Applying to Multiple Programs at the Same School

[needmorecoffee]

Is it ever acceptable to apply to more than one program (for example, MA in literature and MFA in creative writing) at the same school? Or does this kind of thing only convince the school's programs that you really aren't serious and don't know what you want?

[jasper.milvain]

If the programs are run out of different departments, I don't see why the admissions committees would even know that you had applied to the other program. Presumably, academics understand that intellectual interests don't always fit neat little boxes, and will not see your breadth of interests as a negative as long as you can make a compelling case for why you belong in each program. At some schools you have to pay the app fee for each one, though, so spend your money wisely.

[kfed2020]

If the programs are run out of different departments, I don't see why the admissions committees would even know that you had applied to the other program. Presumably, academics understand that intellectual interests don't always fit neat little boxes, and will not see your breadth of interests as a negative as long as you can make a compelling case for why you belong in each program. At some schools you have to pay the app fee for each one, though, so spend your money wisely.

You'd have to be careful -- because, for exactly the reason stated above (that intellectual interests don't always fit neat little boxes), you might have faculty members appearing or consulting with multiple admissions committees because their interests aren't so neatly confined. And if they notice repeat entries, you might come off as indecisive or immature in your interests.

I bet this is especially true with programs that share great overlap of methods/faculty -- at Yale, for example, where they have American Studies, Comparative Literature and English, it'd serve you well to pick only one; they don't all do the same thing and they each have their own culture, and you need to do the legwork to figure out which is the best fit.

[Minnesotan]

Unless you're a top choice in both fields, I seriously doubt they'd even notice (provided it's not the same secretary working on both admissions pools). The likelihood of you being a top choice in two fields at the same school is very small. My program just sorted through nearly a thousand applications for three spots this year, and while the program has some legends in the field, it is housed in a middle-of-the-pack department. I can't imagine what the even bigger names had to go through this application season.