bluecheese

Cary Wolfe, but also see Cary Wolfe's book series at University of Minnesota Press (it's a good place to start).

CONGRATSSSS!!!!!

If you apply to the PhD programs, you'll be competing against a lot of students who already have MFA degrees (and potentially impressive publication records). I'd go for an MFA first.

I would expand out into the top 20 more--Cornell, Duke! (Literature), UPenn, Yale, etc. --if you can, aim for like 15+ US programs. I know that's a lot of money and effort, but it will give you more opportunities when the dust settles. Also, the UK schools are great, but it can be super hard to get a job (in the US) coming out of them... so that's something to consider. The french paper might be fine for some of the comp lit programs, I'm not sure about english departments though. You might want to write something new.

If you're already getting waitlists re-apply next year if you don't get off any of them. Seriously--it's not worth it, especially if you're already on the verge of being accepted to a program. Improve aspects of your application and apply to MORE PROGRAMS next year (supposing your waitlists don't turn in to anything). I'm sure you'll get in somewhere! You're already on the cusp of being admitted, so it really isn't work going into debt.

Sent PM.

Congratssssss!!!!

This. And that will give you a super substantial list if you tack it onto the schools you're already applying to.

Thanks for this!--it's basically a to do checklist for the next 4-5 years. I've told this to people coming into our MFA program--but I was just being honest. Not even a degree from Brown, Cornell, Iowa, etc. can secure you a job in a creative writing program as a faculty member. You basically need to be a "star" hire from the start (several accomplished books, etc.) Those jobs are crazy hard to get (and even the community college jobs are super super hard to come by).

Northwestern?

I'm tempted to say that you should re-apply if you can and maybe audit a course or two at the closest university (for much cheaper). There is another similar thread to this about unfunded MA programs. If you go to one of those a year from now, you'll come out with more teaching experience, etc. It is going to be HARD to get a community college job with one semester of teaching experience when there are PhD students who have 5 years (or MFA students with 3 years) of experience applying for those jobs. If you go to a program that has more teaching experience not only will you not be in debt, you'll have that much more on your CV. Several of my friends from my MFA program are applying for community college jobs in various places and they all have 2 semesters of composition experience, experience TAing for an upper division literature course, experience teaching a stand along upper division (3000 level) intermediate course in their genre, and a few other courses under their belt. And there are LOTS of people with similar sets of experience on the market for community college jobs--especially in CO (there are like 3-4 MFA programs that are pretty good there). Chicago MAPH is too expensive. Period.

I wouldn't jump the gun on attending to unfunded MA programs--taking another year to polish one's application for a funded program isn't going to hurt, and it will put you in a better position for the long haul. Yes you can get lots of things out of unfunded MA programs, but I also know lots of people who wish they didn't have debt. Debt is a huge burden when it comes to picking jobs (supposing the academic job market doesn't pan out that well), etc. I have a moderate amount of debt, and I wish I didn't even have that. I have to get a job that will allow me to pay it off, and it is going to take a cut of my paycheck for a long time. It's not really worth it considering that you'll likely get into a funded MA somewhere if you apply wider and polish your application.

If you have no debt stay with no debt! Seriously--it's not worth it. Right now whatever you do with your life you'll be in the green. Work at a coffee shop, make some money, read some books, and apply again next year. I'm sure your application will be better AND you won't have to take on debt. Hell, you might even consider trying for some creative writing programs too if you've done any of that as an undergrad (there are a lot more funded MFA programs). You have lots of time. There is nothing wrong with taking a basic job for a year or two.

That said, all of that stuff is "fixable" if pitched correctly in a cover letter for a job. People from Ivy's do get jobs at regional schools, but you also have to consider that departments don't want to waste money flying you out as one of their top 5 picks (or so) if they don't think you're serious about the position.

There are "free" PDFs of the ets books online if you look--I found them super useful in that there are videos that solve every problem in the books, if I got stuck on a certain question I could watch someone else solve it.