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Allwrong

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  1. For a flat, try spotahome website. Don’t know if they will have what you want, but they are light on the documents you need to produce. Can’t remember specifics but i know DD had accommodation sorted out before her visa went in. They were happy with a financial guarantee from a UK bank account. Of course because they facilitate contact between the landlord and prospective tenant this may vary from case to case. The other advantage is that you can take out a contract for as little as 3 months, so there is flexibility if your dancer isn’t happy with the flat. We found it a really easy process and DD got a real bargain, and it’s all been really smooth. With the caveat of course that different landlords might be more complicated.
  2. In her first year (aged 18), DD used an organisation called Un toit deux âges. She stayed with a family, but fed herself. In return for max 5 hours helping out per week you pay £2000 for the entire year. The organisation were fantastic and supportive. A lot of BIBS students have used them, and many households speak excellent English. https://www.1toit2ages.be/?lang=en
  3. This is so frustrating, and so common in the academic sphere too. I’ve lost count of the time my children were called shy at school because, being quick at understanding, they held back from a process that was aimed at those taking longer to understand. This perceived need to push yourself forward is a real modern curse, and is really nothing to do with a genuine situation, such as a real performance or an audition. At university my son is now amongst the most vocal because the debate is at his level and his contributions appropriate. If your DD has lovely technique, she will rise to the top and outshine by the beauty of her movements, which are all the star quality a ballerina needs, and very hard indeed to be achieve. I know it’s hard to accept when roles in school shows go to those who attract attention through the year in class, but once in a real situation you daughter will be fine. She might have to swallow down some disappointments in the meantime, but she’ll come through in a more real situation. DD appears socially shy amongst dancing peers, but she frequently gets noticed as a dancer, in class situations as well as performance. But she always did poorly in festivals or situations where whet was needed was ‘starlet’ sparkle. If it helps, DD says she doesn’t feel shy in a role because she is communicating the character. She will, however, always be more of an Odette than an Esmeralda. But that’s fine: a company needs both. And there are more Esmeraldas out there than Odettes! So my advice to your daughter is be very proud of her technique, and find teachers who appreciate what she has. This may mean she doesn’t get an Upper School offer where she is (though she may well, too) but only because she doesn’t match their style. She needs somewhere that is good enough to be able to develop her great technique! Plenty of places will jump at the chance to take her.
  4. This is encouraging. Thank you. And the point about learning alongside others is a useful one.
  5. I wonder too about how necessary these programmes are, and to what extent the additional experiences improve dancing and to what extent they are simply an enjoyable extra. I'm sure they add something, but maybe it is not an essential something. Which is fine, were it not for cost. DD is getting to the stage where she still feels there is a lot to do by practice and strengthening, but as training advances, tuition is actually less necessary. Given that, what she feels she need post-graduation to improve, if she doesn't have a paid contract, is ready access to studio space and a monthly private lesson to prevent any developing bad habits. She could do this living at home and using her old dance studio when not in use for classes (she has an incredibly supportive local dance teacher, but I suspect that is not uncommon), and splashing out on regular high-level lessons. And that would be so much cheaper than further programmes, but not recognised on a CV. So you end up feeling you have to find the money to create a conventional CV more than anything. Is this cynical? Or naive? Or both? We are trying to do this on a shoe-string (in other words, a sensible budget 🤣), but sometimes I have the feeling money-saving shortcuts are not acceptable to the ballet establishment (whatever that is).
  6. Well I can probably give a better idea when DD is back in Brussels after her first professional audition and I can grill her a bit! My impression is that they are extremely active in helping dancers find jobs, and certainly have plenty of successes with Eastern European classical companies. DD is currently at an audition with several such companies and Anderson has turned up to film the 4 BIBS girls selected to attend during one audition class so he can watch back with and give them tips. He suggested (strongly urged) this opportunity to DD (3 audition days and a gala) and it’s being a huge and very productive learning curve. DD will be auditioning seriously next season, so it’s hard for me to judge support, but plenty of dancers at the school are attending multiple auditions and one has been accepted for ENBS Swan Lake in-the-round. As for communication with parents, it’s hard to say, as DD was 18 when she first went out and did pretty much all of the one-to-one communication herself. They send out general missives pretty rarely, but we haven’t had personal contact bar admin and a progress report. Communication used to be in dodgy often hilarious mock-English, but to the family’s disappointment they have now got an admin person with good English, and it’s got much more comprehensible. The language barrier with staff is a bit of an issue, though, until you adapt to it. DD has near-native French, which helps a bit, but the faculty are mostly not native French speakers either. Communication of arrangements for performances is rather cursory and subject to change, but I reckon that’s not too important for parents, but in general you have to get used to trusting the process and being patient until you know what’s going on. It’s probably the school’s weak point, but matters much less when you trust the school and can see your child really well supported and challenged to succeed. I know DD is very confident with how things work now, and knows she is valued. But in the early months she was second-guessing a lot and mistakenly felt she was disappointing her teachers on occasion. The language barrier / cultural barrier does create an initial distance between dancers and staff. But actually they are really invested in every individual student, and DD couldn’t be more supported.
