2025 Creative Writing MFA Applicants Forum

[glowingbrightly]

still waiting for brown to reject me but in the meantime, i have a call scheduled in a few hours with my top school for “an update on our admissions process.” hard to imagine this could be bad news but im totally flipping out about it

[Chex]

4 minutes ago, glowingbrightly said:

still waiting for brown to reject me but in the meantime, i have a call scheduled in a few hours with my top school for “an update on our admissions process.” hard to imagine this could be bad news but im totally flipping out about it

Ooh, that sounds promising! Please update us when you get the good news. Congratulations! 

[thelovelyunkown]

Thereʻs a Brown poetry waitlist on the sheet so Iʻm going to assume acceptances + waitlist notifs have gone out. 

[Tinky C. Clown]

waitlisted at ole miss... if you're waiting on them keep your ringer on

[Xaesla]

what time do schools normally send out their decisions? i'm an international applicant (U.K) and i find it so stressful being 4 hours ahead cause i lose perception a little of what time i need to be checking my emails till.

[Tuxedocat]

Waitlisted at Iowa omfg

please let it turn into an acceptance 😭😭 PLEASE 

[Chex]

15 minutes ago, Tinky C. Clown said:

waitlisted at ole miss... if you're waiting on them keep your ringer on

Congrats! I haven't heard nada. Fingers fully crossed. 

3 minutes ago, Tuxedocat said:

Waitlisted at Iowa omfg

please let it turn into an acceptance 😭😭 PLEASE 

Out of reactions but rooting for you, congratulations! 

[decayingballads21]

out of curiosity:

 

has anyone been accepted off a waitlist yet this season? 

[smallchange]

What is the protocol for updating waitlists if you don’t have any acceptances (or other waitlists)? Is it appropriate to ask about movement and say I would 100% accept the offer if I was accepted?

[gradschoolpspspsps]

29 minutes ago, Tinky C. Clown said:

waitlisted at ole miss... if you're waiting on them keep your ringer on

terrifying, thank you

[Chex]

12 minutes ago, decayingballads21 said:

out of curiosity:

 

has anyone been accepted off a waitlist yet this season? 

Yes, seen a few people report this on Draft. 

3 minutes ago, smallchange said:

Is it appropriate to ask about movement and say I would 100% accept the offer if I was accepted?

Sure. 

[pananoprodigy]

Hey guys, mopey ass bummer of a post coming through so if you're feeling fragile like me please ignore lol. I'm just having such a hard time today. Having done this whole shebang last year I knew how competitive it is and I applied to so many programs hoping I would at least end up with a few options. I feel like I don't really have a right to complain since I have a funded offer at NAU, but the stipend simply isn't livable on its own and if I haven't been able to get a job in my current city (I've been unemployed for 5 months) I don't see why it would be easier to get one in flagstaff which is a fraction of the size. I'm just so, so tired of being broke all the time. All I do is apply to jobs and all I hear back, if I'm lucky, is no. My ego is sooo bruised from these applications. I was finally getting to a point in my life/career where I felt like I had a wee bit of credibility as a writer; I finished an mfa in screenwriting, did a cool residency, got some short stories published, etc. But now it's all evaporated and I just feel like I'm in a never ending flop era. On top of all this my cat, my best friend in the world, died unexpectedly on Sunday night. He was kind of all I had going for me and now I'm just sitting here in my empty apartment feeling lost. Sorry to trauma dump, I just don't have anybody irl who really gets how taxing this process is and how it seeps into every other aspect of your life. 

[gradschoolpspspsps]

8 minutes ago, Chex said:

Yes, seen a few people report this on Draft. 

May I ask what schools if it's not too much trouble? I don't have facebook and I really don't want to give into Mark now. 

[Chex]

1 minute ago, gradschoolpspspsps said:

May I ask what schools if it's not too much trouble? I don't have facebook and I really don't want to give into Mark now. 

Sorry, I can't confirm the schools but one was way back in early February or so. The person was waitlisted and then accepted the next day. Another waitlister reported on the draft sheet a few days ago that they've been accepted off the waitlist. There are currently over 2,000 entries on the sheet and it's not very easy to trawl through, but maybe someone else will remember specifically and share here. 

