2024 Creative Writing MFA Applicants Forum

[ketilsstead]

13 minutes ago, Rixor said:

Is everyone else finding it as difficult to focus as I am? I've made barely any progress on my writing projects and at work, all I can think about is edits I should've made to my SOPs. 

Is everyone else neurotically refreshing Facebook, Gradcafe, and Gmail? Or just me? 😅

Yes -- I finished all my apps on 1/12 and was really looking forward to when I could return my focus to my actual writing. Now I find myself (as you said) neurotically refreshing GradCafe and the Draft group, knowing there are still basically three months until I'll know the actual choices in front of me (if any) and wishing I had something to do in order to feel like I was making progress. Now I have to re-train my mind again.....

Edited January 18, 2024 by ketilsstead

[pomelo]

Same boat. One of the pieces I included in my writing sample is brand new and I’ve been debating submitting it to a journal but I haven’t mustered up the energy or courage. My writing practice has flatlined but I’ve been reading, cooking, walking, and spending time with friends. Such a hard time to be waiting for life changing decisions when it’s cold and gray (here on the east coast anyway), makes the wait feel even more agonizing. I’m on Gradcafe and MFA Draft entirely too much but I can’t seem to resist!

[aurqcyei]

8 hours ago, saramsarang said:

Hello everyone! It's only just January but I'm already going a little crazy from the waiting since universities have started sending out notifications. The forum seems less active this year than the previous years but regardless I hope we can cheer each other on and get through this together!

I just had a quick question! On the Draft, people have said that they've received waitlist emails for both fiction and poetry from UIUC. I'm wondering whether UIUC has already sent their acceptances then? I'm a first-time applicant so I'm not too sure about how it all works, but as far as I remember reading from previous years' forums, I know schools usually send out waitlists after acceptances...so I'm just a bit confused.

I'm already expecting rejections across the board but I wanted to know whether I should count UIUC off or hold onto hope (vainly really) for it since only waitlist notifications have gone out. 

At least for poetry & fiction, I'm fairly certain UIUC sent out all the acceptances before waitlists. They sent out faculty waitlist emails for those in the top 3 of each genre a few days after, then a generic waitlist email for everyone else in the top 10. I think they might send out more waitlist emails as the waitlist moves.

That said, I wouldn't count on rejections across the board! Adcoms can be pretty subjective, and rejections from a few schools don't mean rejections everywhere. People in Draft the previous years have indicated they were rejected at every school they applied to, until they got into something like Iowa, Michener, etc. 

[triciadawn]

8 hours ago, Chex said:

Two people on draft have reported acceptances from UIUC. And if you check the recently created response sheet, you should find more details.

Can't say if they're done notifying those accepted, but fingers crossed everything works out for you! Hang in there, we're many in the waiting game.

Where is the response sheet in Draft? I know there’s a form but is there a spreadsheet for 2024? 

[decayingballads21]

5 minutes ago, triciadawn said:

Where is the response sheet in Draft? I know there’s a form but is there a spreadsheet for 2024? 

It’s in the comment section under the post where Jess made the form 

[Chex]

4 minutes ago, triciadawn said:

Where is the response sheet in Draft? I know there’s a form but is there a spreadsheet for 2024? 

Yes, there is. The link was shared in the comment section of the post about the spreadsheet. Check the comment(s).

[Jersh]

On 1/16/2024 at 5:33 PM, decayingballads21 said:

There was a fiction acceptance in draft just posted, for Ohio state. Does anyone know if fiction, poetry and CNF acceptances come out separately or at the same time? I’m so nervous 

Just got waitlisted at Ohio State this morning for fiction, so I'm guessing that fiction rejections (along with poetry and CNF acceptances) will be coming up in the next few days!

[decayingballads21]

Just now, Jersh said:

Just got waitlisted at Ohio State this morning for fiction, so I'm guessing that fiction rejections (along with poetry and CNF acceptances) will be coming up in the next few days!

Oh yikes! It seems like fiction acceptances and waitlist have already gone out. What do you think are my chances as a CNF applicant? I know there’s been 1 cnf admit on the 17th. 

[prufrock_]

Grats! That's wild how early Ohio's putting out decisions. I didn't apply there, but it looks great!

[triciadawn]

30 minutes ago, decayingballads21 said:

It’s in the comment section under the post where Jess made the form 

 

29 minutes ago, Chex said:

Yes, there is. The link was shared in the comment section of the post about the spreadsheet. Check the comment(s).

