Office of Admissions Blog

by Lee Cioppa, Associate Dean for Admissions

I am always excited to see writings by current Juilliard students, whether it is in the Juilliard Journal, in our own blog posts, or in outside publications.  This year, there is an extraordinary opportunity to read online articles by a large group of Juilliard students and faculty – the shared studio of Heidi Castleman, Misha Amory, Hsin-Yun Huang and Steven Tenenbom.  The American Viola Society has started a studio blog, and invited this studio to be the first writers.

Now, don’t stop here just because you’re not a violist – there is an incredible wealth of information to be found regarding performing (which, to me, can be immediately translated into “auditioning”), working with an accompanist (which you’ll do at an audition!), effective practicing, and even stories about students taking their art around the world. It’s a true inside glimpse into the myriad aspects of being a Juilliard student, from what happens in a 4th floor practice room, to expectations as a performer, to the institutional philosphy of using your art to change the world.

So regardless of your instrument or major, enjoy!

By Monia C. Estima, Associate Director of Admissions 

You know that old saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”? One of its cousins is, “Well, we’ve always done it this way,” which can mean that obvious and helpful changes to something don’t happen because you keep looking at a thing from one particular point of view. What I refer to in this case are the Admissions pages for the Music Division on the Juilliard Web site.

There are some pretty standard questions Admissions gets on a regular basis, and we developed our Web pages with an eye to putting all the answers out into the Interwebs to better assist our applicants. Every summer, as I settle down to update the Music application pages, I concentrate on improving them. But only this summer (after 8 years at Juilliard!) did it occur to me that some extremely common questions were not addressed, at all, on our site:

1. Is it possible to set up a sample lesson with a studio faculty member?
2. Do I HAVE to set up a sample lesson with a studio faculty member?
3. Can I substitute “X” work for “Y” for pre-screening/the live audition?
4. Do I have to present the complete work or just a movement?
5. Where can I direct questions about the suitability of my proposed repertoire?
6. May I make changes to my proposed audition repertoire?
7. Do I have to be accompanied on my pre-screening recording?
8. Do I have to present the repertoire for pre-screening in the order listed?

I look at the above list and SMH*. Really, it didn’t occur to me before that these should be addressed on our Web site???

Yeah, really. Pretty lame, huh? My bad (as no one says anymore).

Well, the lameness is over: answers to all of these questions can now be found in our updated pages (you’ll know they’re the updated pages if you see “Admissions for Fall 2013” at the tippity-top of each music admissions page)! Because everything’s broken up by degree level, there’s not a simple way to provide direct links to things here, but answers to the above questions can be found as follows:

• 1 & 2: “Private Teachers” section of your degree level’s “Additional Information” page.
• 3 – 6: The expanded “Notes on Repertoire” section of your degree level’s “Pre-Screening and Live Audition Procedures” page.
• 7: “Accompanists” section, same page as immediately above.
• 8: “Pre-Screening Procedures” section, same page as the previous answer.

So, everything relevant to applying to the Music Division can now be found on our Web site.

(…I’m pretty sure.)

*SMH = Shake My Head

by DJ Pimm, Admissions Assistant

Do you know what fall means in the Office of Admissions at Juilliard? It means a brand-new school year, a brand-new application, and the excitement of guiding a brand-new group of applicants through our application and audition process. We understand that the fall can be a daunting time for those preparing to apply to college. So, as you embark on your voyage through the Juilliard admission process, it is our pleasure to keep you informed, organized, and hopefully stress-free (at least in terms of your meeting the correct requirements), with some key information about the process.

First off, you can find highly specific outlines of our application requirements, audition repertoire, and audition processes for all programs at each degree level by visiting the Application and Audition Requirements Web page. If at any point you have a question about your application, please feel free to contact the Office of Admissions – you’ll probably speak with me, and I’m more than happy to assist you!

Friendly tip: Be sure to clarify your concerns long before the application deadline. Excepting Playwriting and Artist Diploma in Opera Studies applicants, we must receive a completed application, pre-screening materials (if required for your major), and an application fee by December 1.

Next, you should be aware of some new procedures at Juilliard – especially if you’ve applied in the past.

