Leading dance school companies often have summer training programs from which they select candidates for admission to their regular full-time training program. Early and intensive training also is important for modern dancers, but modern dance usually does not require as many years of training as ballet. Most dancers have their professional auditions by age 17 or 18. Because of the strenuous and time-consuming training required, a dancer's formal academic instruction may be minimal. However, a broad, general education including music, literature, history, and the visual arts is helpful in the interpretation of dramatic episodes, ideas, and feelings.
Dancers sometimes conduct research to learn more about the part they are playing.
Many colleges and universities confer bachelor's or higher degrees in dance, usually through the departments of music, theater, or fine arts. Most programs concentrate on modern dance, but many also offer courses in ballet and classical techniques, dance composition, dance history, dance criticism, and movement analysis. A college education is not essential to obtain employment as a professional dancer. In fact, ballet dancers who postpone their first audition until graduation may have a disadvantage when competing with younger dancers. However, a college degree can help dancers who retire at an early age to enter another field of work.