Nauna Posted March 13 Posted March 13 5 hours ago, Jitterbug98 said: Is it common for someone to get into a top fully funded program on their second or third round after all rejections (no waitlists) at fully funded schools during their first round? I’m high on the waitlist for a TAship at one school which would functionally make it fully funded for me, so I guess that gives me a little validation that my application wasn’t terrible. But across the fully funded schools I applied to (Cornell, Rutgers, Syracuse, Boston, Iowa, michener, Michigan, Amherst) I got zilch, not even a higher tier rejection. It probably didn’t help that I only applied to the most competitive fully funded programs but if I reapply next year I’ll probably be limiting my applications to the northeast so it will likely be the same deal since the northeast fully funded programs tend to be very very competitive. I don’t want to waste a ton of money on a second round of applications if I’m just not a competitive applicant There are plenty of incredible writers out there who were not accepted in their first try. I just had someone tell me that Tobias Wolff didn't get in until his second attempt! Tobias Wolff! exvat, Jane Wyman and cooliejulie86 2 1
crossingmyfingers1212 Posted March 13 Posted March 13 anyone have any idea when knoxville might send their decisions?
exvat Posted March 13 Posted March 13 28 minutes ago, Nauna said: There are plenty of incredible writers out there who were not accepted in their first try. I just had someone tell me that Tobias Wolff didn't get in until his second attempt! Tobias Wolff! My first cycle was straight rejections, and now I'm likely accepting a spot at NYU (not full funded atm, but that may change by mid-April 🤞). In fairness, I was not ready that first time. This time I knew what I wanted and went for the jugular.
strawberrymatcha Posted March 13 Posted March 13 so curious about what’s going on with brown, wonder if it’s related to all of the funding issues? misssalem, honeytreasures and Tuxedocat 3
Mia172 Posted March 13 Posted March 13 (edited) 6 hours ago, Jitterbug98 said: Is it common for someone to get into a top fully funded program on their second or third round after all rejections (no waitlists) at fully funded schools during their first round? I’m high on the waitlist for a TAship at one school which would functionally make it fully funded for me, so I guess that gives me a little validation that my application wasn’t terrible. But across the fully funded schools I applied to (Cornell, Rutgers, Syracuse, Boston, Iowa, michener, Michigan, Amherst) I got zilch, not even a higher tier rejection. It probably didn’t help that I only applied to the most competitive fully funded programs but if I reapply next year I’ll probably be limiting my applications to the northeast so it will likely be the same deal since the northeast fully funded programs tend to be very very competitive. I don’t want to waste a ton of money on a second round of applications if I’m just not a competitive applicant I think to determine if you are “competitive” or not, always have good readers to read your works and let them be real with you… don’t be afraid of criticism and rejections, do not have to take them personally but those constructive ones help you locate yourself, and I think self awareness helped me in writing a lot. And also in life. I want to encourage you to reapply, if not next year, the year after the next, whenever you feel ready. But also, an MFA isn’t a requirement for you to be a good writer. If you love this thing you will continue doing it no matter what. I’m also talking from a less experienced person’s perspective, but I think it wouldn’t hurt to take a step back and consider if you really want this life so bad that without it you cannot function. I don’t think committing to a writing life is really superior than other way of living (getting an office job, getting married and focusing on family, etc…) it is not even necessarily happier! But if you think you will not be happy without it, work hard and reach high and don’t stop pursuing it… I think I won’t be happy without it, that’s why I’m here Edited March 13 by Mia172 By “good readers” I kinda mean the people who are already in the game… professors, MFA students, established writers… and compare your writing to recent published ones in literary magazines seah0rse and everything bagel lover 2
Mia172 Posted March 13 Posted March 13 But fr, another silent day for me… how dare them…I’m losing my anger management skills.
