Picking a course - HELP!

[whenwecanfly]

So I have applied to Drama school recently and it has come down to three options.

Option 1: LAMDA Fda Stage management and technical theatre. (Place)

Option 2: BOVTS BA Professional Stage Management (Place)

Option 3: GSMD BA Theatre Technology (Reserve list)

 

Can anyone tell me any pros/cons of any of these courses? I am at a total loss of where to accept!

 

THANKS

[kerry davies]

Matt, first I think you need to tell people what it is you want from the course, where you see yourself in five/ten years time and why on earth you would even think of leaving God's country to travel to pagan lands.... and pay dearly for the experience.

 

A little bit about your interests and hopes, what you find interesting about drama and what you have done thus far, that sort of thing. LAMDA is OK though I think Bristol is better because they are very disciplinarian but any answers you receive will be from biased perspectives because those who have experience of more than one are rare.

 

Yours, from the bottom end of nowhere. Lovely here, innit?

[Jivemaster]

Courses will be good if the meet your needs, the same course will be total poo if you don't want to do that.

 

Write down your 5 and 10 year plan and see which course will suit your needs. If you can AVOID spending 3+years getting into fee, accommodation and student life(!) debt then do avoid it. A year in real paid work as a junior will be regarded very well in your career.

[ClaireL]

+1 to thinking about what you want to get out of it.

 

I trained at Lamda, and it was the right course for me because (a) it was a 2-year course and I couldn't bear the thought of another 3 year course (I already had a degree), (b) it was massively skewed towards practical learning - no essays or dissertation to write, few projects, and almost everything was show-based learning with students doing an actual job on an actual show (albeit rather over-staffed shows sometimes, but when you've got a certain number of students you have to put them somewhere !), and © 2x 6-weeks chunks of the second year are spent on industry placement. More than half the jobs I've had since have been from contacts I got on placement.

 

BUT ... London is expensive. More expensive than you can imagine. And Lamda currently doesn't have it's own full-size theatre, so shows move around venues, eg Old Vic Tunnels, Lyric Hammersmith, Pleasance Islington. This is both an advantage and a disadvantage.

 

It's also worth being quite emotional about it. Where did you like the 'feel' of ? Did one place feel more like where you could fit in than another ? You're going to be spending a ridiculous amount of time working very hard during your training (or you certainly will at Lamda, I can't speak for anywhere else), and you've got to be happy there.

[bigminiman]

I have just accepted my place at BOVTS on the Three Year Pro SM Course. I did this for the following reasons-

1. It is a three year degree course which, if theatre life turns out to be not what I wanted at all, I have a degree.
2. From what I have see from this school and others, it is the most well rounded course so when you leave you are able to go anywhere and work. Regardless of the job, location or equipment because that is the level of training you receive.
3. I interviewed for GSMD: Costume and stage management and it was not for me at all. I didn't like the feel of the school and the course wasn't right for me.
4. Everything about the school when I was there made me happy.
5. Everybody I know who went there loved it and has not stopped working since leaving.
6. 100% employment rate.

To be honest, go with your gut instinct and go with the place that you felt most comfortable at, let me know if you do decide to come!