Have you been thinking about applying to a creative writing MFA program? The experience can be transformative—but the MFA degree is not a magic wand that guarantees literary achievement; in contrast, plenty of successful, famous writers never obtain one. The first thing to do is be sure you want to attend for the right reasons—for example, your aim is to study craft under the tutelage of esteemed authors, immerse yourself in the close reading of texts, or gain a grounding in critical theory and analytical finesse. Once you’ve decided that you have the right rationale and commitment to enroll, here are seven “fit” factors to consider when selecting a program.
Program type. Are you seeking a program that focuses on critique within writing workshops and thesis preparation? Or a theory program offering pedagogical development for academic teaching? The first follows a conservatory model that admits students on the strength of their writing portfolio. In the second model, scholarship and theory figure prominently in your coursework, and your past academic achievements count as much as your writing sample.
Format. Decide whether you want a full-time campus program or a low-residency design, where you complete most of the program online and spend just a few weeks each year on campus.
Location. Where do you want to live for the next two or three years: in a suburban, urban, or rural environment? Would you like to complete the degree abroad? Location includes climate. Consider how you feel about living in a rainy, cold, arid, or tornado-prone environment. In a low-residency program, of course, location is less of a concern.
Financial aid. If your program is not fully funded, what kinds of assistantships, scholarships, and fellowships does it offer? If you aspire to an academic career, how many teaching assistantships are available? Are scholarships renewable? Will you need to maintain a day job or cobble together funding from external sources?
Size. Don’t just look at the program itself; consider the size of an affiliated English department and the university in which your program resides. Find out the average number of students in workshops. Are you at your best in an intimate setting of ten to twelve students? Consider how comfortable you would be if the average workshop size were sixteen students. Think about the implications program size may portend for how often your drafts are workshopped or how much personal attention you can receive. You’re likely to take some electives and literature courses, and those classes range from small discussion-based seminars to large, impersonal lectures. Weigh how much size matters to you.
Faculty. Never choose a program because of a couple of big-name authors on the roster. Professors take sabbaticals and transition to other institutions. Should that occur, would the program’s additional resources, departmental offerings, and other professors still be a solid match for you? Too many students with stars in their eyes hitch their wagon to a faculty bigwig, without sufficiently considering whether the other program features would still meet their needs if that bigwig left.
Exit requirements. The apex of these programs is a creative thesis of publishable quality, often a portion or all of a manuscript in your chosen genre. Know that some programs may also require “comps,” extensive examinations where you demonstrate fluency across a broad field of literature, periods, and styles. Often these exams are identical to the ones the department’s literature or English MA candidates must pass.
Realize that MFA programs are not one-way tickets that lead straight from completed degrees to authorial prosperity. You’ll still need to engage in the challenging business of crafting a literary career. MFA programs are not all created equal, and none of them guarantee future success. However, one thing is certain: If you never apply, you’ll never get in!
Lyzette Wanzer’s work appears in over thirty literary journals, magazines, and books. Her book, Trauma, Tresses, & Truth: Untangling Our Hair Through Personal Narratives (Chicago Review Press), appeared on Library Journal’s 2022 Top 10 Best Social Sciences Books list and was a 2023 Black Women’s Studies Association Selection.
