meadowblythe

Which associate schemes does/will he attend in year 7? Are you hoping for a vocational place in lower school ? Are you looking primarily at ballet or is DS more of an all rounder?

It's not the funding, it's the level of qualification. To be eligible to apply for undergraduate funding, you can't already have undertaken a higher education qualification. I am assuming the trinity diploma is what rules this out. https://www.gov.uk/student-finance/who-qualifies That's the theory anyway ..

We looked at the cost of paying for accommodation if DS accepted Dada place vs cost of OU degree if the dancing didn't work out and degree funding had been used. Came out roughly the same. In our case it was, decide where you want to dance. Everything else, cross your fingers and hope for the best. There are always ways to get the education you need, the dance opportunities are far more precious.

It depends on whether you need MDS (means tested) funding or not. If you would need an MDS there are four schools Elmhurst, Hammond, RBS, Tring. If you can the training fund then you have more options. Different schools will suit different students.

Can I just give a personal counter example? This is many years ago, but my DS, on arrival at the WL finals was whisked off to see the physio as there were concerns about hypermobility, based on his performance at JAs. (I wish, he would now say!) Also his teacher said before the audition round started she thought he would be very well suited to another school - at the end of the first round she said she was genuinely stunned, didn't know he could dance like that - she wished she had could now submit a different report .... My point is, I genuinely think his card had been marked before the process even started. It wasn't any great deal other than a little hurt pride. He did have a weak core which wasn't addressed until many years later, and he got pleasing offers elsewhere. Two of his friends, one a JA one not a JA both went through WL to year 11, it was the non JA who took the upper school place. Our postie's son started dancing because he liked DS' EYB t shirt, and is now with BRB. Was never a JA.

Very much second what JulieW said - she was my rock for three very sticky years until DS was assessed out of first dance school. Like her son, my DS has gone on to have a career in ballet, and I was very proud to recently see him dance his first principal role. But that early training really counts! Having trained at that level builds technical ability that lasts forever. Thinking back, I'm still not sure why he was assessed out - he simply "didn't make the grade, or fit in" is the only things I can remember. AD encouraged him to keep dancing and wrote appropriate references. I would also second the advice to see the year out if at all possible - a proper finish and closure is good in the long run, and once the pressure is off, the whole thing becomes a lot more bearable. There's no way he would have gone back to his original dance school who had always been less than supportive, our main options were a CAT scheme, although that would have involved negotiating leaving early 2 days a week at a school he hadn't even started or another ballet focussed school. My personal advice would be to find out what options actually exist (local mainstream schools, ballet schemes, associates) and once you have that information present it to your daughter and work out what works for you now. Wishing you the best of luck Meadowblythe

What a lovely quandry to have! Congratualtions !! On a nearly relevant point - if anyone is giving up privately rented accommodation when Central move could they PM me? My musical DD and a couple of friends are looking for accommodation in roughly that area for the next academic year.

That's really good news - I am aware I am getting horribly out of touch .

Is this a change of policy? Certainly in my DS's time there UK students who were eligible who were offered places but without an MDS at Elmnhurst.

Eldest son works at the RSC and they accept when they are employed (he's a tecchie lad) that there will be members of the public in while they are working. In their case the main issues are health and safety - if they have the floor up, working at height etc. We were invited to watch ballet DS take class because there were no performances when we were visiting. At his company this was an honour and they are used to having politicians etc visit and watch class. Again, there it was accepted that it would happen, if you want to be funded you need the public on side (this was abroad in a country where the ballet companies were well funded from local and state taxes!)

Going back to OP, you say your daughter is not particularly enamoured with academic studies - given that A levels require a huge degree of commitment I would look seriously at the Btecs on offer, particularly the Extended Diploma. There was a recent report that showed 95% of universities accept btecs, and a level 4 btec often allows access straight onto the second (or higher) year of a degree. I can't source the quote, but I believe a quarter of university entrants had btec qualifications.

I only have experience of one upper school - happy to discuss via PM. The only point I was making was it is not universally bleak even for those who have never entered a competition or won any prizes.

