MsLin

Hi, I'm a student in Europe (Non-native English) and I'm getting my Master's degree in English (more or less the same as a 4 year bachelor degree in the US) in June 2015 and I really want to do a MFA Creative Writing. However, I have so many questions, so I hope some of you can help me. International student So Like I said, English isn't my native language, but I've been learning it since I was 5 and always had extremely good grades in school. I'm absolutely in love with the language, so it was normal I went to study it in college. I just feel it. I also love writing and reading. I've been reading English books since I was 13 and you can capture so more in English than in my own language. I've been writing for a few years now, in my own language but also in English (I've published a few stories on Fanfiction.net). But is it really possible for a non-native speaker to write in English? Are there students who did do a MFA Creative Writing and what are your experiences? Tuition I know it's very expensive to study, especially compared to my country. For my entire 4 years of study, my tuition will be 2000 euros, which is like 2.500-3.000 dollars. So you can probably think it's very crazy to think I could be paying up to 8.000 dollars a semester. However, I heard there are like scholarships and financial aid, but I'm not entirely sure what all that is. So if anyone could explain me a bit, that would be a great help. Are there other types of funding? Also, do you need to pay the tuition in one payment, or is it possible to do it like monthly or something? Low-residency or completely online? I've completely ruled out full-residency, because that's completely impossible for me, because I want to start (part-time) teaching in my home country after I have graduated university. So that leaves me with low residency and online. I've understood that the number of residencies differs from school to school and rangers from 2 to 5-6 over 2 years grad school. That’s possible for me and I think that's the best option for me, although I've heard about completely online programs. Anyone has experience with that? What are some good schools for a low-residency and online program? Applying From my knowledge I've learnt through TV-shows and films, I've understood that there are deadlines to apply. So if would want to start grad school in the fall of 2015, the deadline would be what? December 2014? January 2015. Just to get an idea of what I should expect... From what I've learned through research, you need to have a portfolio of your writing (up to 10 pages maybe for fiction), letter(s) of recommendation, apply fee, basic form, anything else I'm missing? I don't really understand the concept of letters of recommendation. Is it like from a college professor? Or could it just be your neighbor? And regarding the apply fee, how much is it average? And I'm guessing it is non-refundable? I think these are all the questions I have for now and will greatly help me progress my search in finding the right school and all. It doesn't really matter if I don't start directly after I finish my degree here, I've got all the time I need, but I do want it to do the right way. Thank you so much! - Lin