How I Got Into a Creative Writing MFA Program with a Full Ride and Paid GA Position

Hi there! My name’s Evelyn and I’m here to tell you all the things I wish I knew before I started applying to MFA programs, as well as what you can do to make yourself a more competitive candidate!

Firstly, I will say that an MFA isn’t for everyone. It amazing because it gives you time to think about writing, and if you’re in need of external motivation an MFA program can be a great way to force yourself to sit down and learn about craft. Having good professors to guide you can make all the difference, and having talented peer readers helps to refine and motivate. However, this doesn’t mean that a writer who gets an MFA is more likely to succeed than a writer who doesn’t. And, it doesn’t mean that a writer who has an MFA is automatically going to get published. Sometimes, writers go to MFAs, get burnt out, and never write again. It’s happened. But, on the other side, there are full time writers who got their high school degree or their undergraduate degree and just started writing! And that’s what it all boils down to. If you’re interested in writing, what’s keeping you from getting started yourself?

Some Initial Thoughts

I would say that if it’s going to put you into debt, an MFA might not be the best way to get yourself into a writing career. If you can afford it, that’s amazing, but writing and going to MFA programs are as much about sharpening yourself as it is about using others to hone your craft. So, my first question is, how are you going to use your time at an MFA to improve your chances of getting yourself a job on the way out? How are you going to use your time there to improve your craft, and make connections? In other words, how are you going to decide that an MFA is for you?

I didn’t always know I wanted to be a writer. I loved writing and I knew that I wanted to continue it even after college, but I was worried about the monetary feasibility of that career path, and I wasn’t sure I would be able to support myself. This led to some hard questions about what job I would want, what would support my love for writing, and where I wanted to be in five years. While in the midst of these questions, I was three years into a computer science degree, and I hated my life. I was stressed and bored all at once, and the only thing I ever enjoyed were the writing classes I would take when I had the time. This eventually made me decide that I would double major, which eventually turned into dropping my computer science major entirely. A lot of people thought I was insane, but I realized that what’s more insane would be sitting at a desk job I didn’t like for my entire career. Once I dropped my computer science degree, I realized that there were two larger paths I could take through the writing world: teaching or publishing. I knew pretty quickly that publishing was the most interesting path to me. But, why would that lead me to get an MFA? I realized that for my purposes, getting an MFA would be a way to set myself apart in an incredibly competitive industry, and also allow myself time to hone my writing craft. Should I choose to be an editor in the future, this would help me to distinguish myself even among experienced editors. It would also get me connections with professors and others in the field that I could then use as more legitimate references for jobs.

But most importantly, I decided I wanted an MFA because I knew that if I did anything else but write, I would be miserable.

What it’s like to Apply (and what they don’t tell you)

So that’s my story, but what was it like to actually apply?

When I was applying for MFAs, I was looking for fully funded programs that would give me a graduate assistantship as well as a tuition wave, but sometimes, even if they advertised themselves as a fully funded program, they only funded a few seats. I only found this out after getting acceptance letters from “fully funded” schools that didn’t include a GA position or tuition wave. I realized that I had spent more time trying to find schools that were “fully funded” than I did trying to find schools I was actually interested in going to. If I could go back, I think I would go about getting my information differently. This isn’t to say that I would have looked at more schools that weren’t fully funded (I needed the assurance that I was going to be able to afford it), but I would definitely try to talk to more actual people, and I would also look into more obscure programs and see what sorts of funding they offered.

My advice would be to look at the funding options schools have, and apply to as many schools as you can afford (and that offer a program you like). If there’s a school that calls to you either for its program or a specific professor, try calling their financial aid office and asking about the funding options they have. Focus more on finding schools that have professors you’d be excited to work with, students that fit your vibe, and a community outside the classroom that calls to you. Regardless of whether or not they say they offer funding, chances are, they may have funding available for the people they are really excited to accept (just as the programs I applied to said they would have funding, but didn’t). (Note: most schools do not allow reaching out directly to professors, so be wary of trying to contact them without having been at least waitlisted).

I realized after I applied to schools, that even though I had done my research, some of the schools I applied to really weren’t places I wanted to be. The students weren’t excited to be there, they didn’t have any fiction faculty, they didn’t have ANYONE who was working on speculative fiction or fantasy, and they didn’t have any communities outside of their campus that I could use as resources for those passions.

I won’t sugar coat it. Applying for these schools felt like one long stressful slog through paperwork and essays that I didn’t want to write. I was in my senior year of college at the time and I was also working on my thesis. The overwhelming prospect of all the extra time and money I would have to spend made me feel physically ill. But like anything else, putting in the work will get you places. It didn’t take me long before I realized that everyone else was feeling how I was feeling. Everyone else was overwhelmed by the unknown, but NOT everyone else was pushing through and trying their very best to produce good work even though it was hard. This will always set you apart.

How to Write a Good Purpose Statement

Writing a good cover letter (about you statement, purpose statement, statement of meaning, etc.) is mostly about editing and making every word count. I struggled for hours and hours, draft upon draft, before I got to something that made me feel like I was representing myself well. I was lucky because I had people in my life that were willing to help me along, but it was mostly dedication and relentless commitment to making the few words I had sparkle. Here’s some of the things I learned from my mentors, and through my own process, that helped me to write a successful purpose statement.

What NOT to Do:

• Don’t submit the same statement for every school. Personalizing is so important. Do your research, follow their guidelines, make sure you know what their program has to offer and how that matters for you and your goals. Then tell them that eloquently.

