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Is college going to get in the way of my career, which is going to be a gymnast or dancer?
I'm Ms. Hill at the International Community School. My 4th graders have a few questions and I'd like to share your advice with them. Thanks in advance!
#dance #college-advice
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Heidi’s Answer
Hello! The wonderful thing about where you are is that you know exactly what you want. While your peers may still be figuring that out, you are clear about a career in movement based athletics, arts and science. That said you have to ask yourself some serious questions that require you to do some truth searching, both internally and externally.
I was a dancer, laser focused but maintained great grades in honors college bound courses though high school. I wanted to dance professionally. My parents wanted me to go to college. To gain their support I chose a great college dance program. I went and lost my drive, my focus and my passion. It was nobodies fault. In hind sight, I should have taken a deferment year, given myself permission to follow my dreams and find out where I stand and how far I could go in that professional world of dance. It is a hard path, personally, financially, mentally and physically to follow a career path that can be both brutal and undervalued. Many must hold multiple jobs, self promoting, grinding and trying to find balance. If I had given myself the gift of exploring this world in order to understand my place in it, I would have gone to college with self assurance that I was in the right place and doing it for the right reasons.
So my advice is to find out from your parents, teachers, peers and ultimately yourself if you have what it takes, if you are ready to take on that challenge. College has wonderful benefits that can enhance your network and teach you skills beyond the studio or gym but there is no timeline that is the right one... only the right one for you. You will get out of it what you put into it (including but not limited to your tuition 😉) It is an investment in your future but you need to be ready for that investment.
Best of luck to you in your next adventure!!
I was a dancer, laser focused but maintained great grades in honors college bound courses though high school. I wanted to dance professionally. My parents wanted me to go to college. To gain their support I chose a great college dance program. I went and lost my drive, my focus and my passion. It was nobodies fault. In hind sight, I should have taken a deferment year, given myself permission to follow my dreams and find out where I stand and how far I could go in that professional world of dance. It is a hard path, personally, financially, mentally and physically to follow a career path that can be both brutal and undervalued. Many must hold multiple jobs, self promoting, grinding and trying to find balance. If I had given myself the gift of exploring this world in order to understand my place in it, I would have gone to college with self assurance that I was in the right place and doing it for the right reasons.
So my advice is to find out from your parents, teachers, peers and ultimately yourself if you have what it takes, if you are ready to take on that challenge. College has wonderful benefits that can enhance your network and teach you skills beyond the studio or gym but there is no timeline that is the right one... only the right one for you. You will get out of it what you put into it (including but not limited to your tuition 😉) It is an investment in your future but you need to be ready for that investment.
Best of luck to you in your next adventure!!
Carrie Kennedy
I manage a team of underwriters who write insurance policies for corporations
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Carrie’s Answer
Absolutely not! That's wonderful that you've set a goal for what you want to do-I hope to be watching you on the Olympics some day! Anyone who is an athlete will have a certain point in their career where they won't be able to compete or perform the way they did when they were younger. Who know? You may want to own a dance studio or a gymnasium and you would need to understand how to effectively run a business. College will absolutely prepare you for that. And, don't under-estimate the value that college has to exposing you to other people, other ideas, new experiences, time away your family, etc. You will use all of those things for the rest of your life. Those are absolutely invaluable no matter what you do!
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Katelyn’s Answer
No way! Many colleges have dance programs where you earn a degree for taking dance classes, but you can also also double major or have a minor so you can study something alongside dance. You can also take dance classes and audition while in school, or join the school’s dance team. I’m a lawyer now but used to be a dancer and was able to keep dancing throughout college by taking ballet classes for school credit and being on the dance team. It’s good to have a college degree in case you want to try a different career or aren’t able to dance (eg, injury).
There are other professional arts schools like North Carolina School of the Arts and Juilliard that train dancers along with other performing artists for their future careers if you only want to study dance.
As for gymnastics, most famous/Olympic gymnasts go to college and compete for their college gymnastics teams — these teams are usually very competitive, but even if you don’t make the team you can attend their meets and cheer them on while you’re in college. For example, The University of Georgia gymnastics team is coached by former Olympian and UGA alum Courtney Kupets.
There are other professional arts schools like North Carolina School of the Arts and Juilliard that train dancers along with other performing artists for their future careers if you only want to study dance.
As for gymnastics, most famous/Olympic gymnasts go to college and compete for their college gymnastics teams — these teams are usually very competitive, but even if you don’t make the team you can attend their meets and cheer them on while you’re in college. For example, The University of Georgia gymnastics team is coached by former Olympian and UGA alum Courtney Kupets.