CMU vs. NYU

[bwaybound133]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 4:40pm

just wondering which has the best musical theatre undergrad program?carnegie mellon or nyu tisch?

[Lavieboheme3090]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 5:55pm

Its really a question of which program is better for you.

[RENTingFAME]

Posted: 7/12/07 at 12:30am

Based on the research I've done, it depeneds on what kind of person you are. Carnegie Mellon has an amazing program, as long as you're not at all neurotic. CM has one of the highest suicide rates of all univerities... I'm personally partial to NYU, but that's just me. I would recommend just doing more research about each program and visiting, if you can. NYU has great information sessions/tours; I don't know about CMU. Good luck!

[bwaylvsong]

Posted: 7/12/07 at 12:35am

They're actually very comparable- both acting-based, but provide solid triple-threat training. The real difference is in size- CMU is smaller and therefore more difficult to get into.

[PeaceFrog]

Posted: 7/12/07 at 10:26am

Like the others said, it depends on what you want. The CMU MT program is considered a double major and is pretty much a pure conservatory meaning you'll do little except hone your craft. At NYU, you'll have a lot more conventional academics.

[LostLeander]

Posted: 7/12/07 at 4:30pm

Um, I've been at CMU for two years now, and no one has committed suicide in the entire school.

And I only know of one drama major who committed suicide, and that was in the early 80's. So, don't worry about that.

It's an intense program, though, to be sure. So, be committed.

[RENTingFAME]

Posted: 7/13/07 at 5:33pm

It wasn't my intention to be offensive or overdramatic or anything. That's just what I've heard from the woman who owns the theatre I work at, and she tends to know these things. Also, I know someone who got told in May that he wouldn't be allowed back in the fall and had a really hard time finding somewhere else to get into at that point, since he should have been told months earlier if he wasn't reaccepted for the following year.

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 7/14/07 at 11:31am

rentingfame, I have had friends at CMU for the past several years and have never heard of anyone committing suicide. It's not a good idea to pass along hearsay information like that when you don't know it to be true. Also, CMU does not have a cut system so the person you 'know' who was told he couldn't return obviously is not telling you the entire story.

Any of the top theatre schools are going to be intense and a lot of work, and it's true that if you're not totally committed, and prepared, it's probably not for you.

[j'aime_le_theatre]

Posted: 7/14/07 at 4:04pm

I swear to God all people do on this board is fight about what school is better...
Updated On: 7/14/07 at 04:04 PM

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 7/14/07 at 5:57pm

j'aime, I don't see anyone fighting, and, for the record, I'm a Tisch grad. :)

[bwaylover86]

Posted: 7/15/07 at 8:45am

A lot of schools are really great its really just your preference and which school you like the feel of better.

(And btw- NYU is the school that gets a lot of suicides, not sure if they were ticsh related or not but there have been a few)

[Leah Machelle]

Posted: 7/17/07 at 6:38pm

im actually looking into both colleges as well.

which one has the most successful alumni in the broadway field?

[feinstein9]

Posted: 7/26/07 at 2:50am

I don't think that's the best question to be asking. That's what I asked myself when I was searching for a college, and it led to me making a bad decision. I thought that because NYU had so many famous graduates that it must be a good school. Well, it is a good school in some respects. But I was very unhappy because I found all the people to be shallow and, for lack of a better word, fake. The classes were adequate, to be sure they have some excellent instructors. But I didn't feel the training was diverse enough, and that the other students took themselves too seriously (note there is a difference between taking your craft seriously and yourself seriously... I don't mean to imply they are the same). It's hard to train with over-confident and self-indulgent actors, so I left. Oh, and the academic classes are a joke (Writing the Essay? Please.) The hard thing about considering that school is that they don't let you "sit in" on any classes, unlike most schools. The good thing is, they take a lot of freshmen, and they do make you feel very welcome. That's about all I can say. They do have a summer programme for high school students if you want to check that out, CMU does as well. I know people who have done both and really loved it. And erinrebecca, I hope you don't take too much offense to any of this, because I'm betting you're a pretty cool chick and not like the many I ran into. All the best...


edit: I forgot to address my original point, which was that talent shines through! So if someone is already talented and goes through a great programme, you don't attribute all that to the programme, all though it couldn't have hurt! Updated On: 7/26/07 at 02:50 AM

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 7/26/07 at 1:50pm

feinstein, no offense taken. :) There are all kinds at every school and there were certainly people at Tisch whose company I didn't enjoy. The program worked well for me because I wanted to be in the city to take advantage of what it had to offer, the contacts to be made, the theatre to see, and the opportunity to work with many friends who were already in the theatre community there. Academically, I found NYU the right place for me because I double-majored which wss something I may not have been able to do at some other highly rated programs. All in all, I enjoyed my years there and I'm now a working actor so no complaints here.

[feinstein9]

Posted: 7/27/07 at 2:35am

Cool. I'm glad you did have a good experience, it seems like a lot of people do. Out of curiosity, if you don't mind my asking, what studio were you in? I think it's also really cool you double-majored, I can't imagine doing that given the studio and rehearsal time! I was also interested because it was in NY, actually all the schools I applied to were. And I'm still here, in school. Would you say that your status as a working actor was helped by NYU, in training or in contacts? That's one things I did like about it, the contacts. But alas... Peace out kids and follow your dreams.

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 7/27/07 at 12:33pm

I think the entire experience was of benefit to me, the training, the academics, and the contacts. I'm not sure I could pinpoint exactly which was most important because all three have contributed to what I'm doing today. I was in Atlantic, which I felt was exactly the right place for me, given my previous experience, my desires, and my needs. Sorry if this is boring to others but feinstein doesn't accept PMs which is how I originally attempted to reply! :)

[feinstein9]

Posted: 7/27/07 at 11:47pm

Ohhh sorry I didn't know I didn't accept PMs! I'll try to fix that. Thanks for you reply though, it's really interesting. ATC is a great studio so I'm really glad it all worked out. Success stories are the best kind. All the best.