2025 Creative Writing MFA Applicants Forum

[glowingbrightly]

5 minutes ago, snottlebie said:

Hey, curious how you came to those conclusions about the programs? (Or is that focused on the poetry side of things?)

I do think in terms of prestige UIUC is pretty underrated - its stipend is higher than notre dame, Indiana, Syracuse (I think), and Iowa, for example, with a low cost of living (slightly lower or equal to all those listed above, though not a big difference). It has more teaching than ND and Iowa but also has that 3rd year. 

I’ve heard that frequently there’s a lot of crossover with Illinois and Indiana in terms of who they accept. Both are very welcoming to speculative work or literary/spec. 

Yeah it’s focused towards the poetry side and mostly considering things like faculty and program vibes. While we all need to survive, I don’t really think stipend amount should be relevant to deciding where best to practice, and teaching load also shouldn’t be overlooked. It isn’t that IU or UIUC doesn’t welcome experimentalism or translation work—the question is what program is best to grow the kind of work that Magnolia is making. Personally, I considered applying to all of these schools but I just didn’t see myself in the faculty’s work so I don’t think it would have been the right fit, whereas the program I ended up at has two amazing faculty that I see myself in deeply and who are also compelled by my work—I wouldn’t trade that for almost anything, especially a few thousand dollars or a guaranteed third year.

[snottlebie]

10 minutes ago, glowingbrightly said:

Yeah it’s focused towards the poetry side and mostly considering things like faculty and program vibes. While we all need to survive, I don’t really think stipend amount should be relevant to deciding where best to practice, and teaching load also shouldn’t be overlooked. It isn’t that IU or UIUC doesn’t welcome experimentalism or translation work—the question is what program is best to grow the kind of work that Magnolia is making. Personally, I considered applying to all of these schools but I just didn’t see myself in the faculty’s work so I don’t think it would have been the right fit, whereas the program I ended up at has two amazing faculty that I see myself in deeply and who are also compelled by my work—I wouldn’t trade that for almost anything, especially a few thousand dollars or a guaranteed third year.

Ah gotcha, maybe I read too fast and missed the earlier context of the convo. Someone had mentioned prestige (more so in IU vs ND I think, but also with UIUC in play) and since ‘prestige’ is so nebulous, I wanted to share what I knew. 
 

I do think stipends are quite important, but yes, a few thousand either way doesn’t matter *too much* (the point at which it starts to matter being very personal). A 2nd vs 3rd year is a big consideration. The time you get to spend on your work can’t be discounted, but if a shorter program has better vibes and people you connect with more, wouldn’t you rather spend your time in that program? So I get your point!

 Teaching load definitely matters to me, but in the context of Magnolia, who said those components were all equal, then yes, it comes down to faculty. I would caution that sometimes you don’t see much in their work, but they may be excellent readers of your own work. This can be hard to know ahead of time. Always worth asking current students about mentorship availability. 

[honeytreasures]

Does anyone have any insight in to U Maryland—College Park? I’m on the waitlist right now for fiction and just trying to figure out how many people have committed

Edited yesterday at 07:46 PM by honeytreasures

[Nnenna14]

3 minutes ago, honeytreasures said:

Does anyone have any insight in to U Maryland—College Park? I’m on the waitlist right now and just trying to figure out how many people have committed

I’m on the waitlist too, for fiction. Lindsay hasn’t replied to my reply to her waitlist mail since 10/03. Happy to connect if you want. 

Edited yesterday at 07:43 PM by Nnenna14

[carrruly]

1 hour ago, essentialflowers said:

ohhh that is so good to know— congrats on being "waitlisted for the waitlist," as my professor eloquently told me a few mins ago hahaha. I thought I was rejected completely so nc state left my mind... I hope at least one of us hears some good news soon!! I'm wondering if a select amount of people received this email or if we all did 

I am wondering the same thing. trying to get back into the MFA draft FB group to check if anyone else got this email, or if anyone has been rejected yet

[glowingbrightly]

2 minutes ago, carrruly said:

I am wondering the same thing. trying to get back into the MFA draft FB group to check if anyone else got this email, or if anyone has been rejected yet

it looks like a few on draft got it—says will update by may 1st. hard to know if everyone did but this seems different from the vague pitt email that everyone got. 

