2025 Creative Writing MFA Applicants Forum

[Magnolia Electric Co]

3 hours ago, elizabethjeanewrites said:

Hi!! So I'm waiting to hear back from Notre Dame, Butler and Miami of Ohio. I've gotten no email from all 3. I've never done this whole grad school thing before. Is this normal?? Should I be worried? I got waitlisted at Western Michigan University, but I got an email. Should I take no email as a rejection? I got rejected from Boston U, UIUC, and Ohio State, but they all sent emails... I'm so scared and I check my email everyday. And I'm just a undergrad finishing senior year and trying to plan what to do with my life next year. Can anyone give me some guidance?

Sometimes, schools send out acceptances and waitlists a long time before they send out rejections. I know Notre Dame has already sent out acceptances and waitlists, and looking at the spreadsheet in the Facebook group MFA Draft '25, it seems like Butler and Miami of Ohio have also sent out acceptances and waitlists. That doesn't always mean a rejection is certain - as people have pointed out, sometimes circumstances change later - but I do think it means rejection is most likely at this stage. Sometimes people use the term "soft rejection" to mean they haven't gotten an official rejection, but they know that acceptances and waitlists have already gone out. I hope that helps!

[prufrock_]

"We were pleased to consider your application..."

what a brutal way to start a rejection letter lol, for a split second my mind autocompleted it to 'we are pleased to offer you...'

anyway, officially got ND's decline.

 

[inkidacat]

another day, no movement on the waitlist T^T... is there any chance profs would reach out over the weekend? 

Edited April 4 by inkidacat

[gradschoolpspspsps]

1 hour ago, inkidacat said:

another day, no movement on the waitlist T^T... is there any chance profs would reach out over the weekend? 

I like to treat the weekend as an email refreshing break and try to do something else. Last weekend it got so bad I picked up watching Grey's Anatomy again. 

[girlwiththegreenribbon]

losing my mind waiting for any news from SIU 

[essentialflowers]

Does anyone have any FSU updates? Wishing everyone luck & love ❤️

[Nauna]

Any Pittsburgh interviewees still kicking around here? I'm wondering if anyone has any new info to share since we've seen those couple of entries on the draft spreadsheet.

[paper copy]

Hi all! Hope everyone had a relaxing weekend - as we approach The Deadline, I'm planning on sending a waitlist nudge email today for UTK, but I'm a little unsure of who to send it to. My initial waitlist email came from an administrative support assistant (and CCed the director of the program & of graduate studies); however, my app portal says if I have questions about my application to email my specific admissions specialist. Any suggestions? I know I wayyyyy overthinking it, but that's what happens this close to April 15th!!!

[vilum]

30 minutes ago, paper copy said:

Hi all! Hope everyone had a relaxing weekend - as we approach The Deadline, I'm planning on sending a waitlist nudge email today for UTK, but I'm a little unsure of who to send it to. My initial waitlist email came from an administrative support assistant (and CCed the director of the program & of graduate studies); however, my app portal says if I have questions about my application to email my specific admissions specialist. Any suggestions? I know I wayyyyy overthinking it, but that's what happens this close to April 15th!!!

hello! i've replied directly to the email informing me of my waitlist placement - don't take my word for it though, i haven't heard back from either school i've sent it to lol

[Jane Wyman]

32 minutes ago, paper copy said:

Hi all! Hope everyone had a relaxing weekend - as we approach The Deadline, I'm planning on sending a waitlist nudge email today for UTK, but I'm a little unsure of who to send it to. My initial waitlist email came from an administrative support assistant (and CCed the director of the program & of graduate studies); however, my app portal says if I have questions about my application to email my specific admissions specialist. Any suggestions? I know I wayyyyy overthinking it, but that's what happens this close to April 15th!!!

If they said to email a specific admissions specialist, I'd try them!

[squid05]

I really do not like how little information we are getting from UNCG. They keep saying "I expect to get an update from the committee on Friday" and then.....nothing. Week after week. I understand there is funding uncertainty but come on! 

[P i e r r o t]

1 hour ago, paper copy said:

Hi all! Hope everyone had a relaxing weekend - as we approach The Deadline, I'm planning on sending a waitlist nudge email today for UTK, but I'm a little unsure of who to send it to. My initial waitlist email came from an administrative support assistant (and CCed the director of the program & of graduate studies); however, my app portal says if I have questions about my application to email my specific admissions specialist. Any suggestions? I know I wayyyyy overthinking it, but that's what happens this close to April 15th!!!

You are most definitely overthinking it! Understandable, though. Email the specific admissions specialist they mentioned and CC the admin and director. Keep it brief and no one will be bothered, I promise.

[gradschoolpspspsps]

1 hour ago, paper copy said:

Hi all! Hope everyone had a relaxing weekend - as we approach The Deadline, I'm planning on sending a waitlist nudge email today for UTK, but I'm a little unsure of who to send it to. My initial waitlist email came from an administrative support assistant (and CCed the director of the program & of graduate studies); however, my app portal says if I have questions about my application to email my specific admissions specialist. Any suggestions? I know I wayyyyy overthinking it, but that's what happens this close to April 15th!!!

