2024 Creative Writing MFA Applicants Forum

[littlealien]

3 hours ago, decayingballads21 said:

I just found out I was accepted to Northern Michigan University; for nonfiction. On a waitlist for funding though— which sounds scary. I thought it was fully funded for all students, why would I be on a waitlist 😭😭

 

all these budget cuts and program changes have been stressing me out, I feel like it’s made the odds even harder this year! So I’m trying to be optimistic about this acceptance, but it’s kinda hard to when I’m assuming I can’t go. 

 

I'm in the same spot with NMU! Got the email this morning - not sure what to think!

[Sumire11]

Hey all,

With the applications seasons inching towards the finish line, I want to congratulate all of you who have had acceptances. I genuinely love how for some of you, your lives are going to change in a matter of months, admire how you have made it happen, even though there is a dash envy there, somewhere. 

As for myself, I'm in the waitlist purgatory for Fiction at Arkansas. What I want to ask is this, how long does it take before once can resonably be expected to hear back about their status? And if there is total radio silence, how many weeks should one let pass before they can reasonably think that the program has been filled up? For Arkansas, this has been especially difficult since there are only waitlists reported in the spreadsheet, so I can't reasonably estimate how many offers were made and how many are likely to be accepted. Also, a silly question (as if this entire post hasn't been a string of silly question, a blind attempt to find some sort of life raft to hold on to) we always hear about this waitlist stampede when people start accepting offers and due to the interconnectivity of the lists, seismic shifts take place that can actually turn waitlists into acceptances. What I want to ask is this, when do yiu think something like this is likely to happen, and what do you think is the probability of something like this happening this year (IE: with the interconnectivity in acceptances, entire valleys open up and those of us in limbo can rise to paradise?)

 

Thank you so much for your help. Sorry for such an extra post.

[itsbeensnowing]

12 minutes ago, Sumire11 said:

Hey all,

With the applications seasons inching towards the finish line, I want to congratulate all of you who have had acceptances. I genuinely love how for some of you, your lives are going to change in a matter of months, admire how you have made it happen, even though there is a dash envy there, somewhere. 

As for myself, I'm in the waitlist purgatory for Fiction at Arkansas. What I want to ask is this, how long does it take before once can resonably be expected to hear back about their status? And if there is total radio silence, how many weeks should one let pass before they can reasonably think that the program has been filled up? For Arkansas, this has been especially difficult since there are only waitlists reported in the spreadsheet, so I can't reasonably estimate how many offers were made and how many are likely to be accepted. Also, a silly question (as if this entire post hasn't been a string of silly question, a blind attempt to find some sort of life raft to hold on to) we always hear about this waitlist stampede when people start accepting offers and due to the interconnectivity of the lists, seismic shifts take place that can actually turn waitlists into acceptances. What I want to ask is this, when do yiu think something like this is likely to happen, and what do you think is the probability of something like this happening this year (IE: with the interconnectivity in acceptances, entire valleys open up and those of us in limbo can rise to paradise?)

 

Thank you so much for your help. Sorry for such an extra post.

The semi-answer to all of your questions is that people do tend to wait until the last minute to accept or decline their offers of admission, meaning the most waitlist movement is going to be happening around the April 15 deadline and in the immediate afterwards. The ripple effect is pretty much inevitable. When someone gets accepted off a waitlist, they either decline the offer, opening the slot up for another person, or they accept it and decline their other offers, opening those up for other people. So a lot can happen in a short period of time.

It's even not unheard of for someone to get off the waitlist in May or June if someone falls through or if they have to go through a large portion of the waitlist before finding someone who accepts. So, it's not over until it's over. I think by mid-April it'd be worth reaching out to the school to ask if they've filled all their slots if they haven't already volunteered that information.

I'm waitlisted for admission at one school and waitlisted for funding at another, so I'm trying to keep myself sane through this purgatory more than anything.

[Sumire11]

4 minutes ago, itsbeensnowing said:

The semi-answer to all of your questions is that people do tend to wait until the last minute to accept or decline their offers of admission, meaning the most waitlist movement is going to be happening around the April 15 deadline and in the immediate afterwards. The ripple effect is pretty much inevitable. When someone gets accepted off a waitlist, they either decline the offer, opening the slot up for another person, or they accept it and decline their other offers, opening those up for other people. So a lot can happen in a short period of time.

