When should I start the college audition process?
You’ve probably heard the rumors about college auditions from your friends. Maybe you’ve even played witness to the copious amount of spreadsheets, the seemingly endless prescreen filming requirements or the dreaded pile of essays that seem to never decrease. And, while we wish we could tell you that it’s not as bad as you might think...it’s probably as bad as you might think.
But, psssssst: we have a secret. A secret to help battle the stress and have a bump-free, maybe even enjoyable, college audition process!
The secret? Start early. No, seriously, start earlier than you think. Hands down, the students who have the best experience and strongest results in the college audition process are the ones who set themselves up for success by spreading out the multitude of tasks over a long stretch of time. The #1 thing we hear from former students when asked what they wish they’d known (and actually listened to) before going through this process is to start early and set themselves up to actually enjoy the journey. In doing so, you’re also setting yourself up to have more time to experience your senior year!
Being proactive in this process is the key to having a successful run of auditions. There is so much to do, and trying to cram it into the summer before your Senior year or, even worse, the Fall of Senior Year, is a recipe for a stressed-out, overworked, cranky Senior and lower odds of acceptance to your dream school.
So, when is our ideal time to get started preparing for college auditions? Ideally, Juniors should begin preparing for the process in the Fall or Winter of Junior Year. You’ll want to give yourself at least six months to pull together all of the various pieces you will need to complete this arduous process before it’s time to submit those first applications and prescreen videos in September. Here’s a taste of what you should be doing over the course of Junior Year to set yourself up for success:
Create An Initial College List
Coming up with your non-negotiables and creating a first go at a college list is an excellent way to kick off this process. You can slowly (and again, enjoyably!) research each school over the course of Junior Year and get familiar with their style of teaching, curriculum, and maybe even do some virtual tours. This list can evolve over the course of the year, but creating a framework and foundation is a great first step. Hop into an Initial Consultation with one of our college audition experts, Sarah Muirhead or Gigi Watson, to create a well balanced college list against talent, ability and academics.
Apply + Target Summer Programs
Your summer going into Senior Year should be used strategically - and Winter of Junior Year is when you should plan to apply to summer programs if this is in the cards for you. Senior Summer is an excellent chance to attend a summer program at a college that is an exciting one on your list or a program that will better help clarify for you what you want in a school (i.e. Conservatory? Liberal Arts? etc.) Some programs even allow their summer program attendees to audition for the school at the end of the program, which will take care of one of the many auditions you will need to complete! Curious about which ones might be a good fit for you? Chat with Gigi or Sarah, and they can help you target where to devote your time + energy.
Start To Pull Repertoire...Now
You are going to need at minimum upwards of 4+ songs, 3+ monologues (all with various cuts), a dance routine, a wildcard video - and the list goes on! The sooner you can start to fill these requirements in your binders, the better. Trust us, having a full list of repertoire that you can pull from will save you so much time as you start to get ready to film your prescreens. Remember, choosing the right type and balance of songs and monologues as you build your audition repertoire takes some expert guidance, as not every piece is right for the college audition purpose!
Make A Game Plan + Pick Your Teammates
Get everyone on the same page by having a candid family/guardian/mentor chat. Assemble “Team You” and create some concrete deadlines together that you all can abide by. Who will provide your recommendation letters and when do you need them by? Will your vocal coach be providing repertoire, or do you need an outside ear and help with selection? What will be the goal date by which to film prescreens and how does prep timeline factor into your family calendar for this summer? Will you do your fall/winter musical at school? Believe it or not, now is the time to start thinking through all of it.
See? We got this! The best way to brace yourself for the inevitable ups and downs is to be as informed and prepared as humanly possible. Give yourself the luxury of time by getting started now - we promise you’ll see better results in the process by starting early, and you’ll actually be able to breathe and enjoy your Senior Year! You may even enjoy the wild ride of the college audition process as a result too. :)
Ready to get started?
Register for our FREE Juniors Webinar on Monday, November 28th at 7pm EST! Grab your parents, your notepad, and your burning questions - we’ll help you kick off this process by providing a game plan for the rest of Junior Year and beyond.
If you are ready to make your individualized game plan, receive an assessment of talent and see what schools are Reaches/Matches/Safeties specifically for you - hop into a one-on-one Initial Consultation to get started on your college audition journey.
