2025 Creative Writing MFA Applicants Forum

[pananoprodigy]

4 minutes ago, everything bagel lover said:

YALL I GOT A TASHIP AT NAU LETS GOOOOO

YESSSSSS LETS FUCKING GO!!! I just got mine too!!!!

[exvat]

1 hour ago, vilum said:

same. the anxiety is really getting to me. at this point i just want to know 😔 still nothing on draft? 

I haven't heard anything on here today about new acceptances, and I don't have a Facebook account to access Draft.

"Waiting... Waiting... Waiting..." 🧘‍♂️

[everything bagel lover]

25 minutes ago, MegHe said:

OMG CONGRATS!!!!

23 minutes ago, pananoprodigy said:

YESSSSSS LETS FUCKING GO!!! I just got mine too!!!!

Thank you oh my god!!!! And congrats pananoprodigy!!!! Oh my god I'm gonna pass out I'm so excited

[OctopusCactus]

On 2/24/2025 at 12:27 PM, decayingballads21 said:

had to reschedule an acceptance call since I missed it on Friday; and I have it this afternoon. I have phone anxiety so I’m hoping someone can help me out here. Should I be asking lots of questions or is it more so just to express interest and gratitude for being accepted?! What kinda of questions are appropriate for an initial acceptance call? I don’t want to be overbearing. 

The acceptance call is the program is trying to win YOU over.  Don't stress!  Your work is done.  They want you to choose their program.  It is truly an opportunity to ask any questions you actually have about the program that would factor into whether you accept their offer or not.  If you don't really have questions you could just say thanks and express interest.  The faculty members who called me were really nice and were patient with my questions.  They do these calls every year, they know they're a big moment for us and that a lot of us get flustered.  

[Chex]

48 minutes ago, everything bagel lover said:

YALL I GOT A TASHIP AT NAU LETS GOOOOO

 

42 minutes ago, pananoprodigy said:

YESSSSSS LETS FUCKING GO!!! I just got mine too!!!!

CONGRATS TO YOU BOTH!!!!!!! 🎉 🎉 

40 minutes ago, exvat said:

I haven't heard anything on here today about new acceptances, and I don't have a Facebook account to access Draft.

"Waiting... Waiting... Waiting..." 🧘‍♂️

Not much news there. Mostly Oregon State waitlists and updates from South Carolina and a few other programs we've heard from before. 

I'm frankly amazed at how slow things have been this year. By this time last year, NYU had sent out the first batch of acceptances with fellowship funding. The next set (regular acceptances without fellowship or full tuition waiver) went out on 26/2. They haven't even started at all this year. And it's crickets from programs like WashU. I'm beginning to think there might be a serious issue with funding. But no way to know except to wait it out. Oh, well. 

[momeraths]

Frankly amazed that JH even bothered to send me a rejection, seeing as it turns out that one of my recommenders didn't submit a letter 🙃

Ah well. Danielle Evans, I will continue to admire your work from afar.

[currahcane]

Hey! I just recieved an interview request from Notre Dame for Nonfiction, I am wondering if anyone has interviewed with them/another program and has any advice? Really nervous & excited!

[tomat0tomat0]

just saw the second wave of JHU rejections on the draft spreadsheet but i still got nothing! radio silence. what the hell???!!! 

Edited February 25 by tomat0tomat0
edit: anybody else ????!!

[prufrock_]

2 minutes ago, tomat0tomat0 said:

just saw the second wave of JHU rejections on the draft spreadsheet but i still got nothing! radio silence. what the hell???!!! 

yup, nothing for me as well yet. I'm still assuming it's nothing but a rejection.

[Hjanep]

7 minutes ago, tomat0tomat0 said:

just saw the second wave of JHU rejections on the draft spreadsheet but i still got nothing! radio silence. what the hell???!!! 

Samesies

[strawberrymatcha]

no JHU rejection here either😔 here’s to more waiting…

[sgrad]

i cant get into my fb. does anyone know if there is any response for NC state for poetry yet?

[writeordie]

5 minutes ago, sgrad said:

i cant get into my fb. does anyone know if there is any response for NC state for poetry yet?

