If I had the means to get lost, I would get lost. Unfortunately I was in a car accident a week or so ago and no longer have the means to go any farther than I can walk. Hence why I will be spending spring break staring at websites instead of doing something fun. I guess this doesn't exactly rule out getting lost but it does rule out getting lost in your city.
soooo i just got a call and was accepted to Queens University of Charlotte's Low-res program!
I really didn't do much research on low-res in general, but when I realized how much I want to stay in NYC I applied. I'd love some information that any of you have... I'm totally surprised because I got my application in recently, but they have some great writers on staff and seemed really psyched about my work.
I am having a few issues with my neck but being seen by a doctor so hopefully I'll be okay. I am very ready to not have my daily trek to campus for a week.
here it is - the final tally (all fiction except where otherwise noted)
Accepted - Portland State
Rejected - (in chronological order) Wash U in St Louis Oregon State (waitlisted there last year) Montana Alabama (fiction and nonfiction) U of Pittsburgh (nonfiction)
Portland state it is for me, now to try and cobble together some funding.
I was accepted to Memphis a couple weeks ago. I'm still waiting to hear definitively from three more schools, and I haven't heard anything from Memphis re: funding. Feel free to email me jimmyjames at phreaker dot net.
Looks like I'm in the same boat as you for fiction at Portland. Still waiting for my last four rejection letters. (Sigh) Doing my best to hustle for funds.
Portland is awesome and I, for one, am not the least bit upset about the other rejections. The only problem with Portland is funding (as we all know). The faculty and the program itself look awesome.
@ all other Portlanders Let's get a PSU contingency talking off-blog. Who knows the area? Who lives in the area? Anyone going for a visit? After a full round of rejections last year, I'm excited to get this "post-acceptance" stuff going.
I know! That's the only reason their program is ranked so low. In terms of faculty and location (especially for us in fiction), they've got it all. A little money and it would be the perfect program.
Just curious: Has anyone received a rejection letter from VTech yet???
From what I remember, it seems like they were notifying people for personal interviews a long while ago. I figured they would've interviewed everyone they were interested in by now and would've started sending out rejection letters.
But then again...I could be completely wrong about that. I think my sense of time has been permanently screwed-up by my obsessing over this process.
@amanda, William, Jimmy James & Memphis acceptances-
I'm another Memphis admit (fiction). I'm still waiting on funding news, one wait list, and to hear from FIVE schools (ugh) but I'm thinking Memphis is the place for me.
Any thoughts on the town? I've never been, but I must say the website makes it look ultra-attractive...
@ William, re: March 15-
I emailed Jan Coleman and to let her know I wasn't able to commit to a decision yet and she said that was fine. I'd drop her a line if you're concerned, but it doesn't seem like a hard-and-fast notification deadline.
Right? It's been a week since I've heard and the reality of the funding issue is slowly sinking in and killing the buzz of acceptance. How are you going about on the funding issue?
I'm going to apply for some of those non-departmental assistantships, try to work in the writing center, try to land a paid internship at The Oregonian, and cook burgers, pour drinks, or stock books as the need arises. And I'll probably take out some loans.
here are two updates from admissions departments (poetry):
sarah lawrence: they are mailing out all final decisions the start of next week. (i did see that there's a record of an admittance by phone on 3/2, so i don't know if that means that i'm/we're not in . . . meaning, maybe that means we'll get the letter by mail in the next week, but other have received phone calls.)
hunter: they have finished a first round of admissions and notifications. they are working on a second round but have not finished decisions on those. (i don't know if that means priority acceptances are the first round or simply earlier applications.)
Abbie, My plan would be to rent in San Marcos, but bsaed on my browsing it is not "insanely affordable." In some of the cities I've looked at, including here in Cleveland, a 1br can be had for $400-$500/month, but I cannot find anything like that in San Marcos. I am mostly seeing $600+. Have you seen anything different than I have? I guess a few cheaper ones can be found, but I have to wonder where they are located. Also I want a pool, thanks!
I'm in a rush out, but I'll be e-mailing you later today.
Being waitlisted at your dream school is like getting a really flirtatious note from a guy you are in love with but who is semi-seriously dating another woman.
That now brings me to a tally of three programs who fund some but not all. I'm realizing the folly in being most excited about these non fully funded places. Silly rabbit. I actually thought I would be one of the ones getting money. So if any poets are waffling on whether to turn down their funded spots or TAships at CU, Memphis, U of Washington, or VCU, get thee hence. :D
@ bbartok: I *love* your metaphor. However, I don't know that I have quite the same feeling. The relationship I have with most of my poems is more one of the cliche adoptive parent who just wishes they'd get the f* out of her business and leave her in peace.
