2026 Creative Writing MFA Applicants Forum

[plqt0]

still waiting from two places.. should i be emailing admissions and enquiring about it/adding a continued interest? 

[Platatoe]

Has anybody heard back from george mason about funding offers? 

Edited April 7 by Platatoe

[taliaj]

Anyone else apply to Missouri State? Mostly just curious if anyone knows more about the program than what their online sheet says. Their website hasn’t even updated to include the program haha

[impatientjoy]

Folks have mentioned that being at a program with fully funded students while not being funded can create weird spaces. Does anyone have more information on this? Starting to consider my top school without funding while keeping my full time freelance job that is really reliable and quite easy. It’s a much more livable wage than teaching. I also have taught before and am not eager to return to it. I already work in a writing field I love, and I’ve been balancing creative writing and working for a long time now. I have other funded offers, but I feel such a pull towards this program. My biggest hesitancy right now is the worry that I won’t be integrated or that the program will treat those with funding differently. 

[axolotlish]

13 minutes ago, impatientjoy said:

Folks have mentioned that being at a program with fully funded students while not being funded can create weird spaces. Does anyone have more information on this? Starting to consider my top school without funding while keeping my full time freelance job that is really reliable and quite easy. It’s a much more livable wage than teaching. I also have taught before and am not eager to return to it. I already work in a writing field I love, and I’ve been balancing creative writing and working for a long time now. I have other funded offers, but I feel such a pull towards this program. My biggest hesitancy right now is the worry that I won’t be integrated or that the program will treat those with funding differently. 

I'm sorry I can't give any information about this, but I know you applied to NC State for poetry and I'm wondering if you've heard back from them? Or are they just really behind everyone else when it comes to decisions?

[bioluminescent sloth]

13 minutes ago, axolotlish said:

I'm sorry I can't give any information about this, but I know you applied to NC State for poetry and I'm wondering if you've heard back from them? Or are they just really behind everyone else when it comes to decisions?

I think they've sent out initial acceptances, but I'm not sure about other notifications  Things might start moving more once people accept or reject their offers. Good luck to you!

[axolotlish]

Just now, bioluminescent sloth said:

I think they've sent out initial acceptances, but I'm not sure about other notifications  Things might start moving more once people accept or reject their offers. Good luck to you!

Thank you.

[bioluminescent sloth]

33 minutes ago, impatientjoy said:

Folks have mentioned that being at a program with fully funded students while not being funded can create weird spaces. Does anyone have more information on this? Starting to consider my top school without funding while keeping my full time freelance job that is really reliable and quite easy. It’s a much more livable wage than teaching. I also have taught before and am not eager to return to it. I already work in a writing field I love, and I’ve been balancing creative writing and working for a long time now. I have other funded offers, but I feel such a pull towards this program. My biggest hesitancy right now is the worry that I won’t be integrated or that the program will treat those with funding differently. 

Uneven funding can create a weird ambiance, but it depends on the program. For example, I was accepted to a program where not all students receive funding or assistantships, and the profs and alumni I spoke with said that surprisingly, the cohorts were kind and very supportive of one another, and the vibe was not competitive despite the different funding packages. But this is rare--in general, the advice I've received is to be cautious of unevenly funded programs. I'd recommend speaking with current students and alumni to get the full picture!

[Emblazonries]

5 hours ago, Platatoe said:

Has anybody heard back from george mason about funding offers? 

After my interview, Gregg said that we should hear from him the second half of this week! 

[j1nju]

46 minutes ago, Emblazonries said:

After my interview, Gregg said that we should hear from him the second half of this week! 

I turned mine down last week (interviewed mid-March). manifesting good news for you all!

[kiki.xoxo]

6 hours ago, Platatoe said:

Has anybody heard back from george mason about funding offers? 

I know someone who has received and accepted an offer. I'm assuming she was one of the first to interview. I just had my interview Friday, and Gregg said he should get back to me by the second half of this week. 

[mouthfullofmercury]

at what point is it safe to assume that your waitlist position is a rejection?

