• drama,  grad school

    excess rhymes with success anyway they’re essentially the same

    November 12, 2019

    Hi. I am interested in joining the UofT’s PhD Program in Drama, Theatre and performance studies. After some reading, I found the information that the thesis supervisor is assigned AFTER the PhD candidate registration. My question: should I write and e-mail to the professor that I dream to work with? Or it would be excessive? Should I point at the Statement of Research intent my interest in working with this specific professor, or maybe it would be better leave it open?

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    hey there,

    as is pretty common with the questions i get, never been in this situation before.

    but i spoke to someone with a lil more experience with this and it seems like there’s certainly no harm in doing any of the things you mentioned! there’s a possibility that the program told you the thesis supervisor wouldn’t be assigned yet to alleviate the stress of finding a supervisor before you’re registered. it may not necessarily be because they don’t want you to make those connections.

    i mean, if it’s not an urgent matter for you, the program is running an open house on january 17 where they can answer your question. more info on that here. if it is more urgent and you really want a definitive answer, the page i linked provides an email you can use to set up a meeting outside of that open house and ask your questions.

    hope this helped at least a lil!

    be Boundless,

    aska

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  • admissions,  drama,  subject POST,  UTM

    majors and CTEP and UTM, oh my!

    January 22, 2014

    Hi!

    I’m a student going into grade 12 and have two very different fields which I want to pursue, so I have some questions. Is it possible to take a major in drama and a major in math? And if so, which one would I apply with or do I apply with both, in reference to the form, essay and auditions, etc.? Does this work for the University of Toronto Mississauga Campus? And is it possible to make my math major part of a teaching degree? I also don’t really understand how choosing courses works and if you can have electives, and how many. Also, would I be limited in teaching possibilities or employment possibilities if I took math as a minor?

    Thank you,

    Ioana

    ———————————————

    hello. this is an old question. if you’d like to see why i am answering these BLASTS FROM THE PAST, please go here! thanks!

    aska

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    well, ioana, you’ve got a lot of questions, so i’m just gonna take them step by step, starting with the first one: is it possible to do a major in math and a major in drama?

    yes! in fact, uoft doesn’t allow you to take just one major; that would be too easy. you kinda have to supplement it with other stuff, and double-majoring is one way to do that. the mathematics major requires that you complete 7.5 FCEs and the drama major requires that you complete 8.0 FCEs. that means 15.5 out of the 20 credits you will receive for your degree will be program requirements.

    as for how you apply, there’s only one application necessary. for drama, you won’t have to go through auditions and essays and all that until 2nd year. your first year drama course, DRM100Y1, doesn’t require any kind of audition or application. same goes for math; you can enrol in most 1st year math courses from any program you want. so it’s up to you whether you want to apply through life science or humanities, though i’d say humanities is probably your best bet, because the university might decide to impose restrictions on who gets into drama, but they’re far less likely to do the same with math. so just go to OUAC or however it is you’re applying, select the humanities stream, and sit tight. auditions and picking of majors will happen at the end of first year.

    more or less the same holds true (math major program) (drama major program) for utm, except they have fewer required courses altogether for both major programs.

    teaching at uoft requires a separate application and you can enter into it starting 2nd year. you’ll get your B.Ed. essentially by taking education as a minor, and then your B.A./B.Sc. will be your other “teachable” degree that you get after four years. math can totally be part of that degree (either B.A. or B.Sc.) if you major in it, though it will be tough to do two majors and a minor (i.e. math, drama and education) – almost every single one of your 20.0 credits will have to go towards some program requirement. utm is currently in the process of renovating their CTEP program, but when it comes back in 2015, it should be similar to the uoft program.

    if you just did a minor in math, you wouldn’t be able to do UTM’s CTEP, because their only allowed areas of study are french, chem, math or physics. you’d have other options at various other institutions that are all listed on uoft’s CTEP site, but if you’re looking at UTM, i’d advise majoring in math.

    as far as i know, math teachers are GENERALLY in higher supply than humanities teachers, but honestly, that’s nothing to base a decision on. like i’ve said time and again on this site, employment possibilities change and stats for employment go up and down by the month, and it’s smarter for you to do what you actually want to and MAKE a path for yourself than to follow the numbers. however, if you really want to teach math, then go for it, dude.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • admissions,  concurrent ed,  drama,  math

    twenty questions: aska edition

    October 17, 2012

    Hi!

    I’m a student going into grade 12 and have two very different fields which I want to pursue, so I have some questions. Is it possible to take a major in drama and a major in math? And if so, which one would I apply with or do I apply with both, in reference to the form, essay and auditions, etc.? Does this work for the University of Toronto Mississauga Campus? And is it possible to make my math major part of a teaching degree? I also don’t really understand how choosing courses works and if you can have electives, and how many. Also, would I be limited in teaching possibilities or employment possibilities if I took math as a minor?

