Acting (MFA)

Required application materials

Application

Complete the online application.

A nonrefundable $50 application fee paid as part of the online application.

Official transcripts must be provided for every undergraduate or graduate institution attended for course credit. We will expect an official transcript from each institution listed in the Academic History section of the application. Although not required, an unofficial copy of your transcript(s) can be uploaded with your application.

Transfer Applicants

The School of Drama MFA does not accept transfer credit. MFA students complete a full course of study together in order to develop a common vocabulary and strong ensemble.

By Mail

Official transcripts should have an original signature or a raised university seal, and must be in a sealed envelope that has been signed or stamped by the issuing university’s registrar or records office. Applicants can either send official transcripts with an Application Materials Cover Sheet or request that institutions send transcripts directly to The New School. See “Mailing Address for Supplemental Materials” for our mailing address in the Additional Instructions and Information section below.

Electronic Transcripts (U.S./Domestic Institutions only)

The New School accepts electronic transcripts only from our approved vendors. The New School’s approved vendors, in order of preference, are

• Parchment Exchange
• SCRIP-SAFE International
• National Student Clearinghouse

We do not accept electronic transcripts sent directly by a student or school offices. Note: All international academic credentials must be submitted as indicated in the International Academic Credentials sections below.

International Academic Credentials

All transcripts not written in English must be accompanied by a certified English translation.

International Academic Credentials with Transfer Credits

Applicants who attended postsecondary institutions outside of the United States are required to have their transcript(s) evaluated by World Education Services (WES) or by another member of the National Association of Credit Evaluation Services (NACES). A course-by-course evaluation must be prepared for each transcript. In the absence of an evaluation, the Admission Committee will do its best to render a decision. Please note: In some cases, a review cannot be made without an evaluation, and a committee decision will be delayed.

Recommendation Letters

Two letters of recommendation are required. Recommenders can submit recommendations online; instructions are included with the online application. If preferred, the recommendation form can instead be sent by mail in a signed, sealed envelope. To send by mail, download the PDF recommendation form found in the online application, complete the personal information, save the form, and forward it to the recommender for completion and submission. Applicants can also send signed and sealed recommendations to the Office of Admission using an Application Materials Cover Sheet.

Acceptd Submissions

These elements of the application will be submitted directly through Acceptd. CDs, DVDs, slides, original work, PowerPoint presentations, binders, and flash drives are not accepted.

Directors, Playwrights, and Actors

Statement of Purpose

Please include an essay with a maximum of 500 words. The essay should be a reflection of your personality and interests, but there are some topics you might want to consider addressing. These include

• The ways in which your academic and/or professional experiences have led you to apply to a graduate program in theater.
• The reasons why this decision has led you to the School of Drama.
• What, in your opinion, makes you an appropriate candidate for this program, and—equally important—what makes this program the right training for you.
• What you expect to achieve at this school, and what you expect to achieve with your master’s degree after graduation.

These ideas are meant to serve as guideposts, not rules, as you write; our hope is that this essay will give us a brief but accurate glimpse of you as a person and an artist—information that will be just as valuable as the transcripts and recommendations we receive.

Directors

Artistic Résumé

Please include a document that contains a standard director’s résumé listing work developed, production history, and theatrical and directing training. Professional résumés not related to the theater are not required. Please upload in PDF format.

Photograph

We ask that all applicants upload a photograph. The picture need not be an actor’s head shot (though it may be, if you have one); a simple photograph of you will be fine.

Production Portfolio

The director’s portfolio should include a range of production information. Reviews and production photographs should be included, if available; but what will be more helpful in evaluating your application will be materials that show us your process as a director. These materials might include excerpts from your director’s notebook or promptbook, script notes or thematic essays, blocking ideas, design sketches, scheduling and administrative materials, and research.

Playwrights

Artistic Résumé

Please include a document that contains a standard playwright’s résumé listing works written, production history, and theatrical and writing training. Professional résumés not related to the theater are not required. Please upload in PDF format.

Photograph

We ask that all applicants upload a photograph to include with their file. The picture need not be an actor’s head shot (though it may be, if you have one); a simple photograph of you will be fine.

Writing Sample

Required submission—one original full-length play. Optional additional submission—one original one-act play. All pages should be numbered on the top right and be uploaded in PDF format. Formatting should be in standard Broadway style, with character names above the dialogue, font style 12-point Courier or Times New Roman. Submissions may not be adapted from another writer’s source material.

Actors

Artistic Résumé

Please include a standard actor’s résumé listing acting experience and theatrical training. Professional résumés not related to the theater are not required. Please upload in PDF format.

Photograph

We ask that all applicants upload a standard actor’s 8" x 10" headshot.

Actors who are invited to audition for the program have the option of auditioning in one of several cities in the United States. Auditions will be held beginning in late January and continuing through February and early March. Actors are asked to prepare a one-minute contemporary monologue and a one-minute classical monologue. Auditioners who are successful at the initial auditions will be invited to a Call Back Weekend in New York City in late March. We strongly encourage acting applicants wishing to audition at our earliest dates to complete the application well before the January 10 deadline. We begin scheduling auditions on a rolling basis at the end of November and will contact applicants directly.

Test Scores

TOEFL, IELTS, and PTE

All applicants whose first language is not English must submit valid TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE scores. The minimum score required for TOEFL (IB) is 100, for IELTS is 7.0, and for PTE is 68. Our TOEFL institution code is 2385.

A TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE score is not required for applicants

• Whose primary language is English
• Who have earned a secondary school diploma from a school where English is the primary language of instruction (undergraduate applicants only)
• Who have earned a four-year degree from a U.S. college/university or from a university where English is the primary language of instruction

Upon review of your application, the Office of Admission reserves the right to request a TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE score.

Arrange for the testing service to send your test scores directly to The New School using the institution codes listed above. We accept scores taken within the past two years. If your scores are older, you must retake the test.