theotherlily

You could ask the individual schools, but I'm almost positive that you should submit a new sample. If you really want to use your awesome improved play, you should think about expanding your application list. And if you don't have a new sample that you feel awesome about, you might want to wait on reapplying, particularly if it means you'll burn out a play that you'll drastically improve later. Instead, you might want to apply to a different set of schools. Last year, I applied to four schools and bombed out. They were all dream schools. I missed out on one dream school's application deadline. During the year, I made awesome rewrites to my best sample. I applied to the dream school with the early application deadline, because it was the only dream school that I could send the rewritten play to. I got in!

Hmmm. In this case, you should redo your financials. At Catholic, you might have the time for a part time job. If that's an option, the financial difference between the schools starts to get more drastic. But if that's not something you want to do, I'd still lean towards USC. That's mostly because I have some sense of USC's rep, and no sense of Catholic's. That's me giving what I can give, which is the opinion of an outsider on what seems more useful and impressive. But there's a lot of other stuff that only you can really decide for yourself- like how much uninterrupted time do you want to write, vs. how much do you want your grad school to get you connections. Or how much you hate LA. Or which program opportunities (productions, screenwriting classes) are most important. I think you should also try to gauge how much each given school wants you. It's fine to say you are considering other offers, and it's also fine to ask about the possibility of more funding (IE stipends) opening up. Again, the info out there on dramatic writing MFAs sucks!

Hmmm. 75% tuition waiver with a TA assignment and no stipend? What work assignments do you have for Catholic? You should check if you're not sure whether you have one. The most common financial packages are some sort of work assignment that comes with a tuition waiver, and stipend, but I think even most partially-funded packages (ie, some amount of tuition waiver, no stipend) are attached to some sort of work hours. I'm pretty sure that if a school says it can offer you funding, you should assume you have to work for it. Re: the TA assignment. What info do you have about the workload? How many classes? How many of the semesters? You should re-check the terms of both your acceptances. I'd still lean towards USC, unless the financial difference is really dramatic (IE, Catholic is a tuition waiver fellowship with no work assignments and a good stipend.)

I'm a big advocate of well-funded programs. Columbia admits a huge cohort and saddles everyone who goes there with massive debt. Plus, I went to Columbia undergrad, and my English professors scorned the CW MFA as a cash cow, so I've had a notion of it as useless since I was a sprout. I'm going to the Michener Center at UT Austin in the fall. It was the only program I applied to this year, and I'm still shocked that I got in- it's always been one of my dream programs. I did a wider application round a few years ago, which did include USC. I put my app list together mostly by contacting current MFA students, and asking them where they applied. I hadn't even heard of Catholic University, but because of the information deficit I'm not sure if that means the program doesn't have a rep, or if it just means I happened to miss it. It's kind of a pity! Poets and Writers and Seth Abrahamson are doing a good job of getting info out there for poets and fiction writers, but dramatic writers are being left out in the cold.

I didn't apply. But I think you should take it at face value. They have a big program, and I imagine they worry about yield- since it's after the 15th, they could be losing a lot of potential applicants to other programs. Also, as I remember, they take longer than other programs to respond.

Yeah, if it's actually religious, and not just in name, I'd definitely go with USC. LA's a great theatre city too, even if it doesn't have everything you're looking for in terms of vibe, and you can always go live in Chicago or something on your own dime, or on a summer internship. My general feeling is that USC has a great reputation, and you should be totally proud. I'm against applying to Columbia in any genre. As I remember, NYU gives at least one person full funding, and if you're that person (I know a couple of people who have been), the program can do a lot for you. This info might be outdated, but it's a safe bet that any really large program won't fund everybody. I think NYU is worth applying to, but only worth accepting if you're funded. Can I ask how you put together your application list?

I wish I could help you more. I also wish that the MFA rankings put out by Poets and Writers paid any attention to dramatic writing programs, because there's a serious information deficit out there. But based on my own MFA application research, USC has more of a reputation. I fear I hadn't really heard of Catholic University at all. USC's reputation in playwriting isn't that spectacular, but they are a big-name school in screenwriting, and you will have some access to that faculty- and with luck, some of those post-grad connections. If you're concerned about ever making money as a writer (being marketable), I think you have to go with USC. The main thing you have to weigh it against is how much you might hate LA. If you're in a place that's toxic to you, it can be really hard to do good work. It seems like finances aren't that big a concern, and the packages are pretty similar anyway. I would check out cost of living and fees, just to make sure you aren't taking on a financial burden that will, again, impact your ability to do good work.

