What to do at 16?

[lynne]

Hi
I'm trying to help my daughter decide what to do at 16? She is very into MT, her strength is singing. Are the any advantages /disavantages of doing a foundation at 16 (like laines) or doing a Btec vs Alevels and then maybe a foundation year or straight to degree.Feeling really confused about the options and wondering what everyone elses experiences on here have taught them. Also if you did a year at Laines at 16 what did you do before degree, work? Really confused! Also concerned about the expense!

[jennifer1972]

We are in a similar predicament but my DD is going down the A level route, as for me they are a must and then she can move on to a MT course, be it a pre-voc and then degree or straight into a 3 year diploma and then top up to degree. She will finish her A level a year earlier than her peers and so would be too young to go straight into a degree. These are big decisions but there are plenty of people on this forum who have been through this and will be able to advise, not forgetting that all of these courses involve an audition and the competition is huge. Is she ready for that kind of pressure or would she benefit from a couple more years of preparation? Good luck with whatever you both decide

[Pearl]

Hi Lynne, my dd has just auditioned at 16. We didn't audition for foundation we just went straight for diploma. I think if you're not ready for the 3 year diploma then the colleges would possibly offer you the foundation course.
Your dd needs to decide if she feels ready to audition and have a go at 16. It's very competitive and some colleges are auditioning well over a 1000 pupils.

My dd was lucky enough to secure a few places but our back up plan would have been a btec at our local college, there is no way she would have wanted to stay on and do A levels but everything is personal choice. I would say that there are a lot more auditioning at 18 rather than 16 but if its what your dd wants then there's nothing wrong with having a go at 16.

[lynne]

Hi Jennifer 1972 and Pearl
Thanks for your reply.
Pearl, firstly I didn't even realise you could do a diploma at 16! Congratulations to your dd, can I ask where she is going? Does that mean she will be studying mainly with 18 year olds? and moving away from home? scarey!!
Jennifer1972, how come your dd is going to finish her A levels a year early? Haven't heard of anyone doing that before, she must be very very clever!What A levels is she doing? and what do you think she will do afterwards?
Also does anyone know if you can get funding at 16 for any of the courses, i.e.) foundation/diploma or even a loan from Finance England?

[2dancersmum]

My DD also auditioned at 16 - though she is more a dancer than MT. She did not expect to get any offers but wanted the experience of auditioning to know what to expect and what she was aiming for. Her backup plan (route she expected to take) was A levels and try again at 18. But she was successful and now 3 years later is just graduating and about to start her first professional contract.
DD did the 3 year level 6 Trinity Diploma. This is the vocational equivalent to a degree. It can be 'topped up' to a BA Honours degree by a year long course after the diploma, normally as distance learning when they are already in work.
At 18 you are aiming at either a BA Honours degree or the level 6 diploma. In many instances funding can be the decider. Student loans are only available for the BA Honours courses. The diplomas are funded by DADA which are awarded on merit and the amount is determined by family income. As far as I am aware all pre-vocs are self funded. This was never an option for my DD simply because we could never have afforded it.
It really is a personal choice of whether to audition at 16 or 18 as circumstances are different in each case - not just finances but also what is available locally. My DD could not have done a btec locally as there is none and post 16 have involved a lot more travelling for dance classes as she was beyond the level of local schools. She would have had plenty of opportunity for singing and acting though.
Basically you just need start researching different schools, courses and funding. There is a thread a few pages back in training called something like 'Definitive Ages that Colleges take from" in which Katymac compiled a good list of colleges, ages and qualifications at each. Looking up the Trinity Diploma in Musical Theatre for level 6 will also give you a list of accredited colleges for the diploma courses. Good luck with it all

[2dancersmum]

Incidentally there are a few colleges where you can still do A levels alongside the diploma. My DD took 2 A levels. The first year of her course was a common year before the year split into strands for dance and MT. Overall the numbers of 16 and 18 year olds was probably pretty even but there were some in her year who started at 19 or 20 and even a 22 year old.

16 year olds are usually on diploma courses which are either self funded or with DADA - Dance and Drama Awards. Some can get student finance but only for degree courses that accept 16 year olds - I think they are only dance degrees not MT as I don't know of any for MT. Not all students will be awarded a DADA as there are more places on a course than there are DADAs.