[gradschoolpspspsps]

2 minutes ago, Chex said:

Sorry, I can't confirm the schools but one was way back in early February or so. The person was waitlisted and then accepted the next day. Another waitlister reported on the draft sheet a few days ago that they've been accepted off the waitlist. There are currently over 2,000 entries on the sheet and it's not very easy to trawl through, but maybe someone else will remember specifically and share here. 

No worries! I have no idea what that sheet looks like but it sounds busier than I thought, so I appreciate any insider info. 

[Ekpe]

Got in at Ole Miss 🥺🥺

[KennyK]

How long does it usually take a program to decide on funding? Do you find out when you get the official acceptance?

[Chex]

2 minutes ago, gradschoolpspspsps said:

No worries! I have no idea what that sheet looks like but it sounds busier than I thought, so I appreciate any insider info. 

Just checked and can confirm that one was for Oregon State (poetry), and the other was for Bowling Green State (not sure of the genre but possibly fiction, based on the comments). 

21 minutes ago, pananoprodigy said:

Hey guys, mopey ass bummer of a post coming through so if you're feeling fragile like me please ignore lol. I'm just having such a hard time today. Having done this whole shebang last year I knew how competitive it is and I applied to so many programs hoping I would at least end up with a few options. I feel like I don't really have a right to complain since I have a funded offer at NAU, but the stipend simply isn't livable on its own and if I haven't been able to get a job in my current city (I've been unemployed for 5 months) I don't see why it would be easier to get one in flagstaff which is a fraction of the size. I'm just so, so tired of being broke all the time. All I do is apply to jobs and all I hear back, if I'm lucky, is no. My ego is sooo bruised from these applications. I was finally getting to a point in my life/career where I felt like I had a wee bit of credibility as a writer; I finished an mfa in screenwriting, did a cool residency, got some short stories published, etc. But now it's all evaporated and I just feel like I'm in a never ending flop era. On top of all this my cat, my best friend in the world, died unexpectedly on Sunday night. He was kind of all I had going for me and now I'm just sitting here in my empty apartment feeling lost. Sorry to trauma dump, I just don't have anybody irl who really gets how taxing this process is and how it seeps into every other aspect of your life. 

I am so sorry, Panano. So so sorry for your loss and the general feeling of overwhelm. I can relate to the crushing bruise of relentless Ls. It does a number on the heart. Not much I can say now but I pray your hurt eases and that your resounding good news is very very close. Sending you all the hugs 🫂🫂🫂

1 minute ago, Ekpe said:

Got in at Ole Miss 🥺🥺

Congrats! 

[shadygrove]

I'm calling it for myself. Taking Brown as a rejection at this point since it sounds like acceptance calls have gone out? I only applied to four schools, all of them Top 10, so I'm taking it as a lesson to save up (if I can) to apply to some more options for my second round, even if I can still only do a fully funded program. I knew it was a long shot with how competitive places are, but I still thought I'd have a bit of a chance... I was pretty confident in my writing sample. Bummer! Here's to a year ahead of trying to get into some workshops, residencies, or publications. 

For all my fellow forlorns who didn't get in this round, I hope y'all are holding in there okay! I'm trying to let this be a galvanizing call to work super hard on my craft over the next year. Sending y'all love and sending much love and congratulations to everyone going into a program in the fall!!

[Tuxedocat]

35 minutes ago, pananoprodigy said:

Hey guys, mopey ass bummer of a post coming through so if you're feeling fragile like me please ignore lol. I'm just having such a hard time today. Having done this whole shebang last year I knew how competitive it is and I applied to so many programs hoping I would at least end up with a few options. I feel like I don't really have a right to complain since I have a funded offer at NAU, but the stipend simply isn't livable on its own and if I haven't been able to get a job in my current city (I've been unemployed for 5 months) I don't see why it would be easier to get one in flagstaff which is a fraction of the size. I'm just so, so tired of being broke all the time. All I do is apply to jobs and all I hear back, if I'm lucky, is no. My ego is sooo bruised from these applications. I was finally getting to a point in my life/career where I felt like I had a wee bit of credibility as a writer; I finished an mfa in screenwriting, did a cool residency, got some short stories published, etc. But now it's all evaporated and I just feel like I'm in a never ending flop era. On top of all this my cat, my best friend in the world, died unexpectedly on Sunday night. He was kind of all I had going for me and now I'm just sitting here in my empty apartment feeling lost. Sorry to trauma dump, I just don't have anybody irl who really gets how taxing this process is and how it seeps into every other aspect of your life. 

