2020 Applicants Forum

[Ydrl]

13 minutes ago, rbr542 said:

It is officially February, and now the clock begins to tick loudly, loudly. 

It’s ticking as loud as my frantic heart is beating haha. Wish I had some answers already...

In other news, happy February everybody!

Edited February 1, 2020 by Ydrl

[litty]

7 hours ago, Ydrl said:

It’s ticking as loud as my frantic heart is beating haha. Wish I had some answers already...

In other news, happy February everybody!

Woot woot. Sounds like a lot of programs should report this coming week!? 

[rbr542]

1 hour ago, litty said:

Woot woot. Sounds like a lot of programs should report this coming week!? 

I think closer to second or third week of February.

[Ydrl]

2 hours ago, rbr542 said:

I think closer to second or third week of February.

WashU and Syracuse should be the first or second week.

[litty]

yeh, sounded like a number of places were notifying earlier than usual. it's all reading tea leaves at this point. 

[bruin228]

On 1/29/2020 at 8:49 PM, SarahBuya said:

Ugh sorry.

 

On 1/29/2020 at 9:23 PM, Dochinka96 said:

Sending you a virtual hug. I’m sorry it’s not good news. Just one school though. Keep your head up high 

 

On 1/29/2020 at 10:41 PM, anarchisttiger said:

We’re all here for you. 

 

On 1/30/2020 at 12:11 AM, MFAhopeful57 said:

I'm sorry!

Thanks everyone. It wasn’t my top school or anything, but it sucks for sure (plus I think they paid the most lol). It just sent me in this whole anxious spiral about getting rejected from everywhere. Fingers crossed for WashU coming up...I’ll be really bummed if I don’t get in there. 
 

Congrats to everyone who got accepted thus far

[litty]

17 minutes ago, bruin228 said:

 

 

 

Thanks everyone. It wasn’t my top school or anything, but it sucks for sure (plus I think they paid the most lol). It just sent me in this whole anxious spiral about getting rejected from everywhere. Fingers crossed for Wash U coming up...I’ll be really bummed if I don’t get in there. 
 

Congrats to everyone who got accepted thus far

listen to this song to get your spirits up  | haters=adcoms

 

 

[Ydrl]

1 hour ago, bruin228 said:

 

 

 

Thanks everyone. It wasn’t my top school or anything, but it sucks for sure (plus I think they paid the most lol). It just sent me in this whole anxious spiral about getting rejected from everywhere. Fingers crossed for Wash U coming up...I’ll be really bummed if I don’t get in there. 
 

Congrats to everyone who got accepted thus far

I hope WashU is kind to the both of us, but especially you.

[MFALongshot]

1 hour ago, litty said:

listen to this song to get your spirits up  | haters=adcoms

 

 

i'm dying lmao

[MFALongshot]

1 hour ago, bruin228 said:

 

 

 

Thanks everyone. It wasn’t my top school or anything, but it sucks for sure (plus I think they paid the most lol). It just sent me in this whole anxious spiral about getting rejected from everywhere. Fingers crossed for Wash U coming up...I’ll be really bummed if I don’t get in there. 
 

Congrats to everyone who got accepted thus far

Stay strong. No matter the results an MFA doesn't define you or your future success. Hard work and perseverance do. Best of luck friend.

[anarchisttiger]

Did anyone else skip the GRE? I'm starting to wonder if that was a bad move on my part. 

[MFALongshot]

24 minutes ago, anarchisttiger said:

Did anyone else skip the GRE? I'm starting to wonder if that was a bad move on my part. 

I only applied to fully funded programs that didn't require GRE. If for some reason I have to go to business school then I'll take GRE.

[litty]

I imagine most Institutions will eliminate the GRE requirement for MFA programs within the next 5 years. The only schools that may face challenges are public universities that are controlled by state legislatures -- a lot more bureaucratic red tape. But the path for other public schools might be easier seeing Alabama, Minnesota, Mississippi, Michigan, Iowa, and and a host of other states (some of Texas) have dropped the GRE requirement. 

