If I don't get into Drama School Re-post

Hi there again!
Hope everyone is enjoying the b-e-a-utiful weather that we are having here this Easter weekend.
Sorry for not posting in a while, I'm having to revise like mad so have had no time in writing for a while.
Anyway this is post a re-posting from the brilliant blog Acting Coach Scotland, which is headed up by a guy called Mark Westbrook (who claims to be a massive guru in all acting woes).
And I was reading through it recently and this particular article caught my eye.
A word of caution - Although this guy is rather convincing with his arguments, keep in mind that this is just one guy's opinion and you can (like I have done in the past) disagree with such advice.
Hope you enjoy it,
Terri ;D x


If I don’t get into Drama School

If you want to be a professional actor, the most common entry point into the profession is by attending a high quality accredited acting school.

But what if you failed to secure your place on one of these acting courses this year? What can you do?

ONE: GET REAL – Give yourself a reality check about just how hard it is to get a place at drama school. It’s harder than ever to get a coveted place at a prestigious UK drama school. Recent studies show that it’s harder to get into a British drama school (1 in 7) than it is to enter Oxbridge (Oxford/Cambridge is 1 in 4). If you want to get a place at drama school, you have to accept that the competition is painful intense.

TWO: GIVE IN NOW - If failing to get into drama school on your first attempt puts you off, give up and go do something else. It may take you FIVE attempts, and if the first failing puts you off, you won’t stand a chance in this profession.

THREE: SPREAD THE NET - Obviously if you only apply to ONE school, you’re dramatically reducing your chance of studying acting at a Drama UK approved course. Next year, apply to as many schools as you can. Each school has a unique personality, and are looking for different qualities. If you only apply to those schools that you’ve fetishized for no good reason, you will probably miss out on your chance of getting into drama school. You have a year to save up for audition fees and transport/accommodation costs, how bad do you want to get in?

FOUR: GROW UP – The most common quality that I perceive in those that I know have achieved a place at drama school is a mature outlook. Go out to work, travel Australia, work for a charity, but even if you feel like a mature person for your age, getting out into the world will bring you a new maturity that will be highly attractive to audition panels..

FIVE: GET EXPERIENCE - You now have the best part of a year to gain more experience. Go be an extra, go take some acting classes where you live, attend drama school audition coaching or courses lead by the leading schools.

SIX:  MAKE A LIST - Make a list of 20 things that you can do to improve your chances of getting into drama school. Then start ticking them off as you achieve them. This will bring your 20 STEPS closer to obtaining your goal.

SEVEN: GIVE UP - Yes, I’ve said this for the second time. If you can live without going to drama school, you probably don’t want a place bad enough.

You will probably notice that I haven’t included ‘going off to University’ or ‘doing an acting course at a local college’, these may be ways that some people become actors, but as your goal is to get into drama school, these would be considered a failure to achieve your goal.

Mark Westbrook is the Senior Coach and Studio Director at Acting Coach Scotland.

 Original article webpage - http://actingcoachscotland.co.uk/2014/04/if-i-dont-get-into-drama-school/