They seem to be really good for production and not so great for screenwriting. I'm planning on majoring in screenwriting...this school sounds very exciting. Anyone know anything about it? So far Chapman & USC seem like the best schools for me...both very difficult schools to get into . I got a 32 on my ACT and a 1340 on my SAT and I went to a summer film program this year and I get decent grades (like a 4.3 GPA out of 5 i think). I also placed 2nd in a screenplay contest at Drexel University. Can anyone who knows anything about admission to these schools give me an idea of how hard it'll be for me to get in here? Or, who knows another really god BFA (not BA....i really dont wanna take gen ed) screenwriting program? Any help is greatly appreciated.

I hate to burst your bubble, but I think both USC and Chapman will require that you take many a general ed class to graduate with a BFA (As will most other BFA programs). If you want to be a screenwriter you really should take as many GE's as possible anyway shouldn't you? Good luck with the apps! You should be able to get into some good schools with your GPA and scores alone. Just remember, gen eds are your friend .

Nota "Knows a little about a lot" Mono

I want to take philosophy and sociology and religious history and all that kinda stuff. But I'm pretty sure BFAs have no math or foreign language or science requirements. Well, I also like Physics, so I'd be willing to take some physics courses...but im so sick of math classes and really don't wanna take more foreign language.

What dream world are you living in?

The foreign language requirement is a must for a humanities degree. And I can't think of a single university with a general education requirement that doesn't involve science. I know for a fact USC requires the foreign language and science classes for film students. I'm pretty sure Chapman does too.

And forget about the whole "I'll just take Physics" thing. At USC you have 2 science requirements, and both categories cover different fields. To give you an example I took Astronomy and Neuro-Biology. So while you might be able to take physics to cover one of the 2 requirements you won't be able to do that for both. On the upside it's pretty hard to fail a USC class as long as you do all the work. (Hell, I failed my midterm and final miserably in one class and still got out with a C-.)

To get out of foreign language classes you have to take a test demonstrating that you are fluent enough to pass out third level whatever.

I wouldn't worry about getting in though, I was accepted to Chapman and USC with a 3.1 GPA (it's out of 4). The thing with USC is that even though you can get into the school, the film program is a seperate admissions process and you may note get in. The level of competition is high for Production, less so for Filmic writing, and even less for Film history/criticism. But all 3 require a fair number of classes in each field.

I think I was once told it was 2,000 applicants to the film school for 40 spots per semester. So yes, comeptition is high, but with your credentials I'm sure you have a chance.

I'd like to clarify something I said. By requireing classes in each field I meant that if you are accepted into any of the three majors you will then be taking classes dealing with each discipline.

FOUR-YEAR MAJOR B.F.A. DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

A total of 128 units is necessary to earn the B.F.A. degree in the Filmic Writing Program, as follows:

36 units General Education Courses:

Cultures & Civilizations I (4)
Cultures & Civilizations II (4)
Scientific Principles (4)
Investigations in Science & Technology (4)
Studies in Literature, Thought & the Arts (4)
Social Issues (4)
Writing Requirement (4/4)
Diversity Requirement (4)


Well, I've looked as hard as I can and I'm not seeing foreign language or math in here. I looked at all the courses in each category and didn't come across any foreign language. I cam across like.."Japanese Culture & Language" which actually sounds interesting, but it's not foreign language. The other category I thought it might be a part of is Divsersity, but I didn't see any foreign language there...there's a lot of really cool sounding classes in all of these categories. These are classes that I am not only willing - but WANT - to take.

One of my other big considerations was Drexel University. But, when I looked at the program, I would be doing more math in the 1st 2 years than writing. Which I definately don't want to deal with. This is what I wanted to avoid, and is what I was getting at in my previous posts.

If you can find something on the USC webpage about the foreign language requirement for the BFA filmic writing program, I'd really like to see it...I'm trying to get as much of an idea of the courses I'd be taking in all of these unversities, and some of the websites make it very difficult to do that.