  7. Just a rather lengthy heads-up for Non EUers re visas (gosh I hate being non-EU). The process takes a very long time, so you can’t leave your decision re BIBS till the last minute. A contract with a mutual commitment between you and BIBS is one of the documents you need for the application. The reason for the lengthy wait is that BIBS is a private higher education institution, so the documents get put in the same process as all other visa applications for immigration to Belgian from all over the world. So you can forget the statements about timings for student visas: that’s just for state universities. The other problem is that the company you have to use to make the application in the UK (and I believe other countries too), TLS, are absolutely hopeless and will tell you it’ll take about 10 days. Not so. That’s for standard student visas processed in the UK. Yours will have to go over to the Belgian immigration office in Brussels, by diplomatic bag. This alone took 3 weeks for DD! Sadly you can’t hop on the Eurostar and take it there yourself: the application has to be made from your country of residence. Worse than that, TLS are not fit for purpose and desperately understaffed. They process all visa applications from the UK for all EU countries, not just Belgium. The first, and hardest, obstacle you have is to book a face-to-face appointment with them. Because of the pressure on bookings, they release slots once every 2 months, and you need to get through to the website on the first day the slots become available. We tried to do this early July, the day a new set of appointment slots were released. We got one of 2 remaining, for 26th August! Also, they do not tell you this is the case, nor when the slots are released. They do not re-release cancelled slots, so no chance of a last-minute queue-jump. Also, you cannot book until you have completed a form with certain details that require you to be a fair way through collecting requisite documents ( you can check which on the TLS site). So DD’s application went in late August, and she finally got the visa through late November. Sounds fine as it was just within the 3 month Schengen deadline (DD had gone out straight after submitting her visa, with just her passport, which is standard practice). But you have to go back to the TLS office where you submitted the application to collect the visa. So her visa was sent back to London with her in hot pursuit!! Waste of time and money, but less so than for her Canadian friend in the same situation who had to go back to Canada for hers! Also DD was afraid she would miss the Nutcracker performances if the visa didn’t come through in time, so she also took 10 days in the UK in late October to have enough days to take her past the first set of performances. More money and missed training. I’d add that DD was lucky, as others have waited longer than 3 months. The requisite documents take a while to assemble, too (and are costly). It seems a hassle, but is a walk on the park compared with dealing with TLS. The good news is that you only have to do this once: yearly renewals are easy. Also there is never any problem with a visa actually being granted: it just takes a while because of the immigration backlog. And to be fair the Belgian immigration office do let you track the progress of your application to some extent, which helps. I also think this year has been particularly bad on the Belgian side, as Anderson has been surprised by the waiting times. But I don’t think there’s any reason it would be better next year, as immigration applications aren’t likely to slow down. This is not meant to put anyone off a fantastic school. It’s what I wish I had known so that we would have started earlier and avoided sleepness nights. Mine to be fair, not hers, as she was protected by the trusting insouciance of youth!
  8. DD is there currently. Many congratulations on the offer. I couldn’t be more positive about the school for DD’s particular needs. The teachers are attentive and demanding, and really committed to their students’ success. They know their students very well, and tailor demands and opportunities to each student’s needs and stage of training. Entry to competitions is encouraged when felt appropriate (and you can suggest ones you are I interested in), with the aim of giving students experience of performing under pressure. DD finds all the teachers very open to discussing specific concerns and requests. For example, being under-trained (long story), she is quite behind in contemporary, so the teacher has invited her to do the class below as well as her class to help her catch up. It’s a bit quirky, but that happens to suit DD perfectly! The language of instruction is largely some form of English that you have to get your ear into, and that can sometimes get in the way of communication a bit. And decisions on casting for the performances come quite late and can swap around a bit, but everyone gets plenty of opportunities. Classes vary considerably each week. There are 2 groups, age-based, quite large this year (20-25 each). Each group is taught by the 3 ballet staff (and other individual specialists). Focus is on ballet, but weekly (very good) contemporary, and also character and Pilates. Not many boys, and they are rather good, so have a bad habit of getting contracts and disappearing! So pas de deux is a bit limited. Most students are from long-term vocational training, and it’s very international, though lots of Australians and Canadians this year. But DD was very non-vocational (aged 18) and has never been made to feel this is a problem. On the contrary, she is very fully supported by the school. This is only her second year with them and they are very strongly encouraging her to audition for contracts and supporting her (videos, suggestions for applications etc). And plenty of students are getting contracts, though not generally with big national companies. A dancer from a more structured or standard training set-up might have a different angle, but we couldn’t be happier with DD’s training and progress. We are UK based and getting a visa wasn’t fun: happy to advise (DM me). The application sailed through once its turn came, but getting there was a hassle. Brussels is a fun city, rich cultural life and easy to live in.
