LAMDA 1 year Foundation or East 15 Acting school 3 year BA?

[BolshyB]

Hello, looking for some advice. My DS has just finished school at 18 and has applied for all the usual drama schools Rada , LAMDA,Mountview Guidlhalletc etc , he was suggested to apply by LAMDA to their foundation course which is 2 terms long. I thought anyone could get into the foundation courses and that it was a bit of a scam but apparently they are also quite hard to get into at those schools. Anyway he has been offered a place on this LAMDA foundation course. He has also been offered a place at East 15 acting school but on their proper BA 3 year course. He is not sure what to do as some people are saying to take the foundation as LAMDA looks good on the cv but then he could run the chance of not getting into any 3 year course next year. It is such a difficult decision. Does anyone have experience of either or of East 15, do a lot of industry professionals come to their showcases? what is the support like from LAMDA after the 1 year foundation course? Would be so grateful for any points of view from people with experience of either of these courses. Thank you

Following with interest.

Im wondering why you think he won’t get on to a degree course after though- surely it will develop his talent?

Hi, firstly well done to your DS for both offers, it's impressive especially for his first year of auditioning.

Yes, on paper LAMDA is a more prestigious school than East 15 but what counts here is that the BA at East 15 will get him the training for three years and the industry showcase and hopefully from that an agent. And then hopefully auditions and work.

If he just does the foundation course, he isn't guaranteed to get onto a 3 year course after that (though it sounds as if he definitely has the talent to!). That being said, I did a foundation course at a prestigious acting school and there were lots of people in my classes who were convinced at 18 they wanted to be actors. Then they did the foundation course and it helped them to realise it wasn't what they wanted in practice. Foundations are a really good preparation of the training and what is to come if you choose this path AND this career/life.

It's also a lot more economical to do a BA with a student loan and help with living costs than foundation courses which tend to be lots of ££ upfront, if that's a consideration for you.

Would East 15 allow him to defer for a year? Then he could complete the foundation course first and either go to East 15 or repeat other auditions next year.

If deferring is not a possibility, I would recommend choosing the degree course. Dd has chosen a 3 year BA course at drama school over a foundation course too.

The foundation year is really to prepare you to apply for the BA or diploma and bring your skills to the required level.
East15 is a good drama school if they are offering him the BA he is ready and does not need the foundation year.
DD has several friends at East 15 just finishing first and second year and very happy with the training.

As someone who reps Actors, do the BA at East 15

Jury is still out on Foundation courses AND east 15 is a great we'll respected school

People have told me that this has happened to them that they didn’t get in at all the next year

Thank you 😊

Thank you

Thank you

I'm in the industry and am still fairly sus about foundation years - v handy for the schools who need extra fees, not so handy for the students who don't really need four years of training (or if they do, then a post-grad at LAMDA would be preferable imho). Go for the 3-year BA and good luck to him!

Look at the alumni list from East 15. It's pretty impressive!

E15 is a highly respected acting school - quite a few of their alumni are doing good things now.
Go straight for the BA - he ill have a great time while he is there as well, without the worry of spending a year auditioning for the next place of study.

Also in the industry and absolutely agree with others upthread about Foundation courses - jury's out but drama schools are using them as nice little earners. I'd go with E15 every time over a Foundation year course.

East 15 is one of the schools were I watch all the digital showcases across the courses and years for the degree and MAs (but wouldn't for foundation)

Also wondering if us Industry peeps know of each other 😜