Auditioning for SEPT 2018

A place to talk about full time schools and post 16 training.

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lawn
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by lawn »

Is there a reason you're considering not continuing with sixth form at The Hammond?
islandofsodor
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by islandofsodor »

She will audition but it's not automatic. The DaDa Funding insists that existing students audition in the same way as everyone else. So dd will audition there for a place & if successful will have a recall for funding & as the amount of funded places depends on how much those above you in the list need according to parental income it's an unknown entity. It would be foolish to put all her eggs into one basket.
kzgirl
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by kzgirl »

islandofsodor wrote:
kzgirl wrote:
islandofsodor wrote:Hammond don't offer dance classes to non full time students except for a one a month associate scheme which I believe ends at age 16. They finish at 6pm each night except for a couple of late classes for particular groups.

There is an excellent local Btec course near to where we live (approx. 45 miles away from Hammond) but it is a full time 5 day per week attendance course, I have already enquired and it is not possible to study A levels alongside it.
It must depend on where you live, DD was very fortunate to do her BTEC level 3 in performing arts and A Levels, she did Product Design and Psychology. DD got a double distinction for her BTEC and had dance lessons at her dance school and singing lessons with a private singing teacher obtaining a distinction in her grade 8 singing under the Uni of North London (LCM). I am very surprised there is no dance school at The Hammond in the evenings. Have you research the sixth form in your local schools?
Did your dd do the 120 credit Diploma or the 180 credit Extended diploma. With you saying she got double distinctin I wonder if it was the former as that one is equivalent to 2 A levels rather than 3 which under the old A level system I could see that at the right college it could be possible to combine with two A levels.

The extended diploma which is on offer on my area is equivalent to 3 A levels and under the new linear A levels very few students will study 4 a levels (usually only those doing maths & further maths) although some schools colleges still havn't quite decided yet how things will work under the new system.

Hi

DD is 21 in October, her double distinction is equivalent to 2 A levels. I didn'y know that the A levels had been changed.
TalyaB
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by TalyaB »

kzgirl wrote:

Hi

DD is 21 in October, her double distinction is equivalent to 2 A levels. I didn'y know that the A levels had been changed.
No more AS levels, so people starting off with four in Yr12, with the probable intention of dropping one in Yr13, will no longer apply.
2dancersmum
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by 2dancersmum »

"No more AS levels, so people starting off with four in Yr12, with the probable intention of dropping one in Yr13, will no longer apply"

Actually that's not strictly true and will depend on the schools as to if their students still take AS level. The difference is that the AS is no longer 50% of the overall A level grade. Instead the A level is examined at the end of the 2 year period and an AS is a separate stand alone qualification.


My DD is in year 12 and has just taken her AS exams. She took 4 subjects and three of them are stand alone qualifications and do not count towards the A level at all. Her school decided that they would still like students to take AS exams as they felt it would help give the students a benchmark on how they were doing and because the feedback they were getting from universities was that they liked to see something more concrete than predicted grades as they were considering offers. Whether this will continue in the future for all subjects, I don't know, but we were certainly told each school can make its own decision.
TalyaB
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by TalyaB »

2dancersmum wrote:"No more AS levels, so people starting off with four in Yr12, with the probable intention of dropping one in Yr13, will no longer apply"

Actually that's not strictly true and will depend on the schools as to if their students still take AS level. The difference is that the AS is no longer 50% of the overall A level grade. Instead the A level is examined at the end of the 2 year period and an AS is a separate stand alone qualification.
You're right, 2dancersmum. My DC's school is no longer doing AS levels, and I'd forgotten that doesn't apply everywhere. I can see advantages and disadvantages to both systems.
theMTAonline
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by theMTAonline »

Hi guys. Ever one to chip in :lol: Just a reminder, that if you're in a financial position to afford a training option away the 'degree circuit' IF your child is good (which I know is an awkward question as we all think that our children are brilliant right?), but if you really think that they stand a chance of a professional career, then look at your diploma options too. The degree might be more comfortable for you to think about as parents, however in reality the odds on your child succeeding as a performer are much higher by sending them to a vocational college. No casting has ever been done on a qualification, it's all down to getting into the room (which is easier with good agent representation), and then in the room it's down to ability/castability. . . hell it's even down to if they fit the costume sometimes. In other words in your child is struggling with the academic stuff, don't sweat it. Their route into the industry might be better defined moving away from a degree focussed course. I'll add again that I know that finances pay a huge part in this. . . in which case. . . stick those heads into books :D
This might help: https://youtu.be/qgX_C3vOlVA
islandofsodor
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by islandofsodor »

I think that so far on this thread mostly diploma courses have been discussed.

