SarahRuth

In regards to the UTK waitlist, someone on Draft posted an email last year in which a staff member at UTK told them the waitlist was 83 people long. But that was last year. In any case, my UTK waitlist notification was pretty boilerplate, so I wouldn't be surprised if the waitlist is super long. I think in many cases when a program is super serious about waitlisted candidates they make an effort to connect with those folks on a more personal level. My partner is a DGS for another discipline, and he actually sets up virtual meetings with waitlisted candidates his program is serious about! And those meetings matter, because he gathers a lot more information about candidates from talking to them in real time. That's not to say it's not validating to be waitlisted. It is. It's worth something, even if we don't get in. Somebody thought our writing was good enough for their program. I will take it as a sign of encouragement! Also, I don't think UTK is super high up in the rankings, so they need to have a long waitlist. Or at least that's my understanding. Maybe I don't have access to all the rankings, but I think UTK is pretty average as far as rankings go? That's what I would say in their defense.

Got my first waitlist notification - from UT Knoxville! Not sure if it's for fiction or nonfiction, as I applied for both. Still waiting on UA, Oregon State (nonfiction only), and Wyoming! @cashewgirl There are only five acceptances on draft, all of them fiction and poetry. My primary genre is nonfiction, so yeah, I don't know what to make of it.

@Valle I'm 39 and slowly transitioned out of an academic career. I had the publications but did not see myself continuing to pursue my specialty forever. I'm also teaching at a university and considering (as my backup plan) using my tuition waiver to pursue a low-res MFA where I teach (not a highly ranked program). Is that an option for you? I literally took the teaching job there because I knew I could an MFA there. I have a three-and-a-half-year-old stepson, so I know what you mean about being at a different place in life ~age 40. Also, I have little desire to teach creative writing, since I am already teaching and quite happy teaching in my current discipline.

I also got a WashU rejection this morning (nonfiction and fiction). Bummer. For me the MFA isn't about carving out extra time to write. It's more about mentorship opportunities and being part of a community of dedicated, serious writers. I am fortunate to be able to only work part-time, after making a good investment in my 20's. I have had to live extremely thriftily (e.g., I initially got rid of my car), but it's been worth it to have the extra time. All this is to say that there are other ways of finding more time to write besides an MFA program.

@jadedoptimist Yay! Another philosopher. I agree; the discipline is NOT kind to women. I made it work for a number of years but actually started strategizing my exit a long time ago. I still strongly identify as a philosopher, though. (Sounds like you do, too!) But I expect I will find a kinder place in the writing community. CNF has been great because it's given me a space to write about things professional philosophers are only beginning to talk about. Rad that you were able to study feminist ethics!! We just added ethics of care to the Intro class I teach. :-)

Hi everyone! Nice to meet everyone and see such diverse ages and backup plans. :-) I'm 39 and am applying for a second year after only applying the University of Arizona last year and getting rejected. (I'm from Tucson, so UA is my #1 choice. I LOVE it here!) I went into a philosophy PhD program straight out of undergrad, and so I've been teaching philosophy while learning the art of creative writing (and taking classes where I teach). My first piece of creative nonfiction is coming out next week in The Los Angeles Review! I hope this will soften the blow of rejections. :-S But I know from last year that rejection hurts but also that it doesn't stop me from writing. I applied to five programs (UA, WashU, Wyoming, Oregon State, & UT Knoxville), listing CNF as my primary genre and fiction as my secondary genre. I also write short stories and am working on a novel. Hoping to make that transition from CNF to fiction eventually. My backup plan is to do the low-residency MFA program through the university I teach at, using my tuition waiver to pay for it. Because that's the thing with the low-res programs - they're just so expensive! Wishing everyone the best, Sarah

Thanks O Green! Congrats on being waitlisted at Madison. Such a charming place. I can see why you would want to stay there. I hope you get in! I imagine Madison has quite a writing community. Simply letting my letter writers know my situation has helped enormously. They've already invited me to reading or writing groups; and one of them has even offered to edit my novel when it's complete. Plus, I was fortunate to be a literary awards finalist for the local book festival, so I plan to network there. I suppose I'll re-assess next year and see where my life and skillset are at, but for now I'm going to forget the MFA and just write and network and read.

I also just received a rejection from the University of Arizona (for fiction and nonfiction). It looks like they only accepted two percent of applicants this year - seven spots instead of the twelve spots advertised on the application. I guess they just didn't get the funding for more spots? Crazy considering how good their program is. I'm a Tucson native and worked really hard to be able to return to my hometown (I LOVE Tucson!), so I didn't apply anywhere else. Any other older-ish writers in the same boat? In my 20's it was easier to uproot my life for opportunities like these. Not so much now. Congrats to the waitlisted and accepted folks! Sorry to have discovered this community so late in the game. It's really neat to see everyone supporting each other on here!