[Ydrl]

10 hours ago, anarchisttiger said:

Did anyone else skip the GRE? I'm starting to wonder if that was a bad move on my part. 

Yeah I didn’t want the GRE to tell me I’m mediocre for $160 so I didn’t take it. I didn’t apply to any schools that required it though.

[Smrn17]

Hi all! Just stumbled upon this forum (almost wish I hadn’t because it’s making my grad applications all I can think about now lol), but I just finished the last two of fifteen applications last night. I’m so anxious!! I’m a poet, and just graduated with my BA this past May. Fingers crossed I get some acceptances and some funding. Just wanted to say hi!

[mjm7668]

2 hours ago, Smrn17 said:

Hi all! Just stumbled upon this forum (almost wish I hadn’t because it’s making my grad applications all I can think about now lol), but I just finished the last two of fifteen applications last night. I’m so anxious!! I’m a poet, and just graduated with my BA this past May. Fingers crossed I get some acceptances and some funding. Just wanted to say hi!

Welcome! I think we're all feeling that sense of anxiety, so we're in this together. Good luck!

[mjm7668]

Also, don't know if anyone else applied for Indiana, but here's part of the email they sent me when I finished my application. 

 

"Your application file will be advanced to the Admissions Committee in January, where it will receive its deserved full attention. Generally our committee has completed its first round of readings by the first week of February and have begun to make offers of admission. It is possible for applicants to be offered admission up to April 15th, depending on the acceptance rate from our first round."

 

That's this week ?

[SarahBuya]

19 hours ago, bruin228 said:

 

 

 

Thanks everyone. It wasn’t my top school or anything, but it sucks for sure (plus I think they paid the most lol). It just sent me in this whole anxious spiral about getting rejected from everywhere. Fingers crossed for Wash U coming up...I’ll be really bummed if I don’t get in there. 
 

Congrats to everyone who got accepted thus far

Honestly, I went into an anxiety spiral after I got a rejection from a school that I hardly even considered a safety option. Since then, I've been accepted to much more competitive schools. Writing is SO subjective and each program is looking for something specific that fits their ever-changing needs. Hang in there!

[rbr542]

4 minutes ago, mjm7668 said:

Also, don't know if anyone else applied for Indiana, but here's part of the email they sent me when I finished my application. 

 

"Your application file will be advanced to the Admissions Committee in January, where it will receive its deserved full attention. Generally our committee has completed its first round of readings by the first week of February and have begun to make offers of admission. It is possible for applicants to be offered admission up to April 15th, depending on the acceptance rate from our first round."

 

That's this week ?

Isn't that great? You should hear back very soon from atleast one school. I don't even want to imagine having to wait till April. 

[bruin228]

18 hours ago, Ydrl said:

I hope WashU is kind to the both of us, but especially you.

You’re too kind. I hope the same for you

[GernderKitten]

Hi all! I know we're all pretty anxious - or at least I am - hang in there!!

I wanted to share some good news: I just got accepted to Florida State University.

I talked to Mark Winegardner on the phone, he said that they're contacting accepted applicants and hope to send out a formal email by the end of the week.

Has anyone here applied there? Do you have any info on the program? Rankings? Crossing my fingers for everyone!!

Also FWIW it's not one of my top choice programs (I prefer a 2-year MFA) so there's a good chance for waitlisters. I'll be sure to let FSU know as soon as I see what my options are.

Really rooting for everyone, this process sucks so forking much

[litty]

Congrats on FSU!!! Tallahassee is a lot of fun. Only been there for pleasure  

so great to have at least one acceptance in hand. It’s fully funded for three years, yes? And third year is primarily focused on your thesis, yes? What are your considerations between a 2 and 3 year program? 

[GernderKitten]

14 hours ago, litty said:

Congrats on FSU!!! Tallahassee is a lot of fun. Only been there for pleasure  

so great to have at least one acceptance in hand. It’s fully funded for three years, yes? And third year is primarily focused on your thesis, yes? What are your considerations between a 2 and 3 year program? 