1)      Over the summer we made a significant change to our pre-screening submission process. All pre-screening materials must be submitted online in a digital format. In past years we’ve asked for applicants to send us CDs or DVDs in the mail. In an effort to keep the application experience as efficient and painless as possible, pre-screened applicants must now upload each audio or visual file directly to an online account right from the comfort of their own computers. You should note that this procedure is true for all pre-screened applicants in all divisions. To check whether or not your major requires pre-screening materials, visit our Application and Audition Requirements page.

2)      In addition to the pre-screening requirement for BFA/MFA in Acting candidates who reside outside of the United States and Canada, we will now offer a pre-screening option for all Alaska, Hawaii and Canada residents. Actors who pass the pre-screening round must also attend a live first-round audition. You can read more about the Acting audition process on the Drama Division Actor Training Program Application and Audition Requirements page.

3)      International applicants to the BFA in Dance are now required to submit pre-screening recordings. The pre-screening round is optional for applicants who reside in Canada. As is true in Drama, all dancers who pass pre-screening must also attend a live audition at one of our Dance audition sites. You can read more about the Dance audition process on the Dance Division Application and Audition Requirements page.

4)      We’ve made significant changes to the English Language Proficiency requirement for applicants who do not speak English as their native language. If this applies to you, please be sure to carefully review the English Language Proficiency requirement for your intended degree program. It’s highly important that we receive the required proof of your English Language Proficiency by the appropriate deadline for your program.

Finally, enjoy the process. Indulge in a tour of Juilliard, check out the Visiting Juilliard Web page for a list of On Campus Events, or take a look at Juilliard’s Calendar of Events and consider attending a student performance. If you don’t foresee a trip to New York City this fall, we still have you covered – Juilliard offers a virtual tour!

As we bid farewell to yet another beautiful summer in New York City, the Juilliard Admissions staff welcomes fall with open arms as the application for admission to the 2013-14 school year is now open. Best of luck – we look forward to hearing from you!

by Mallory Portnoy, 1st year Actor

Final callback weekend.  For me, it was one of those weekends that is so special it sticks with you for years to come.  Since I now have the incredible opportunity of being part of Group 44, I will always think back on those two days fondly. 

I’m twenty-seven years old.  Received my BFA in Acting from the University of Illinois and had been making my way in New York as an actor ever since.  For many reasons I felt graduate school would be a really positive thing for me, so I started the audition process.  I auditioned a few times for all the top schools and didn’t get in.  I had almost decided to throw in the towel last year, but thought what the hell, I’ll give it one last shot.  Juilliard had never been on my radar, but a professional friend of mine was relentless when encouraging me to give it a shot.  I resisted for a while… Oh it’s four years, I’ll be so old when I get out… Oh I’ll never get in… blah blah blah.  Finally I came around.

The great thing was the fact that I had zero expectations going in.  In fact I had pretty much decided my professional career was picking up and I didn’t really want to go back to school anyways, but after my first day of auditions/callbacks at Juilliard, I was in love.  I remember being so proud of myself for letting go of all hopes and expectations through the initial audition process, which clearly served me well as I was fortunate to be one of forty amazing actors invited to final callbacks.  That’s when my nerves started to creep in… I felt myself becoming more attached to the idea of actually getting in, now that it was becoming a real possibility.  A distant dream was slowly becoming a tangible reality and I felt the pressure was on. 

I had heard what it would be like from friends, and it sounded pretty intense.  I also feared that awful feeling when you walk into an audition room and you see ten people who are exactly like you and you just sort of awkwardly see your competition right in front of you… I was creating all of these little stories and scenarios in my head and once I arrived realized it was nothing like what I had been anticipating.

First of all, if you’ve made it this far, you have experienced first hand that all the rumors about Juilliard are almost entirely false.  I’m mostly referring to the stereotype that Juilliard is incredibly pretentious/elitist.  From the minute you are greeted by the students, Kathy Hood, Jim Houghton, and the rest of the faculty, you feel totally taken care of.  They are so incredibly nice and supportive, but beyond that, they make it very clear how genuinely happy they are to get to know you and your work even better.  They also provide a ton of great free food, and who wouldn’t be jazzed about that, right?