  9. Brussels is very flexible. A lot of 18 year olds started this year. if they are ready to audition, they will be encouraged to start doing so straight away, or keep going for another year, or another two, as appropriate. Quite a few of their 18 yr olds (and younger) are at Yagp (Paris) this week.
  10. Brussels International Ballet School is prepared to take older students.
  11. I don’t think having used student finance already or not makes any difference to eligibility. If you are deemed already to have a degree, it makes no difference how that first degree was funded, even if you paid every penny yourself. What matters is whether your subject is one of those for which you can get student funding for a second degree. If so, no problem at all. Here is the magic list: agriculture and related subjects architecture (if it’s a MArch RIBA Part 2 course) biological sciences computer science mathematical sciences medicine and allied subjects physical sciences technologies courses leading to qualification as a veterinary surgeon and the link: https://www.gov.uk/student-finance/who-qualifies If your subject is not on the list, the answer is much less clear, and depends on whether the diploma excludes you from further funded study . I’ve not seen a clear answer to this. Can anyone help? Good luck!
  12. It’s a bit marmite. My son found it superficial and way to much work for the sake of work without real intellectual challenge. Was irritated too by the smug pseudo-ideological tone of the supposed (but imperceptible) internationalism. Ironically, it restricted his range of learning too. Had the school allowed, he had chosen his 4 A Level subjects, but the IB limited him to doing to 3 Highers. He had to drop philosophy down to Standard, and then waste time on, amongst other bits and pieces, ´Theory of Knowledge’ which is philosophy light. Other son did 3 A Levels and 2 ASs and was much happier with that range.
  13. My ´if onlys’ : if only semi-professional training from home till 18 were the widespread norm, before full/time vocational; if only semi-professional were max 3x a week with additional practice (body conditioning, barre) at home, rather as aspiring musicians do. This would be a longer process, but could create beautiful, strong dancers whose bodies and minds could develop appropriately. Plan B could also be catered for with A Levels etc in place. The obstacle to this does not seem to be what is the best training in the long run, but rather the intense competition to get there early, fostered by the perceived necessity to get into the most famous schools. International competition has turned this into something of an arms race. Separate thought: no need, surely, for dancers to get squeezed through a subsequent academic degree unless they want one. Not knocking university degrees: mine was sheer delight and a foundational mind-opening experience. But, with the notable exception of some courses (eg medical) university is not automatically the place to gain professional training, which might be better (and much more cheaply) gained on the ground. When your dancer has the thirst for things academic, that is of course important and logistically more complicated (funding).
  14. Just to clarify the student finance loan/not a loan situation: it’s not so much a loan as a graduate tax. The amount you owe at the end of your studies and the interest you pay on the ‘loan’ bear no relation to the rate at which you pay that amount (loan + interest) back. The payback rate is simply calculated as a percentage of income, just like a tax, so while your income is low you pay nothing, and then a bit more as you earn more. Then after 30 (40 now?) years the remaining debt is cancelled. The ‘interest’ owed relates to the overall sum you will theoretically need to pay back, but you may never get that far before the debt is cancelled. Under the 2022 regime, only 27% of student loans are expected to be paid back in full. An astonishingly low figure. My children have little faith in their future earning power (!), so have maxed out their borrowing (MA, year abroad), on the assumption they’d pay the tax/repayment for 30 years and still not have paid off their 3 yr loans, so anything else is ‘free’ money. But BE CAREFUL: with the new regime from this year, this is expected to rise to 61% of students. So it’s a more tricky calculation.
  15. Meant to say there is a good side to this as it makes vocational training more available to a greater number of UK dancers.
  16. Actually strongly agree with glowlight that the two (academics and dance) should be separated. A Levels or whatever can be done better in every sense when done wholeheartedly, and that is so clearly the case for ballet. The problem is that UK vocational schools have gamed the financial system by slapping on a degree / diploma to get access to student finance for UK students. Sadly the result is that the post dance A Level/ degree route is much more difficult logistically/ financially thereafter for many (though not all).