[essentialflowers]

2 minutes ago, carrruly said:

I am wondering the same thing. trying to get back into the MFA draft FB group to check if anyone else got this email, or if anyone has been rejected yet

please let me know if you find an answer!!! trying not to be delusional about it bahaha

[honeytreasures]

13 minutes ago, Nnenna14 said:

I’m on the waitlist too, for fiction. Lindsay hasn’t replied to my reply to her waitlist mail since 10/03. Happy to connect if you want. 

Yes would love that! She hasn’t responded to my email either  

[Nnenna14]

2 minutes ago, honeytreasures said:

Yes would love that! She hasn’t responded to my email either  

Just sent you a message. 

[stanleytucci]

this is obviously irrelevant to any outcome, but does anyone know what was going on with that first brown call someone posted about a few weeks ago? was that real?

[glowingbrightly]

13 minutes ago, stanleytucci said:

this is obviously irrelevant to any outcome, but does anyone know what was going on with that first brown call someone posted about a few weeks ago? was that real?

OP never followed up so no way to know—entirely possible they made an early call to a priority candidate but it seemed increasingly like a hoax 

Edited yesterday at 08:33 PM by glowingbrightly

[Nnenna14]

8 minutes ago, glowingbrightly said:

OP never followed up so no way to know—entirely possible they made an early call to a priority candidate but it seemed increasingly like a hoax 

Wasn’t a hoax. It seems all accepted applicants have been contacted. I think all Brown decisions have gone out now. 

[glowingbrightly]

32 minutes ago, Nnenna14 said:

Wasn’t a hoax. It seems all accepted applicants have been contacted. I think all Brown decisions have gone out now. 

yeah, there was a post claiming someone got the call weeks before other acceptances were reported

[Nnenna14]

4 minutes ago, glowingbrightly said:

yeah, there was a post claiming someone got the call weeks before other acceptances were reported

Oh, right. Idk about that one, but the call that was reported around the time waitlists were sent was true. 

[Lady Gladys]

I have an etiquette question regarding fully-funded programs and waitlists. If you have been accepted to a fully-funded program and you accept, that is a contract, yes? Do you have to remove yourself from all waitlists? Or do you stay on waitlists and if something opens, you break your contract? I imagine that is frowned upon, but I am not sure.  Is it best to not accept your spot until we get closer to April 15th to see about waitlist movement, and commit at the last moment? Or does that just gum up the works for everybody?

Thoughts?

[Eloise2897]

7 minutes ago, Lady Gladys said:

I have an etiquette question regarding fully-funded programs and waitlists. If you have been accepted to a fully-funded program and you accept, that is a contract, yes? Do you have to remove yourself from all waitlists? Or do you stay on waitlists and if something opens, you break your contract? I imagine that is frowned upon, but I am not sure.  Is it best to not accept your spot until we get closer to April 15th to see about waitlist movement, and commit at the last moment? Or does that just gum up the works for everybody?

Thoughts?

It's a contract, yes. My letter from Texas Tech states that if I commit to them and then accept a different offer prior to April 15th, I will need to submit a written letter of resignation. If I commit to them and accept a different offer AFTER April 15th, I need to submit a letter of resignation AND a request to be released from my obligation to TTU. If a school declines to release you from your obligation, you won't be able to accept your other offer. I'm assuming this is true of all schools that are signatories to the Council of Graduate Schools Resolution (which is most of them). 

[glowingbrightly]

10 minutes ago, Lady Gladys said:

I have an etiquette question regarding fully-funded programs and waitlists. If you have been accepted to a fully-funded program and you accept, that is a contract, yes? Do you have to remove yourself from all waitlists? Or do you stay on waitlists and if something opens, you break your contract? I imagine that is frowned upon, but I am not sure.  Is it best to not accept your spot until we get closer to April 15th to see about waitlist movement, and commit at the last moment? Or does that just gum up the works for everybody?

