holycat

Speaking of rejections, as I'm sure many of you have already heard: Marlon James, the winner of the most recent Man Booker Prize, had his first book rejected by 78 publishers. That is seventy eight. As in, eight next to a seven. Ten sevens and then another eight. Okay, I stop, you get the picture. Just saying. This stuff is sometimes -- a lot of times -- quite subjective.

You hit that nail right on the darn forehead, my stranger friend.

Any NYU applicants around? Historically, the last week of February appears to be when that party begins... Oh, I'm so gonna be doubly antsy this weekend! I see lots of margaritas in my tomorrow! I'm gonna take myself out to dinner and the movies too! Anything to *try* and keep me away from staring at my phone all day!

OMG. Been looking at those types of entries and wondering about the sort of writing that level of [what appears to me to be] "self-ignorance" produces. But hard work is so exhausting! I can't believe you gave in so easily, @DangerDetective! Here is a vote up for your sense of humor. And and and...congraaaats, @gaudysideoftown!

I'm sorry to hear that. Did you have other people proofread your stuff, though? I had my stuff read by four people about a million and three times.

That's on the 5 schools, by the way. Total for all my apps + transcripts was almost $1000. But yeah, investment is what I called it. But I would have invested less had I been thorough. Urgh. Anyway, did y'all see the other UMich result?!

Excuse the double post, but I have to ask this, in search of affirmation. Are any of you currently shaking your heads at why you even bothered waste $$ applying to certain Programs? And I don't even mean the feeling you get when you think you have no chance. But finding more things out about a program after you've submitted your applications (because the obsessive energy associated with waiting makes you read and read about these schools) and wondering why in the world you didn't do thorough research? No? Is it just me? Because, as it stands, I have already dismissed five of the eleven schools I have applied to based on some grounds. I don't think I'll go to any of those programs if I get in, unless I get some miraculous offer, which is unlikely. Spent a combined $380 on application fees (with one of them the most expensive of all -- $125!). It hurts!

I don't think all Programs always notify everyone at the same time. I'm sure there are different factors, unknown to us, affecting the whole process. The 18th of February may have been the most frequent one in the past, but there were also other later dates here and there, so stop freaking out!

Unfortunately, I did not apply to Michigan. Wish I did now...just to hear something tomorrow. And I think everyone goes crazy over waiting; you should check out the other threads. But most other programs also seem to have rolling admissions. Many grad school applicants have been getting notifications since December (maybe for Spring?). Ours are concentrated around late January - April, it seems.

Thank you, thank you, @chamsee22! But feel free to uncross your fingers as necessary; I don't want them to be out of business on my account. Congrats on the acceptance, @sayantika! Hope something better comes along. For those of you who have applied to Brown and haven't combed through the Program's web pages yet, I stumbled upon a page last night that said their review period is from Dec 15 to Feb 15. Does that mean they're done reviewing? O.o According to one of my spreadsheets *ahem*, the earliest they have notified fiction applicants in the past several years is February 25th, with most notifications coming second week of March. I think. I could be wrong. In any case, regardless of when notifications will come, it's possible that our fates vis a vis Brown have already been decided. The last week of February is almost upon us, folks! The next three weeks are gonna be craaaazy for a lot of us! Days haven't been this long since I was twelve (back in the days of so much eagerness to grow up fast and be taken seriously)!

Used to be all over LA (mostly west LA) and now in OC. Yes, I have applied to a couple of local schools (UCI & UCR). I too want to go elsewhere just for the sake of change, but I still wanted to increase my chances. Plus, both schools have decent programs, with UCI being, well, UCI. It would be an honor to get in. Ever checked out UCI's MFA reading series, by the way? Attended one for the first time this winter and have been kicking myself for not having done so much earlier.

Sorry to hear that. But good on you for keeping the humor alive! I spent a thousand bucks on application fees and transcripts (those schools that ask for original copies before admission, they'll have questions to answer on judgement day!). I think that, if I ever get a book published, I would have to mention some credit card companies in the acknowledgements section. @chamsee22: Disneyland, eh? I get the feeling we might be neighbors! Good luck, everyone! (And there was another Iowa notification, did y'all who applied there see?)

I believe the TA-ship does include full tuition remission, which is a huge deal. And yes, not all "fully-funded" programs are truly sufficient to live on. But many are even though it might be tight. For example, UC Irvine, based in normally expensive SoCal, gives 17,500 + full tuition for the 9 months. It's not sexy, but you can make it work. And if you get a summer opportunity, you're set. But guess what: they also have awesome graduate housing options, like $820 for a studio! If you can deal with roommates, you pay way less! That, in a beautiful SoCal city also considered to be one of the safest in the states last I checked. The likes of University of MN also, with TAships + departmental fellowships + summer opportunities offer enough to live on. If you get into U of Oregon, Eugene and live in a graduate housing, you might come out rich. I do get what you mean, though...some amount of loan might be unavoidable in most cases, especially if you have some debts to pay, etc (ironically)...But it's about how much loan. One might need a lot of it in NYC. It's unfortunate that we have to worry about $$ so much. I suppose if we were going to medical school or getting some technology degree, debt wouldn't be so scary. But the decision to pursue writing is such a huge risk to begin with. Let's hope for the best in any case!

