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I'm looking for insight into the process for all the performing arts disciplines, as I'm teaching a community education class for high school students interested in pursuing careers in the arts.

Are there strategies applicants use? If one isn't accepted into the school(s) auditioned for, is it common to audition the following year? How would a second audition influence the student's chances the second time around?

Also, does anyone have experience with students attending one school to do general/liberal education requirements, and transferring to arts schools? I have been told that some performing arts schools like North Carolina School for the Arts accept transfer students, but haven't been able to find any information on transfer students being accepted into the highly competitive performing arts programs. Most of the students I will be teaching the class for come from modest backgrounds, and so cost-containment strategies would be important to them.

Any discussion of the audition, application, and admissions criteria would be greatly appreciated. I haven't found many books which deal with BFA/conservatory training programs for high school students, beyond Arco's Performing Arts Major's College Guide and Princeton Review's Guide to Performing Arts Programs. I'm not particularly impressed with either of them. Does anyone know of other books which might be useful to my students?

By Calmom (Calmom) on Thursday, September 19, 2002 - 05:47 am: Edit

Janet,
I have a daughter who attends a performing arts high school, where admission is by audition only. I don't have direct experience with college level auditions, but I can tell you what I know from talking with others and something of our own experience.

First - every college or conservatory has different requirements. Some do not require auditions; with some the audition may be optional; with some the audition may only take be used for placement purposes after the student is already enrolled at the college. Some may require in-person auditions; some may accept video or portfolio submissions. It simply is vitally important for the student to find out well in advance what each college requires.

Second - if at all possible, the student should try to talk to others who have auditioned at the same school before. This should also be done well in advance. This will allow the student to get a more specific sense of what is going to happen at the audition, and to be prepared.

Third - preparation is key. I have heard some sad stories about students who simply showed up, unprepared, and really didn't know what would be expected of them. It's sad when this happens. I have seen a dancer struggle because she hadn't trained in the right genre for the audition (she had taken ballet and jazz, but the audition was based on modern dance forms); and a talented pianist fail because he didn't realize that in addition to showing off his best pieces, his audition would also require him to simply play scales. A vocal audition might require advance preparation of a classical as well as contemporary piece; at a theatre audition the student might be expected to have brought a prepared monologue. A dance or theatre audition might also require the student to submit photographs of herself; for example, ballet auditions typically require a photo of the dancer in first arabesque position.

Since every audition is different, you can't know without checking the information in advance.

Fourth - students with previous audition experience will do better than students auditioning for the first time, so if possible the student should audition in other contexts, just for practice. This isn't alway possible -- but the more auditioning experience the student has, the better.

And finally - all of this information should be in hand many months ahead of the audition, to give the student adequate preparation and practice time.

My daughter was one of only 4 out of 60 dance students accepted to her high school after the first audition. The school held several subsequent auditions - eventually about 15 students in all were accepted, some of whom had auditioned 2 or 3 times. The key was preparation: my daughter had worked with a ballet teacher in advance to prepare and practice a solo piece that met the school's time limits.

By txmom on Thursday, September 19, 2002 - 09:07 am: Edit

Janet - we will be going through the college music audition process this year with my son. Both parents were music majors, so we are pretty well acquainted with the process. Believe it or not, we began planning for this possibility back in the summer BEFORE 9th grade. Sent off for the music viewbook and audition info. for several schools we thought might be viable. Studied the requirements for both performance and music ed/musical arts auditions - scale requirements, suggested solo repertoire and orchestral excerpts. Then for the next three years my son worked up several of the suggested solo pieces with his private teacher. All of these were on our State-prescribed list for solo contest, so it was not extra work, just good planning. Calmom was right in suggesting that the student take every audition/performance opportunity available - music camp auditions, scholarship contests, church services, even talent contests will help with mental preparation.

Another very concrete suggestion for performing arts majors is to not only visit each campus, but try diligently to schedule a private lesson/consultation with one of the teachers in the desired field. This has proved valuable in many ways, and should give my son a little familiarity with some of the faces in the audition room. Like many things in life, most of the success lies in the planning and preparation. Hope this helps.

By Shennie (Shennie) on Thursday, September 19, 2002 - 12:40 pm: Edit

My son is currently a freshman at Eastman, so we went through the audition process last year. I agree with everything that is stated above. We, too, started looking at this when he was in 9th grade. Preparation is a must as well as having as much auditioning and individual performing experience as possible. Students who are interested in a career in the performing arts should give recitals and/or solo performances whenever possible.

Txmom talks about scheduling private lessons with a teacher at the schools students are interested in. In the people that I have talked to, I think this is a critical step that is often overlooked. Applying to a performing arts school is more closely related to applying to graduate school than undergrad school. In music anyway, you are often accepted by a specific teacher to study with them. Sometimes, you have to specify who you would like to study with. If that teacher is familiar with you, you will have a better chance of being accepted. Some schools will admit you first and assign you to a teacher later, but this can mean you end up getting assigned to a teacher who may not be a good match for you. Once a school accepts you, you can often talk to the teacher and get placed with the teacher you are interested in working with, but again, it helps if they know you somewhat.