The weekend went a little like this (and please bear in mind this was such a total whirlwind so I am trying to remember the specifics as best I can): We arrived early Saturday morning and were warmly greeted by the students and staff.  This gave us a chance to mingle with the other thirty-nine actors as well.  Then we made our way into the drama theater where Jim Houghton welcomed us and we went around and introduced ourselves.  They had every single person in that theater introduce themselves, which included many family members of young BFA candidates.  My friend joked it was like an AA meeting, but I was so blown away by how invested they were in learning about us.  After that we were divided into groups of ten, two groups went on a little tour of the school and two groups went in one by one to do their monologue and song for the faculty again.  Then we switched.  Classes that weekend consisted of Improvisation with Richard Feldman, Play with Frank Deal, Movement with Moni Yakim, Voice with Kate Wilson, and Singing with Deb Lapidus.  We also took home a short play on Saturday night for a text analysis class the next day and were fortunate enough to go see a fantastic musician play Saturday night, followed by a discussion.

Having the opportunity to learn from the faculty at Juilliard, even for two days, was incredible.  They are truly BRILLIANT.  The best.  Those who weren’t teaching were observing us, but never once did I feel uncomfortable, or judged, or “critiqued”.  On the contrary I felt completely at home and in my element, sharing this experience with this new group of actors and teachers. The best part was that I didn’t feel like I was auditioning, I felt like I had been chosen to be part of this incredibly special weekend workshop, which I really think is a testament to the faculty for making the classroom such an open, free, safe, fun place to let us just work and play and do our thing. 

The other great aspect of callback weekend was how available the current students were to us.  We had several panel discussions with them, one “behind closed doors” so to speak where it was literally just six current students with the forty of us, giving us the opportunity to ask questions we might not have felt comfortable asking in front of faculty etc., but in general they were just around to chat and answer questions and make us feel welcome the entire time.

The weekend is totally intense and busy and you work hard, but you also play hard.  You meet amazing people (the ones I met and loved turned out to be my classmates), and you have the honor of working with some of the best teachers in the world.  I think what sets Juilliard callbacks aside from other programs (at least grad programs) is that they truly take the time to SEE you.  Not just your abilities as an actor, but who you are as a person and who you want to become as a person and an artist.  From the moment you walk into that audition room from day one throughout your time at Juilliard, they take the time and the care to see you and help you grow.  That was very apparent to me at callbacks.  Other programs split the fifty people called back in half so each group only gets one day and doesn’t get to meet all the other actors auditioning.  I just think it’s such a lovely process at Juilliard.  It’s also so refreshing to look around a room of people and see truly unique human beings.  Juilliard isn’t trying to fill some weird acting school class quota with “types”; they are looking for PEOPLE, unique, intriguing, talented people from a wide range of ages and walks of life.

My best advice would be to absorb everything you experience in those two days; be present, live in the moment, be yourself, breathe, have fun, and enjoy what an amazing opportunity it is to be there and don’t lose sight of the fact that you deserve to be there, whatever the final outcome.  You’ll have an amazing time!

by Lee Cioppa, Associate Dean for Admissions

Talent.  Boy, that’s a tough word to explain.  Potential is another one.  How do we assess talent and potential?  What exactly are we looking for?  How do we tell in a short 15 minute audition whether there is the talent and potential to succeed at Juilliard and, eventually, as a professional?

“I know it when I see/hear it….”  A very common response, but doesn’t that seem vague and unsatisfying?  

A few years ago, I read the book “Blink” by Malcolm Gladwell.  Here’s how he describes what it’s about: 

It’s a book about rapid cognition, about the kind of thinking that happens in a blink of an eye. When you meet someone for the first time, or walk into a house you are thinking of buying, or read the first few sentences of a book, your mind takes about two seconds to jump to a series of conclusions. Well, “Blink” is a book about those two seconds, because I think those instant conclusions that we reach are really powerful and really important and, occasionally, really good.

You could also say that it’s a book about intuition, except that I don’t like that word. In fact it never appears in “Blink.” Intuition strikes me as a concept we use to describe emotional reactions, gut feelings–thoughts and impressions that don’t seem entirely rational. But I think that what goes on in that first two seconds is perfectly rational. It’s thinking–it’s just thinking that moves a little faster and operates a little more mysteriously than the kind of deliberate, conscious decision-making that we usually associate with “thinking.” In “Blink” I’m trying to understand those two seconds. What is going on inside our heads when we engage in rapid cognition?