What's the funding situation?

Offer B. If you're going mainly because of one prof, it's too much pressure on that person. It sounds like the rest of the situation sucks- one person should never be the only thing that makes you happy about a situation. Take the money, and maintain a really good relationship with supernice prof. You'll end up colleagues!

I'm a Chicagoan (born, bred and currently living) but I went to undergrad in NYC, and visit my friends there all the time. Cost of living is significantly higher in NYC- on all counts. Some of my friends live in cheap or semi-affordable NYC housing, but those apartments, which are mostly in Brooklyn, come with bedbugs, cockroaches, no sink in the bathroom- the nicest one I can think of is insanely small, and shared between three people. My friends are all very well-educated people in their late 20s to late 30s- you can live a hardscrabble artist/student life for a really long time there. Groceries are noticeably more expensive. And there's everything in the world to do, but without money, sometimes people feel pretty cut off from it. NYC on 300 a week would be brutal. I went to Columbia, not NYU, but all my grad student TAs looked perpetually ill and hungry. Chicago can't compare to NYC in terms of size, but it is still a very big, very culturally active city. In terms of cultural cachet, NYC is competing worldwide, but Chicago is definitely a first-class American city, and even arguably world-class in certain areas: architecture, food, theater. It has great museums, symphony and opera- a fantastic waterfront with beaches and parklands. And Evanston, to me, doesn't really feel like a suburb. Officially, it's a township, and has a sort of funky college-town feel. It's directly connected to the city via streets, and the CTA. I would say- if you have always dreamed of living in the biggest and most mind-boggling place in America, then you'll want NYC. But you have to WANT it, because NYC will make it hard for you. However, if you want to focus on your work, and have an easier time, definitely pick Northwestern. The program is better, per you, and Chicago is a far more forgiving city. It won't be lacking in anything you need. If you end up going to Northwestern, I would encourage you to look at a Chicago neighborhood called Edgewater. I live there! If you want to live alone, it is an excellent source of cheap ($450-$600 per month) studio space. And beaches! It's an easy train commute to Northwestern, and it's the most diverse neighborhood in Chicago (good to consider if a particular kind of food is important to you- Edgewater probably has it.) Also, it's incredibly easy to get downtown. The 147 bus will get you to the medical campus in 15 minutes, and google bus tracker means you won't have to wait for it in the cold. Parking sucks, but if you don't have a car it's ideal. All the stops between Argyle and Granville on the redline are ideal for this downtown/evanston combo. West Edgewater has more multi-bedroom space if you want to save money with roommates. Rogers Park is also useful. Basically, up north on the Red Line train will have the housing you want. Evanston proper is more expensive, but it also has a great express train to downtown. Feel free to ask any questions- I know the area really well.

Are those the two schools you're choosing between? What are you looking for in a program?

Hey all! I am heading to the Michener center in the fall. I'm really excited for the program, and can't wait to see Austin. Texas has this conservative reputation, but Texas liberals are just all the more bad-ass.

Hey all! Just joined- I've been hanging out at various MFA websites, which are great for poetry and fiction, but not so great for dramatic writing. Wonderful information on certain programs, but I rarely see other playwrights. Anyway, I got into UT Michener on the eighth- same day they notified all the fellows, and all the waitlisted. I'm completely shocked, and so ready to start the phase of my life where I actually write, and no longer do data entry. For those going round next year, they always notify by around the 10th of March, and don't seem to do interviews, and don't always notify finalists. They also do a rolling, round-by-round rejection process. Also, fyi, if you are feeling bad about striking out this year, this is my third round (second for Michener).,and my first hit. Biggest difference between successful and unsuccessful rounds? Writing a better play. That's really the shape of it. Nothing else matters even a little bit as much. I only applied to Michener this year, so I don't have anything to give y'all on other programs. If anyone has other application process questions I can totally try to help- I know I felt totally lost the first time. If you guys need more info on MFAs, here are some great sites. They don't focus on playwriting programs, but for the many programs that are located in in the creative writing department, these resources will provide application responses and long-running arguments about funding. general resource- it might help in finding some more obscure programs that have full funding. http://creative-writing-mfa-handbook.blogspot.com/ The place to go for response times: http://sethabramson.blogspot.com/2011/01/2011-cw-mamfaphd-application-responses.html?commentPage=4 And for CONSTANT activity, MFA Draft '11 on Facebook. Much Love, TOL