Tisch Summer High School Application FAQ

We receive over 800 applications for our Tisch Summer High School Program and accept a limited number of students to each program. Below you can see approximately how many students are accepted to each program track.

Dance: 24

Drama - Atlantic: 16

Drama - Experimental Theatre: 16 

Drama - Meisner: 32

Drama - New Studio: 48 

Drama - Production & Design: 12 

Drama - Stonestreet: 16 

Dramatic Writing: 24

Filmmaking: 56

Game Design: 16

Photography: 20

Recorded Music: 48

This program is not a leisure summer camp; it is a commitment of four weeks on campus that encompasses a highly structured class schedule, which include projects, professional training, and collaboration. The classes are based on the Tisch undergraduate curriculum. Students in the Tisch Summer High School Program are expected to complete any coursework and professional training requirements of the artistic track they are enrolled in.

Students will be graded with a letter grade of A through F. 

Yes, Summer High School students receive four-six (4-6) transferable college credits. Credits that replace a required college class are dependent on the university's policy that will be receiving the college credits. It is dependent on that university's course structure and program requirements. Please visit NYU’s Transfer Credits page to learn more about our credit policy. 

No, we do not audit classes at Tisch, including any Summer High School classes. Because of the participatory and creative nature of courses at Tisch, departments do not permit prospective students to observe classes. However, students are welcome to come and visit other NYU classes throughout the year. Classroom visits are offered Monday through Thursday during the fall and spring semesters. If you are interested in sitting in on a class, visit the Jeffrey S. Gould Welcome Center, 50 West Fourth Street, for a list of classes that are open for visitation. You may also call 212.998.4524 for more information. You can also visit the Tisch Special Programs Vimeo page for more insight into each artist track for our Summer High School program.

The Office of Undergraduate Admissions offers information sessions and tours of the NYU campus twice daily, generally Monday through Friday at 10 am, 1 pm, and/or 2:30 pm. Please call 212.998.4500 to make a reservation or go to the Undergraduate Admissions website to schedule a visit online.

Your first and last name cannot be changed from within the application; they need to be updated on your application portal profile. Once you are logged into your application portal, click the avatar image on the top right of your screen to change your profile settings. Once your name is updated from within the profile settings, be sure to save your settings!

Please note: Your Preferred Name is automatically generated from your First Name unless you otherwise change it. If you change your First Name in your Profile Settings, you may wish to revisit the Contact Details page of your application to make changes to your Preferred Name.

We simply ask that you estimate your own GPA on a 4.0 scale to the best of your ability. Your self-reported GPA will be reviewed along with your transcript, which should be submitted directly from your school.

We recommend using this conversion chart to estimate your GPA:

https://pages.collegeboard.org/how-to-convert-gpa-4.0-scale

At this time, the Summer High School Filmmaking program is only accepting applications from current high school juniors (rising seniors). If you are currently a sophomore, you are welcome to apply to any of our other Summer High School programs. We encourage you to apply to the Filmmaking program next year!

No. Applicants must be current high school juniors or sophomores (rising seniors or juniors) to apply. Preference is given to current high school juniors. However, we do consider seniors to the Online High School Filmmakers Workshop and the Online High School Screenwriters Workshop.

There is no audition or portfolio requirement for any of our Tisch Summer High School programs; however, if you have links to artistic performances or materials you would like to share (e.g., YouTube videos of performances, a Flickr account of your photos, or a Vimeo page of your short film), please feel free to include the URL(s) in your Creative Résumé.

When your application is submitted and reviewed as complete, you will be invited to complete the NYU Profile Form. Once your Profile Form is submitted and complete, you will then be invited to apply for the Scholarship.

Students should submit a creative résumé, listing all training, awards, projects, community service or employment completed in or outside of school. You can also include working hyperlinked URLs on the résumé to websites that show work that you have completed to supplement your application. Please check NYU’s visual guide to a successful résumé.

We cannot in any circumstance accept a transcript uploaded by the student. Please reach out to your school to have them send the transcript, and be sure they are aware of the January 6, 2021 5:00pm ET deadline.

We accept transcripts in the following ways. Please note, to ensure your transcript is received before the deadline, it is strongly encouraged that your school email us your transcript if possible.

Email: This is our preferred delivery method.

- Emailed transcripts must come from a school representative or an official transcript service on behalf of your school.
- Our email address is tisch.special.admissions@nyu.edu.

Mail: Mailed transcripts must be sealed and issued directly from your school to:

                       New York University
                       Tisch Office of Special Programs Admissions
                       721 Broadway, Rm 1248
                       New York, NY 10003

Please simply have your school submit your most up-to-date transcript available.

Although you are only required 2 recommendations, your application allows for the input of up to 3 recommenders. Please use your third recommender section to input the correct/updated details of your recommender.

If you have already used all 3 of your available recommendation inputs, please have your recommender email their recommendation directly to us at tisch.special.admissions@nyu.edu.

When you complete the recommender details in your application, an email is sent to the recommender with a link to the online recommendation form. Occasionally, this email may be filtered to a Promotions or Spam folder.

If your recommender cannot find their email, or is having technical difficulties with the online form, they are welcome to email a recommendation letter directly to us at tisch.special.admissions@nyu.edu.

Occasionally, recommenders will have filled out the whole form but only "Saved" the form. They must click the "Submit" button to finish their recommendation. Encourage your recommender to return to the form to make sure they have clicked the "Submit" button.

Once the recommendation has been successfully submitted, both you and the recommender will receive a confirmation email that the recommendation was received.

Please note: if your recommender emails us their recommendation directly, rather than using the online form, you will not receive a confirmation email.

Applications are reviewed for completion manually - by humans! We need to pay close attention to the details of your application, so this part of the process cannot be automated.

Please be patient as it may take a few days for us to re-review your application and mark it as complete - ESPECIALLY during the Winter Break when the office is closed.

Some students have reported that our emails get filtered to their Spam or Promotions folder. We recommend you put our email address (tisch.special.admissions@nyu.edu and nyu252@nyu.edu) on a no-filter list so you receive all communications.

If you think you are not receiving communications from our office, please note you can also always check your CONVERSATIONS tab on your application portal. Simply log in to your application portal; toward the top of the page you should see the "Conversations" icon. Click this icon to view all emails sent by our office to you, and sent from you to us!

Once your application has been submitted, we manually review the applications for completion. This can take some time, especially while the school is closed for the Winter Break. Please be patient as we will review your application for completion as quickly as possible. 

Note that only complete applications are submitted to faculty for review and all applicants are notified at the same time of their final status. Early notification is not possible. Refer to the Admissions calendar for a date.