Some places give excellent support to their final year students, pointing out suitable opportunities and giving hard but fair advice. I appreciate not all - but equally not all are disinterested. t's not all grim - if you are prepared to work in a less glamorous or prestigious company, in Eastern Europe there are opportunities, and many companies have a predominantly classical repertoire. Dancers are respected and theatres are subsidised. Yes the salaries are low, but so are the living costs. Even new graduates make enough to live on without a hand out, if they are realistic about accommodation. It's when you can come home, or need to buy flights, there are problems.

Although my son was assessed out, if you think about it logically, the chances are that it won't. If 10% of a year leave, 90% won't. Whatever happens you have WL on your CV. My son's view is that if he hadn't attended his first school, even though he wasn't that happy there, he wouldn't have the technique to be where he is now. Possibly the name on the CV helped too - there were a lot of ex-students from that school in his first company. But if he hadn't been assessed out he would have lost his love of dancing, and doubts if he would have continued, the school just wasn't right for him.

The daughter of a friend of mind did exactly that - 1st class physics degree then post-grad at Trinity. She doesn't perform professionally but she does make enough from teaching contemporary plus physics tutoring and exam marking to make ends meet in London.

Many, many years ago my son met Sam Archer and Richard Windsor when they were starring in Edward Scissorhands. He commented on the fact that one (can't remember which) had tap shoes next to his ballet shoes. "Of course" came the reply .. "how else do you think?"

From Hammond's point of view, is it a good investment in their scholarship places if they offer it to someone who makes no commitment to them, effectively tells them they are third choice? There are plenty of ex-Hammond students who make careers as successful ballet dancers. And our experience was that there was some flexibility to accommodate a very classically orientated dancer. Although my son was never going to be a tapper, one of the great strengths of the Hammond is to learn other people's disciplines, and to appreciate how good they are in their field. As to whether it's only two more years - that's your decision - can you access high quality male training from your home base? Certainly the support my son got from Hammond and the specialist knowledge of male teachers at a range of post 16 schools enabled him to make an informed choice.

Good news Dancing 2003? My DS graduated coming up to 3 years ago .. had a brilliant time. PM me if you would like more information.

Let her enjoy it and stay calm! If you can both stay calm so much the better. One of the hardest things to do as a parent is to not interfere or fret. Once she has disappeared my personal strategy was to get away from the place, it seemed everyone else auditioning had more experience than my child (I was once sat next to 2 parents out billying each other - both had sons in the cast and were trying to outdo each other on length of contract, number of performances, expenses ...) and it just added to my stress to listen. Double check music for solos as well as shoes. Leave enough time to allow for traffic - as a Midlander I am always gobsmacked by how many traffic jams I had to sit in. If they like what they see, they will always put students through to the scholarship round.

You may also want to have a look at The Hammond - also many boys going on to prestigious schools and getting ballet contracts, but also all rounders off to a variety of destinations. Very good academics too. For both schools it would depend if you needed an MDS as to whether you had "missed the boat"

Just the sort of advice I needed! Many thanks

It appears that Techie DS may be spending a few months at Longborough. Does anyone have any experience? Tips on dining/what to wear/when to go (if I can afford the eyewatering ticket prices!)

Whilst I would agree with SarahW, I would point out many Hammond graduates have auditioned successfully for places at 16+ ballet schools and gone on to have successful careers as classical dancers.

I would only comment that I wouldn't be too hung up on height. At 14 there is no way of knowing how tall your son will end up - you can obviously make an educated guess based on the heights of the parents but some older readers will remember my constant anxiety about my tiny skinny son. He is now 6 foot, and through sheer hard work has bulked up to be one of the larger dancers in his current company. Others stopped growing at 14. Boys in particular change height and body shape (which can be as much a factor as height) later than girls.

Must admit started on Flirty Dancing whilst cooking Sunday lunch. I really enjoyed the "unpolished" performances - people aren't pretending to become outstanding dancers from 4 days rehearsal. Makes you appreciate how much you take professional performances for granted. And loved Ashley Banjo - explaining how he devised the choreography and the effects he was trying to create. He is also not pushing anyone too far out of their comfort zone. Challenging yes, ridiculous no.