@ abbie & TSU'ers: If you have questions about Austin, it is my home. I lived there for 10 years and still have family there. I'd be happy to field questions about neighborhoods and the like if any of you do decide to make the commute.
@ mikejgrey & daniel: I reallyreallyreally wanted to apply to Portland State. I fell in love with the city when I was there last year, but I ultimately wouldn't allow myself to apply anywhere that had such abysmal chances of funding. Now that I've been accepted to other programs unfunded, I'm starting to feel like it was folly to not at least apply. Congrats, you guys! Enjoy the hell out of that place.
@ william, jimmy james & whynotbecause : I think we're all in the same boat. I emailed Jan in a bit of a panic the other day about funding and she said we should know about the remaining TAships in the next couple of weeks. They're out for Spring Break though til week after next and Jan is gone through the 22nd. It sounded like it was fine to wait til after then to let them know whether we're going. Are any of you closer to definite? Considering the Spain/Ireland class?
whynotbecause: a good friend of mine did the program there in fiction several years and she had nothing but good things to say. In fact, she's the reason I applied. I plan on asking her tons of questions about the city if I end up there, so I'd happily pass them on to you.
@Alyson Greene - The email was out of the blue. Something to the effect that he had just read my writing sample and wanted to say he liked it and that they would be meeting later in the week. I'm trying not to read too much into it (and suspect others probably shouldn't either)...I think Woon got a similar email from JHU and then wasn't admitted. :/
I haven't heard anything from Miami. If they don't notify anyone today, I'm afraid we'll be waiting a while longer with no clues as to our admission status - I believe next week is their spring break.
On a side note, I cannot believe how f---ing quiet my March has been! I keep telling myself that programs can't put off notifications for that much longer, but maybe they can - maybe they can put off notifications as long as they f---ing want....
I counted yesterday and there are roughly 60 programs on the Driftless House list that haven't notified at all yet. If I could physically explode right now, I would.
@ mikejgrey & daniel — I'd love to be included in any off-blog correspondence about PSU. I'm in for nonfiction, but it seems unlikely that I'll go, given better funding offers elsewhere. That said, I went to high school in Washington, and would love love love to be back in the Northwest.
morning all! so is abbie the only one to hear so far from asu? abbie - are you poetry or fiction? and props for your awesome attitude. i'm sure it stung for a moment, but sounds like you shook it off like a champ and moved onward and upward. happy day after birthday. :)
Thanks, I'd love to hear about your friend's experiences with the fiction program, the school in general, anything really. You/her can feel free to reach me at Ellen-dot-Scheuermann on the gmail.
If the Spain/Ireland class is still an option once I make a final decision, then it sounds pretty awesome (and a good way to get through some English credits so I can teach). Also, it's Spain/Ireland, which is pretty much duh-awesome. In all likelihood, though, I'll end up hanging out with my friends and trying to save a little money here in Boston this summer... sure will miss this town, but I'd love the chance to write in the south.
Portland State's funding is that bad? Do they give out any TA-ships or tuition remission at all? Or is it just non-departmental awards they give out? I could've sworn the funding situation seemed better there? Maybe I had the rose-colored glasses because of my love for Portland :)
@Summer...I just got the same letter from UMD. I wouldn't look into it too much, though I'm tempted myself. It ain't over til Bob Vila fires up the chainsaw. Is that an appropriate saying?
@CORNELL POETS...Is anyone out there with an acceptance from Cornell for poetry who plans on going somewhere else. If so, you should know that I'm first on the waitlist and you're effing killing me! Gahhhhh.
oh hey guys... supreme lurker, have been following the conversation forever. wanted to thank everyone for being so consistently supportive with each other. you guys seem like a cool bunch of writers, and i bet it shows in your writing.
anyway, because there was some discussion about arizona, just wanted to say i was lucky enough to get accepted in fiction, received a call from aurelie sheehan on 3/10.
the rest of my list:
Davis - accepted USF - accepted Irvine - rejection, I presume Oregon - another presumed rejection UNLV ASU SDSU SJSU Fresno State SFSU
can't believe this is finally winding down. feeling extreme pressure to write good fiction. if anyone has any thoughts on the schools on my list, they'd be much appreciated. thanks, team.
Yes! Thanks for all your encouragement. It seems really silly that they haven't called or at least changed the online status. But Jeanine seemed to be handling it with aplomb!
@ Nathaniel - That's great news re: UNH. I was wondering about the dearth of communication though. I know I'm in, but it feels awkward that I've not been notified in any capacity.
@ CJoe - Thanks for sharing re: Arizona. Did you get funding? Now I'm nervous. Anyone get calls from AZ for CNF?