In the book, Mr. Gladwell has a chapter on “thin-slicing”:  “There’s a wonderful phrase in psychology—‘the power of thin slicing’–which says that as human beings we are capable of making sense of situations based on the thinnest slice of experience.”

There are two concepts here that fascinate me related to auditions:

1. That faculty actually only need the time frame of an audition to “thin-slice”, or evaluate the talent and potential of an applicant; and
2. That there is a tremendous amount of information about an applicant that is gathered during an audition, but a lot of it is processed by the unconscious and evaluated through rapid cognition.

So back to “I know it when I see/hear it…” An artist with years of experience certainly does. But what are those pieces of information that a faculty member is unconsciously assessing?  Or another way to look at it: other than technique (for example, for a musician: is the applicant playing the right notes in the right rhythms and in the appropriate tempo? Is he in tune? Is her physical set-up on the instrument correct?) what the heck makes a difference?

Well, just as it takes an artist to recognize an artist, it can take an artist in words to articulate clearly the specific characteristics that define a talented individual.  Diane Ackerman is an extraordinary writer, and in her most recent book One Hundred Names for Love she writes about her husband, another writer (Paul West) after he has a stroke.  Paul’s stroke affected the left hemisphere of his brain, and he could no longer process language in any form, a condition called Global Aphasia.  Over a period of many years, he recovered even to the point of being able to write again.  However, Ms. Ackerman writes, “Since Paul was naturally creative, a wild and wooly thinker, it wasn’t really surprising that he balked at conventional speech therapy…Before his stroke, his brain hadn’t worked that way; that’s not where his strengths lay.”

She then proceeds to define creativity. And in reading her words, I came to a psychic full stop – here it was, what I had been searching for!  A laundry list of what it takes, of the characteristics of an artist.

And this is what she wrote:

…risk-taking, perseverance, problem-solving, openness to experience, the need to share one’s inner universe, empathy, detailed mastery of a craft, resourcefulness, disciplined spontaneity, a mind of large general knowledge and strength that can momentarily be drawn to a particular, ample joy when surprised, intense focus, the useful application of obsession, the innocent wonder of a child available to a learned adult, passion, a tenuous (or at least flexible) grasp on reality, mysticism (though not necessarily theology), a reaction against the status quo (and preference for unique creations), and usually the support of at least one person….

(My favorite is “useful application of obsession” – what else would you call the ability to practice your craft for hours and hours every day of your life?)

Can these things really be evaluated in an audition?  Certainly, you won’t see them listed as criteria on any audition form.  But here is where the “blink” comes in…I think that the answer is yes.  It’s not quite the first impression, two seconds that Mr. Gladwell refers to.  But over the few minutes of an audition – that “thin-slice” of all of the time, preparation, passion and determination that brought an applicant to that moment – so much more is learned than just what is seen and heard. It’s not unknown, it’s not mysterious – it’s years and years and years of experience that the unconscious mind is using to process and evaluate these characteristics that Ms. Ackerman has so brilliantly described.

I certainly knew it when I read it!

by Alex Jones, 1^st Year Dancer 

To my dearest prospective fellow students……..I never imagined I’d be writing something like this. Not so long ago, it was I sitting at that computer, dreaming, researching frantically, looking up YouTube videos of Juilliard dancers, reading blogs instead of doing homework, quickly changing the window back to Microsoft Word as my mom walked in so as to make her believe that I was actually doing something productive with my life. But now I’m here – exactly where I imagined myself being.

My name is Alex Jones and I’m now wrapping up my first semester as a dance major here. Here………..yeah. I’ve been asked to share my audition experience with you all. Hopefully it will shed some light on the situation you’re about to throw yourself into.

I came pretty close to not even auditioning for Juilliard. Why should I even try? Why waste a 50 dollar application fee on a school I’m not going to get into? Why build my hopes up just to be let down? Why do that to myself? I was pretty set on that idea, especially given that I had another program lined up for me already at home. But, well, you know how moms can be sometimes. And with some convincing from her and a mentor and teacher of mine, I finally gave in and sent my application.  

I had a relatively heavy dance schedule at the time. I was dancing at my arts high school, my ballet school, and rehearsing for two “Nutcrackers,” which rounded up to a solid forty hours a week of dancing. I used a solo that I had been familiar with for a year, so I felt quite ready on that front.  Due to my heavy schedule and partially due to my own stupidity, I also had a very injury-prone year. I, luckily, was at a brief moment of healthiness at the time of the Juilliard audition – between multiple severe muscular injuries in my left leg and a compression fracture in my upper spine. Call it fate, I guess.