Not yet, just fiction. Good luck!!

[Eloise2897]

4 minutes ago, sgrad said:

i cant get into my fb. does anyone know if there is any response for NC state for poetry yet?

all I see at the moment are fiction acceptances!

[DakotaSt]

2 hours ago, suitcase 1234 said:

 

good to hear & congratulations!!! so happy for you!! can I ask where you've been accepted?

Thank you! I sent 10 applications and have been accepted into Uni of Idaho, Oregon State and WVU so far. 

[Eloise2897]

I'd like to know people's thoughts on whether or not to take a chance on a new program. 

I got accepted at Texas Tech with almost full tuition remission (I think I would owe ~$1400 per semester) and a TA appointment with a $15,500 stipend. 

Pros: The funding is pretty nice compared to other programs, at least from what I’ve seen. Cost of living in Lubbock seems to be reasonable. The faculty have been incredibly kind, responsive, and seem excited to work with me. Three of them reached out separately to congratulate me and say what they liked about my work. Some of their writing interests also seem to align very well with my own. I know that TTU is a respected university and that they have an established English department, including an MA program that I’ve heard good things about. 

Cons: Obviously, it’s a new program, so it doesn’t have the associated prestige. And although it's much more than just a tech school, I do worry that it having 'Tech' in the name makes it seem like it's not an artsy school--will someone look at my resume someday and wonder why on earth I'd go there for an MFA? It’s also very, very far from home for me (I live in far northern Michigan), which makes the risk feel, well, riskier. 

So far, my only other acceptance is unfunded, so I won’t be taking that offer. I’m waitlisted at my top choice and still waiting on the rest. So there’s a lot of room for things to change. Maybe a super obvious decision will fall into my lap. But until then, I figured I might as well start contemplating my next moves rather than sit here going nuts with anxiety.
 

[gardener0320]

Hi everyone! I don’t have a facebook— could someone let me know if Rutgers Newark has sent out their acceptances already for fiction? Thanks so much and good luck to all!

[Jane Wyman]

4 minutes ago, Eloise2897 said:

I'd like to know people's thoughts on whether or not to take a chance on a new program. 

I got accepted at Texas Tech with almost full tuition remission (I think I would owe ~$1400 per semester) and a TA appointment with a $15,500 stipend. 

Pros: The funding is pretty nice compared to other programs, at least from what I’ve seen. Cost of living in Lubbock seems to be reasonable. The faculty have been incredibly kind, responsive, and seem excited to work with me. Three of them reached out separately to congratulate me and say what they liked about my work. Some of their writing interests also seem to align very well with my own. I know that TTU is a respected university and that they have an established English department, including an MA program that I’ve heard good things about. 

Cons: Obviously, it’s a new program, so it doesn’t have the associated prestige. And although it's much more than just a tech school, I do worry that it having 'Tech' in the name makes it seem like it's not an artsy school--will someone look at my resume someday and wonder why on earth I'd go there for an MFA? It’s also very, very far from home for me (I live in far northern Michigan), which makes the risk feel, well, riskier. 

So far, my only other acceptance is unfunded, so I won’t be taking that offer. I’m waitlisted at my top choice and still waiting on the rest. So there’s a lot of room for things to change. Maybe a super obvious decision will fall into my lap. But until then, I figured I might as well start contemplating my next moves rather than sit here going nuts with anxiety.
 

Can you visit or get put in touch with other students?

[prufrock_]

7 minutes ago, Eloise2897 said:

I'd like to know people's thoughts on whether or not to take a chance on a new program. 

I got accepted at Texas Tech with almost full tuition remission (I think I would owe ~$1400 per semester) and a TA appointment with a $15,500 stipend. 

Pros: The funding is pretty nice compared to other programs, at least from what I’ve seen. Cost of living in Lubbock seems to be reasonable. The faculty have been incredibly kind, responsive, and seem excited to work with me. Three of them reached out separately to congratulate me and say what they liked about my work. Some of their writing interests also seem to align very well with my own. I know that TTU is a respected university and that they have an established English department, including an MA program that I’ve heard good things about. 

