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So just what do performing arts courses cost? I have spent a great deal of time during the last two weeks researching the details of courses offered by a wide range of providers for The Stage’s Summer School Supplement (March 14) and Postgraduate Courses Supplement (March 21).
And if you think that the answer to my simple question is easy to find then you’d be very much mistaken. Yes, of course there are schools, colleges and youth theatres which state costs very clearly on the first page of the website which deals with the course. But there are far too many who do not.
Quite often you have to download the application form before you find any mention of the fee – and that applies as often to a £300 week-long summer school as to a full-time Masters degree costing many thousands of pounds. It is both tedious and time consuming.
Or perhaps there is a great deal of gush abut the “unique” (it won’t be) “exciting” (maybe) course, but you have to search all over the page to find a “fees” button which, typically, will be very unobtrusive. And in some cases there is no mention of the fee at all – at least that I can find – so it’s a matter of phoning or emailing for the “further details” which is even more time consuming and really shouldn’t be necessary.
So why aren’t all course providers being open and upfront about the cost of their product? It is, after all, one of the first things you need to know. However good the course, if you can’t afford it – or have no means of funding it – then you can’t have it. And you are, in my view, entitled to know this at the outset rather than reading many effusive details about a course before realising that it is totally out of your reach.
I think some course providers are being deliberately – and with questionable ethics – coy about course costs. Presumably they are afraid that the truth will put people off. Or is it a case, as in the shops in South Moulton Street, that “If you need to ask the price you can’t afford it”? Dreadful arrogance, if so.
Actually it is simply infuriating – and puts me right off the institutions concerned – not to have ready access to the information which any potential purchaser needs. If you are running charged-for courses at any level I suggest you check your website and, if you are guilty of any of the above, rectify it.
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Comments 4 comments
I couldn’t agree more! It’s a total waste of time ploughing through a site if the finances are beyond your budget. I am FAR more likely to read on if I know the cost at the outset. (Exactly the same as checking out a gym – I had one insist that they showed the equipment and stuff before saying the cost. Total turn-off!) I am doing the 2 year part-time course at LSDA (London School of Dramatic Art). It’s about 2k a term, which makes it far more accessible than most (and you can earn while you earn). The School isn’t accredited, but the tutors are all working actors so you get both a fresh and a realistic approach to teaching. No jaded tutors; no-one insisting you act their way; no large impersonal classes. Thoroughly recommended.Report comment
It comes down to marketing approaches. Providers/institutions that don’t disclose fees are focused on getting contact details as leads for further marketing.
However, as can be seen by at least the two opinions already expressed here, this is short-sighted as it is to the detriment of the potential customer experience.
I agree with the notion that if the affordability is way out of proportion that the contact would be mutually pointless anyway.
From a training provider’s point of view it is better practice to develop the relationship with prospective students who are fully aware of what’s on offer and for how much, rather than just harvesting contacts.Report comment
I’m so with you on this. When I was doing the research for my business plan way before The MTA opened in 2009 I really struggled to find the course costs for far too many colleges. Bizarrely for some of them when I phoned up to ask about course costs some still refused to give them to me and instead made me ask for an application form where I was assured that all costs would be explained to me. When I designed The MTA’s website I tried to ensure that when you clicked on the fees button you saw exactly that…what the course costs including a breakdown of how it’s paid. We of course pride ourselves on our transparency – we also do OBA so that students and staff can see for themselves exactly how their fees are spent.Report comment
We agree, as a reputable performing arts school we feel that it is important to have full transparency with course fees. We have always been upfront with our course fees; if students are thinking about a career in performing arts they need to understand the costs involved as it plays a major part in deciding whether it is a) feasible and b) the course for them. Drawing upon Matthias Postel’s comment below, there is no point leaving out such vital information if students are unable to afford to fund their studies.
Nowadays, often the first port-of-call for students looking for course information is your website. On our own website, we have dedicated a landing page solely to our Diploma and Foundation Course Fees, and another landing page to the funding options available. For courses that we hold throughout the year, such as our International Summer School Course, we provide a downloadable Information Sheet which outlines course details including the fee rates. We are continuously looking at ways to improve our website, making it easy-to-navigate and as transparent as possible.Report comment