Well hello there! i have been posting a bit on two other forums and am finally going in for this one too...you guys are the most lively, and when you're refreshing every 15 minutes it's nice to have some new comments to read. Oh, and major applause for everyone who has gotten into any program and best of luck for those waitlisted! I'm holding out dim hope for Columbia (basically just b/c i'm willing to pay and most ppl aren't, but those ppl probably didn't apply anyway), but have received and/or are expecting to receive rejections from Brown, Michigan, Iowa, Virginia, and yeah i should prob get realistic about NYU, New School, and Brooklyn (fiction, all). also, i know i applied to a limited # of insane schools, but those are the only ones i could see myself going to, and each one has some issues that i think are mitigated by other factors. To tell the truth, I thought my samples were great until this Monday, when, re-reading them for the 50th time, i was like, "geez, I really suck. i don't know what the hell i was thinking." in fact, i would be embarrassed to get in at this point b/c i don't think i deserve it--thoguh obvi would still die to go. i am getting a lot of inspiration though from all the workshop recommendations! i have not done that before and it's probably wise to get more feedback on my work. i was just scared to and that was my main reason for applying to the MFA, but whatev.
But, before I get my formal rejections and can still obsess, for the New York schools above, no one has gotten an outright rejection? Brooklyn and New School seem to be fluctuating btwn telling ppl "everyone has been notified" and "we are not done notifying"? Does anyone get a sense that there *will* be a 2nd round of acceptances? And, i've only seen so far one known fiction acceptance from NYU and the rest poetry--congrats smiling raindrops! Has anyone else heard about fiction at NYU? how many ppl do they take? and how freaking sexy is junot diaz?
AB, the affordability I was referring to is in buying your own home. I have relatives in San Antonio and last summer toured many developments that, compared to most everywhere else right now in the country, were a great price per sq ft. I can't speak for rentals. 600 plus sounds about right. Email me! We'll talk.
Re ASU: I applied in both poetry and cnf. :) best of luck to all today!
NYU accepts 20-30 for fiction and 10-20 for poetry. They also maintain a wait-list (given program/city costs and good, but not total, funding, a reasonable amount of people turn down NYU offers). It's fair to assume we'll be hearing a lot more from them soon.
You said something that I totally identify with - that you would feel a little embarrassed to get in but that you would obviously love it too. I feel this way a lot. I mean, I don't feel like an impostor as a writer, but I do feel like an impostor as this sort of academic writer that a lot of other people seem to be.
If it helps at all, I was talking to my sister about this the other day. She's finishing her first year in an MFA program in the southeast and she said she and her classmates talk about this all the time, and that it's a pretty universal feeling.
1) has anyone received any spots with funding or TAships at washington (seattle)? i haven't heard of one person report any funding yet. do you think they are calling the funded admits after other admits?
2) is anyone other than ena planning to turn down a fully-funded poetry spot at montana?
@ Dry Leaves, re: Arizona funding - sounds like they are waiting to see if teaching spots open up, and they'll know in the next few weeks. i was told, however, that my out-of-state tuition could be changed to in-state tuition, which is a huge difference (like, $6,000 a year instead of twenty-something thousand). (even though $6,000 is still a shit-ton).
Does anyone know if schools sometimes allow a deferral? And is it ok to ask them, if they are ever kind enough to call me with an acceptance?
I've recently had a major family situation happen that's going to make it impossible for me to move far away from home next year. I don't want to give up on the idea of getting my MFA, but I might have to put it on hold for a year.
I know MFAGuy said UNH allows deferral (which I would have to do anyway in their case, to try and cobble together enough money to go). Does anyone know if this is generally an allowed practice, or is it totally frowned-upon?
@ M. Swann - Thanks for the NYU insights. I live in NYC and my MFA hopes plummeted after hearing about acceptances from my last 2 schools yesterday (but congrats to y'all who were accepted!). Still hoping.
I actually don't think it's weird. They haven't contacted *anyone,* and I got the sense that they weren't planning on contacting people until next week. Someone here called them earlier in the week, and leaked the info on the blog that they had already made their decisions, which then inspired people to call and ask if they were in or out. I'm sure a lot of schools KNOW who they've accepted the week before, it's just that we at the blog don't always know when they know, so we don't start pestering them until someone hears from them officially.
@ CJoe -- Thanks for clarifying. Hope things work out with the funding.
@ Megan -- The the MFA Handbook, Tom Kealey writes that apx. 1/3 of MFA Programs allow deferrals. I don't know how accurate that is now; I'd recommend asking the respective schools directly. I am in the same boat as you -- I have a family situation that developed in Feb, compounding the already high level of stress caused by MFA waiting season. I know that UNH and Alaska-Fairbanks allow deferrals, it that helps...
