Conservatoire for Dance and Drama

Age: 10, but it was founded by a number of affiliate schools that are much older.

History: The Conservatoire is one of the newest higher education institutions in the country, established in 2001 to secure the future of conservatoire-level vocational training in dance and drama in England. It has a unique structure, made up of eight affiliate schools: London Contemporary Dance School (LCDS), and Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), both founder members; Northern School of Contemporary Dance and Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, who joined in 2003; The Central School of Ballet, The Circus Space and London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), who joined in 2004; Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance, who joined in 2005. All are small, specialist, vocational training institutions with international reputations for high quality training in dance, drama or circus arts.

Address: Very spread out – the Conservatoire's schools are based in London, Bristol and Leeds. LCDS, RADA, LAMDA, The Circus Space and Central School of Ballet are located in central London, with Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance based just outside London in Twickenham. The Northern School of Contemporary Dance is in Leeds, and the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School is based in the Clifton area of Bristol.

Ambience: All the institutions buzz with the creative energy generated by passionate young performing arts students. London, Leeds and Bristol are all fabulous for culture-lovers.

Vital statistics: All the colleges offer rigorous training aimed at producing professional dancers, actors, circus performers, stage managers and technicians of the highest quality. The Conservatoire maintains good employment rates in the dance, drama and circus arts professions. It estimates that between 83 and 98 per cent of its students find relevant professional employment after completing their training. RADA's courses are validated by King's College London; BOVTS courses are validated by the University of the West of England; NSCD, LCDS, CSB, LAMDA and The Circus Space courses are all validated by the University of Kent.

Added value: All are leading lights in their respective spheres. The training is highly demanding, both physically and mentally. Superb links to the profession, with guest directors and designers. Agents and casting directors keep an eye out for talent amongst the students.

Easy to get into? No – entry is by way of a tough interview and audition process, and competition is extremely fierce. Applications are made directly to each affiliate school.

Glittering alumni: Daniel Day-Lewis; Jeremy Irons; Helen Baxendale; Jim Broadbent; Anna Maxwell Martin; Richard Harris; Richard Attenborough; Kenneth Branagh; Glenda Jackson; choreographers Siobhan Davies and Richard Alston; and dancer Javier de Frutos. More recently, Dominic Cooper, Andrea Risborough, Gemma Arterton.

Transport links: Great – big city locations mean these institutions are all very well connected by public transport.

Who's the boss? Veronica Lewis MBE (LCDS) and Edward Kemp (Royal Academic of Dramatic Art) are the joint principals of the Conservatoire.

Teaching: Quality of teaching scored very highly in the 2011 National Student Survey, with 97 per cent of respondents agreeing with positive appraisals of teaching.

Nightlife: London, Leeds and Bristol are all brilliant for night-owls if you've still got the energy.

Any accommodation? None of the schools offer on-campus accommodation, but all offer free advice on where to stay nearby.

Cheap to live there? Depends where you are. Expect to pay £100 or more a week in London, £65 in Leeds, with Bristol a bit more.

Fees: £3,375 per year for full-time undergrads starting in September 2011. The Conservatoire has not released proposals for its fees as of 2012 yet.

Bursaries: Conservatoire bursaries of up to £1,000 are available to students on low household incomes. See the website for details.

Prospectus: www.cdd.ac.uk is the gateway site. Central number is 0207 387 5101.

LCDS: 020 7121 1111/ www.theplace.org.uk; RADA: 020 7636 7076/ www.rada.org; NSCD: 0113 219 3000/ www.nscd.ac.uk; BOVTS: 0117 973 3535/www.oldvic.ac.uk; LAMDA: 020 8834 0500/ www.lamda.org.uk; Central School of Ballet: 020 7837 6332/ www.centralschooolofballet.co.uk/; The Circus Space: 020 7729 6522/ www.thecircusspace.co.uk; Rambert: 020 8892 9960/ www.rambertschool.org.uk