Hey, students.

If you’re reading this, I’m guessing you’re planning to major in theatre in college (nice!). You’ve been working onstage or backstage in your school, possibly even outside of school. You know there’s nothing like that feeling when the lights go out and the applause starts. You’ve found your niche and want to make this your career.

Your parents are probably terrified.

And of course they are. They don’t know the theatre world like you do. All they have to go on is infographics of unemployment rates by college major, and bad jokes about what restaurant an actress works at. They have no idea what a stage manager does, what kind of living a lighting designer makes, or what job possibilities are out there for an actor.

If you’re lucky, they’re supporting your choice anyway. If you’re not as lucky, you’ve had to work very hard to get them to allow you to pursue your dream. If you’re downright unlucky, they may have even expressly forbidden you from going for it, forcing you to major in something with a more guaranteed high income career, not realizing that more money isn’t going to make you happy.

For that unfortunate third group, I’m really sorry, but there’s not much I can do to help except hope they come around. For the rest of you, the first step is to get into the right BFA training program.

That’s where I come in.

I’m not a monologue coach. There are already lots of those out there. I’m a former admissions rep for a highly-ranked BFA theatre conservatory program, where I worked for 12 years, meeting thousands of prospective theatre students and parents. I know this process and its pitfalls. At times, I’ve rolled my eyes at an applicant so hard I think I pulled a muscle; but conversely I’ve also sat back in my ergonomic chair, blown away, and thought “WOW.” As an admissions rep, I’ve seen it all.

My own undergraduate degree is in theatre, and I was a working theatre artist in a major city for 18 years. I eventually obtained a graduate degree in communications, and worked as a PR/Marketing freelancer for arts organizations and theatre companies in my city, uniquely qualified because I already know the industry and speak the language.

I’ve been where you are, where you want to be, and maybe even where you might be in the future.

At work, I often caught myself giving general college search advice to families visiting my program, just because I could see the mistakes they were making and I wanted to help. I also briefly ran a small online business editing application essays, but there was more demand than I had time for (between working in admissions and theatre), so I had to put that on pause. Throughout my years of experience I’ve wished that there was a guide out there, helping parents and students navigate the BFA application process in a way that makes sense, before the application ever crossed my desk.

Finally, I decided to create the guide myself.

Hey, students? If you’re reading this, you just met your new best friend.

-The BFA BFF