Program entry

Program entry for all levels for Dance, Film, Music & Sound, Theatre Performance, Theatre Production & Design, and Visual Art BFAs is by audition, interview, or portfolio. Depending on the Program Area, the audition, interview, or portfolio review will occur from January to April. Entry into the Art, Performance & Cinema Studies is based on a questionnaire. Please scroll down for Program Area-specific information, instructions, and documents.

Cohort based

The SCA offers cohort based programs in Dance, Film, Music & Sound, Theatre Performance, Theatre Production & Design, Visual Art, and Art, Performance & Cinema Studies. This means that students work with the same group or cohort of students for (usually) four years, starting in the Fall term of each year. For this reason, our entry process is limited to Fall term (September) entry for our Majors. Though SFU can admit you for the Spring term, and we can find some useful courses for you to take, we are not able to accept portfolios or questionnaires or run auditions for Spring term (January) entry.

Important

When you apply to SFU you are asked to declare an “intended major,” and if SFU Admissions does admit you, it is only as an “intended major” – you haven't been officially accepted into a Major program yet. The decision about acceptance into a SCA Major program is made in February through April for the Fall term (2024). To review, this means that the processes of application and admission into SFU and the application and acceptance to the SCA are made up of several steps:

Application to SFU
Application to the SCA (Currently closed)
Admission to SFU (with intended Major) and acceptance to the SCA (entry is limited to the Fall term for our Majors)

As the steps above show, after (1.) applying first to SFU and (2.) applying to the SCA second, the processes (3.) for possible admission to SFU and acceptance to the SCA begin to run in parallel. This might seem confusing, but it shouldn't be: the two processes are in fact separate, but related. It's possible to be admitted to SFU and not accepted into the SCA, and it's also even possible to be accepted into the SCA and not admitted to SFU. A fully successful application process has only one outcome: Students are only accepted to the SCA if they have BOTH received an email from the SCA accepting them (limited to the Fall term for our Majors) AND if they have been officially admitted to SFU.

If you have applied to a Major program in the SCA, please wait for our official acceptance notification, which we will send via email. Again, notification of admission from SFU Admissions or The Faculty of Communication, Art & Technology (FCAT), the faculty the SCA is part of, does not count as acceptance to the SCA. We will also notify unsuccessful applicants to the SCA.

If you have any questions about starting classes at SCA, please contact the SCA's New Students Advisor at scanew@sfu.ca.

Admissions to SFU

The application deadline for the 2024 Fall Semester at SFU for High School students is January 31, 2024. Post-Secondary applicants may apply to SFU between March 1st and April 15th, 2024. You can find SFU's Admissions Requirements HERE and you can Apply to SFU online HERE. Most of the SCA's programs have secondary application deadlines prior to this. Please see below for area-specific instructions and documents and a link to Apply to the SCA online.

SCA Friday Tours

Please check back for updates.

We're holding SCA student-lead tours of SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts every Friday at 2:30 p.m., meeting in the lobby. Sign up for a date of your choice– and remember to bring your questions about the SCA.

First: Apply to SFU

Students for Dance, Film, Music, Theatre, or Visual Art must have applied to SFU prior to the Audition/Interview/Portfolio process. This does not mean that you must be admitted to SFU... you probably won’t be admitted yet, and that’s OK. Shortly after you fill out the SFU Admissions form, you will be given a 9-digit reference number (eg. 303333333), and you will need that to take the next step in the process.

You can find SFU's Admissions Requirements HERE

You can Apply to SFU online HERE

Grades

SFU Admissions will evaluate students based on courses taken. The School for the Contemporary Arts will take students' Audition/Interview/Portfolio into account in the application process and make recommendations to Admissions where appropriate. Our School expects students in our majors to maintain a 3.0 Program GPA during the course of their studies at SFU. That is a B average in all Contemporary Arts (CA) courses.

Second: Apply to the SCA

Once SCA Applications are open (October 2023 for entry in Fall 2024), you will be able to apply to the different program areas in the SCA by using our two-part online application form. Part one of the form collects information and part two lets you upload any necessary documents (in PDF form); both parts need to be completed.