Thoughts?

If you actually made it official with paperwork then yes, it’s a contract. If you are unsure and would rather attend a waitlist program, then it’s best to wait until you know for sure or have to decide. While any program of course appreciates enthusiastic acceptances, they will look at you more favorably if you just keep them waiting than if you commit and drop them last minute.

[zaira]

18 minutes ago, Lady Gladys said:

I have an etiquette question regarding fully-funded programs and waitlists. If you have been accepted to a fully-funded program and you accept, that is a contract, yes? Do you have to remove yourself from all waitlists? Or do you stay on waitlists and if something opens, you break your contract? I imagine that is frowned upon, but I am not sure.  Is it best to not accept your spot until we get closer to April 15th to see about waitlist movement, and commit at the last moment? Or does that just gum up the works for everybody?

Thoughts?

I'm gonna dump everything I've learned over the past couple weeks about waitlists here: 

Accepting an offer (edit to clarify: BEFORE the April 15th deadline) isn't really a binding contract. You can back out of it later if you need to; people have done it before. But it is considered bad form to do that without a really valid reason. If you accept a program's offer, their expectation is that you're not holding out on any waitlists and you're ready to commit 100%. 

So if you're waitlisted at a dream program, you might want to hold out until closer to the April 15th deadline to see what happens. That said, the tricky part is someone else might be doing the same thing at your dream program, so there's an awkward game of chicken sometimes. 

Basically, do what's right for you, don't feel pressured to accept an offer until you're ready. The April agreement is in place for exactly this reason. And speaking as someone who is currently waitlisted, as much as I want to clear the waitlist ASAP, I also know this is a tough decision for folks to make and I wouldn't want someone to feel rushed into declining offers or dropping waitlists to speed the process up. You're not gumming up the works! 

Edited 22 hours ago by zaira

[RabbitRunner]

Does anyone have an idea about roughly how long George Mason's waitlist is? I got waitlisted there and I'm not expecting that to shift to an acceptance but I'm wondering how likely that is to happen.

[gradschoolpspspsps]

Has anyone reached out to Boise State and asked them if they're putting out decisions soon?

[Hjanep]

Ok finally got my Montana R. Now just waiting on my NYU soft R but after turning them down last year… even if something crazy happened and I got in again I probably wouldn’t go so I guess that’s it for me this season! Thanks for the camaraderie party people 

[stanleytucci]

3 hours ago, glowingbrightly said:

OP never followed up so no way to know—entirely possible they made an early call to a priority candidate but it seemed increasingly like a hoax 

yeah it's been randomly haunting me although it could not matter less at this point. OP...... let us know plz

[Lady Gladys]

11 hours ago, gradschoolpspspsps said:

I haven't! Miami said I was top of the waitlist, so I really appreciate that, and I have family in Ohio. But I've really appreciated how communicative and responsive Ole Miss has been. Their program is REALLY small though, I'm wondering if it's too small for me. It's also really important to me I'm somewhere I can conceivably walk around, because I don't drive. Tennessee and Arizona both seem like such great areas. I have to do more research on all of them.

I'm updating my recommenders today about my results and asking them if they think I should pick one and tell them they're my top choice. I also don't want to get my heart set on a school and then not get off the waitlist! I'm just not sure on the protocol, I don't want to bother the schools. 

How small is Ole Miss (fiction)? Sorry if I overlooked this.

[gradschoolpspspsps]

10 hours ago, Lady Gladys said:

How small is Ole Miss (fiction)? Sorry if I overlooked this.

Ole Miss is four fiction writers and four poets per year. 

[Lady Gladys]

6 minutes ago, gradschoolpspspsps said:

Ole Miss is four fiction writers and four poets per year. 

Thank you!! (Somehow I am out of reacations already??)