If you go and look through mailbags for notification season in previous years (as I so obsessively did a few months ago), you will see that NYU's acceptance phone calls usually go on for three or four weeks before the rejection letters get sent out. Just because you don't hear anything by the end of this week, does not mean you might not get a call next Friday telling you you're in. As everyone keeps saying, it's not over till it's over!
@ morgan: Thanks! I got it in the mail last night. Letter was dated March 5th. I'm on the west coast though, so it shouldn't have taken too long to get here from when they sent it out. So it seems likely that more people will be getting notice in the next couple of days.
@ inkli_11: I'm pretty sure that the first notification went up about 3 weeks ago and I think the person was funded. You're in for poetry, too? Are you going to be trying to make it up for a visit?
For anyone who's waiting for news from Arkansas, I had emailed a few days ago to check again to see if they ever received a rec letter (they didn't). But I just got an email back saying they would have decisions made by April.
So...I saw an acceptance listed on DH at Bowling Green. I haven't heard a word (but so hoping to). Does anyone know what's up with them (or Purdue, for that matter)? Thanks!
I like how the program at Columbia College sounds quite a lot, but I'm fairly worried about its lack of funding.
I have a couple of online friends who went to Queens Low Res. You can contact them through their websites: Cliff Garstang, http://perpetualfolly.blogspot.com/ and Mary Akers, http://maryakers.blogspot.com/
Absolutely thrilled to be accepted to Minnesota State Moorhead's MFA program in fiction!! Received an email today with the promise of an official letter to follow.
MSU Mankato (TA interview next week) U San Francisco San Francisco State NYU New School Sarah Lawrence Stony Brook Southampton Virginia Commonwealth West Virginia Texas State Boise State Old Dominion Eastern Washington Bowling Green
Have you considered that your poetry is experimental? (or at least a little different?). Avant-Garde doesn't necessarily mean shitty. There's just a smaller audience.
If those 43 other people are going to enjoy what you wrote and are the RIGHT 43 people (professors, editors, agents, students that actually give a shit about literary or experimental writing), then I have no problem with it. A lot of VERY prestigious journals have very small circulations but you should keep in mind that these same journals are often chosen for high circulation anthologies.
I've officially booked my trip to Chicago at the end of the month to visit, and I'm definitely looking forward to it.
@ Elissa Cahn:
I got into Columbia College, too, and that April 5th deadline is why I decided to plunk down the expense of making the trip so soon to visit. I love what I've heard about Columbia College's program, and I just want to be sure that it's where I want to be for the next three years.
And SAIC: for the love of God, sent me my rejection letter already!
does anybody have advice on the etiquette for asking about your position on waitlists and other info about funding? so far i've got a couple waitlists and an acceptance and before i make a decision i'd like to know all my options. being on a waitlist, however, doesn't really seem to get you any information, just a sort of lukewarm form letter. as it is these schools are making it kind of impossible to even consider them, as they've given me NO specific information to go on. i don't even know if its appropriate/or worth my trouble to visit (and i'm definitely not going to pick one of them blind over the school that accepted me and offered full info and helped me visit). have people just been asking schools straight up? i feel left in the dark here.
amanda, unfortunately, i haven't heard anything from washington. i applied there in both fiction and poetry and i am eagerly awaiting (hopefully positive) notification from them, but not counting on really getting in. the unfunded poetry acceptance i was speaking of was from montana, a program which i would happily attend if only i could afford it!
Heard nothing from Arizona State or Arizona, so I'll just assume big fat rejections. And there went the tiny hope I had for Oregon. What a bust! Only two acceptances this year, and to very expensive schools with nominal funding: Otis College and The New School. Looks like I might be applying next year or starting that teaching certificate in secondary English. Sad times.
I don't think I would consider my writing experimental, unless by experimental you mean honest, heartbreaking, beautiful, simple, and genre-bending.... jk lolz... I really don't know, I just write the way I've always written... I'm not offended by rejections, I just want to get my MFA!
So you've actually heard from someone from Otis about funding? I'm still waiting to hear (and wondering how I can possibly afford to live AND study there :/)...
so sorry. yes, it was a typo. i mean to say that they would _all_ go out next week. that's what they said to me yesterday. all decisions had been made and would be mailed out.
I was surprised just now to see on the MFA response database that Irvine notified Fiction acceptances by phone on March 1st???
And yet I've seen not a peep about any such activity here, and thought everyone else was waiting to hear too. Did I completely miss the boat? Or are there simply no Irvine acceptances (or waitlists) talking on this blog?
