Odds of Getting In
Congratulations, you just graduated from your conservatory with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theater. Were you able to get your Equity card doing a show during college? No? The non-union line is over there, we'll see you when we feel like it.
No matter how skilled and highly-trained you may be, when you start your career, you'll be starting from the bottom. This is a performance gig, so it's all about who you know. So who do you know? Your teachers and tutors and directors, that's who.
As you grow and learn your craft (at least, that's what you should be doing), you're also making connections. When you finally get out in to the big, bad real world, take full advantage of those people. They may be instrumental in getting you your first job in an Equity chorus—after which you get to wait in the union line at auditions. It smells a lot less like desperation over there.