle call feel to them. </p>

<p>Hope this helps. My S is headed to BU in the fall (?just three short months from now) and could not be happier. This was an audition that occurred at Unifieds.</p>

15

<p>Hmmm. Sounds like a trip to Chicago may be in order, as it seems more schools hold regionals there than in Los Angeles-- and as I’m looking into CCC and DePaul anyways, might as well! :D</p>

16

<p>For “StrangeBro”: CCC does not require auditions for first-year admissions, but does for students pursuing the BFA after their freshman year. DePaul and CCPA are audition programs.</p>

17

<p>Right on, stagemum. I was aware of this fact, but it’d be a great occasion for a campus visit anyways.</p>

18

<p>Good luck, strangebro; we’re visiting those 3 campuses in July.</p>

19

<p>Thanks to all. Any school on the list jump out to CC readers as a noteworthy BA acting program?</p>

20

<p>Acceptance wise my unified auditions compared to on-campus ones were no different. </p>

<p>However the experience is very different. </p>

<p>I did 5 auditions over 2 days in NYC this year. It was my first string of auditions and a few went kind of roughly but overall it was a fine experience. Doing so many auditions in such a short time actually sharpened my audition skills and pieces even if they were not all my best auditions. I found out I actually enjoy auditioning, the lead-up is stressful but from the moment I stepped in the room I had fun. Plus the experience of auditioning in NYC was very exciting. </p>

<p>However as exciting as going from audition to audition in NYC was I much preferred on-campus auditions. You get a better feel for the school and may have a better experience. Some Unified schools offer information sessions but not all can (understandably so). At all of my on-campus auditions we had an in-deph information session and we got a good look at the facilities. I am from just north of Boston and we decided to do all of the New England auditions on campus. </p>

<p>My on campus Hartt audition was great. My parents were in an information meeting with the program head and I spoke with some students outside of it. I also had a chance to just sit at one of the tables put in my iPod and take in the building. The Handel Performing Arts Center is very new and beautiful. I actually pictured myself as a student. I felt like a student waiting for a class. My audition itself was not remarkable in comparison to my unified schools, I did my pieces and had a brief conversations with the auditors and that was it, I actually had a more personal experience auditioning with some of my unified schools. </p>

<p>I am attending Hartt in the fall and really enjoying being on campus to audition. However that is not to say my unified auditions were not enjoyable. One of my most personal auditions was with UArts at unifieds where my interview covered my dream roles, acting techniques studied, and even the ukulele. </p>

<p>Overall I preferred my on-campus auditions but I don’t think there is any difference between one’s “chances” at unifieds and an on-campus audition. However I recommend doing as many on-campus auditions as you can. </p>

<p>And also check each school’s audition dates, many are in NYC for unifieds without being “unified” schools.</p>