2025 Creative Writing MFA Applicants Forum

[pananoprodigy]

Just now, Tinky C. Clown said:

university of oregon is killing me. has anyone heard anything?

No sameeee cus where are they??!

[Mystic_Sunshine]

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    🕯️   Mississippi Acceptance       

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Also replacing my candles. 

[Tinky C. Clown]

9 minutes ago, pananoprodigy said:

No sameeee cus where are they??!

they could drop at any minute and it’s been like that for a month and a half now 🙃

at least with the other schools i’ve known not to expect anything 

[Jane Wyman]

Whew, this line from the Davis rejection I just got: "If in the future you believe that your accomplishments may be competitive, please do not hesitate to reapply."

I know this is their form rejection, but wow.

[exvat]

7 minutes ago, Jane Wyman said:

Whew, this line from the Davis rejection I just got: "If in the future you believe that your accomplishments may be competitive, please do not hesitate to reapply."

I know this is their form rejection, but wow.

Yo, WHAT???? Are they trying to alienate applicants en masse???

[Jane Wyman]

1 minute ago, exvat said:

Yo, WHAT???? Are they trying to alienate applicants en masse???

"If somehow, miraculously, you turn into less of a garbage raccoon, please do not hesitate to throw $135 at us again. Though of course, it shall be in vain."

[prufrock_]

17 minutes ago, Jane Wyman said:

Whew, this line from the Davis rejection I just got: "If in the future you believe that your accomplishments may be competitive, please do not hesitate to reapply."

I know this is their form rejection, but wow.

oof. is that from the generic grad school or the actual english dept?

[Jane Wyman]

9 minutes ago, prufrock_ said:

oof. is that from the generic grad school or the actual english dept?

Generic grad school. I guess they want all of their applicants to feel bad, lol.

[pananoprodigy]

50 minutes ago, Jane Wyman said:

Whew, this line from the Davis rejection I just got: "If in the future you believe that your accomplishments may be competitive, please do not hesitate to reapply."

I know this is their form rejection, but wow.

This is wild lmao - like yall really couldn't have taken a second pass at this, Davis??? jeez

Edited Wednesday at 02:20 AM by pananoprodigy

[prufrock_]

35 minutes ago, Jane Wyman said:

Generic grad school. I guess they want all of their applicants to feel bad, lol.

ah so it kinda make sense (though still bad!). STEM grad applicants are rather objective like that.

[Nauna]

3 hours ago, smallchange said:

Thinking of making a t shirt that says “I got rejected from Iowa Writer’s Workshop and all I got was this dumb t shirt”

OMG I NEED THAT SHIRT

[ssuunn]

Hi poets — University of Oregon poetry decisions should be going out tomorrow! If it's like last year, waitlists will follow in the days afterwards. (I heard that fiction is still behind fyi).

[Tinky C. Clown]

1 hour ago, ssuunn said:

Hi poets — University of Oregon poetry decisions should be going out tomorrow! If it's like last year, waitlists will follow in the days afterwards. (I heard that fiction is still behind fyi).

thanks for the info!

Edited Wednesday at 05:13 AM by Tinky C. Clown

[thelovelyunkown]

Any advice on how to find/choose recommenders when you donʻt have a lot of options? None of my professors except for one can attest to my skills as a creative writer. Next round Iʻm a little concerned Iʻm going to have to ask them to write 5+ letters of recommendation. Iʻm not really sure what to do. 

[exvat]

19 minutes ago, thelovelyunkown said:

Any advice on how to find/choose recommenders when you donʻt have a lot of options? None of my professors except for one can attest to my skills as a creative writer. Next round Iʻm a little concerned Iʻm going to have to ask them to write 5+ letters of recommendation. Iʻm not really sure what to do. 

The only 2 poets I knew who were familiar with my work and could write letters were my former workshop leaders at weeklong writers' conferences. The third letter was from my Chemistry MS advisor... from 15 years ago. I'm not sure what your timeline and financial means are, but for me (who's never taken a lit/English course), workshops were pretty much my only access to potential recommenders, as well as writing community in general.

Edited Wednesday at 05:19 AM by exvat

[thelovelyunkown]

6 minutes ago, exvat said:

The only 2 poets I knew who were familiar with my work and could write letters were my former workshop leaders at weeklong writers' conferences. The third letter was from my Chemistry MS advisor. I'm not sure what your timeline and financial means are, but for me (who's never taken a lit/English course), workshops were pretty much my only access to potential recommenders, as well as writing community in general.

Iʻll keep that in mind! 

[KennyK]

Were there any updates for Riverside on draft?

Edited Wednesday at 05:26 AM by KennyK
Edit

[donuthead36]

2 minutes ago, KennyK said:

Were there any updates for Riverside on draft?

Nothing new today on the spreadsheet. Still just one Fiction and one Nonfiction, both notified on 3/2

[KennyK]

14 minutes ago, donuthead36 said:

Nothing new today on the spreadsheet. Still just one Fiction and one Nonfiction, both notified on 3/2

Is it normal for programs to only notify one of each group and leave the others hanging?

[ssuunn]

43 minutes ago, KennyK said:

Were there any updates for Riverside on draft?

I asked my friend there and they think all the initial offers might've gone out at the same time (for all genres).

[lurkingwriter3]

This is a crushing cycle. Feeling like I’m just not good enough

[rapunzel]

thank you for your lovely responses @Hjanep @zaira !! it's definitely a cliche to say i'm still in the process of "finding my voice" and often i'm too afraid to write about things that matter to me or that i'm passionate about personally just because i worry 1) that there's not much i have to say that people will be interested in and 2) that even if it is, i'm not at a place in my life or in my writing journey where i'll be able to do them justice. but i guess the point is to go for it anyway? we're all taking huge leaps of faith by even applying to mfas! 

[lurkingwriter3]

My grandmother is a proud Irish immigrant. She was just diagnosed with Stage 3/4 breast cancer.

 

I don’t have the stomach to tell her I didn’t even get an interview for Notre Dame💔

[Scribe]

1 hour ago, lurkingwriter3 said:

This is a crushing cycle. Feeling like I’m just not good enough

You are. 

1 hour ago, lurkingwriter3 said:

This is a crushing cycle. Feeling like I’m just not good enough

It's not your year. 

1 hour ago, lurkingwriter3 said:

My grandmother is a proud Irish immigrant. She was just diagnosed with Stage 3/4 breast cancer.

 

I don’t have the stomach to tell her I didn’t even get an interview for Notre Dame💔

Write about it. 
Irish families don't care about Notre Dame. They care about each other.
Between the fights. 

[thelovelyunkown]

Renewing my candles and hoping for news when I wake up! 

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    🕯️   Brown  Acceptance    🕯️

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Edited Wednesday at 09:30 AM by thelovelyunkown