The art of competition

A Princeton acceptance letter does not mark the end of competitive application processes. Indeed, there is plenty to compete for as soon as students first walk through the University's gates, including Wilson School admission, residential adviser spots, eating club membership, campus jobs and even a senior-year study carrel. While an application process may often be necessary, sometimes it gets in the way of learning. Every student, for instance, should be able to enroll in introductory-level courses. Yet at a university committed to both the arts and sciences, there are surprising roadblocks in the path of students seeking entry into creative arts courses.

Despite Peter Lewis' recent $101 million contribution to the enhancement of the "role of the creative and performing arts" in University life, the Creative Writing Program currently turns students away even from its introductory-level courses. In fact, the Creative Writing Program unambiguously declares on its website that it "cannot accommodate all interested students" and that its current application process is "chancy and subjective." A similar situation exists for novices interested in the visual or performing arts: Both applications and interviews are required for admission to introductory courses for photography, choreography and playwriting.

There needs to be some explanation as to why, given Princeton's financial resources, students who wish to acquire a skillset that is not provided by any other academic department are forced to apply for courses. On what basis should one student be admitted to an introductory course over another student if no prerequisite classes are specified? It seems illogical to evaluate students for enrollment in a course on the basis of skills that one would hope to acquire by taking an introductory level course in the first place.

We believe that every student accepted to Princeton is entitled to the same opportunity to receive beginner-level instruction in an academic course of interest. The presence of the current competitive evaluative processes for course admission may well deter an undergraduate from pursuing study of the arts. At the same time as the University draws from its swollen endowment to guarantee open access to Prospect Avenue eating clubs, it should also address its surprising failure to allow the same freedom of access to introductory courses, particularly in the creative arts. Perhaps this, as much as a new arts center, would show Princeton's commitment to making the arts a central and vital part of the University community.