It's even not unheard of for someone to get off the waitlist in May or June if someone falls through or if they have to go through a large portion of the waitlist before finding someone who accepts. So, it's not over until it's over. I think by mid-April it'd be worth reaching out to the school to ask if they've filled all their slots if they haven't already volunteered that information.

I'm waitlisted for admission at one school and waitlisted for funding at another, so I'm trying to keep myself sane through this purgatory more than anything.

Yeah, that's what I've been hearing about the previous years. It's hard to hold on to hope though. The only thing running through my head is that given the pedigree of the program, they're are people who would jump at the opportunity, which just ends up being transformed into this voice that keeps telling me all the spots are or will be filled, and all of this was a bust. 

Edited March 14 by Sumire11

[taliaj]

Long shot--anyone heard back from BSU yet? I was told likely this week but it's Thursday so 😕

[prufrock_]

39 minutes ago, Sumire11 said:

he only thing running through my head is that given the pedigree of the program, they're are people who would jump at the opportunity, which just ends up being transformed into this voice that keeps telling me all the spots are or will be filled, and all of this was a bust. 

I'm also on the waitlist for fiction at arkansas, and i've gone the copium route of thinking 'it's a 4 year program with a heavy teaching load and a small stipend -- it's very likely someone who got accepted will go somewhere else instead.'

 

may us both get in off the waitlist!

[Scribe]

8 hours ago, electricstardust said:

do we think uwashington poetry is a soft rejection/waitlist if we haven’t heard by now? it’s the last school i’m waiting on!

I was waitlisted for fiction today, if that helps. no mention of a stipend offer for the anointed. 

[Sumire11]

9 minutes ago, prufrock_ said:

I'm also on the waitlist for fiction at arkansas, and i've gone the copium route of thinking 'it's a 4 year program with a heavy teaching load and a small stipend -- it's very likely someone who got accepted will go somewhere else instead.'

 

may us both get in off the waitlist!

Hopefully we'll see each other there man. 

[Rixor]

Rejected at UW-Seattle for fiction. It be like that sometimes. 

[Scribe]

35 minutes ago, Rixor said:

Rejected at UW-Seattle for fiction. It be like that sometimes. 

As I said, waitlisted. Any idea what their stipend is?

 

[Rixor]

8 minutes ago, Scribe said:

As I said, waitlisted. Any idea what their stipend is?

 

It was apparently ~15,000 a year in 2016. Tight with the COL--hopefully it's been raised since then.  Congrats on the waitlist! 

[trenchywrench]

anyone else who applied at U of Maryland get an “Under Grad School Review” update after an “Under Program Review” for the rest of the duration of your waiting?

i gathered from their site that this means that the Creative Writing program has made a decision on my application for their Fall 2024 fiction cohort—that the decision just has to go through UMD’s Graduate Dean because that’s just how they do it there. but do *all* UMD applications work this way? the update is kind of driving me insane and i’d love more info from anyone who is applying/has applied to UMD lol

[Scribe]

15 minutes ago, Rixor said:

It was apparently ~15,000 a year in 2016. Tight with the COL--hopefully it's been raised since then.  Congrats on the waitlist! 

that's the data i have too. thanks. 

[JanShell]

24 minutes ago, Rixor said:

It was apparently ~15,000 a year in 2016. Tight with the COL--hopefully it's been raised since then.  Congrats on the waitlist! 

I was accepted for fiction last week! It has been raised substantially - currently just under $28k, but I was also informed that the grad student union is currently negotiating with the university administration, and that number is likely to go up substantially prior to the start of next year or the university will risk a strike. 

[Scribe]

19 minutes ago, JanShell said:

I was accepted for fiction last week! It has been raised substantially - currently just under $28k, but I was also informed that the grad student union is currently negotiating with the university administration, and that number is likely to go up substantially prior to the start of next year or the university will risk a strike. 

Congratulations! It seems a great program.

that's great intel, thanks. any mention of a housing guarantee?

[JanShell]

No, although I didn't ask much about that. I asked where most people in the program live, and they said off campus. That's what I'd likely do anyway, so I didn't really press the topic.

[Scribe]

4 minutes ago, JanShell said:

No, although I didn't ask much about that. I asked where most people in the program live, and they said off campus. That's what I'd likely do anyway, so I didn't really press the topic.

I hear you. the PNW is one of the more beautiful places on earth. enjoy it!

