FefuFornes

Has anyone heard from Juilliard? I think this is around the time they start requesting interviews.

I think you made the right choice. Columbia is what, 300k? The most I've ever heard of them giving is maybe a tenth of that. I know this sentiment has been reiterated ad nauseam here but please DO NOT go into debt for a playwriting degree. I've seen firsthand what that kind of debilitating debt does to a person and it's not pretty. Most of us are pursuing an MFA because we'd like a creative career and having thousands of dollars strapped to your back for a decade plus will seriously derail those prospects. And it's not just the work that will suffer: a close friend of mine fell into a deep depression because of those loans, and it messed with both her relationships and her credit. All that being said, you should still be really proud to have gotten in! That's no small feat. Take it as a win and keep writing and sending your stuff out. I know it sounds silly to be saying this here but a playwright doesn't need a terminal degree in order to be successful.

My number one choice is Juilliard because of the location, the funding, and the chance to work with the Drama department. There's a lot of freedom in the program and it seems to be more akin to a high profile writers group which was appealing to me -- my undergrad degree was in theatre so I've already done the academic side (taking classes on theatre history, theory, etc). I'm a little disappointed that I missed the Chris Durang and Marsha Norman era but I've only heard good things about Tanya Barfield and David Lindsay Abaire. Unfortunately Juilliard takes their sweet time regarding decisions so I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that I make it to the interview stage.

Ahhh it feels like I just sent out my applications...is the timeline usually so quick? I wasn't expecting to hear back until the end of February at the earliest. Also congrats to everyone who got their apps in this cycle! First time I'm doing this and it was such an exhausting process. We all deserve a pat on the back just for doing the damn thing.

Hi all, Applying for the first time this cycle and wishing everyone luck on their apps! Just curious, does anyone know how many students Juilliard takes each cycle? I know other fully funded programs like Brown/UCSD/Yale generally take 2-3 students per year but I wasn't sure about Juilliard.