A suggestion for visiting Chi-town: Don't go to the art institute if you are still waiting to hear from SAIC. You will get frustrated and punch a painting, and they don't like it when you do that. My guess, Picasso's Old Guitarist will be looking at you the wrong way. Good luck on your trip, though, CCC has great paper and envelopes. Circles... I'm going now.
Nothing official on funding from Otis. But I'm assuming it's not going to cover all $30k a year, or even the vast majority of that amount. Living and studying in an expensive city is, well, expensive.
Just checked my status on both the ASU and UA Web sites, and no decision is posted on there. Does that necessarily mean anything? AHH! I'm freaking out.
@ Ink and Beans - Just to be clear, I don't know if Irvine *only* called one person or if only one person posted on the blog - they could easily have called all six in one afternoon, and my own guess is that they probably did.
I didn't get my TNS packet yet. Are there any other funding options specified other than their scholarship? March 30? Any idea what your decision might be? I'm starting to sweat ...
@xavier - Just their scholarship by the looks of it. It went up $500 from last year's scholarship. But that still spells a WHOLE lot of student loans and near forty hours a week in my dreamy cubicle.
I hear ya. I'm starting to sweat, too. I've been through this application go-around before, and don't really wish to do it again next year. It troubles me to think about assuming more debt for another degree (just finished my MA). But the thought of not doing it also troubles me.
I might say f*** it and take the year to try and finish my novel while applying to a masters in disaster management. Go get some stories in the likes of Haiti, Chile, and do something more for people than stepping on their toes in bars after I get back from a long day at the office then class.
alright, I'm over trying to keep my cool and am seriously starting to tweak. I've been waiting for U of Arizona's response (non-fiction), and now all these answers are starting to roll in from them (CONGRATS to all those accepted and waitlisted! But seriously, congratulations. That's so exciting!!!), my email inbox and phone are both unbearably unchanged/silent. Sinking sinking sinking feeling.
To you fellow TNS'ers: I'm also still waiting on their packet, hopefully today. I'm certainly worried about the funding situation, too. Add that to the outlandish cost of living...yikes. I have a feeling that if this is my only offer, though, that I'll have to bite the bullet and go into debt. I can't walk away from this. I just can't.
Alright, I may need to go for a run and sweat this anxiety out. Either that or start drinking. At 2 in the afternoon. Both are viable options at the moment.
Great school, but that March 30th deadline is a kick in the backside. [shakes head]
No word on that packet yet, but really, the funding is too meager.
**
I'm thinking of calling CCNY (and the other CUNYs) myself tomorrow. I might as well put a halt to my shyness and get the info. straight from the source.
Fun fact: 2 yrs. of CCNY tuition (for a non-resident) is about 1yr. for TNS.
Hm. Today I am mad about NOT getting rejected. By which I mean, I applied to Ohio State, for God's sake, which notified in JANUARY -- And sent out waitlist notifications shortly thereafter. WTF? Can they not get it together to send out rejection letters?
Hi all. I'm still deep in the process of decision making, now waiting to hear from UVA and UNCG. Those will be a while, so I'm trying to get some writing done these days.
Sincere congratulations to all of the recent acceptees-- big time! It's a great feeling getting to share your excitement and happines through this blog. Good luck to everyone!
I feel you about Ohio State. I was checking my online status frequently after the first acceptances went out. Now I'm just telling myself I'll hear by April 15th.
checked U. of Arizona's online status thingy, no news. just a big ol' blank space. email=empty phone=silent me=going totally batshit crazy and need to get out of the house. NOW. and go for a good long run. and by "good long run" I may or may not actually mean "bawl shamelessly".
It's not even the fact that others are getting news from this one school and I haven't. It may not even mean anything yet. It's just...I'm feeling so emotionally just, DONE. Like, every single morning I wake up with my heart in my throat thinking "okay, this could be the day...", I'm a ball of nerves from the minute I wake up. And these little acceptances or rejections have been imbued with SO MUCH MEANING for me. Like somehow acceptance confirms that I'm a worthwhile human being. In general. And a rejection would mean that I fail. At everything. ugh. neurotic much? Please, grad schools, don't see this and be like "whoah, that chick's got serious neurosis. let's not touch that. decline."
:-)
just venting, I guess. Feeling the anxiety big time.
My thoughts are majorly with everybody here. As they are often. xox
Y'all, I think I want to write an "MFA Apps for Dummies". I went into this process TOTALLY clueless... anybody else in the same boat?