And 55K is just tuition, right? According to their own estimates of coast of attendance for MFA: MFA Tuition: $55,356 Writing Program Reading Fee: $200 University Fees: 2,151 Living expenses (Room & Board): $18,765* Books and supplies: $2,670 Transportation: $1,584 Personal Expenses: $4,230** Total: 84,956/year With Tuition Remission: $29,600 * Too low. * Maybe a little too high unless, say, one has special expenses, like non-student loan payments. I'm no good at math, so feel free to correct me. Good luck, by the way, @BananaStand!

I don't want to sound like I'm arguing with you. And it's pointless to argue over this. If you don't think their coursework requirement is too heavy for the time frame, more power to you! I actually like that they require more courses -- the more opportunities I have to learn, the better! But 60 credit hours in two years (third year is very optional) + teaching for a writing Program that's supposed to result in a substantial work of writing feels heavy to me. It's one thing if the funding was good enough for the city and that third year funding was guaranteed. Or if, like some schools, they didn't require you to teach the first year or had some non-teaching fellowships for the first year. BY THE WAY, let's not forget that 24K is before taxes. I really want to know if any former "fully-funded" Columbia MFA students have gone through the program without taking out loans and substantial amounts at that. Anyway, I suppose, as @Ultralightnoted, people are paying for more than the degree. It's for NYC. And also for Columbia, I guess. And I admit it would be awesome to get the full NYC experience, especially as a writer. I'll wait and see if I get in and, if I do, what kind of funding I'll get. If, after working my numbers, I find that I'd still need to spend so much of money I don't have to go there, I would rather take a chance on my writing/stories and go elsewhere than swim in debt in the hopes of benefitting from being in the "publishing center of America." Good luck, by the way, @FalloutCoversEverything!

First, *hugs* to all who got denied. Don't let it get you down. Read the person who posted above saying he/she got rejected by 12 schools (!!!) last year but got accepted by UMass Amherst this year! And congrats to all who got acceptances! Right?! And I admit I'm acting spoiled right now; I've heard from 2 of the 11 schools I've applied to. I so badly want to accept the offer from one of them, but my mentors say to wait, so I'm doing that out of respect for them and also because I know it's not prudent to make a decision so early before I hear from everyone. It's making me soo restless! I've been out of school for a couple of years too (older than the typical student, though) and I know student debt is an utter bytch. I am definitely not looking forward to taking out more loans. I've applied to some schools with partial funding or are vague about what they offer, and I'm asking myself why I even bothered waste application fees. @FalloutCoversEverything I've applied to Columbia too. Wondering why now. lol. It would be a great Program to go to (despite all the flack often directed at it), but do you think, even with the TA-ship, that the money would be enough for NYC? And with their higher than most course load + TA-ing, another part time job would be unthinkable, IMO. How do people make that work? Loans?

Congrats to the CNF dude/dudette who got a call on valentine's day!

I see you've applied to UCI and UCR. Same here but for fiction. I work in Irvine; it's beautiful. I also attended one of their MFA readings recently and it was awesome. But I'm trying to get out of SoCal, where I've lived for 14 years and immensely enjoyed the fabulous weather! I need change. But then if I miraculously get into UCI, I just don't know what I'd do with myself! It would make my decision extremely difficult for sure. But that's a great problem to have -- like losing weight and needing new clothes!

I should probably stop talking about this right about now but, just to clarify, the meanness was coming from one individual. And I stop. I'm sorry about the emotional rollercoaster. And I don't mean to romanticize your suffering, but the way you share your feelings is endearing. Hope you tap into that in your writing.

I got my call at 11am something Pacific Time on 01/29. And for that reason, I now find myself losing hope of getting a call when the clock hits 1pm. *rolls eyes at self* Too obsessed with pattern (hence, the spreadsheets! ) As for Draft, I joined late November/December. But then I left because I was seriously afraid I might pick a fight with one of the veterans there. lol. I felt there was just too much needless meanness being thrown around. IMO.

Sorry to hear that @GlowStick. Keep your head up! As for Minnesota, I know there are reservations to be had about the P & W rankings, but the Program is ranked 10th on the last one. And they're very selective. I believe they take about a total of 12 (for poetry + fiction + CNF ) every year.

I like the self-consoling ones... University Of Texas At Austin Creative Writing (Fiction), MFA (F16), MFA (F16) Rejected via E-mail on 12 Feb 2016 12 Feb 2016 report spam Eh. Good money. Faculty quality has really declined though.

I never thought I'd ever dislike weekends until now! If I don't hear anything tomorrow, there won't even be anything to refresh over the long weekend. Haha. I've heard from schools the last two Fridays, so I'm hoping there's going to be at least one more tomorrow even if almost all my remaining schools usually notify late Feb/early March. Good luck to us all!

How is waiting going, everyone? I've turned into a machine that refreshes webpages and checks phone every few minutes. Can't wait for the normalcy the end of March should hopefully bring!

^^ There's a third one from Iowa! All the early responses from there are making me wish I applied! I've only heard from two of my eleven schools so far and that's more than some, so you would think I'd be calmer, but no! The insanity has only escalated because, now, I want to make decisions fast! I don't know what to do; I've ran out of spreadsheets to make. I live near UC Irvine, so maybe I should break into the offices of the English Dept at night and SEE... Disclaimer: To any members of a govt security agency who saw the comment above about breaking into UC Irvine: it's a joke! I'd never sacrifice sleep for anything! And yes, that'd be the only reason why I wouldn't do it.