• Don’t feel the need to tell your entire life story. The committee readers are trying, first and foremost, to see how well you can write. Oftentimes, the purpose statement is the first thing they’re going to read. So, while you want to show them who you are, focus on writing cleanly and well, expressing your goals succinctly, and lining up those goals with their program’s unique benefits.

• Don’t submit your first draft. EDIT, EDIT, EDIT. Writing these sorts of papers is hard, and grueling, but the readers will know if you put the work in and gave it your all. Make sure you have other eyes on this as well before you submit. Have them help you where things feel clunky, and if you happen to have someone experienced with MFA programs or another job in the writing industry, be especially sure to have them look it over. If there’s no one you feel you can ask for help, try reading your statement out loud. This will help you to catch those clunky sentences. Also try changing the font on your computer for a fresh look.

• Don’t panic. Remember that everyone who’s applying for these programs is also trying to figure out how to write one of these. No one knows how to make it perfect, but all you can do is be intentional and dedicated to making it a wonderful example of your writing, just as you’d want your sample to be a wonderful example of your writing.

How to Choose a Writing Sample

Speaking of wonderful examples of writing. Here are a few tips for how to pick your writing sample.

• I’ll say it again. Always look at their submission guidelines. Each school is, unfortunately, different. They all have different expectations for length, formatting, anonymity, and even sometimes font. But, it matters if you follow those guidelines. A lot of people will ignore them and the application committee will ignore them in kind.

• It’s okay to have an excerpt of a longer piece as your submission. Some schools only ask for fifteen pages of work, while others ask for forty. Some said they wouldn’t read the piece if the submission was more than their page count, and others said they were a little looser about that. Make sure you have a completed story or essay or poem you’re excited to share, and make sure you’re able and willing to choose an excerpt from it to please the guidelines they have in place.

• If you’re able to submit a whole story, always choose to do so over pieces of other works. Whole stories that have been edited and formed well within the page count the school specifies will impress the readers and show them you can complete a solid work.

• Ask people to read your writing sample. If it’s an excerpt of a longer piece, ask people who both do and don’t know the whole story. Ask them if the section you chose makes sense. Ask them if it says something unique. Ask them if it shows off the best and most you-ish aspects of your writing style. Go from there.

• Don’t choose a story, or write a story that you think will please the committee. They will feel it if your writing is fabricated for their tastes. Write something that’s true to what you want to work on if accepted to the program. Write something you’re excited about. If you got into a program using something that was meant to please them, you might find that the program isn’t suited to you anyway.

How to Wait Well

Waiting is without a doubt the worst part of applying to Creative Writing MFAs. I finished all of my applications mid-December, and didn’t hear back until early April. After you finish your applications, there will be a lot of time to think and consider what you want.

This is a great time to look at the programs you picked in more detail, look into the towns you would be living in, think about quality of life, and consider next steps for yourself if you did move to that area. Allow yourself to dream, but also consider what your life would actually be like and how it would affect your mental health (and also your wallet)!

This is also a great time to do some more writing! In MFA programs you’re going to write. A lot. Having a few stories, or poems, or essays, under your belt when you go in can be a wonderful thing (especially because some programs will have prizes you can enter right when you get there to get yourself some extra funding). Having a few pieces to submit is a great way to distinguish yourself.

Above all, try to remain calm. Waiting for these types of things is never fun, and no one ever feels calm about it. Try to cut yourself some slack and trust that you’ll end up where you need to be!

***A note for all the Christians out there, like myself, pray on where God wants you to go, and let Him give you patience and courage in the coming season.***

Tips to Help You Decide Where to Go Once You’ve Been Accepted

So you’ve been accepted to a program or a few programs? That’s amazing! You rock! Trust me when I say that that in itself was no easy feat, and you should be incredibly proud of your work! Now, for a few things you can do to help yourself decide where and if you want to go!

You must think I’m crazy for suggesting that there’s still more to think about even after getting accepted to your MFA. But, alas, there is. Getting accepted is only the first part of deciding where you want to go, and there are a few things you can do to help you to make your final decisions.

• Always reach out to at least one current student. Talking to someone who has been in the program for at least a year can help you to understand everything from social activities, to quality of life, to workload, to GA-ship hunting, to professor reviews. Always, always, always talk to a student or two. There was one program I was accepted to that I was pretty excited about, but after talking to a student I decided it was the last place I wanted to be. He didn’t like his teachers, he was unenthusiastic about the writing I wanted to do, he felt the town was too small and there was little to do, he didn’t even like the weather….This was the student the professors recommended I talk to, and if his experience was bad, I can’t imagine what the experiences of the students they didn’t want me to talk to were like.

• Talk to your primary contact at the MFA about what classes they’re offering in the coming semester. If they’re classes you’re excited about, chances are they will usually have classes you’re excited about. If they’re not, this might not be the place for you.

• Did they offer you funding? This is a huge question. Some people can afford to go to an MFA without help, but for me that just wasn’t possible. I had to seriously consider my financial situation and all that they were providing me. If you have multiple offers with multiple different award values, try talking to your preferred school about seeing if they will match the top bidder. Sometimes they will.

• Are the people you're contacting at the school easy to get a hold of? This may seem nit-picky, but there's a lot to be said for whether or not a school is treating you like you're a valuable asset worth listening to. If it's hard to get your questions answered, or difficult to get a hold of the primary contact who's meant to be guiding you through everything, chances are it might not be a place that cares about developing its writers. This isn't always the case, but it's definitely something to consider.

Thanks so much for reading this! I hope it was helpful to your writing journey! If you have any questions, reach out to me through my contact form! Happy Writing!