[Bungusamongus]

I haven’t heard anything yet from NYU’s CNF low res in Paris program & it’s stressing me out. Has anyone heard back yet?

[gafoo]

15 hours ago, mouthfullofmercury said:

at what point is it safe to assume that your waitlist position is a rejection?

The short answer: once they tell you the cohort is filled and the waitlist is closed, and not a minute sooner!

The longer answer: depending on the program, you can get a feel for your chances by how warm the interactions have been. If you're #1-2 on the waitlist and they feel really confident you've got a shot to convert, you might get a personal email from a faculty member offering to set up time to chat or seeing if you have questions, or you'll get emails asking to confirm your continued interest, that sort of thing. If you're further down the waitlist... you might get very little info. Vague/no responses to emails you send, no proactive outreach, etc.

Of course, this varies by program—some places are better/worse at communicating with waitlisters generally. But if you hear that someone's on the same waitlist as you, but they're getting on calls with professors, sitting in on workshops, getting a bunch of nice emails and you aren't... you can assume they're ahead of you. 

But really, this is the cascade time. Weird stuff happens. When the powerhouse acceptees (those who got into 10+ schools) make a decision, waitlists move, and some programs might suddenly lose a handful of students they thought were a lock. Great programs sometimes have to scramble deep into their waitlists to fill out a cohort on April 15. And that's not even to mention that sometimes students have to rescind for personal reasons after April 15 (if you look at the spreadsheet from last year, you'll see that someone got a fully funded offer on May 9!!). 

These wacky scrambles happen. At least a few every year. But, it's worth mentioning that similarly, a great many cohorts are filled annually with little to no waitlist movement at all. 

But yeah, it's not over 'til it's over. 

 

Edited April 8 by gafoo

[guntherpingu]

36 minutes ago, gafoo said:

(if you look at the spreadsheet from last year, you'll see that someone got a fully funded offer on May 9!!)

Yeah it was early May when I got off the waitlist for my program. They'd already filled all the spots but the director (who later became my advisor) found me a different assistantship so I could attend, and then my 2nd and 3rd years I had the same assistantship as everyone else.

[taliaj]

I know this is stupid, but there's a Missouri State acceptance in the Draft spreadsheet and now I'm panicking. It's from 20 minutes ago if that shows you how crazy I am, lol

[meanwhile]

5 minutes ago, taliaj said:

I know this is stupid, but there's a Missouri State acceptance in the Draft spreadsheet and now I'm panicking. It's from 20 minutes ago if that shows you how crazy I am, lol

already??? i was going to apply this weekend when i had the time 🥲 now do i even bother lol

[taliaj]

4 minutes ago, meanwhile said:

already??? i was going to apply this weekend when i had the time 🥲 now do i even bother lol

Yeah, a prof I emailed a few weeks back said they would try to start letting people know around April 15th, but I feel like if they're starting to let people know now it may not bode well for me. But I also am an overthinker!

[madsmadsmads]

Not sure if anyone here has any stake in this, but the Poetry cohort at JHU is full.

[ojo534]

not sure if anyone was/still is waiting to hear back from hunter, but i just got my official rejection from hunter poetry this afternoon. wouldn't be surprised if they've just finalized the cohort this week or something

currently sitting at 0A, 1W, 8R, 1P.... holding out hope for that one waitlist....

[Bungusamongus]

wait, where can i find the spreadsheets?

[taliaj]

34 minutes ago, Bungusamongus said:

wait, where can i find the spreadsheets?

Facebook, MFA Draft Group 

[Bungusamongus]

If I haven’t heard anything back from NYU’s low residency MFA in Paris (nonfiction) is it safe to assume it’s a no? I just want to mentally prepare.

[SocialKonstruct]

I will have my final MFA decision this Sunday for sure. The results were unexpected even to myself.

[Walter Hartwell White]

54 minutes ago, SocialKonstruct said:

I will have my final MFA decision this Sunday for sure. The results were unexpected even to myself.

What was your cycle like? A/W/R?