[triuvled]

Was also waitlisted for University of Washington! Accepted by Eastern Washington University, rejected by Oregon State, still waiting to hear back from University of Oregon.

[subsolar]

2 hours ago, trenchywrench said:

anyone else who applied at U of Maryland get an “Under Grad School Review” update after an “Under Program Review” for the rest of the duration of your waiting?

i gathered from their site that this means that the Creative Writing program has made a decision on my application for their Fall 2024 fiction cohort—that the decision just has to go through UMD’s Graduate Dean because that’s just how they do it there. but do *all* UMD applications work this way? the update is kind of driving me insane and i’d love more info from anyone who is applying/has applied to UMD lol

Hi, I'm not sure if this helps but I was informed of my waitlist on 3/8, and I just logged in right now and my status says "Under Program Review." 

[trenchywrench]

1 hour ago, subsolar said:

Hi, I'm not sure if this helps but I was informed of my waitlist on 3/8, and I just logged in right now and my status says "Under Program Review." 

hi, there!

yeah, this is a little informative! i’d infer that your application went back to the “Under Program Review” stage because the program has to recommend that you come off the waitlist and onto admit status to the school, in which case that decision would result in a brief “Under Grad School Review” again. i could be misunderstanding, but maybe *all* the applications go through that process? i’m wondering what’s going on for sure

[Fronkophone]

4 hours ago, trenchywrench said:

anyone else who applied at U of Maryland get an “Under Grad School Review” update after an “Under Program Review” for the rest of the duration of your waiting?

i gathered from their site that this means that the Creative Writing program has made a decision on my application for their Fall 2024 fiction cohort—that the decision just has to go through UMD’s Graduate Dean because that’s just how they do it there. but do *all* UMD applications work this way? the update is kind of driving me insane and i’d love more info from anyone who is applying/has applied to UMD lol

My application changed to “under grad school review” as well, so I at best I am assuming the decisions are about to come out. I am not sure how it works with them but I too am anxiously waiting to hear what they say.

[pomelo]

FINALLY got my damn rejection from UMass Amherst. Jesus. It’s on the application portal and, in revisiting it, I was reminded that I paid $85 to apply. Isn’t it interesting that I was able to get 5 fee waivers out of the 10 programs I applied to and the two that had the most no-fuss fee waiver request processes were the ones I received an acceptance from? (I’m not implying anything, just a coincidence lol).
 

I’m not bitter that I wasn’t accepted to 8 out of 10 programs, I’m just so annoyed by the ones that have a several days/weeks-long gap between releasing acceptances/waitlists and rejections. Why?? Just send all the decisions!! 

[airlinefood_enjoyer]

hey do all the amherst rejections encourage you to apply again next year? i'm trying to discern whether I should read it as legitimate encouragement or just an attempt to get another 85 dollars out of me if this year doesn't work out 😂

[mmmmmsc]

also breaking my silence after a very anxious month of lurking! Context: I live in nyc and I work here as a writer. I know nyu did acceptances, rejections, and waitlists for poetry and fiction in early feb through the last few weeks. But I simply cannot find word or confirmation (either on the forums or through my contacts) that anyone who applied to nonfiction heard back either way. so my question is: any intel on nyu nonfiction? anyone got in? rejected? waitlisted? I clearly have not heard back so I know it might not be the best news. but I wont know until I know! thanks!

[sunnysequoia]

3 hours ago, airlinefood_enjoyer said:

hey do all the amherst rejections encourage you to apply again next year? i'm trying to discern whether I should read it as legitimate encouragement or just an attempt to get another 85 dollars out of me if this year doesn't work out 😂

Yeah they said that in my letter too. Pretty sure it's just boilerplate language LOL.

2 hours ago, mmmmmsc said:

also breaking my silence after a very anxious month of lurking! Context: I live in nyc and I work here as a writer. I know nyu did acceptances, rejections, and waitlists for poetry and fiction in early feb through the last few weeks. But I simply cannot find word or confirmation (either on the forums or through my contacts) that anyone who applied to nonfiction heard back either way. so my question is: any intel on nyu nonfiction? anyone got in? rejected? waitlisted? I clearly have not heard back so I know it might not be the best news. but I wont know until I know! thanks!

There's 1 acceptance and 4 waitlists for NYU nonfiction on the MFA Draft Facebook group. Acceptances came out in late February, waitlists on March 7th. I've been assuming a rejection since I haven't heard back.