My daughter originally wanted to do A levels alongside going to a local dance school so that at age 18 she could consider both degree and diploma courses (Arts Ed, Mountview, Bird, Hammond, RCS those type of places) However she and her current teachers are concerned that she will not be able to keep up the levels she has already reached with what we have available.

What did bring things home to us about how precarious this can all be is that before Christmas she picked up an injury which meant she was off dance for a while and she was seriously worried about the future viability of her career as a dancer.

She has had the advantage in Lower School of having seen 4 years of previous diploma graduates come and go and get jobs/representation and she of course knows the calibre of teachers and exactly what the timetable consists of but who knows what will happen. Its also nice when graduates come back to visit and tell the current students that they don't realise what they had until they leave "I'm realising how well trained we were" is what a recent visitor said apparently.

But of course thereis also the feeling that the grass is greener and when you have spent 5 years somewhere since the age of 11 some want a change and so of course it is wise to look what else is out there,

It may be that my daughter, due to her previous injury she isn't quite ready yet and needs a year or two of preparation, how to get that is another matter.
theMTAonline
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by theMTAonline »

islandofsodor wrote:I think that so far on this thread mostly diploma courses have been discussed.

My daughter originally wanted to do A levels alongside going to a local dance school so that at age 18 she could consider both degree and diploma courses (Arts Ed, Mountview, Bird, Hammond, RCS those type of places) However she and her current teachers are concerned that she will not be able to keep up the levels she has already reached with what we have available.

What did bring things home to us about how precarious this can all be is that before Christmas she picked up an injury which meant she was off dance for a while and she was seriously worried about the future viability of her career as a dancer.

She has had the advantage in Lower School of having seen 4 years of previous diploma graduates come and go and get jobs/representation and she of course knows the calibre of teachers and exactly what the timetable consists of but who knows what will happen. Its also nice when graduates come back to visit and tell the current students that they don't realise what they had until they leave "I'm realising how well trained we were" is what a recent visitor said apparently.

But of course thereis also the feeling that the grass is greener and when you have spent 5 years somewhere since the age of 11 some want a change and so of course it is wise to look what else is out there,

It may be that my daughter, due to her previous injury she isn't quite ready yet and needs a year or two of preparation, how to get that is another matter.
Sorry to hear about your daughter's injury - I hope that she's recovering well. All reputable places would get medical checks done on her prior to acceptance, to ensure that she wasn't taking on too much. Then I believe that all of us that do a true triple threat course also do physio check ups now prior to training.

I think that graduate chats are invaluable. We call our grads ambassadors, and we have an annual ambassador PM every year, where graduates from the last 7 years come back to tell our current students what it's currently like out there, and how our training prepares them. Of course because we operate a college for life policy, we also have ambassadors in regular dance classes etc, so that message is hammered home loud and clear.

This is what I was talking about though - make the colleges explain and justify themselves to you. You after all are the clients, about to spend a large amount of money with them.
amo185
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by amo185 »