I got extremely lucky: I got accepted into my first-choice school (the University of Alaska, Fairbanks), even if that is my one, single acceptance. So for me, somehow, everything worked out :)
But, still. See, I keep thinking, OH MY GOD, all that MONEY for applications! I spent soooo much of my parents' money applying to schools that A) I would never conceivably get into, or B) I would actually want to attend. Oh, the money! It's been eating me up since, on March 1, I discovered what these mailbags actually were, and started taking in the wealth of information that this forum provides.
See, when it came to applying, my process was basically this: pull up a map of the US, google "university of (insert state)" and "creative writing MFA", and see what pops up. That was pretty much the entirety of MFA research. This led me to think, among other things, "Oh, University of Alabama, that sounds like a good safety school." (Unnhhh, head on desk!!) I'm sorry, because this has got to be offensive for all you wonderful Alabama acceptees - just know I am a US-ignorant backwoods Washingtonian who walks her groceries home through the forest. I've learned, and I sure know that U Alabama is awesome now! See, it's just that when it counted - when I was actually applying - I didn't know any of this, and I made SO many mistakes.
So, what I'm suggesting: I think I'd like to go through the mailbags - ALL of them - and pull out all the many pieces of advice, sort them (by schools, general, SoPs, etc...), and post them somewhere. So future ignorant history majors from the boonies, like myself, might hopefully not make the same mistakes.
I'm realizing, more and more, how fantastic this blog is in educating applicants about MFAs - but what I'm thinking is, we need a guide for REALLY clueless people - people who are so clueless that they can't even figure out how to use this blog. What do you think, do any of you all agree? Any of you all run into the same problems?
Okay, enough of that. Sorry to rant on for so long! And of course - lots and lots of luck to everyone waiting to hear back!! Here's hoping all of your phones get busy ringing :) Go get 'em, all y'all!
yahahaha, I'm not nearly hopeful enough to start considering conspiracy theories! I AM trying to squelch my hopes before they start to snowball, though... sigh. Well, fingers crossed for both of us, at least!
(And for all the theorists out there, my last name begins with F and I submitted mine in January. So... splat go all your theories.) (That was meant to be a joke. An admittedly bad one.)
Ooops, edit: meant to say, I B) applied to a bunch of school that I would NOT really want to attend.
@Emily S. - Yep, the place where it said "in review" on my ASURITE page turned to a very nice little note saying I'd been rejected. Sorry, I should've specified - oh, and that reminds me: I applied in fiction.
It's been a while but I want to say congratulations to everyone who's got in somewhere in the past few weeks. I haven't been keeping up so will just gilbly say: Nice work :)
Anyone who vaguely remembers me from posts way back when (October - late Jan) will know that I genuinely thought I had a chance at my schools: Brown, Cornell, Amherst, Michigan, Irvine, Wisconsin & Syracuse. Just to round off the story, I got rejected by all.
I was upset for a day or two but I honestly don't care. Being in the UK and having some amazing Europe-based opportunities come my way here has made me feel more than okay. I feel grateful for that; I went from investing my whole existence into the MFA to being forced to look the other way, and that turned out to be cool. On a petty, personal note, it's kind of a shame that three months of solid application work and £500 got me nowhere. But hey...I may reapply somewhere one day. We'll see.
Good luck for the rest of the apps season, everyone, and thanks for being so wicked here, especially the crew I used to chat with constantly (who know who they are) - I'm hoping it works out for you guys - and Trilbe especially, for going out of her way to be awesome to me! As Tom Kealy used to say, rock on!
A website that laid out a few basic steps for beginners would be really nice, especially if it managed to climb the google ranks for "MFA apps".
I think people coming into the process blind should really start with Tom Kealey's MFA Handbook, followed by reading some of Seth's rankings and other data. Both sources are relatively well organized, compared to the expert-level challenge of navigating the eddies of the MFA Blog.
Word. It's like wartime, but without the culpability of pulling the trigger. Help some people out, and perhaps help my writing more than assuming more debt and teaching at a community college for the rest of my life.
I lived in New Orleans for five years pre-Katrina. I moved back from Prague, where I was teaching, as soon as the hurricane hit with the intent to volunteer, work, do whatever I could. A confluence of factors dropped me in Brooklyn. I haven't left. Disaster relief might compensate for some of that (perhaps irrational) guilt.
Dude, I'm in FML-mode at this point. I haven't received my TNS packets, but according to this news I have 18 days to make a decision that will affect the rest of my life. I'd be coming from Hawaii with no cubicle job waiting for me, meaning I will easily accrue $80K in loans over those two years. It's not a decision I think I can make in just about two weeks.
On the other hand, what else would I do? The newspaper I work for is about to shut down in a month or two — meaning unemployment. If I don't do TNS or Otis College, my own other option will be to return to some Hawaii university for my teaching degree in secondary English.