The time leading up to my audition, however, was not nearly as mentally stressful as it was physically. I still had a rather pessimistic attitude going into my audition and was thus, not very nervous at all. I was going for the experience. I expected to get cut the first round, no matter how much preparation I’d done……and I had done a LOT of preparation. Even during the time when I couldn’t rehearse my solo full out, I spent a lot of time with my music – figuring out musicality, intention, and focus. So despite my injuries, I still felt prepared.

 I remember my audition day quite vividly, but I’ll keep it brief… 

San Francisco, my hometown. San Francisco Conservatory of Dance.  I’d never been there before. My mom giving me quick advice before I got out of the car. Me not listening. A lot of people (57), stretching and showing off how flexible they are in a nice big studio. Me in a corner, eating snacks and giving myself a pep-talk. Numbers: 17. A very small studio with no mirrors. Ballet class….simple and not too stressful except for Larry Rhodes , Risa Steinberg and Alphonse Poulin staring at you the whole time. Me falling out of a pique arabesque and swearing right in front of the camera that stands in an obscure corner of the studio. Modern.  Again, very simple. Me messing up a very simple rhythm and being out of order in line. First round of cuts – remember how I said I wasn’t nervous? Well I was now.  34  gone. When I heard Katie call “17” I felt like someone had just taken a two ton truck off my back. Solos. They make you stand in front of a camera and say some stuff. I mess that up too. They also flip the studio so you’re now facing the long direction, not the wide way. How am I supposed to travel? My ballet slipper flies off during my solo. Oops. Next cut. Nobody gets cut. Next round: coaching. A simple phrase taught by the lovely Risa Steinberg. That goes pretty well.  She gives some corrections and you repeat the phrase a few times. Last Cut. “How am I still here?” There are ten of us left for interviews. Of course, I now have to face the director of the program, Larry Rhodes. First question: How do you think you did?

Oh no……..

“Not too good. …..My shoe fell off.”

“Yes,” he says, looking up poignantly from his notes, “We took note of that.”

But aside from that one moment, I felt that the interview went pretty well.  It was, perhaps, the best part of the audition for me. I called my mom and told her the news. My acceptance call came about a month later, but that’s a whole other story.

Yet the truth is that not all of you who are reading this will get in. In fact, most of you probably won’t. That’s no big secret, it’s just the truth. You can’t control the outcome of your audition.  In my experience, you can’t really even control how well you do either. A lot of it is luck, or fate maybe. All you can do is try your best. Bring the best of you to the table and show it honestly, truthfully, sincerely.  Don’t try to change yourself for the sake of the program. They’re not looking for that.

And as far as advice goes…….I guess I’ll just say this. Keep an open mind. Don’t try to do stupid tricks after ballet class. Stay healthy. Listen to your parents and your teachers because they tend to be right, even when you don’t want them to be. Trust yourself, trust your training, trust your artistry. Don’t hope too hard, but also don’t be afraid to dream big – because if you don’t dream big, then there’s no use in dreaming at all….

But most of all, listen to the ads. Imagine yourself here. Because I’ve found that sometimes when you imagine something hard enough, it becomes real. 

Merde!

(good luck)

by Mary Chieffo, 1^st year actor

I spent much of my winter break last year in my garage with a punching bag, four monologues and endless trepidation.

When I returned to school in January, I entered full throttle rehearsals for the Spring Musical and review classes for first semester finals. I was, without a doubt, stressed to the max. I would go home after rehearsal and drill and drill my monologues – instead of counting sheep, I whispered the words of Antigone until my nerves finally gave way to a much needed slumber. I realized this was not a healthy way to function around the time I ripped a hole in the knee of my pajamas out of pure panic. That Friday I approached my drama teacher.

“Mr. Adell, I was wondering…well…I mean…I am really…struggling with…anxiety about…college auditions.”

Tears began to swell in my eyes.