Thanks! 

[Chex]

9 minutes ago, Jersh said:

Just got waitlisted at Ohio State this morning for fiction, so I'm guessing that fiction rejections (along with poetry and CNF acceptances) will be coming up in the next few days!

 

3 minutes ago, prufrock_ said:

Grats! That's wild how early Ohio's putting out decisions. I didn't apply there, but it looks great!

Congrats!

And yes, Ohio State is usually quick to respond every year. Ohio and UIUC. Indiana will follow soon, I believe. Around the end of this month.

[sunnysequoia]

16 hours ago, DanielNiver said:

Just wanted to update here that I received an Ohio State acceptance for CNF for those who applied to that genre. Hoping for good news for others.

Congratulations!!! I was notified this morning that I'm on the Ohio State waitlist for CNF 😀

3 hours ago, Rixor said:

Is everyone else finding it as difficult to focus as I am? I've made barely any progress on my writing projects and at work, all I can think about is edits I should've made to my SOPs. 

Is everyone else neurotically refreshing Facebook, Gradcafe, and Gmail? Or just me? 😅

LOL you're definitely not the only one. I'm glad I didn't join this forum and Draft before this week, because I don't think I could have remained sane from this constant anxiety while still working on my applications. I've been reminding myself that it's important to still continue doing my daily tasks and activities and not put my life on hold while waiting for decisions, especially since I'd be moving in 6-7 months if I got into a fully funded program. So try to be present in the moment, spend time with the people who matter to you, and enjoy your life in your current city while you still have it, because everything could soon change

0a/1w/0r/11p/4 still applying

[catsaregood.pdf]

hi everyone! this is my 1st time applying for grad schools :') 

i am a 26 y/o lesbian who graduated from undergrad recently! i applied at umass amherst, bu, brown, nyu, and to two writing fellowships!

i have been non stop checking draft FB group this week. 

 

[ssuunn]

1 hour ago, aurqcyei said:

At least for poetry & fiction, I'm fairly certain UIUC sent out all the acceptances before waitlists. They sent out faculty waitlist emails for those in the top 3 of each genre a few days after, then a generic waitlist email for everyone else in the top 10.

Where did you hear this? I was waitlisted for poetry at UIUC on 1/8 and mine was from a faculty member, but I didn't have any inclination that it was a "top 3" situation.

[Rixor]

24 minutes ago, catsaregood.pdf said:

hi everyone! this is my 1st time applying for grad schools :') 

i am a 26 y/o lesbian who graduated from undergrad recently! i applied at umass amherst, bu, brown, nyu, and to two writing fellowships!

i have been non stop checking draft FB group this week. 

 

Good luck!! And congratulations on graduating!!

If you don't mind me asking you quickly--I'm also a lesbian. Did you mention it at all in your SOPs? 

[catsaregood.pdf]

3 minutes ago, Rixor said:

Good luck!! And congratulations on graduating!!

If you don't mind me asking you quickly--I'm also a lesbian. Did you mention it at all in your SOPs? 

i did not mention it in my SOP!

[aurqcyei]

5 minutes ago, ssuunn said:

Where did you hear this? I was waitlisted for poetry at UIUC on 1/8 and mine was from a faculty member, but I didn't have any inclination that it was a "top 3" situation.

It wasn't in the email itself; I heard this from another faculty member. Maybe take it with a grain of salt since I didn't apply to poetry, but the impression I got was that was the case for both genres. 

[LivingUnderABigRock]

Does anyone know if Ole Miss and Arkansas's round system differs from UTK's? It seems like with UTK if you move to round 2, it's a strong indication you'll get a waitlist but not necessarily a guaranteed acceptance. However, Ole Miss and Arkansas, it seems more like you're very likely to get in if you go past round 1, seeing as for those schools you can't even officially "apply" until they tell you that you've moved forward.

Any thoughts?

I also wanted to say that I know it's not feasible for every school, but the round system is so much better for the applicant in my opinion or... it seems more transparent at the very least. I know that it's not possible for every school though, given the amount of applicants and other logistical challenges. 

Good luck again to all, by the way. I have been trying my best to focus all of my energy somewhere productive now that the long wait has begun. I do feel like I'm writing new and fun things again rather than being stuck in editor mode on very old ideas. It's also a great time to read. If anyone has any good book suggestions, I'd love to hear them!