I am really interested to see where this thread is going and whether anyone can offer any more answers. The issue raised is playing on my mind too although we're coming from a different angle. My dd is not training vocationally yet but wants to. She wants to try when approaching 16, I want her to wait until she's coming up to 18. How can you keep up high levels of dancing between these crucial ages? How can you compete with those who have been training full time for 5 years already? She's 14 (Year 9) and doing reasonably well I think - Adv 1 ballet, Intermediate tap and Interfoundation modern. She also performs with a fantastic London based musical theatre youth troupe, including singing odd solos, and attends a local high performing academic girls' comprehensive. She is bright but does not want to do A levels as she says she would not be able to improve enough if sitting down doing academics all day. There are some great-sounding BTECs near us, but I am really not sure whether that's the direction to go in- and some appear to have quite a low level of dance, or limited dance. Some charge. Some are workshop based with west end performers. Some have in-house teachers. They are all different. Yet many have the same title - BTEC Level 3 Performing Arts. She'd love Arts Ed or Tring 6th form but we know those are financially out of the question. Urdang run a funded 6th form course but that's only worth 2 A levels. Why? We'd want the equivalent of 3 A levels. So I really do empathise with the posters. The market of MT providers seems saturated - almost out of control - but the entry level to the best known appears to be getting higher and higher too, especially in dance. A foundation course is expensive and afterwards you're left with no option apart from diplomas as your haven't got the qualifications for a degree. Then if you don't get funding, you're stuck. So I've no idea what we'll do but in the meantime I will become an avid and devoted NAPM reader and consider all the advice on offer, being grateful that we've a little bit of time on our side. Thank you!
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jasmine2
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by jasmine2 »

amo185 wrote:I am really interested to see where this thread is going and whether anyone can offer any more answers. The issue raised is playing on my mind too although we're coming from a different angle. My dd is not training vocationally yet but wants to. She wants to try when approaching 16, I want her to wait until she's coming up to 18. How can you keep up high levels of dancing between these crucial ages? How can you compete with those who have been training full time for 5 years already? She's 14 (Year 9) and doing reasonably well I think - Adv 1 ballet, Intermediate tap and Interfoundation modern. She also performs with a fantastic London based musical theatre youth troupe, including singing odd solos, and attends a local high performing academic girls' comprehensive. She is bright but does not want to do A levels as she says she would not be able to improve enough if sitting down doing academics all day. There are some great-sounding BTECs near us, but I am really not sure whether that's the direction to go in- and some appear to have quite a low level of dance, or limited dance. Some charge. Some are workshop based with west end performers. Some have in-house teachers. They are all different. Yet many have the same title - BTEC Level 3 Performing Arts. She'd love Arts Ed or Tring 6th form but we know those are financially out of the question. Urdang run a funded 6th form course but that's only worth 2 A levels. Why? We'd want the equivalent of 3 A levels. So I really do empathise with the posters. The market of MT providers seems saturated - almost out of control - but the entry level to the best known appears to be getting higher and higher too, especially in dance. A foundation course is expensive and afterwards you're left with no option apart from diplomas as your haven't got the qualifications for a degree. Then if you don't get funding, you're stuck. So I've no idea what we'll do but in the meantime I will become an avid and devoted NAPM reader and consider all the advice on offer, being grateful that we've a little bit of time on our side. Thank you!
Have you considered EDA in Hitchin? they are an amazing establishment who offer all sorts of courses at very reasonable rates, and they have a fab reputation on where their students go after (many with scholarships and DADAs) including Arts Ed, Bodyworks, Bird, Laine, Rose Bruford, Urdang etc...worth a look x

Good luck... we are coming out the other side of in now as DD is about to graduate from Bodyworks...but I remember how we felt at the beginning of it all..lol xxx
I believe that children are our future, teach them well and let them lead the way.......
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riverdancefan
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by riverdancefan »

My DS has performed from a young age but was always adamant as were we, that he should take A Levels, he has a good level of academic ability.
He had a great standard of vocational training in dance, singing and acting outside of school and reached a high level of attainment, still certain of the A level plan.

The long and the short of it is that he sat AS levels this year and has now left to take up an extended Btech 6th form place at Emil Dale Academy. The contact hours, reputation and feel of the place was SO important in his decision to leave 6th form.
He had been unsettled and unhappy for months really, a bit lost and a bit miserable. When we questioned him , it all came out that he felt he had made the wrong decision , he missed performing and wanted to train every day like most of his friends.
As soon as we talked and gave him our blessing , he was so happy we knew we had all made the right decision.

If he wants to do a degree he will have no problems accessing one academically.

I have learned that it's not a problem to make a U Turn if it makes your child happy, the intensity of training and competition these days means they cannot afford to be left behind and his happiness and contentment means more than my aspirations for him.
we have had to number crunch, take on extra hours at work , although he was lucky enough to get a good scholarship offer, it's thrown our plans out of the window, but hey !! as long as he is happy!!
This is definately the right decision for him.

