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I did this before in a different field and am pretty sure I just sent an email saying “I’d love to attend your program, but I can’t afford it without more aid.” And I got more aid (but didn’t attend anyway—long story). Dunno if that’s especially good advice, LOL, but it’s my experience.

I got a waitlist email from Alabama (fiction) a few weeks ago. I think I saw an acceptance call on the results page around the same time. My portal was never updated, though, so I’m not sure when official rejections/acceptances will come out. I’m also waiting on UVA but don’t think they’ve contacted anyone yet.

Congrats! That’s amazing!

Catch me crying at this BU data! ?

LOL. I applied because Ottessa Moshfegh went there and I love her. Basically the only reason.

OK this one made me LOL

This is a great Q. Would love advice from any vets. I followed up right after getting my waitlist email to thank them/express interest/ask when they typically reach out to waitlisted folks who get spots, but I haven’t received a response. And I also don’t want to be annoying, LOL.

I’m in the same boat at Alabama. The not-knowing is killer.

Not bad as tl;drs go!

Eh, I don't know that it's fair to imply that a program won't invest in you just because it's a money-making enterprise. My hunch is that something like that would depend more on the outlook of the faculty than anything—but that is, as I said, a hunch; I don't know much about how low-res programs operate. That said, if what you really want out of an MFA is to find a writing community, there are certainly cheaper ways to do that: taking one-off workshop classes, meeting other writers that way, joining a critique group... none of those things will net you a degree, of course, but they will help you learn, meet people who are actively writing, teaching, and publishing, and maybe even find a mentor of sorts—somebody who believes in your work. They will also help keep you (sort of) accountable, if that is a thing you want or feel you need. Of course, if you want to teach, you'll need a grad degree, and being in a critique group won't help you any then. But an MFA, low-res or not, is not the only way to find community, or to find success as a writer. Merely my two cents. I'm sure low-res programs make sense for lots of people, and provide a more rigorous structure in which to write than just meeting with a few people every once in a while to go over recent work, but it depends on what your goals are and how much money you're willing (or able) to throw around.

I do think the one-year thing could go either way. On the one hand, I like the idea of something so intense, but I could also see it just not being enough time. I was really attracted to BU for the focus on travel/translation in addition to straight writing instruction... I did a French major in undergrad and have always been interested in translation, but never really pursued it. And I did my undergrad in MA (albeit not in Boston), so I have fond memories of the state. Anyway, we'll see!

I’m waiting on five! I’m pretty sure one of them is out, and I know a couple others have started contacting people, but I don’t know if they’ve finished. Radio silence from the others though... and BU is one of my schools so I feel like I’m going to be waiting until, like, April to actually know what’s going on in my life. ?

I think what’s really killing me is the crumb of possibility that came with being waitlisted. Like OK, cool, somebody likes my work and that rules, but am I gonna get to move and do school stuff? I just wanna KNOW.

Hard same.

I mean, I don’t think anyone disagrees with the more factual pieces of this (i.e. the odds are bad), but the points re: debt are not universal. I happen to agree with you personally that going into debt for an MFA is a bad idea, and if someone asked me whether they should do that I would tell them no, but otherwise what they want to do with their money (theoretical or real) is Not My Business. And as far as the odds go, like, duh, they’re obviously bad. Everybody knows that; you’re not saying anything groundbreaking. But the fact remains that people are allowed to have hope about their futures, even if that pisses you off, and that those accepted into MFA programs are not mystical creatures who exist on a higher plane, but real people, some of whom even check this forum! I’m not sure whether I admire your dedication here—ultimately the act of creating multiple accounts solely to try to make MFA applicants feel bad (or SeE tHe TrUtH I guess) is, I have to admit, pretty funny—or feel bad for you, but I suppose that is also Not My Business. So... deuces?

I think BU tends to notify later. Don't know anything about the others.

LOL, I had my Lorde moment yesterday

Twins! Congrats! It seems like they might be doing staggered emails/calls, which is interesting.

Don’t know if anyone else applied to Alabama in fiction, but I just got an email and I’m on the waitlist! So glad that my first (official) notification of the season was a good one after presumed rejections from WashU and Vandy. Keep your heads up! ?

Me three on Alabama. I'm prose, not poetry, though. Fingers crossed for you both!

Interesting. I'd heard it's "good" to show you're well-read/in tune with what's going on in the literary landscape today, but I also think it's a useless exercise to try to make the application process into a game that is possible to win by doing the "right" things wherever possible. By which I mean it makes sense to name people you actually care about, whether they're dead, obvious, whatever. I mentioned Curtis Sittenfeld, Ling Ma, Halle Butler, Mary Gaitskill, and Ottessa Moshfegh everywhere, I think, and I'm pretty sure I threw Elif Batuman into one longer SOP. My hope is that someone will read that after reading my sample and be like, "OK, I get it," but honestly, who TF knows.

Did anyone actually mention their influences in their apps? I threw a few in my SOPs... curious what other people did, and if you mentioned anyone, who they were!

I am but a lurker here but have taken several classes at Sackett Street and enjoyed them all. Who's your instructor?

Hi all, I applied to three design-related MA programs this season and was accepted to all with some funding. It's coming time to make a decision and I'm having a rough time of it. Finances are a big factor for me (I have virtually no savings, debt terrifies me, and my family's in no position to help me out with tuition costs or living expenses while I'm in school). I have OK offers from the Bard Grad Center and the Parsons/Cooper Hewitt MA program. At Bard I've been offered just under $8k a year in grant aid (I'm eligible for $20,500 in federal loans) and would need to come up with some $10k a year to pay off my tuition, not counting whatever I'd need to live on—current students have made it very clear that it's not possible to work and do the program at the same time. Parsons has offered me a scholarship of 20% off my tuition, which is actually a worse offer than Bard's, but the director of the program has expressed a lot of interest in my attending and we're going to speak on the phone tomorrow regarding my funding. I wasn't so interested in the Parsons program until recently, but it has a lot of unique advantages (connection to the Cooper Hewitt, lots of fellowships/internships available to current students, access to the National Design Library, TA positions, study abroad opportunities...) and, if they're able to come up with more funding for me, I'll be really tempted. SVA is a newer, 1-year program with a greater focus on design writing and criticism—it's fairly media-focused, not really as academic as, say, Bard is—and has offered me a big enough scholarship that I'd be able to cover the cost of my tuition with federal loans alone. They're also willing to match outside scholarships up to $2,500, and there are significant scholarships available to students in the program after the first semester (up to $5k). The program coordinator has also indicated that most students do work while completing the program, and are able to cover their living expenses that way. If I really bust my ass, I'll come out with vastly less debt than I would in either of the other two programs—I'm just not sure if SVA's reputation matches up, or if I might be pigeonholing myself by choosing a shorter program with a narrower, less academic focus. I think I'd be happy at Parsons or at SVA (I'm pretty ready to say no to Bard), but both programs are very different and I worry that making a decision solely based on finances may close some doors to me professionally, especially since the SVA program is so narrow (and so much less academically-inclined). That said, SVA's the clear winner in terms of funding, and it seems like they're pouring a lot of resources into the program in order to establish a sold reputation, since it is pretty new. Does anybody have any insight into the mileage I'd get out of these respective programs ... what sounds like the best idea to an outsider, basically? Thanks for any advice you might have.