I had two of my writing profs and one of my friends (a creative writing grad student who is an amazing reader) read through my samples and SOP multiple times. They helped a TON. I've been accepted at two schools (OSU and Mankato) and rejected from one (Minnesota). I'd highly recommend having someone read over the packet, especially a creative writing professor who has most likely been to an MFA program. They will have a pretty good idea of what MFA programs are looking for.
Tough decision! Keep me posted. I could hook you up with some referrals to temp agencies, if you find yourself New York bound and desiring a desk and fluorescent lighting. Best of luck..
It seems like changing info on social networking site profiles has become the defacto method of announcing something officially (i.e. there's still hope in a relationship until you remove that relationship status and block the person . . . you know it's really over when someone un-friends you just like you'll really feel like the MFA journey has begun once you stick that info in your profile).
I wish you the best of luck and the clearest of thinking when making your final decision. You seem like a pretty decent guy, and I do hope your decision ultimately leads you to a much more desirable, rewarding path.
@weights
Not to sound like an opportunistic d-bag, but if you can hook a guy up with some referrals to temp agencies, that'd be great (you have my e-mail). I'll be graduating in a few months, so right now I'm in the midst of preparing for my transition from college to the real world.
**
@NYC-ers
Did you make the move to NYC before you landed a job there, or did you land the job first and then moved?
This is such an amateur question, but I might as well ask it now and see how you guys got started, esp. since most of the people I know have very bizarre, complicated stories as to how they eventually wound up in NYC.
Johns Hopkins' terse rejection arrived by snail mail today. Always stings a little. Then I got a call from the University of Houston, got in for fiction. I'm very excited. It was among my top choices from the outset.
@Eli - You probably won't even see this post, but please drop me a line at: trilbe [at] hotmail [dot] com One of my dear friends, a genius writer, is doing the Creative Writing program at Oxford. You two MUST get together! You're both fantastic and I think she'd be a great person for you to know and you'd be a great person for her to know. Cheers!
@xavier - What about creative writing classes at Hawaii-Manoa? If you're thinking of staying in Hawaii and doing classes, anyway, why not get started on things at Manoa? As I'm sure you probably know, they have a CW MA and CW PhD -- so you could work with people who are passionate about writing, like yourself. I looked into their program, because I would like to do a CW PhD after the MFA -- and I'm particularly interested in the long-form lyric narrative as cultural history and in the traditional storytelling of islands, sadly, U.Puerto Rico doesn't have a CW PhD -- and the faculty at Manoa seem to be highly accomplished and from quite diverse backgrounds.
Good luck with your difficult decision, xavier. I sincerely hope you find a happy solution.
I got an email from Marianne Boruch a few minutes ago saying some nice things, but explaining they are still "waiting on a few things" and "won't know about admissions decisions for a bit."
She also asked me to tell her if I accepted an offer from somewhere else.
Who knows what this means for me, but I figured you all would like to know a little bit of news amidst the Purdue poetry wait-a-thon.
hahaha i'm so glad that i do not have to be included in your group of ppl who are so clueless they haven't even found this blog (although i was until about 2 wks ago). i too went into this application season thinking, "hey, i'm a good writer. i'll write some stuff and send it in." haha oh well. live and learn for next year. but seriously, it seems like ppl getting into the top schools already have 3 books under their belt. wtf?!
@nadia you are not alone. i know that if i don't get into an mfa program, which will become official in a few wks, it means i am a bad person and am going straight to hell when i die. or that i will be temping as an administrative assistant for the rest of my life. same thing.
thanks to everyone for all the updates on the New York schools and congrats again for those who have heard back! PS, that's bullshit about The New School funding. Not that anyone's lying, i mean, but that it's really lame. When I visited I met with a very lovely woman named Merida who told me that all students are funded a portion of tuition up to 70% (or close to...hmm, i guess that's a big difference--you could fund everyon 2% and say it's just not "up to" 705), which made it sound more generous than NYU (which, at 50%, sounds pretty damn generous for an NYC school).
Congrats! I've been enjoying your posts the past few months and have been hoping you receive some good news. Have a great weekend!
I fully admit that I am also excited to change my Facebook college info.
(This post just interrupted by adorable Mormon missionaries knocking on my door. That always makes me feel weird. Like, you're so sweet and nice that I want to pat you on the head, but no thanks on the Jesus stuff!)
@ Zoulou
I think that's a great idea. I wouldn't have known about Tom's book or this blog if it hadn't been for one of my creative writing teachers introducing these resources to those of us interested in the MFA. When you're new to researching programs it takes a little while to learn the ropes.