So, BTech , A levels..whatever, as long it's what they want, you can do no more as parents.
Last edited by riverdancefan on Fri Jun 30, 2017 8:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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kzgirl
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by kzgirl »

DD is starting the triple threat degree at Chichester in September 2017, for everyone that was worried about contact hours at Uni DD has just found out her course has over 30 hours contact time a week. :lol:
lyndahill
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by lyndahill »

riverdancefan wrote:My DS has performed from a young age but was always adamant as were we, that he should take A Levels, he has a good level of academic ability.
He had a great standard of vocational training in dance, singing and acting outside of school and reached a high level of attainment, still certain of the A level plan.

The long and the short of it is that he sat AS levels this year and has now left to take up an extended Btech 6th form place at Emil Dale Academy. The contact hours, reputation and feel of the place was SO important in his decision to leave 6th form.
He had been unsettled and unhappy for months really, a bit lost and a bit miserable. When we questioned him , it all came out that he felt he had made the wrong decsion, he missed performing and wanted to train every day like most of his friends.
As soon as we talked and gave him our blessing , he was so happy we knew we had all made the right decision.

If he wants to do a degree he will have no problems accessing one academically.

I have learned that it's not a problem to make a U Turn if it makes your child happy, the intensity of training and competion these days means they cannot afford to be left behind and his happiness and contentment means more than my aspirations for him.
we have had to number crunch although he was lucky enough to get a good scholarship offer, it's thrown our plans out of the window, but hey !! as long as he is happy!!
This is definately the right decision for him.

So, BTech , A levels..whatever, as long it's what they want, you can do no more as parents
Reading your comment has made me feel more at ease about saying to my DD to go for it at age 16. She is quite capable of doing A levels and would probably get good grades but she wants to dance and perform and therefore is auditioning for entry in 2018. Hopefully she will secure a place at one of the colleges (with a DaDa) and if she doesn't at least she will have tried and will then go down the A level route and try again at 18. You only get one life so we feel, as her parents, that she should follow her dreams and go for it. Whatever makes her happy, makes us happy. :)
Robin64
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Re: Auditioning for SEPT 2018

Post by Robin64 »

riverdancefan wrote:My DS has performed from a young age but was always adamant as were we, that he should take A Levels, he has a good level of academic ability.
He had a great standard of vocational training in dance, singing and acting outside of school and reached a high level of attainment, still certain of the A level plan.

The long and the short of it is that he sat AS levels this year and has now left to take up an extended Btech 6th form place at Emil Dale Academy. The contact hours, reputation and feel of the place was SO important in his decision to leave 6th form.
He had been unsettled and unhappy for months really, a bit lost and a bit miserable. When we questioned him , it all came out that he felt he had made the wrong decision , he missed performing and wanted to train every day like most of his friends.
As soon as we talked and gave him our blessing , he was so happy we knew we had all made the right decision.

If he wants to do a degree he will have no problems accessing one academically.

I have learned that it's not a problem to make a U Turn if it makes your child happy, the intensity of training and competition these days means they cannot afford to be left behind and his happiness and contentment means more than my aspirations for him.
we have had to number crunch, take on extra hours at work , although he was lucky enough to get a good scholarship offer, it's thrown our plans out of the window, but hey !! as long as he is happy!!
This is definately the right decision for him.

So, BTech , A levels..whatever, as long it's what they want, you can do no more as parents.
I have 3 children who went to selective state grammar schools, 2 have opted for btec level 3 instead of A levels after achieving excellent GCSE results. One loved art the other performing. I have no regrets. They had friends who stayed for A levels only because their parents refused to let them do a Btec and they were unhappy.
A good level 3 Btec is accepted as equal to 3 A levels on any vocational type degree and often preferred plus you are probably more likely to get what you need for a course like GSA with the Btec - no exams to trip up on the day etc
Our DS is going to do A levels as he wants to do something science related.
Btecs are not perfect and not all colleges are good providers so I think it is good to look around but I agree with Riverdance - be flexible with plans.
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