“Sit down, let’s talk”

And we did, and my wonderfully insightful drama teacher reminded me that college does not define the entirety of my life or the overall value of my character. It will encompass much of the next four years, yes, but whether I become a success or failure is more dependent on what I do for myself within those four years wherever I end up physically. I decide what external forces can say about who I am as a person. If a school “rejects” me, that does not mean I am not worthy – it means that I am not the right fit for this particular year and class. So many incredible actors have auditioned for Juilliard Drama multiple times before they entered the program. I don’t think they let their first tries make them feel inferior enough to not try again.

My teacher also reminded me that the application and audition process are not a one-way street: the school is auditioning for you too. Maybe it isn’t the right fit for you right at this moment. Most importantly, my teacher made me realize that my audition was in the simplest way an opportunity to act in front of people who love and understand the profound beauty of theatre. What could be better?

So I decided to come in with the attitude that I indeed was auditioning Juilliard just as much as it was auditioning me. This mentality combined with the excessive amount of butterflies in my stomach morphed into a sort of false self-assuredness that could have been my demise had I not been exposed to the generosity of spirit emanating from Kathy Hood, Richard Feldman and Becky Guy at the beginning of my initial audition in San Francisco. They were everything I could have hoped for: from the moment the audition process began, I felt safe, appreciated, and at peace. Kathy was so gracious – she walked around the room shaking every single person’s hand, looking him or her in the eye, welcoming and acknowledging everyone for putting themselves out there. I fell in love with the program all over again.

It feels dangerous to fall in love with a program that you haven’t been admitted into yet doesn’t it? But there is something so exhilarating about knowing you would truly love to be a part of an institution because it appreciates all artists for their art as well as their humanity. This intrinsic sense of belonging and trust helped me reach a serene mindset I have experienced only once or twice before in my life: I would be satisfied with whatever happened that day because I knew I was going to give it my all and learn something in the process.

Because sure, eighteen people are selected out of thousands, but that still leaves eighteen spots to be filled – why shouldn’t you be one of them?

by Lee Cioppa, Associate Dean for Admissions

As I’m sure you all know by now, great ideas for your music-making can come from anywhere – your teacher (obvious), recordings, friends, hey – YouTube! and hopefully many seemingly far-flung places – paintings, a novel or biography, a snow fall…

When you are lucky, great ideas are handed to you on a platter.  In Juilliard’s case, a colleague at the Eastman School of Music’s Admissions Office wrote two wonderful blogs on audition preparation.  I’ve done some blogs on this (see February 2010), and if you go back into our archives you’ll see a lot of wonderful advice from students, alumni and faculty about auditioning.  But these blogs have some great, very practical tips – my favorite is to jog up some stairs to elevate your heart-rate and get short of breath, to mimic how you might feel when very nervous!

Many thanks, Christina Crispin – and to all of our music applicants, here you go, on platter!

http://www.esm.rochester.edu/admissions/blog/

by Max Woertendyke, 1^st year Actor 

Just over a year ago I woke up early, took a shower, got dressed, packed my lunch, shoveled the walk (it had snowed terribly the night before), and headed into the still cold morning to my audition for Juilliard’s drama division. 

I had been gearing up for this over the past month, and as I rode the subway up to Lincoln Center, I did my best not to let my nerves get the best of me.  I had worked hard on the monologues and song I needed for my audition and I felt confident in my preparedness.  None the less, it was impossible to not feel a little anxious; I found myself scoping out other commuters on the train trying to guess whether they too might be headed in the same direction as me.

Upon arriving and signing in, I was ushered to the 3^rd floor, where I was dropped off in what can’t be described as anything other than a holding pen.  There were about 100 of us in the room.  A room down the hall held about another 100 hopefuls.  A strange nervous, excited energy permeated the rooms – some people were goofing off and performing for anyone who would listen, some were running through their monologues in harsh whispers, others sat quietly and seemed to be working on staying focused and relaxed.  Current Juilliard students were there to answer any questions we might have – both about the school and the audition process – and I have to say that despite the odd energy coming from the auditioners (myself included) I was immediately struck by the warmth of current students.  I had expected them to regard me with a kind of suspicion and superiority, a kind of “So…you really think you can get into Juilliard…?” mentality.  What I found instead was an incredible openness and generosity of spirit.  I felt welcomed and encouraged.  It was the attitude of these students (along with the faculty) that helped make my day such a good first experience at Juilliard. 