honeytreasures Posted March 13 Posted March 13 8 minutes ago, Mia172 said: But fr, another silent day for me… how dare them…I’m losing my anger management skills. This is so real
rapunzel Posted March 13 Posted March 13 (edited) 28 minutes ago, Mia172 said: I think to determine if you are “competitive” or not, always have good readers to read your works and let them be real with you… don’t be afraid of criticism and rejections, do not have to take them personally but those constructive ones help you locate yourself, and I think self awareness helped me in writing a lot. And also in life. does anyone have any advice on finding "good readers" (professors / mfa students) willing to help you out, especially if you don't have too many connections from your undergrad? it seems wrong to cold email writers you like and just stick your stuff in their faces... Edited March 13 by rapunzel of course "good writing" is subjective and you can be a great writer who's not an mfa writer, but applications can be expensive lol so it's good to know if you're "ready" _redrabbit7 1
Mia172 Posted March 13 Posted March 13 2 minutes ago, rapunzel said: does anyone have any advice on finding "good readers" (professors / mfa students) willing to help you out, especially if you don't have too many connections from your undergrad? it seems wrong to cold email writers you like and just stick your stuff in their faces... This forum and the Facebook draft are good places to start to look for fellow writers who are willing to connect lol. I see some people are already doing this. There are online one-time workshops/writing classes with a small fee too. Some of them are really good and taught by somewhat high profile writers. And in general, to be surrounded by people who are literary-minded…find people whose work you think highly of in local writer groups. And talk to fellow audiences in readings or other literary events if you feel brave? Exchanging brief self-introductions would probably help you figure out how they are involved in writing. Good chances they are also committed writers or readers for years. _redrabbit7 1
zaira Posted March 13 Posted March 13 8 hours ago, honeytreasures said: Hello! Does anyone have any insight into Brown, WashU St. Louis, and Boston for fiction? I'm assuming soft rejects for all of them, but just figured I'd ask! I still don't know what's happening with Boston. I'm not assuming it's a soft rejection just yet because their process seems to work a little differently from other programs. They usually do a big rejection round, followed by scattered acceptances and waitlists, then a final rejection round. Based on last year's data some folks who made it to this final rejection round were told they were in the top 12% of the applicant pool. My theory? They're still deciding. I've seen two fiction acceptances from this past weekend but haven't heard of any waitlists. I'm just gonna hang tight and see. szymborskasy 1
honeytreasures Posted March 13 Posted March 13 1 hour ago, zaira said: I still don't know what's happening with Boston. I'm not assuming it's a soft rejection just yet because their process seems to work a little differently from other programs. They usually do a big rejection round, followed by scattered acceptances and waitlists, then a final rejection round. Based on last year's data some folks who made it to this final rejection round were told they were in the top 12% of the applicant pool. My theory? They're still deciding. I've seen two fiction acceptances from this past weekend but haven't heard of any waitlists. I'm just gonna hang tight and see. Thank you! That makes sense :)
_redrabbit7 Posted March 13 Posted March 13 18 hours ago, _redrabbit7 said: I’ve been living in Providence as an international student for nearly three years now and I think I like it here a bit. It’s suitable for a solitary creative life, if that’s something you’re interested in. It’s quiet and boring, nothing much happens outside the Brown-RISD area. There’s a bookstore in Downtown called Symposium; I go there often to get a supply of books. By the way, I asked my roommate this morning, a current grad in fiction at Brown, and he told me he didn’t think acceptances had been sent out yet. He hadn’t heard anything. He would ask a professor in class today. None of my two other friends in the fiction and poetry tracks had heard anything too. The only acceptance we’ve heard of so far might be an early notice or a hoax. Hey guys, my roommate asked a professor in class yesterday about whether acceptances had been sent out and they said no acceptances, waitlists, or rejections had been sent out by Brown University. They have another class today so he’s going to ask another professor. I’m redacting the names of these professors for his privacy. zaira, Mr. Scribblo, analog_e and 5 others 8
Lady Gladys Posted March 13 Posted March 13 6 minutes ago, _redrabbit7 said: Hey guys, my roommate asked a professor in class yesterday about whether acceptances had been sent out and they said no acceptances, waitlists, or rejections had been sent out by Brown University. They have another class today so he’s going to ask another professor. I’m redacting the names of these professors for his privacy. I know I sound crazy, but just checking -- your professor understood this is for MFA Creative Writing in general? Wasn't just talking about one genre, either?
