Your son’s three choices where accepted are all great schools by many standards. But they are quite different. Taking in the larger scope where he has not heard yet, the schools are even more diverse. Perhaps you can hear from your son what his top priority is. If that is location (NYC), that’s a significant variable. Lots of kids are intrigued by NYC, but must also consider the cost to live and socialize there. For our kids, environment was important, but they weren’t so concerned with NYC since they knew they’d eventually be there after school. I will also say that we’re only 2 hours from the city, so it’s within reach from their hometown anyway. Their final choice school actually has a final semester internship in NYC where they wind up as a class in the city, living and working. Finances were critical for us. We explored previous years’ cost and projected increases, cost of off campus living options, etc. Finally, class size was also important with the option to specify extra training in dance, etc. Rider has developed a strong dance program to my understanding, Pace has specific dance programs as well, and Otterbein has a Dance concentration within an already strong dance MT curriculum. Of those top three, two share proximity to NYC. Class sizes are, Pace classes being much larger than Otterbein and I would think Rider is in the middle. Finally cost is significantly different. My understanding from a nephew who attended Pace is that costs after year one can be quite different and housing options shift significantly as well. What I can tell you is we have seen summer stock and tours including students/grads from almost all of the schools mentioned. They obviously produce strong performers who find paying work at their craft! As others have mentioned, I would suggest looking through the individual school forums to connect with folks who have knowledge about the schools and ask them to share their experiences as best they can. Your son can also talk online with some current students for some candid opinions Wishing you all well as you decide!