literature & creative writing

[poeteer]

So, is anyone on the board applying to Lit & Creative Writing Ph.D programs this year? Where are you applying? I'm applying in poetry and am already feeling the anxiety. I already have an MFA, which I suppose is still terminal, but I really want to go back and do the Ph.D even so. I'm applying to: Houston, Utah, USC, Missouri, and then likely Florida State and UDenver. I'm hesitant to only apply to the first four schools, because they are the most competitive, but I'm less in love with other programs out there.

--poeteer

[cquin]

I'm not applying, but Cornell has a really awesome MFA/PhD program.

[truckbasket]

Cornell's is sweet, and USC's funding is really amazing.

[Captain Enjambment]

I'm applying! Also in poetry to Houston, USC, Utah, Missouri, Florida State, Georgia, and U Illinois-Chicago! I'm finishing up my MFA now and very excited to continue my creative focus while renewing my commitment to literary studies. We have similar lists poeteer! Out of curiosity, where did you get your MFA?

As for Cornell, I am pretty sure the PhD is bundled with the MFA for that particular program. They do not have a separate PhD in CW, so if you have an MFA, it's a bust.

[Tabz]

I've applied to USC and Missouri. I agree some of the others aren't very appealing.

[poeteer]

What genre, Tabitha?

Based on previous years, I don't think we'll hear for awhile, from anywhere. By "awhile" I mean "three weeks," but that feels like an eternity of suffering right now.

[Tabz]

Fiction, for USC I really emphasized that I want to do compartive literature/pop culture studies. My MFA paper was on vampires in contemporary literature and film and the rise of the vampire as hero.

Yes.. three weeks is killing me. I was okay until February hit.

[Tabz]

University of Missouri contacted me last weekend and asked for parts of my application that they never received (that I mailed in). So they haven't even read anything it seems.

[poeteer]

I wonder how much they scrutinize the critical writing sample. Maybe it varies by school. Florida State didn't even ask for one, which I found strange.

[Tanya McQueen]

It's nice to see other people on here who've applied to phd literature and creative writing programs. I was beginning to feel like a lonely bird on here. I applied in fiction to Florida State, UIC, Nebraska, and Missouri. I'm starting to think I should have applied to more but I could barely get it together in time to do those and fellowship applications.

[Tabz]

The applications were intense. I feel more stressed doing them than doing my thesis!

[poeteer]

Tanya, you didn't submit a critical sample to FSU either, right? I checked the admissions page like fifty times, and each time came to the conclusion that they do not want one. And that someone would have already contacted me if they did. But it does seem weird that they don't want one.

[Tanya McQueen]

Poeteer--I had to check the website and no I didn't send a critical sample. Not to them anyway. I feel like they may have put the option there even though they don't say specifically to send one. I could be wrong but I remember when I was uploading all my files there were still extra places to upload other samples/essays. I forgot about it once I realized I'd sent in everything they required and I told myself to not stress about it anymore.

Edited February 3, 2012 by Tanya McQueen

[poeteer]

Yes, I wondered if I should have sent one anyway, even though they don't require it. But the only legitimate paper I have on file is over 20 pages, so it seemed excessive.

[nyoung0911]

I got an MFA from Florida State in 2010...to the best of my knowledge I never had to send in a critical sample as I was applying to the creative writing. I don't think other phds I knew there sent in a critical sample either.

In regards to FSU...if you've got any questions about the program, I'd be more than happy to try and answer them.

[Tabz]

I keep logging in to the Apply yourself to see if the status has changed. Sadly no.

[desipoet]

I've applied to UIC (poetry PhD, whatever that means) and I'm terrified of even looking at my application status. I spoke to someone at their program and she said they do have to take a bunch of theory courses, which was fine by me. I'm actually from India. I got my MFA here and my critical sample has to do with feminist translation theory (The Bhagavad Gita, to be specific). I am not sure to what extent those interests will really converge with/on my own writing, but I tried to make a case for it. Mainly, I just feel like my writing is stagnating because I'm not longer in school and there isn't that drive to really make a connection between scholarship/research and craft.

Unfortunately, I could think of no other programs in the vicinity (Chicagoland) to apply to. But then I realized that I didn't even give Milwaukee a shot. Boo. I suppose there's always next year. Can those of you who've applied to more programs tell me if there's any more in the area that I could apply to next year?

[Tanya McQueen]

Let me just say that waiting blows.

[honeybrew]

Hi all. Just joined today after a couple of weeks of not being able to stand the wait. I applied to UIC, SUNY Albany, USC, and DU. I'm curious about GRE and Lit GRE scores... Did everyone else do fine on the GRE but bomb the Lit GRE? If so, thank God.

[Tabz]

I aced the GRE writing and English (math, meh) but yeah, I had a really hard time on the Lit portion. none of the stuff I studied was on it!

[desipoet]

Hi all. Just joined today after a couple of weeks of not being able to stand the wait. I applied to UIC, SUNY Albany, USC, and DU. I'm curious about GRE and Lit GRE scores... Did everyone else do fine on the GRE but bomb the Lit GRE? If so, thank God.

Yeah I didn't even take the GRE Lit. because a) most schools I was applying to didn't want it, the ones asking for it didn't have programs that really appealed to me, and c) because I most certainly would be somewhere in the 30th or lower percentile range.

[poeteer]

I don't think the GRE Lit matters very much. Several programs that once required it have since dropped the requirement.

General GRE may affect funding opportunities, but probably not much else. Though it's best to meet grad school minimums where they exist, so they don't have to petition for you.

It's really all about the creative sample, I think!

This waiting period is god awful.

Edited February 8, 2012 by poeteer

[ComeBackZinc]

Had a really interesting conversation with a creative writing prof the other day. She talked a lot about the growth of the MFA and creative writing as a respected field. She was talking about how, in some departments and traditions, creative writing was seen as a women's field, and treated with the usual lack of respect for fields so considered. It's very similar with rhet/comp; when the field was fighting fierce battles for disciplinary autonomy, the undercurrent was often that writing instruction was merely the grunt work, and specifically women's work. This was in part because many of the discipline's progenitors, such as Janice Lauer, were women.

[desipoet]

Perhaps some of the loss of recognition for the MFA as a valid terminal degree stems from this bias, yes? I mean, sure, a PhD is exciting in the sense that it provides us an opportunity to plan a a critical and creative project simultaneously, but surely all the "studio" work one does in the MFA should have its own rewards in the academic community. Clearly I'm just asking for too much. Bah.

Btw, I had a similar conversation with a professor about class composition in our MFA program (all the 10 accepted were women; one guy switched from fiction to poetry later on).

[ComeBackZinc]

Perhaps some of the loss of recognition for the MFA as a valid terminal degree stems from this bias, yes? I mean, sure, a PhD is exciting in the sense that it provides us an opportunity to plan a a critical and creative project simultaneously, but surely all the "studio" work one does in the MFA should have its own rewards in the academic community. Clearly I'm just asking for too much. Bah.

Totally agree. It's degree creep-- well, if an MFA is good, how about a doctorate.... Plus, in the academy, you can't ignore recognition/status/reputation because they have such obvious effect on promotion and tenure.