    Thank you,

    Ioana

    ———————————————

    Hey Ioana,

    Your message is a deceptively short paragraph, but it actually consists of many specific questions. Well played, Ioana. Well played indeed.

    Anyhow, basically as long as the two programs you’d like to study are within the same faculty, you’re good. So since Drama and Mathematics are both part of the Faculty and Arts and Science, you can definitely major in them both. However, you don’t really determine those specific Programs of Study until the end of your first year. But since you’re still in high school, when you apply through OUAC, I suppose you might as well specify your program choice as Mathematics (assuming you can only choose one).

    When you apply, you essentially put yourself into some sort of stream like Humanities or Social Sciences or Life Sciences and would then be given precedence for spots in that stream’s courses. Now if you chose Drama, you would probably be placed in the Humanities stream. But DRM200Y1 Introduction to Performance has a number of entry requirements, which makes being given that priority rather irrelevant, so you may want to specify Math so that you’ll have precedence when trying to pick up those courses. At U of T, any sort of priority is useful since spots are always limited.

    Now for a B.Ed. from U of T, you can either go to OISE after you finish your degree, or you can apply to the super competitive Concurrent Teacher Education program in which you take five years instead of four and complete your degree alongside your B.Ed. With the CTEP, you can enter either straight from high school over at UTSC, or after your first year at St. George. Personally, I recommend you take the latter option and wait a little. You seem to want to do a lot of things. One year might do you some good in narrowing down between all of these choices or at least being sure of what you want.

    But if you do end up pursuing your B.Ed., you can definitely use your Mathematics major towards your teachable. And if you choose to bring Math down to a minor instead, according to OISE’s prerequisites for teachables, you should be fine. Just make sure to heed the program requirements needed for your degree. As for other jobs, try doing some research. Where can a degree in Math take you? Who knows! Consult the Career Centre if you’d like!

    And as for courses, students take an average of five per semester. In your first year you’re pretty much free to take what you’d like so that you can figure out what it is you’re looking for. If you’d like, take a look at the Calendar to get a vibe for how things work at U of T and what you can possibly take.

    Enjoy your last year before having to work your butt off!

    aska

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  • auditing,  drama

    To Sing or Not to Sing

    October 15, 2010

    They say you don’t need to have anything prepared. Could someone describe what transpires? Must you sing?

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    Dear a future Leonardo DiCaprio or Angelina Jolie,

    A correspondent at the UC Drama program described the audition as what would be like the first day of class. They said that they would be going through exercises and seeing how well you work with other people. No monologue or singing will be required. They said to simply wear comfortable clothing.
    They described it as a pretty chill situation, and something that would resemble the classes for the course.

    If you want to check out some resources here you go:
    The Course Overview

    The Application Form

    Please remember to thank me in your Oscar acceptance speech.

    Yours truly and forever,
    Aska

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  • drama,  first year

    u of t on tour!

    July 13, 2010

    How do I go about setting up a visit/campus tour in October? Looking for student run tour of UTSG Drama when I visit the city this fall from Massachusetts. I have been all over UT site to set up but no luck. I will be entering college fall 2011 and would like Chicago or Toronto area school. I have set up tours in Chicago already but no luck at all with UT. I don’t get the chance to travel that way often so I’m trying to make the most of this trip. Thanks for any help you can give.

    ———————————————

    This sounds so glamorous to me, almost like the plot of a coming of age musical about a young whippersnapper from Massachussetts trying to make it in the big city. Okay I will stop making fun of you now.

    U of T offers all kinds of tours – tours of residences, tours of the grounds, tours of the colleges. But if you want a program-specific tour, it’s best to make an appointment with someone at the University College Drama Program. Hopefully Colleen Osborn (who is the undergraduate coordinator) will be able to hook you up with something hospitable. Otherwise, I’ll get you contact with my unemployed pals, all UCDP graduates, who would be happy to give you a tour of the faculty in exchange for a hot lunch. The contact info is here.

    For more of your touring needs, check out this link.

    Fall Discovery Day sounds like it might be up your alley – as well. It’s October 23rd on the St. George Campus and will show off all of U of T’s magical assets.

    xoxo, Askastudent

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  • drama,  international relations

    welcome to the world’s largest closet

    January 30, 2009

    Maybe this question will appear to be a waste of time. I’ve talked to the people in admissions and one girl involved with the Theater Department about studying acting at U of T but I’m not sure if the information was closer to fact or sales pitch. She says double majors (I like international politics because I’m a closet dork) are common with Acting. Is this so? How are the productions there? How are the performance spaces (they were closed when I toured, I’m an American resident)? I hear it’s a pyramid-structured program; is it like if you lack that je-ne-sais-quois they kick you out, or do you get canned if they detect a lack of effort/development?
    Have I mentioned that your sparkling wit stuns me with its sheer hilarity? Does ass-kissing make you more inclined to answer my question? I’ve found it quite effective in the past.

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