Cons: Obviously, it’s a new program, so it doesn’t have the associated prestige. And although it's much more than just a tech school, I do worry that it having 'Tech' in the name makes it seem like it's not an artsy school--will someone look at my resume someday and wonder why on earth I'd go there for an MFA? It’s also very, very far from home for me (I live in far northern Michigan), which makes the risk feel, well, riskier. 

So far, my only other acceptance is unfunded, so I won’t be taking that offer. I’m waitlisted at my top choice and still waiting on the rest. So there’s a lot of room for things to change. Maybe a super obvious decision will fall into my lap. But until then, I figured I might as well start contemplating my next moves rather than sit here going nuts with anxiety.
 

one of my favorite writers (Stephen Graham Jones) got his BA from there, so i've never though of it as a 'tech' school. i don't think an mfa from anywhere is a guarantee to anything, so i'm not worrying about prestige. Sure, JHU or an ivy will get you a second look down the road, but an MFA is an MFA. If you think you would enjoy your time there, and you would grow as a writer, and you wont incur massive debt in the process, then i think it's worth going.

[Mystic_Sunshine]

2 hours ago, everything bagel lover said:

YALL I GOT A TASHIP AT NAU LETS GOOOOO

2 hours ago, pananoprodigy said:

YESSSSSS LETS FUCKING GO!!! I just got mine too!!!!

Big congrats to you both!! 

[writeordie]

58 minutes ago, gardener0320 said:

Hi everyone! I don’t have a facebook— could someone let me know if Rutgers Newark has sent out their acceptances already for fiction? Thanks so much and good luck to all!

There were three fiction "interviews" for Rutgers Newark reported on the 22nd. Doesn't look like anyone gets just straight-up "accepted"? Dunno cuz I didn't apply there, but that's what I saw. Good luck!

[pananoprodigy]

1 hour ago, prufrock_ said:

one of my favorite writers (Stephen Graham Jones) got his BA from there, so i've never though of it as a 'tech' school. i don't think an mfa from anywhere is a guarantee to anything, so i'm not worrying about prestige. Sure, JHU or an ivy will get you a second look down the road, but an MFA is an MFA. If you think you would enjoy your time there, and you would grow as a writer, and you wont incur massive debt in the process, then i think it's worth going.

Totally agree with all this, and for what it’s worth @Eloise2897 I got my artsy fartsy BFA degree from an “Institute of Technology” and if anything all it’s done is make people think I’m smarter and more science brained than I actually am lol 

[decayingballads21]

1 hour ago, DakotaSt said:

Thank you! I sent 10 applications and have been accepted into Uni of Idaho, Oregon State and WVU so far. 

congrats! WVU seems like a really cool/great program! Where are you still waiting to hear from?

I also got into idaho and I’m on the waitlist at Oregon state (which is my dream) so we have some overlap it seems!

how are you feeling about those 3 schools and do you have a top choice right now? Idaho seems really great so far 😊

[DakotaSt]

1 minute ago, decayingballads21 said:

congrats! WVU seems like a really cool/great program! Where are you still waiting to hear from?

I also got into idaho and I’m on the waitlist at Oregon state (which is my dream) so we have some overlap it seems!

how are you feeling about those 3 schools and do you have a top choice right now? Idaho seems really great so far 😊

Thank you! Congrats to you too! I have heard really great things about Oregon State so fingers crossed the waitlist moves!! and I think I am leaning towards WVU! And yes Idaho's program seems so wonderful, all the faculty seem really kind!!

[decayingballads21]

6 minutes ago, DakotaSt said:

Thank you! Congrats to you too! I have heard really great things about Oregon State so fingers crossed the waitlist moves!! and I think I am leaning towards WVU! And yes Idaho's program seems so wonderful, all the faculty seem really kind!!

that’s great! It’s such a hard decision so I’m wishing you the best of luck! 💕 always happy to chat on here as you weigh your choices and weigh pros and cons,  as I’m deliberating some of the same cnf programs!