  17. My point about the entirely missable parts of the modern re-imagining of 'uni' life 🤐
  18. Very true re amazing opportunities. My non-dancing son has a musical life beyond anything I imagined (and I was quite well informed), whilst studying history: everything from chamber music with visiting professional musicians to raucous student-devised musicals, including full-scale orchestras and as many recitals/ devised performances as he can dream up. Very creative world, with equally good opportunities for drama, somewhat less for dance but still fun,competitions and facilities to put on whatever you have the energy to piece together (and excellent musicians for live music).
  19. I think it's entirely true that academics can wait while dance can't, but you still need to factor in future university funding, of course. It also depends on what you want from the university experience: growing up intellectually along with your peers is a very rich experience which you do miss out on somewhat as a mature student. The formal learning and qualifications are the same, but the late nights putting the world to rights and the intellectual locking of horns / spreading your wings in animated conversation are harder to muscle in on. Horrible mixed metaphors: apologies! I sometimes wonder to what extent these experiences are still a key part of 'uni' life, however...
  20. Anna C's point about funding is vital for UK students. Some subjects, primarily medical, scientific, and architecture are eligible for a second undergraduate degree funding (but do check carefully!). But any others are not available for funding if you have obtained a degree, even if you have entirely self-funded. DD started vocational training at 18 having completed a normal academic sixth form. We chose a dance school abroad with low fees, very cheap accommodation available locally, and crucially no degree qualification, and self-funded to allow for a academic degree in an arts subject in this country in addition. But this is probably not the choice of most people. UK Universities do not offer places without A Levels or equivalent, and student finance will not bend the rules however impressive the candidate. That said, the exemption list to the 'no funding if you already have a degree' rule is quite wide-ranging. https://www.gov.uk/student-finance/who-qualifies
  21. I have a lot of thoughts on this! I entirely agree with abitwornout that waiting till 16 gives your child a better chance to make a genuine choice with a more solid idea of what they are committing to. However, even after-school dancing can draw a child into an unexamined commitment too early, particularly with lots of hours and various associate schemes, and can take a real toll on family life. I have always been sad to see little brothers languishing outside the dance studio, playing on phones. My personal experience and inclination would tend to say that waiting is better. But it's a very complex choice. My feeling is that unless you are looking at top international companies, even staying at home till 18 is becoming an option. Is anyone else, I wonder, beginning to see dancers from your local schools getting places at Central and RCS post-A Level? Age is getting to be a lot less crucial, as increasingly dancers seem to spend one or even two years in 'holding pen' type post-graduate (post Upper School) courses which probably keeps them dancing whilst on the audition circuit rather then necessarily accelerating progress (correct me on that if that impression is wrong). My DD (a post 18-er, UK), is very clear that if she had gone away at 11, which we never considered at the time, she would be contract-ready and much more likely to succeed by now, and doubtless in the long run. However, she has also said that she doesn't regret it one bit because a normal childhood and not boarding has given her a much richer life. That said, she is unusual in that things academic are a real passion, and also she only did in general one evening and one associates class a week, so family life was relatively available to her, and other interests too. Also her home teacher is an amazing woman who has supported her unequivocally and pointed her towards all sorts of opportunities, despite our much lesser presence at the dance school. The upshot is that now she is vocational she is catching up on the missed years of dancing with surprising speed, and her vocational school is confident that she is as likely to succeed as their more standard students (most are from full-time vocational backgrounds from various countries). So the choice isn't straightforward, nor the same for every child or every family by any means. Lots of out-of-school hours with 'normal' schooling can have just the same over-commitment, distress and burn-out potential as vocational boarding, with family life for the rest of the family more heavily impacted. But boarding is really not something to be undertaken lightly. Early vocational training certainly programmes the body very effectively, and really does give the child an advantage. Intensive training later can allow surprisingly quick catch-up, but it is tough as the hard-wiring isn't there and the moves aren't so indelibly written into the body. Those tricky moves need more intense concentration and are more likely to go wrong. And it is pretty much impossible to get into the big national companies by that route, although very worthwhile and fulfilling contracts are certainly within your grasp. I'd also like to add that unhappiness in vocational dance school is clearly too prevalent. But 'normal' academic schools are no picnic either. DD had a grim time at her supposedly (though not very) academically selective (state) school, constantly undermined in sneaky ways by contemporaries, staff disengaged and uninterested in an academic child, and smugly convinced it was a lovely place. So basically, as a parent you can't win
  22. Devoted to Dance. There is a shop is in Exeter, but the business is also (mainly?) online, via facebook and instagram.
  23. So would an academic degree in a non-dance subject be acceptable for a European visa application for a classical ballet contract, in anyone's experience? Seems strange if so, but would cause some jubilation in this household.
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