SCA Online Application Form

Please see below for area-specific application requirements, deadlines, and documents.

APPLY TO: DANCE

The process to apply for the Dance program is a questionnaire and an audition.

The applications for Dance for Fall 2023 are now closed.

Find out more about the Dance program HER E.

SCA Online Application Form (Currently closed)

APPLY TO: FILM

The process to apply for the Film program is a questionnaire followed by an interview. Based on the results of the submitted questionnaire, a phone or in-person interview will follow later for approximately half the students who have applied.

The applications for Film for Fall 2023 are now closed.

Please note, unsuccessful applicants who have submitted their questionnaire in January, or January applicants who are waitlisted may not re-submit a questionnaire for the February deadline.

Fall 2023 Film Questionnaire (For reference only): Download PDF.

For answers to frequently asked questions about the film program, as well as advice on filling out the questionnaire, see our Film Area FAQ.

Find out more about the Film program HERE.

SCA Online Application Form (Currently closed)

APPLY TO: Music & Sound

Application to the Music & Sound program requires submitting a questionnaire and a portfolio of musical work (any musical work you have created is acceptable to submit). After applications are reviewed, a select group of prospective students will be contacted for an interview.

The applications for Music & Sound for Fall 2023 are now closed.

Entry to our school closely considers the fit of each candidate to this unique program. As no two music schools have the same profile of specialisation, it is critical to do your research to determine if our program is ideally suited to your interests and aspirations. Prospective students are encouraged to thoroughly research the Music & Sound page including the program description, FAQs, and alumni profiles including links that illustrate their work and careers. If these resources spark your curiosity, this may be the program for you!

Fall 2023 Music & Sound Questionnaire (For reference only): Download PDF.

Find out more about the Music & Sound program HERE.

SCA Online Application Form (Currently closed)

APPLY TO: THEATRE PERFORMANCE

The process to apply for the Theatre Performance program is a questionnaire and an audition.

The applications for Theatre Performance for Fall 2023 are now closed.

Fall 2023 Theatre Performance questionnaire (For reference only): Download PDF

Students from high school, or without post-secondary theatre courses, will audition for entry into the first year of the program; students with post-secondary theatre transfer credit will audition for entry into the second year of the program.

Please contact the SCA New Students Advisor scanew@sfu.ca to discuss your options.

Find out more about the Theatre Performance program HERE.

SCA Online Application Form (Currently closed)

APPLY TO: THEATRE PRODUCTION & DESIGN

All prospective Production & Design students will submit a questionnaire.

The applications for Theatre Production & Design for Fall 2023 are now closed.

Fall 2023 Production and Design Questionnaire (For reference only): Download PDF

Find out more about the Theatre Production & Design program HERE.

SCA Online Application Form (Currently closed)

APPLY TO: VISUAL ART

All prospective Visual Art students are evaluated by means of a PDF portfolio with images and written responses. Please note, unsuccessful applicants who have submitted their portfolios in January will be reconsidered in March, so there is no need to re-submit.

The applications for Visual Art for Fall 2023 are now closed.

Fall 2023 Visual Art Questionnaire (For reference only): Download PDF

Find out more about the Visual Art program HERE.

SCA Online Application Form (Currently closed)

APPLY TO: ART, PERFORMANCE & CINEMA STUDIES

Prospective students need to submit a questionnaire.

The applications for Art, Performance & Cinema Studies for Fall 2023 are now closed.

Fall 2023 Art, Performance and Cinema Studies Questionnaire (For reference only): Download PDF.

Find out more about the Art, Performance & Cinema Studies program HERE.

SCA Online Application Form (Currently closed)

Take a tour of the SCA at Goldcorp Centre for the Arts

Here's SCA alumni Milton Lim with a video introduction to the SCA at SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts.

Due to COVID-19, our in-person tours are on hold. Please check back for updates.

If you'd like an in-person tour, we're holding SCA student-lead tours of SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts every Friday at 2:30 p.m., meeting in the lobby. Sign up for a date of your choice – and remember to bring your questions about the SCA.