smallchange

I can only add based off of my undergrad experience but I will say - I went to a very well-known, prestigious film school and found it very difficult to do the kind of work I wanted to do. Undergrad is hugely different from grad school, but I think at any prestigious institution you'll run into the big fish small pond problem. At a lesser-known school, depending on the school, you'll likely find less ego in the faculty, potentially better mentorship, and less competition for certain opportunities. I regretted a lot of my undergrad and beat myself up for not "making the most of it" when I could, but a few years out of school my friends who went to smaller, less prestigious schools are the people I know who are still making films! MFA's are different - you're going to have an intimate cohort anywhere funded, and the work is much more solitary. However, I think there are many merits to non-top 10 schools in any discipline that people often overlook. And the ego and pressure of going somewhere that's considered the best of the best is real - for faculty and students. Being free of that can be very liberating, imo

I'm glad to hear someone else was stressed out by the 40 page limit....Iowa's 80 page limit made me feel like I could actually get across the different genres I write in (psychological realism and surrealism/magical realism) without just being like "hey trust me on this lol" but we'll see if that worked. I actually felt more strongly about the stories than the novel excerpt but the novel was what I felt like I could "pitch" if that makes sense - I know it has a strong hook and it's the most personal work. I probably should have thought less about that aspect of things, but that's where I was at at the time. I come from a film background and was working at a PR firm at the time these were due, so I was thinking about the process through perhaps a different professional lens than I should have.... I'm sorry about your rejections. Choosing what to submit was the most stressful part of the process for me and it sucks that some forms just don't lend themselves as well to this process. I had lunch with a prof who wrote me a letter of rec today who told me many of her former students have applied two or three times to these programs - which of course we all know but it's always validating to hear how common it is that very talented and qualified people get rejected.

Thanks! I saw a lot of advice online that it's riskier to apply with novel excerpts to these programs which really gave me pause about applications this year and I over-thought everything Also congrats on your acceptances! That must feel incredibly satisfying and sounds super deserved!!

Thanks! That's very helpful. My gut says to keep working on the novel and aim to submit two really strong excerpts, but I also would really love to have a story or two actually published this year (I have had a major block about even submitting to literary journals for fear of rejection but these grad school rejections are helping me get over that hurdle)

For people who have applied twice: I submitted an excerpt of a novel that has been kind of my "burning" project for the past year, along with one short story (which I changed depending on the program based on "vibe" and faculty--and now kind of regretting that). I knew going into it that the novel excerpt was less developed than the short stories I ended up submitting but it was what I really wanted to talk about in my SOP and what I intend to work on for the next few years with or without an MFA. The friends and family who looked over my application thought the novel excerpt was very strong, but I personally wasn't 100% happy with where it was when I submitted. So my question is--did you guys significantly change what you submitted? Especially in regards to submitting a larger project vs stories which can stand alone? Also--I haven't fully given up hope yet, I have one waitlist, two rejections, 1 soft rejection now with Michigan, and four schools to go so we shall see....but I'm a big Plan B person lol so I am already thinking about a potential next round

Does anyone know if UC Irvine does interviews? Also saw a poetry acceptance for UCI on Draft last week but nothing since then which makes me feel crazy.... (I'm a fiction applicant)

Re-read Elif Batuman's essay "Get a Real Degree" and it almost convinced me to apply to PhD's next year lol. Def a bit unfair to MFA's as I understand them (her biggest gripe is that you don't take literature classes, which may have been true in 2010 but def is not now) but an interesting and thought-provoking read. And great to remember there are many other life paths....

wow, that's a crazy turnaround considering the application deadline was a month ago. It's always possible they're spacing it out but yeah gonna brace myself for rejection too now

I still worry that I fucked up by not sending in my transcripts from study abroad to my schools with earlier deadlines - some let me send them late, but somehow I didn't realize this was a requirement! I didn't even realize I got grades for the classes, honestly. Seems like a crazy reason to reject someone but I know it can happen....

Thanks so much!!

I just joined the draft facebook group and cannot find the spreadsheet people are referencing....I'm in "MFA Draft '25," is this the right group?

definitely agree! the job market is so horrible right now, which was honestly a big draw for me to make the leap and apply this past year. I would definitely choose grad school even over the highest-paying job because I don't really want to stay in the professional sector I'm in anyway, but it would be tough. Best of luck with Davis! It's one of my tops too, I was conflicted about applying because I'm from there (not because it's not a great school and cool town but because I don't love the idea of running into people I went to middle school with) but their faculty list is one of my faves of all the places I applied to. It also def seems a bit more realistic acceptance rate-wise.

I received mine a couple weeks after I sent it in in December and it was postmarked 6 days after I submitted. I think you should probably reach out, my guess is they send them out as they receive them, not when they review them. Either way it's been a month and a half so it seems fair to ask!

I'm technologically challenged so I just accidentally made my own thread in Literary oops Wanted to post to get updates on the programs I've applied to and commiserate! I applied to seven programs so far (UC Irvine, UC San Diego, UC Davis, Brown, Michigan, Michener, Iowa) and still have to submit to Hunter College (should probably be working on that lol). I'm curious to know if any of these programs interview people. I know Hunter does and Iowa definitely does not. I thought that I saw UCI does interviews, but now I think I just saw the AI summary on google which was probably wrong. Curious also how the person who posted about UCI reading applications knows this, are you a current student? I'm in a weird spot because I've spent the last few years working part-time/freelancing and have been looking for full-time work for a looong time and finally have a good lead but I am hesitant to start something I would have to quit so soon, though I'm also very prepared to get in nowhere! Has anyone else applied to Davis this year or in the past? I don't think I've seen any posts on here about it.

better late than never to start posting on here.... I applied to seven programs so far (UC Irvine, UC San Diego, UC Davis, Brown, Michigan, Michener, Iowa) and still have to submit to Hunter College (should probably be working on that lol). I'm so curious to know if any of these programs interview people. I know Hunter does and Iowa definitely does not. I thought that I saw UCI does interviews, but now I think I just saw the AI summary on google which was probably wrong. Curious also how the person who posted about UCI reading applications knows this, are you a current student? I'm in a weird spot because I've spent the last few years working part-time/freelancing and have been looking for full-time work for a looong time and finally have a good lead but I am hesitant to start something I would have to quit so soon, though I'm also very prepared to get in nowhere! Has anyone else applied to Davis this year or in the past? I don't think I've seen any posts on here about it.