I know you said that cost would be a factor for the students in your class. Even though they are quite expensive, students should seriously consider doing summer programs in their area. There are often scholarships available for lower income students so they should apply and hope they get money. Summer programs help them to get to know different college teachers, helps to hone skills, and gives them an idea about what "living their art" 24/7 would really be like.

Finally, students should try hard to be realistic about their talent and prospects. While they can try and shoot for the stars, they should also be prepared to apply to programs that they are also reasonably certain they will be admitted. Their private teachers should be able to help them come up with a list of schools where they could reasonably be expected to be admitted. If the private teacher is not able to do this, they will need to consult with other teachers in their area for advice.

When we visited Eastman, I asked the admissions counselor if he could reapply if he was denied admission the firt time. The answer was that they would consider him again, but he would need to indicate what he had done the past year to improve his skills before they would consider letting him reaudition. I would imagine this to be true of most of the major conservatories.

By txmom on Thursday, September 19, 2002 - 02:21 pm: Edit

Good post, Shennie! It's nice to hear from someone who has survived the process. One more good point - sometimes you can check the websites for the music schools and find the recital programs for their undergraduates. That's a good way to estimate what skill level will be expected and how your student may compare. Good luck to your son.

By Shennie (Shennie) on Thursday, September 19, 2002 - 07:49 pm: Edit

txmom - If you don't mind sharing, where is your son auditioning and on what instrument? Just curious. Mine is a cellist.

By txmom on Friday, September 20, 2002 - 09:19 am: Edit

Great - I'm married to a violist, sister-in-law to a cellist. Since my son's primary major will be engineering, he is not looking at conservatory-level schools. (I'm kind of relieved!) He will be auditioning on trombone for Vanderbilt, Northwestern and Wash U. in St. Louis. The latter is not a strong performance school, but he sure likes the teacher and would like exposure to the St. Louis jazz experience. I hate to be cynical as a lifetime musician, but I'm glad he realize there is greater demand for engineers than trombonists!

By Tom Calhoun on Friday, October 18, 2002 - 12:26 pm: Edit

Does anyone have this experience?? My son will be auditioning this year for fall admission at several university theatre programs in the Midwest. I am confident he will audition well as he has displayed exceptional talent as both a singer and an actor. However, he has not scored well on his ACT so far. His grades have been good, not great. He's taken the ACT twice with only average results. Has anyone found that theatre and other performance-based programs are willing to look past university standards with regard to test scores and grant admission, or award scholarships anyway?? I'd like to think that the fact that he's not a great "test-taker"
won't hold him back from pursuing his dream.

By Calmom (Calmom) on Friday, October 18, 2002 - 06:49 pm: Edit

Fortunately, there does not seem to be a particular correlation between quality of performing arts programs and academic selectivity of colleges. While there are of course many top schools with excellent theatre programs (such as Yale or NYU), there are also many excellent theatre programs at colleges and universities which are far less selective, including many state colleges. In other words, you don't have to be a star student to get into a good college theatre program -- you just have to find the good theatre programs which happen to be at colleges with more flexible academic admission standards. There are also some colleges which do not require submission of standardized tests.

I'm not so sure about scholarships; but keep an open mind about programs at public colleges, where tuition will be less. They have some of the strongest performing arts programs.

Good luck. I've just been starting to research dance programs for my daughter - she's in 9th grade, so I've got a little bit of time yet.

By D.ELS on Monday, October 28, 2002 - 01:43 am: Edit

Regarding auditions for voice (and perhaps musical theater), I'm wondering if it matters if I audition on campus OR if I attend a regional audition, in which I may audition for two or three schools in one location. Any thoughts on advantages or disadvantages?
Also, I am considering applying to a schoolthat is very far and does not offer regional auditions. I think it will accept a videotaped audition (although it is discouraged). I have a well-produced 10 minute video compilation of my performances. (Frankly, I wish universities would welcome such tapes because I think they show how well you perform in the kinds of venues you're training for.) Anyway--your thoughts, please: Should I try sending it or plan a trip?
Thank you

By megan eller on Wednesday, November 13, 2002 - 11:20 am: Edit

hi my name is megan eller and i just wanted to say that i am 14 yrs. old and i have been dancing for 3 yrs now at Miss Lisas Dance Studio and i am looking for summer dance programs to enhance my dancing career. I hope to some day own my own dance studio and share my dancing dream with other kids that have the same dream. well please e-mail me if you have any suggestion on dance programs that are in missouri in the st. louis area and are affordable thanks.

By Erin Benner on Wednesday, January 01, 2003 - 12:45 am: Edit

I am interested in attending a performing arts school in either Ohio, West Virginia or New York, hey, maybe even anywhere that will accept me, but i need to find one with screenwriting and acting(i plan on writing and starring in my own sitcom)
please help i am only 18 and i have no connections and this is my dream!
anyone who can help please email me
Lil_Big_Punisher2684@yahoo.com/