Bachelor of fine arts dance programs, whether housed in a conservatory or larger university setting, tend to give out letter grades like any other academic degree. But rather than exams and essays, the studio classes that make up the bulk of BFA programs are evaluating students on less tangible benchmarks like artistry, technique, and performance. How much weight are BFA programs really putting on grading—and how much do students’ grades matter during, and after, their time in college?

No matter how rigorous a curriculum, it’s difficult to create college experiences that truly simulate the day-to-day life of professional dancers. The School of Dance at Mason (George Mason University) in Fairfax, Virginia, however, is proving it’s possible. By the time dancers graduate from Mason’s BFA program, they will have participated in at least one […]

For dancers, the college experience isn’t about sitting in crowded lecture halls for hours on end. Instead, they spend their days in studios that become a second home and serve as a space in which to hone their technique, explore new ways of moving, and develop their artistry.  We asked students and faculty to share […]

Elizabeth Ahearn never imagined that she’d teach her first online ballet class in her kitchen. Adding to the surreality of the situation: Rather than give her corrections, her student, the director of distance learning at Goucher College, had tips for Ahearn: Turn the volume up, and move a little to the left. Ahearn, chair of […]

When it comes to college admissions, there’s perhaps nothing more confusing than being waitlisted. It sends a mixed message, the middle ground between a “yes” and a “no.” You may be elated that you still have a shot at your dream program, or discouraged that you weren’t a school’s first choice. But is it worth […]

A watershed moment. That’s how choreographer Lar Lubovitch recently described his now-classic A Brahms Symphony. Now, a group of 16 George Mason University dance majors are having their own watershed moment with that jubilant work: They will dance it at the venerable Joyce Theater in New York City, where they will close the 50th anniversary […]