The morning ticked by slowly – I was one of the very last people to go.  When my turn came, I walked into a room that I now know like the back of my hand, but then it was just a huge, daunting, white room, with four people sitting behind a table at the far end, including Richard Feldman, the associate director of the division.  I won’t lie.  Standing there, I was nervous.  It felt like this was the moment of truth, and I didn’t want to disappoint myself with a less-than-stellar audition.  I took a deep breath, gathered my focus and dived into my monologues and song.  And that was it.  My audition was over.

The next two hours, waiting for the afternoon call-back list to go up, were the slowest and most stressful of the whole day.  My monologues had gone well, but I couldn’t say they were a sure thing; I was hopeful, but not certain.  When the list did eventually go up, I took a deep breath, walked down the hallway and scrolled down the list of names.  At the very end, in alphabetical order, was my name.  I had made it to the second half of the afternoon.  The hardest part of the day was over.

The second half of the day was less nerve-wracking but proved to be an exercise in patience and perseverance.  A lot of the pressure to prove that I was good enough had been lifted and I was able to have more fun, but there were a lot of hours of auditioning to go before the day was done.  One by one we did our audition pieces in front of the entire faculty – about twenty-five people or so.  We were asked to write a short essay about a creative experience, and fill out some paper work.  We had group game time, where we played theater games, improv games, did movement and vocal exercises.  And between it all we waited: we talked to each other about our audition and where we were coming from, we talked to current students about what they liked most and least about the program, some people took short naps on the benches in the hallway to rejuvenate themselves.  We alternated between auditioning and waiting for a few hours until a second cut was made.  Of the twenty people that had been carried through from the morning auditions, about ten of us were asked to stay for interviews.  We were told that being cut at this didn’t necessarily mean you wouldn’t be invited back for the Final 40 weekend – but I was happy and relieved when they asked me to stay.  I waited some more, trying to fight off the headache that was beginning to develop, and finally around 10:30pm I walked into the head of the division, Jim Houghton’s office. We chatted for fifteen, twenty minutes about why I wanted to go back to school, what my audition experience had been like, about Abe Lincoln and Tony Kushner. 

After my interview, almost fifteen hours after I had first arrived at the building, my audition had finally come to an end.  I grabbed my stuff, said goodbye to the faculty and friends I had met over the course of the day, and started home.  It had been a marathon.  I was exhausted, but I had loved it.  I had felt so comfortable in the hallways of Juilliard.  I had felt at home, and I was hopeful that I would be invited back to the callback weekend, which would make this first audition day seem short in comparison.  I had had a great day…and now all there was left to do, was wait some more.

by Tina Gonzalez, Director of Financial Aid

Now that your application has been submitted, it’s time to start thinking about financial aid.  Most students are unable to afford the cost of college without some form of financing, and Juilliard students are no different.  In fact, about 90% of our students receive some form of financial aid, and almost 80% are receiving scholarship assistance. 

Here are a few key points to keep in mind during the next few months: 

Scholarship awards at Juilliard are based on a combination of financial need and merit.  This means that if you want to be considered for scholarship, you must complete the full application. Due to the School’s high level of selectivity, we do not offer merit scholarship.  We encourage you to apply even if you think you won’t qualify for need-based aid.  Although assisting students with need is our top priority, other factors also plays a role in our decision-making.

Financial Aid applications will be available in January 2012.  The Financial Aid application may be submitted online through a separate link on the Admissions Application homepage. We strongly encourage students to use this application method. A PDF will also be available on our website. 

U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents will also need to complete the FAFSA, using their most recent tax information.  NEW THIS YEAR: Use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool when filing your FAFSA to save time and reduce errors.

Finally, we require copies of the student and parent 2011 tax returns (or 2010 if 2011 is not available). International students must send official documentation of their parent’s salaries, such as a tax form or letter from their employer(s). 

The deadline to apply is March 1, 2012.  It is extremely important to apply on time to be considered for all available funding!   

Use the Net Price Calculator to estimate your potential financing options.  Beginning fall 2011, all colleges are required to include this tool on their websites. While this does not represent a guarantee of a scholarship offer, it may assist you in your college planning. 

Visit our website for additional information.  We especially recommend our frequently asked questions (FAQ) page and Facebook page.  If you still have questions or wish to discuss your specific situation in detail, we encourage you to contact our office and speak with a counselor.  We’re here to help!