Even after the whirlwind of Nutcracker The deceased season and final, summer holidays can feel very far away. However, because requests for intensive, internships and jobs open in winter, it is now time to start planning the hottest months.
Find your goal
In his introductory course in dance studies at Chapman University, Jennifer Backhaus encourages dancers to use the few summers they have as a wisely student. “At the beginning, many students want to stay near their home, and they go back to the studios where they trained up,” she said. “As they progress in the program, we try to get them to adapt their choices where they could find themselves in the future.”
Backhaus recommends that students try a new city during the summer, especially if they think they might want to move for their dance career. “Wherever you think the place is for you, find something there, see what the dance culture looks like in this area and this network,” she said. Although spending summer at home, rest could be tempting, plan to use free time to try something new in a kind of dance or a different dance site.
Aubrey Mailloux, who is doubled in dance and art management for the purchase of the New York State University, had a different orientation for each of their university summers. Between the first year and the years in the second year, she carried out an internship at the American Dance Festival in Durham, in North Carolina, working in the archives to meet an internship requirement for her major in art management. “I am a historic dance nerd, and be in a place where I could help with the festival documentation and also treat the old sequences was interesting,” they say. She also chose the internship to be surrounded by dance all summer. “I was able to take a dance class every day and one or two master classes,” explains Mailoux. “Keeping myself in my practice and in good shape during the summer was really important to me.” The ADF course paid enough to cover the room and the pension, but not enough to add to their savings.
The following summer, Mailloux returned to the ADF to attend the intensity and also to participate in a work study program, which covered 50% of tuition fees in exchange for 10 hours of weekly work. Prepare yourself now for their last summer as a student, Mailoux targets the dance intensifs organized by companies with which they hope to dance after obtaining the diploma, as well as the request for internships. “It's my chance to really set foot in the door.”
Plan in advance
Backhaus recommends that students start thinking about summer plans in December or early January. The search for options in advance can prevent missed deadlines or need to rush for hearing documents.
Mailoux remembers having started looking for summer internship options during the fall semester, applying and interviewing by the end of January, and to secure the accommodation in April. “It seemed late to me, as if I was a little disturbed,” they say. Requests for internships and dance intensions can have different deadlines: for example, the Participant request for the ADF opens in November.
Teresa Chapman, Director of the Dance Department of the University of Houston, publishes summer options for students at the start of the spring semester. Then, in a class of career skills, one of the conferences is devoted to the examination and search for internships and intensive. “Many companies have large intensive people who are only one or two weeks old, who are more feasible for a student who also works,” she said.
Consider costs
Summer dance training can be expensive, especially when travel and accommodation are involved. Planning in advance and the search for financial aid options can however alleviate costs. For those who need to prioritize work and savings during the summer, there are ways to continue to train in dance.
Chapman remembers an era when one of his students refused a scholarship to study dance in Paris, fearing to lose his job in a dance studio. “It was a difficult conversation for me,” she said. “Sometimes students do not have a clear idea of what an opportunity is until they get there. But my students are incredibly loyal (in their work). ” She estimates that around 75% of her students must work at least part of their summers. Mailoux returns to Wyoming for at least part of each summer, where she lives at home, cleans the houses and teaches dance to save money for the next semester.
If traveling for summer intensity is out of reach, plan to examine local businesses and studios that could offer discounts to students or work opportunities. Backhaus employs some of his chapman students each year as chaperons and assistants for the intensity of his business, Backhausdance. “We give them an option where they can remain local for the summer,” says Backhaus. “We can offer a work opportunity to Chapman students, and they can also continue their training.” She considers this arrangement to be beneficial for students, her business and the partnership between her business and the university.
“In each phase of your university life, your summers are different,” explains Backhaus. “Sometimes you have family obligations, sometimes you know it's your summer of graduation, sometimes you know that you have to work a lot because you have to pay for school. You should know what is important to you and what you want to do in summer. ”
And remember, the best time to prepare is now.