_redrabbit7 Posted March 13 Posted March 13 Just now, Lady Gladys said: I know I sound crazy, but just checking -- your professor understood this is for MFA Creative Writing in general? Wasn't just talking about one genre, either? I believe he meant generally. Lady Gladys 1
HalBear Posted March 13 Posted March 13 9 hours ago, crossingmyfingers1212 said: anyone have any idea when knoxville might send their decisions? It is my understanding that all acceptances have gone out. My portal still says "Awaiting Decision" though. So I think, Waitlists and rejections haven't been sent out. My little sister is in undergrad there, and spring break is next week. It is my hope that they will notify before thier spring break haha! I am hoping for a waitlist!!
tomat0tomat0 Posted March 13 Posted March 13 just got waitlisted at u of florida !! for fiction !! first (probably only!) non-rejection !! email says they accept 6 people in fiction per year and also waitlist 6. Mr. Scribblo, cooliejulie86, everything bagel lover and 13 others 16
zaira Posted March 13 Posted March 13 3 minutes ago, tomat0tomat0 said: just got waitlisted at u of florida !! for fiction !! first (probably only!) non-rejection !! email says they accept 6 people in fiction per year and also waitlist 6. Yessssssss!!! I'm thrilled for you! Massive, massive congrats tomat0tomat0 1
misssalem Posted March 13 Posted March 13 36 minutes ago, _redrabbit7 said: Hey guys, my roommate asked a professor in class yesterday about whether acceptances had been sent out and they said no acceptances, waitlists, or rejections had been sent out by Brown University. They have another class today so he’s going to ask another professor. I’m redacting the names of these professors for his privacy. Thank you so much for sharing this with us!!! writeordie and _redrabbit7 2
everything bagel lover Posted March 13 Posted March 13 23 minutes ago, tomat0tomat0 said: just got waitlisted at u of florida !! for fiction !! first (probably only!) non-rejection !! email says they accept 6 people in fiction per year and also waitlist 6. Congratulations!!!! tomat0tomat0 and Hjanep 2
DJ Lambchop Posted March 13 Posted March 13 39 minutes ago, tomat0tomat0 said: just got waitlisted at u of florida !! for fiction !! first (probably only!) non-rejection !! email says they accept 6 people in fiction per year and also waitlist 6. Makes me happy to hear a fellow rejectee getting some fantastic news. That’s what I like to hear! tomat0tomat0 and Hjanep 2
Chex Posted March 13 Posted March 13 57 minutes ago, tomat0tomat0 said: just got waitlisted at u of florida !! for fiction !! first (probably only!) non-rejection !! email says they accept 6 people in fiction per year and also waitlist 6. So cool! Congratulations!!! 🎉 🎊 tomat0tomat0 1
tomat0tomat0 Posted March 13 Posted March 13 (edited) thanks everybody! i'm very surprised-- applied right out of undergrad and honestly sort of rushed it. was already making alternate plans for the future and only thinking of trying again a few years from now (defo not next year). but we shall see... edit:typos Edited March 13 by tomat0tomat0 seah0rse, kpoetrottenapplecore and Chex 3
VOID DARLING Posted March 13 Posted March 13 2 hours ago, _redrabbit7 said: Hey guys, my roommate asked a professor in class yesterday about whether acceptances had been sent out and they said no acceptances, waitlists, or rejections had been sent out by Brown University. They have another class today so he’s going to ask another professor. I’m redacting the names of these professors for his privacy. thank you so much for asking and for sharing this info! though am i just hallucinating this or did they at some point on their website state that decisions will go out by mid-March? wondering because 15 March is literally in 2 days.... so they have to accept, waitlist and reject all their applicants by then?
Hjanep Posted March 13 Posted March 13 9 minutes ago, VOID DARLING said: thank you so much for asking and for sharing this info! though am i just hallucinating this or did they at some point on their website state that decisions will go out by mid-March? wondering because 15 March is literally in 2 days.... so they have to accept, waitlist and reject all their applicants by then? Historically they have done the Michigan style full sweep of decisions over the course of a couple days…
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