To the students who didn’t get into a BFA program, this one’s for you

by Chris Peterson

Maybe it was your dream school. Maybe it was the program you had pictured. Maybe it was a waitlist email that felt worse because it left hope to annoy you.

Whatever the version was, it hurts. I am not going to tell you it happened for a reason, because that usually sounds like something adults say when they do not know what else to offer. But getting rejected from a theatre program is not the end of your story, even if it feels that way right now.

Theatre loves making young artists feel like they need permission. Permission to train, perform, call themselves serious, or believe they belong.

A college program can be a great place to grow, but it is not the only place where growth happens. That rejection letter does not know your work ethic. It does not know what you will become with the right teacher, the right room, or one year of stubborn commitment. It only knows what a panel saw in a small window.

That window closed. Find another one. Maybe that means going to a school that was not your first choice and making it work. Maybe it means choosing a BA instead of a BFA. Maybe it means starting at a community college, gaining experience, and transferring later.

None of that makes you less of an artist. And we need to be honest about the money. Crushing debt for a theatre degree is not proof of commitment. Sometimes the smartest artistic decision is the one that gives you room to breathe after graduation.

Training also does not belong only to universities. You can take classes, find coaches, audition locally, build a portfolio, and get better in rooms that do not require an acceptance letter.

Of course the rejection matters. You cared about it, so it is going to sting. Be upset. Have the ceiling-staring moment where you wonder if the universe unsubscribed from your future. Then ask yourself the only question that matters: do you still want this?

If the answer is yes, you have work to do. Get back into a room. Build the skill that needs work. Find people making things and get close to the work.

You do not need to prove the rejection was wrong tomorrow. You just need to keep becoming harder to ignore.

So no, you did not get into that program. That is painful, and you are allowed to be disappointed. But do not confuse one school’s decision with a final verdict on your talent, your future, or your place in theatre.

That email did not end anything. It forced you to build the next part differently.