Hi! Just wanted to say, I sent an email asking for updates and reiterating my interest to all four of my waitlists and UTK is the only one that didn't respond within the hour. I haven't gotten any responses from them since that first email. I replied to that original email they sent me, so maybe try the portal? I haven't done that yet. 

[vilum]

did anyone get a response from NYU regarding waitlists by any chance?

[Eloise2897]

Does anyone have any new information on the Syracuse or Minnesota waitlists? I got an email from the program I was accepted into reminding me that the deadline is approaching and mentioning that they would appreciate knowing where I stand at the moment. I'm not totally sure what to say back other than that I've declined other offers but I am still waiting to hear back on 2 waitlists.

I'm wondering if I should email Syracuse and Minnesota again for an update, though I never heard anything back from Minnesota in the first place. Is 3 emails between being placed on the waitlist and deadline day excessive?

[zaira]

23 minutes ago, Eloise2897 said:

Does anyone have any new information on the Syracuse or Minnesota waitlists? I got an email from the program I was accepted into reminding me that the deadline is approaching and mentioning that they would appreciate knowing where I stand at the moment. I'm not totally sure what to say back other than that I've declined other offers but I am still waiting to hear back on 2 waitlists.

I'm wondering if I should email Syracuse and Minnesota again for an update, though I never heard anything back from Minnesota in the first place. Is 3 emails between being placed on the waitlist and deadline day excessive?

I think I saw on Draft that the Syracuse waitlist is a little long. Not sure if you need to send a third email, especially if you've emailed them relatively recently (like within the past two weeks). But I don't think it would hurt to email them again anyway, seeing as the deadline is on Tuesday (eeeeeek!). If you're gonna email them, it's probably better to do it before the end of this week. Programs are gonna be busy as hell next week. 

For your accepted program, you can probably just let them know you're still considering their offer and will need a few more days to make your decision. You don't have to go into too much detail. 

(Still crossing all of my fingers for you to get into your top choice!) 

[Southron]

10 hours ago, Nauna said:

Any Pittsburgh interviewees still kicking around here? I'm wondering if anyone has any new info to share since we've seen those couple of entries on the draft spreadsheet.

Still waiting here. I emailed the professor I interviewed with towards the end of last week, but haven't heard anything. Part of me wonders if all acceptances went out last week, and only a couple of the people were on draft. I still have hope for fiction though.

[saintjdog]

2 hours ago, vilum said:

did anyone get a response from NYU regarding waitlists by any chance?

NYU waitlisted me on March 7th via email, I'm a fiction applicant. I haven't received any admissions updates from them since then, only responses to my questions about the program.

[elizabethjeanewrites]

On 4/4/2025 at 1:10 PM, essentialflowers said:

I’m waiting to hear back from my last hope. I’m waitlisted & the call I had with the director in February sounded very promising (“you are NOT someone we want to say no to”). But now I’m second-guessing, and I’m so sick I’m not able to eat. Is anyone in a similar boat? 

Yes! I have only one school as an option and I got waitlisted and have been in months of torturous silence. You are not alone. And I got an email with almost the exact same phrasing as "you are not someone we want to say no to"

[VOID DARLING]

just received a waitlist update email from michigan saying that they expect “that a limited number of spaces may become available on or before April 15th” and that they’d need a reply BY the 15th.

they also said that they’d be sending out final offer letters between now and the 15th and that they’d need our indication of interest to “help in the final selection process”.

anybody fellow michigan waitlistees here? (im poetry btw)

[Eloise2897]

2 hours ago, Eloise2897 said:

Does anyone have any new information on the Syracuse or Minnesota waitlists? I got an email from the program I was accepted into reminding me that the deadline is approaching and mentioning that they would appreciate knowing where I stand at the moment. I'm not totally sure what to say back other than that I've declined other offers but I am still waiting to hear back on 2 waitlists.

I'm wondering if I should email Syracuse and Minnesota again for an update, though I never heard anything back from Minnesota in the first place. Is 3 emails between being placed on the waitlist and deadline day excessive?

I asked this question on Draft and received a response I want to share here. An admitted UMN student commented that the program told her that, due to funding issues, UMN will not be dipping into their waitlist if their accepted students decline their offers. Take this with a huge grain of salt as it's only word-of-mouth from someone on Facebook (I'm personally not making any decisions based on any information that does not come directly from a school). But, it did seem worth sharing, especially for other waitlisters on here.

 

[Penguintariffs]

I am waitlisted at UNLV (the only school I applied to) and am wondering if anyone has heard any news? I’m not seeing a lot of updates. 

[girlwiththegreenribbon]

has anyone heard anything back from SIU (fiction)? i’ve wanted to email to ask for an update but i’m not sure if it’s okay. 

[DJ Lambchop]

Did anyone get an email from Syracuse about an update to their application today? This is a school I was rejected from and I checked the portal and didn’t see anything of note. 

[momeraths]

Just now, DJ Lambchop said:

Did anyone get an email from Syracuse about an update to their application today? This is a school I was rejected from and I checked the portal and didn’t see anything of note. 

Got the same thing, was also rejected. Expecting it to be an administrative error sort of thing.