Thank you!! It's good to know that about Tallahassee - my only point of reference for it is the Mountain Goats album ?

FSU's website doesn't have info displayed very well, so I'm going to write what I was personally told and warn you that other ppl probably have different offers:

AFIK, all students in the program are accepted with 3 years of full tuition waiver + some funding stipend. The offer I got was for for a stipend of 15,600$ per year. Students TA 2 courses per semester. Students are expected to take 3 courses per semester for the first 2 years; year 3 is dedicated entirely to thesis writing, but TA duties continue.

A 3-year program is a dream for some, and that's awesome! Personally I prefer a 2-year program b/c  I don't want to spend too much time away from my family (I'm an international student, so travel is complicated). I also recently finished my BA after 6 years (!), so I'm a bit sated when it comes to academia at this point ?

That being said, my main goal is to come out of the program with a finished, polished manuscript. So.. who knows, maybe a third year is for the best? IDK...

Good luck with your apps!! Hope you hear good news soon ?

[MFALongshot]

28 minutes ago, GernderKitten said:

Thank you!! It's good to know that about Tallahassee - my only point of reference for it is the Mountain Goats album ?

FSU's website doesn't have info displayed very well, so I'm going to write what I was personally told and warn you that other ppl probably have different offers:

AFIK, all students in the program are accepted with 3 years of full tuition waiver + some funding stipend. The offer I got was for for a stipend of 15,600$ per year. Students TA 2 courses per semester. Students are expected to take 3 courses per semester for the first 2 years; year 3 is dedicated entirely to thesis writing, but TA duties continue.

A 3-year program is a dream for some, and that's awesome! Personally I prefer a 2-year program b/c  I don't want to spend too much time away from my family (I'm an international student, so travel is complicated). I also recently finished my BA after 6 years (!), so I'm a bit sated when it comes to academia at this point ?

That being said, my main goal is to come out of the program with a finished, polished manuscript. So.. who knows, maybe a third year is for the best? IDK...

Good luck with your apps!! Hope you hear good news soon ?

I think it's really cool that you're an international student.

[litty]

1 hour ago, GernderKitten said:

Thank you!! It's good to know that about Tallahassee - my only point of reference for it is the Mountain Goats album ?

FSU's website doesn't have info displayed very well, so I'm going to write what I was personally told and warn you that other ppl probably have different offers:

AFIK, all students in the program are accepted with 3 years of full tuition waiver + some funding stipend. The offer I got was for for a stipend of 15,600$ per year. Students TA 2 courses per semester. Students are expected to take 3 courses per semester for the first 2 years; year 3 is dedicated entirely to thesis writing, but TA duties continue.

A 3-year program is a dream for some, and that's awesome! Personally I prefer a 2-year program b/c  I don't want to spend too much time away from my family (I'm an international student, so travel is complicated). I also recently finished my BA after 6 years (!), so I'm a bit sated when it comes to academia at this point ?

That being said, my main goal is to come out of the program with a finished, polished manuscript. So.. who knows, maybe a third year is for the best? IDK...

Good luck with your apps!! Hope you hear good news soon ?

Awesome! Thanks for sharing your thoughts. A number of folks I've spoken to in 2 year programs wish they had a third year for focus on their manuscript. It seems like in your first year you're finding your feet, and voice, and second year you're just getting into your groove. Several 2 year programs offer an optional third year, but funding is not guaranteed. As an international student, I wonder if a 3 year program helps mitigate some of the visa related stress? I'd be frazzled if in my second year I had to complete my manuscript AND worry about getting out of the country before my visa expires, sigh. Do you know if FSU or any other 3 year programs would consider waiving (if any) residency requirements or teaching requirements for year 3? That way you could complete your manuscript from home if you so choose, but have that flexibility with your visa. I know a number of doctoral students that do this. But yes, you have hard choices, but GOOD problems   Congrats again!!