Admission to BA Dance Education

Admission to BA Dance

To be considered for admission to the BFA/BA DANCE MAJOR, students must first submit an online application to Montclair State University, then proceed to the Audition Preparation section for your audition guidelines.

For All Dance Applicants

The University application will request the documents below. 

• $65 Application fee
• $50 Audition fee 
• Transcripts
• Resume of experience
• Personal Statement
• Full body dance pose of any kind showing line, form, and expression
• Two letters of recommendation
  • One from an academic teacher
  • One from a dance professional 
• Pre-screen Video (See details under Audition Preparation)

You may view your required items anytime and upload materials at apply.montclair.edu/apply. You must first activate your Montclair State account through the email you received from Undergraduate Admissions with the subject line: Thank you for Applying to Montclair State! You will not receive information regarding the outcome of your audition if your submission materials are incomplete.

Applicants will receive an email from Admissions that will guide them to register for an audition and submit the pre-screen video with the subject line: Information about your Montclair State Dance Audition.

FOR STUDENTS AUDITIONING THROUGH A PARTNER ORGANIZATION 

If you have participated, or plan to participate in an audition through a partner organization: Booker T. Washington, NYCDA, or Dancewave Through College and Beyond, you must first register with the partner organization, then register here and choose the partner organization audition event – even if you have already auditioned. Registering for the partner organization audition event through our website allows us to connect your audition result to your University Application. You are not required to submit a pre-screen video, however, you are required to submit all of the other materials listed above to complete your University application. After your audition with the partner organization has been reviewed, you will be contacted by the Dance Admissions Coordinator.

If you have any questions about the audition process, please contact Dance Admissions Coordinator, Christina Paolucci at paoluccic@montclair.edu. 

Updated COVID Policies for Theatre and Dance Auditions and Program Participation

February 3, 2023

In order to participate in an in-person audition, you must complete Hawk Check and show proof of vaccination and booster.

Montclair State University requires students to be vaccinated to enroll, however, students may apply for an exemption for medical or religious reasons. To participate in performances in the Department of Theatre and Dance, students must be vaccinated and boosted, with no exemptions given. This is for safety reasons in a high-contact activity.

For more information, visit this website: Montclair State COVID vaccination policy

 

Montclair State University Dance Audition Information

Fall 2022 through Spring 2023

To keep our campus community safe, please follow our ON CAMPUS AUDITION COVID GUIDELINES if you are attending an in-person audition. 

• Make sure to complete Hawk Check prior to your visit. This is necessary for everyone who will be entering campus.
• Masks are optional but please be advised this policy may change. All auditioning students are welcome to wear a mask if they feel more comfortable doing so.
• COVID Vaccination Cards that show you are fully vaccinated and boosted & Hawk Check clearance email will need to be presented at your scheduled audition date.

In order to be allowed in-person participation, your COVID vaccination card must show your name, the vaccine you received (2 doses for Pfizer and Moderna or one dose of J&J), and the date of your booster.  

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Pre-screen: Submission of a video of a solo of the applicant’s choice. This can be videoed in a studio or outdoors, or it could be a performance video from the past year. The solo should be 2-3 minutes long and in the modern/contemporary genre. It may be the applicant’s own choreography or choreography by someone else, however, the choreographer should be identified. 

If the applicant wishes to submit a second 2-3 minute video in a different genre (tap, hip hop, ballet, flamenco, etc) they may do so, but it is not required.

Please wear clothing that allows adjudicators to clearly see the applicant and the movement in the video. Please avoid dark colors on a dark background; oversized, thick, or loose clothing that obscures your movement; and hairstyles that obscure your face.

Pre Screen video must be in the following format:

• YOUTUBE or VIMEO link for submission. 
• Please be sure to ATTACH the link to your YOUTUBE or VIMEO pre-screen video in the appropriate section on the audition registration form.
• NO OTHER VIDEO PLATFORMS ARE ACCEPTED.

After the dance faculty review the pre-screen video submission and other materials, applicants will be notified if they are being invited, or not, to attend the full audition on campus or over Zoom. Applicants invited to attend a full audition will move through each section of the full audition process without elimination.

The in-person audition days will last from 11:45 am – 6 pm and include a contemporary/modern dance class, improvisation session, performance of a solo (can be the same solo from the pre-screen), interview, and opportunities to speak with faculty and students. The Zoom audition will last from 12 noon – 5 pm and include a contemporary/modern class, improvisation session, and opportunities to speak with faculty and students. 

Please note that ballet remains an important part of our dance training curriculum, even though it is not included in the audition process. 

Our faculty will be looking for the following criteria:

1. Generous collaboration with other people.
2. Fluidity of movement within personal space and through space.
3. Clear body articulation.
4. Use of momentum to power movement.
5. Curiosity and tenacity.
6. Rhythmic acuity.
7. Spatial awareness.
8. Clear point of view and opinions in writing and/or the interview.
9. Expression in dance practice — this may be through dynamics, line, face, etc.
10. Authenticity in personal expression.

You must complete your application and submit all required materials for admission including your pre-screen solo video before your materials will be reviewed.

You may view your required items anytime and upload materials at apply.montclair.edu/apply. You must first activate your Montclair State account through the email you received from Undergraduate Admissions with the subject line: Thank you for Applying to Montclair State!, if you have not already done so.

If you have any questions about your audition process please contact Christina Paolucci at paoluccic@montclair.edu.

Director of Dance

Coordinator, BA Dance

Coordinator, BFA Dance

Dance Admissions Coordinator