[seeleimraum]

4 hours ago, catsaregood.pdf said:

i did not mention it in my SOP!

Jumping in here as another lesbian applicant - I did not mention it specifically in my SOP, but rather I spoke to how queer writers (listed a few) impact(ed) my writing (explained how) and emphasized that gender/sexual identity was/is/will be something I explore in my writing.

[triciadawn]

3 hours ago, LivingUnderABigRock said:

Does anyone know if Ole Miss and Arkansas's round system differs from UTK's? It seems like with UTK if you move to round 2, it's a strong indication you'll get a waitlist but not necessarily a guaranteed acceptance. However, Ole Miss and Arkansas, it seems more like you're very likely to get in if you go past round 1, seeing as for those schools you can't even officially "apply" until they tell you that you've moved forward.

Any thoughts?

I also wanted to say that I know it's not feasible for every school, but the round system is so much better for the applicant in my opinion or... it seems more transparent at the very least. I know that it's not possible for every school though, given the amount of applicants and other logistical challenges. 

Good luck again to all, by the way. I have been trying my best to focus all of my energy somewhere productive now that the long wait has begun. I do feel like I'm writing new and fun things again rather than being stuck in editor mode on very old ideas. It's also a great time to read. If anyone has any good book suggestions, I'd love to hear them!

Also applying to Ole Miss and Arkansas, and I think this is the case too. If you get into round 2 for those, it's a very good sign! I'm so anxious to hear back about round 2! If I make it that far, I know that's the first news I'll get any day now. 

[seeleimraum]

6 hours ago, Chex said:

 

Congrats!

And yes, Ohio State is usually quick to respond every year. Ohio and UIUC. Indiana will follow soon, I believe. Around the end of this month.

What leads you to believe Indiana will be next? Asking because I applied there and am anxiously awaiting a response. Do you know a guy who knows a guy on the inside? lol

[triciadawn]

43 minutes ago, seeleimraum said:

What leads you to believe Indiana will be next? Asking because I applied there and am anxiously awaiting a response. Do you know a guy who knows a guy on the inside? lol

They seem to be next historically, based on Draft data. 

[lychees]

Hi everyone! Short-time lurker who didn't realize that this forum existed until about two hours ago. I'm a first-time applicant in my last semester of undergrad. I applied to eleven programs all in CNF last December and just got waitlisted from Ohio State today — I was expecting the worst, so it was extremely shocking and very welcome news! I'm currently the only person I know at my uni who's applying to MFAs straight out of undergrad so it's really nice to hear that other people are going through the same process. I'm wishing everyone best of luck! 

[sunnysequoia]

1 hour ago, lychees said:

Hi everyone! Short-time lurker who didn't realize that this forum existed until about two hours ago. I'm a first-time applicant in my last semester of undergrad. I applied to eleven programs all in CNF last December and just got waitlisted from Ohio State today — I was expecting the worst, so it was extremely shocking and very welcome news! I'm currently the only person I know at my uni who's applying to MFAs straight out of undergrad so it's really nice to hear that other people are going through the same process. I'm wishing everyone best of luck! 

Congratulations!!! Here's to hoping our waitlists turn into acceptances for both of us  

[decayingballads21]

5 hours ago, sunnysequoia said:

Congratulations!!! Here's to hoping our waitlists turn into acceptances for both of us  

 

7 hours ago, lychees said:

Hi everyone! Short-time lurker who didn't realize that this forum existed until about two hours ago. I'm a first-time applicant in my last semester of undergrad. I applied to eleven programs all in CNF last December and just got waitlisted from Ohio State today — I was expecting the worst, so it was extremely shocking and very welcome news! I'm currently the only person I know at my uni who's applying to MFAs straight out of undergrad so it's really nice to hear that other people are going through the same process. I'm wishing everyone best of luck! 

Congrats you guys! I really am happy to hear of others successes, but I am still here wondering if I’m going to hear any kind of news from OSU. Do you think they are done sending out acceptances and waitlists, or might there be more to come? I applied CNF, and it’s been silent on my end. I was kind of hoping they are staggering their notifications throughout the week but I’m starting to think otherwise. I just want to cry. Ugh. Does anyone have any insight into the notif system this year- are they all out at once, staggered, or something else? 🤞🏻