I’m so sorry for your loss. Sending you a virtual hug ❤️

Your post reminds me a bit of me last year. My contract job ended and had no openings on the team so I was left with nothing. I lived on unemployment for a bit while doing grad school apps until mine ran out (I’m not American so it’s a different system). Applied for countless jobs, sometimes even making it past the interview stage, and never heard back. I had to go back to freelancing and was forced to accept a project just to make ends meet that took over my life and all my time for months and underpaid me. The stress from the project and their late or missing payments was ruining me. In the end, I would have made more money working minimum wage. I felt like I was drowning. And then a friend died. Everything compounded. I saw grad school as my only escape so getting 1 waitlist that eventually became a rejection devastated me.
 

I did have a family and a partner that were able to support me through the worst of times. It made me feel guilty for needing to rely on others, but I was deeply privileged to have their help.
 

You aren’t asking for advice, so I won’t really offer much. But do some hard thinking about what you want your life to be. If you want to go to NAU, and you know the stipend isn’t enough, really think about if you can afford loans. Maybe you need to pick up some minimum wage jobs or serving or something over the summer to just stockpile as much money as possible before classes start. Maybe see if there are any scholarships you can apply for online (but no guarantee that will yield anything). Maybe you can reach out to the program or current students to see if they have advice. I know with FAFSA you might be able to be part of a work study program, but not sure if that conflicts with your program. It’s likely going to be a difficult road ahead for a while either way unfortunately.

 

Again, I’m so sorry for what you’re going through. I lost a dear family member last week. I don’t know what it is about springtime and death. I’m thankful that this time I have some concrete offers, but it doesn’t fully take away the pain. 

I’m rooting for your success ❤️ Feel free to DM me if you ever want to talk. 

[_redrabbit7]

36 minutes ago, shadygrove said:

I'm calling it for myself. Taking Brown as a rejection at this point since it sounds like acceptance calls have gone out? I only applied to four schools, all of them Top 10, so I'm taking it as a lesson to save up (if I can) to apply to some more options for my second round, even if I can still only do a fully funded program. I knew it was a long shot with how competitive places are, but I still thought I'd have a bit of a chance... I was pretty confident in my writing sample. Bummer! Here's to a year ahead of trying to get into some workshops, residencies, or publications. 

For all my fellow forlorns who didn't get in this round, I hope y'all are holding in there okay! I'm trying to let this be a galvanizing call to work super hard on my craft over the next year. Sending y'all love and sending much love and congratulations to everyone going into a program in the fall!!

To my knowledge, only Brown poetry acceptances have gone out so far. I know someone who got in. And my roommate (a current grad in fiction) told me the other programs will send out their acceptances before or by Saturday, ahead of spring break next week. Until Saturday night, I’m keeping my fingers crossed and hoping for some good news. 

[glowingbrightly]

I just got offered a spot at Irvine!!!!!! 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

[Hjanep]

31 minutes ago, glowingbrightly said:

I just got offered a spot at Irvine!!!!!! 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Out of reactions but congrats!!

[shadygrove]

1 hour ago, _redrabbit7 said:

To my knowledge, only Brown poetry acceptances have gone out so far. I know someone who got in. And my roommate (a current grad in fiction) told me the other programs will send out their acceptances before or by Saturday, ahead of spring break next week. Until Saturday night, I’m keeping my fingers crossed and hoping for some good news. 

I'm poetry, unfortunately 😔 Putting out big big acceptance energy to the universe for you!!

[Slothy711]

Does anybody know if UC Riverside poetry acceptances have gone out yet?