[lynne]

Hi 2dancersmum
Thank you for all that! Gosh it is so complicated! I think the main problem with doing a three year diploma is the funding. We really just can't afford it. I don't think we would be eligible for a DADA due to husbands wage, even though our outgoings are huge! ( Huge mortgage and Son at university also requiring help! ) I didn't know the were any degree courses that accept 16 year olds? However I doubt that my DD would get any offers for a diploma as her strength is singing not dancing! This is just so so confusing and I realise that I really do not have a clue!
All help appreciated!

[2dancersmum]

It is all very confusing. When you get the time you want to get yourself settled with a coffee and have a good read of older threads on here about the audition process. What year is your DD currently? MT is triple threat - singing, acting and dance and she would need do all three at an audition regardless of if it is degree or diploma. I notice Laines have an audition taster day coming up next October which would give you an idea of what is involved or keep an eye out for the taster day at The Hammond in Chester - they usually have a few between December and February. I choose those two as examples of large and small colleges and not for any other reason. Summer schools, workshops, open days and watching shows can also give you an idea of what different colleges are like and the MOVE IT exhibition in London in February or March each year can be a good place to go to collect information on a lot of colleges in one place aswell as view performances. Don't be put off by the fact that it is a dance exhibition - it is the same colleges for the most part and a lot of the colleges showcase MT.

[Pearl]

Hi Lynne, my dd is going to Urdang and was lucky enough to be offered a dada!
We are only 40 mins out of London so she will be commuting every day. We have 2 sons at Uni so without the funding it would have been very difficult.

2dancersmum is right in saying that at all the auditions you are required to dance/sing/act and your dd should be competent in all of these.

Different colleges are looking for different things so I think if someone was amazing at one thing and ok at the others they would possibly be given a chance.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do x

[lynne]

Hi,
Thanks both of you! DD is in year 10 at the moment, just finishing it. She was at stagecoach since the age of 4, but left there to go to Westend masterclass in central London about a year and a half ago. She only started ballet and tap last September so is very much a beginner but does do other comtempory/jazz dance at WEM. She is in the seniors class for ballet but that dosen't mean much to me and is not yet on point. The ballet is my real concern for the audition. She has Musical theatre grade 7 (82%) london college of music exam. I am not holding out much hope for auditions first time round anyway! I find it is really difficult to gauge what the levels will be like as one persons good is not the same as another!
I will look out for the Laines taster day coming up as we live very close to Laines, however their fees are horrendous for the diploma and as we wouldn't get any funding, completely out for my dd I am afraid! We did go to move it, but I still found it all very confusing and too much to take in. It seems that if you are well off you are ok, if you can get a dada you are ok but if you are in the middle, its just tough!
Thank you both for all your help with this minefield!
Lynne

[Pearl]

The dada scales have changed for Sept 2015 which has been really good for us, the top cut off is now £90,000 before it was £70,000 so things may change again!

Also alot of the colleges do internal funding/scholarships so don't rule out anywhere as this could be a possibility.

[lynne]

Hi
Really big thanks for that we thought the Dada cut off was nearer £60,000. That means it is a whole new ball game!! There is hope after all!!

[lynne]

Can I ask what the auditions are like. Do they have to come ready prepared with their own dance routines? Do they have to improvise a dance or do they just get taught one to perform? I bet it is not the later, as that would be just too easy! Also what about the acting side, do they just come prepared with a selection of monologues or is there more to it than that?

[lynne]

Hi
WoW, just looked up the Dada scale, things are looking a whole whole lot better! Thank you so so much for pointing that out to us!

[Katymac]

Each school havetheir own requirements (which can cahnge year on year) but generally you do a ballet class & a jazz class (the jazz class mayhave some freestyle or improv) a song and a monologue (or sometimes an acting workshop). Interviews, dance solos and physio checks dependant upon the college.

The song/monologue/dance solo are normally closely controlled but you can often make 2 songs/monologues meet requirements for all colleges.

Auditions cost (£35-£75 each) plus travel & hotels (& we spent a fortune on food)

I started many threads 2/3 yrs ago as I was in your position & upon rereading this spring most of what recorded is still true

Imade everyone write down what they knew about ages/qualifications/funding/entry requirements etc so other parents could use it like a (badly indexed) database...sorryabout the indexing you'll have to grab a glass & plough through.

I'm a great beleiver in spreadsheets & recording knowledge rather than word of mouth - so if learnt something by wom or pm I added it to a thread - enjoy reading