The user interface for the comments is kinda wacky.. Pressing 'Newest' leads me to 1815 comments, when there are only 1796 comments as of now. Seriously, Zoulou and Nathaniel, maneuvering through this blog requires expertise!
Thanks, everyone! After going 0-8 before this afternoon, I had resigned myself to Plan B.
And thanks, too, for all the help. This blog has been so incredibly educational. If I had to do it again, I would do almost everything differently. Just wish I had found it last September instead of over the Christmas holiday. :P
Appreciate the info. Will give you a head ups in the upcoming days.
Re: TNS
Susan: You just got my TNS hopes up a bit. I'll send an e-mail to their fin. aid office tomorrow, which I'll hope they'll answer back by Mon. or Tues., in regards to funding. I've e-mailed TNS in the past, and they've usually answered back quickly (for a univ.).
It's odd. My cousin went to TNS and told me half her tuition was funded because of scholarships and grants (and she was out of state). I'm thinking the merit scholarship has more to do with the writing department, but when it comes down to funding, we're all better off contacting fin. aid and/or the TNS billing office.
One of the main attractions to TNS is location. Transporation is actually quite easy, esp. since North Jersey path trains actually stop right next to the TNS building where the writing program is located (went to an open house of theirs almost a year ago).
I feel a little better now. Really.
Re: applications
I was also in the dark, and just wanted to apply to as many MFAs in the NYC area as possible because living the writer's life there was one of my biggest dreams (I've since discovered it was a foolish, stupid dream, but I digress).
I should've researched more schools, looked at the faculty a bit more closer, RESEARCHED FUNDING, and worked a bit more on the SoP (writing about oneself is the biggest, ugliest chore, next to writing cover letters).
That being said, it was a learning experience, and if it wasn't for this blog, I wouldn't have realized how common my situation was.
for what it's worth, referencing the conversation about being clueless the first time around, I have this to add:
Last year, I had no idea what I was doing and applied to UT Austin, Cornell, Brown, Michigan, Montana, Alabama, and Oregon State (and one other one that for some reason I can't remember right now). I was waitlisted at Oregon State and rejected everywhere else. The waitlist never became an acceptance.
This year, I narrowed my focus rather than expanded it, because I was taking classes at the University of South Dakota (non-degree post-grad eventually became admitted to the MA program in English - I don't recommend it, even in the creative writing track) and I wouldn't have time or energy (or money) to do the 20-some applications I wanted to send.
Instead, I only applied to programs that I loved. That I knew I would do anything to get to. That had something special (to me)about them. I only applied to six programs (three of them re-applications) and was accepted by only one. But, because it was one of those six, I had no second thoughts about whether or not I wanted to go for it, funding problems and all.
So, I think there might be something to narrowing your search rather than casting your net as far as it can go. Just my thoughts.
Congratulations to all acceptances and good luck to everyone still waiting / on a waitlist.
My suspicion (read: hope) is that Virginia does not employ MFA students as readers for submission. If that's the case, I could easily see them taking much longer than other schools given the number of applications they receive as a top program. Maybe they truly seek out the best fit for their programs, or maybe the faculty are the Graiae, and they all share one eye and one tooth. That would definitely slow the process down.
I called the office of admissions at UNH today and the lady, who was very nice, said that she could not tell me my admissions status, and to check online. Oh, well.
When will Brooklyn and Florida get their acts together? I know these are large schools, but if Iowa can get their act together to notify rejections, these other schools can do the same (after all, where is that $110 application fee for Brooklyn going?)
Hi everyone - thanks for all the input! You know, I'm seriously planning now on putting together some sort of "newbie" MFA guide... let's see if I can keep up all this enthusiasm before I get totally burned out, eh? I think I've heard plenty of application burn-out on this blog. My commiserations! I'm sure this enthusiasm is just a momentary burst :P I've been planning out all this massive research I'm going to do, all the schools I'll call to ask about financial information... Ha, well - we will see!
@Trilbe, Congratulations, lady! NYU! Look at you cleaning up :) You are so supportive on the blog and such a lovely writer. Best of luck choosing a program - anyone would be lucky to have you!
@amanda (and other University of Washington - Seattle admits) congratulations!
I was born and raised in Seattle, and I'd be happy to talk to any of you about life in the Best Place on Earth. No, seriously. I love my adopted home of Cambridge, but Seattle's great. Feel free to shoot me an email at hilaryvdobel [at] gmail [dot] com.
@DigAPony - Congrats on Wichita State! TA-ship, too!
Also, congrats to everyone else I didn't specifically mention by name. I won't lie to you: I just don't know you all that well. (Not that I know DigAPony that well.)
@frankish, congratulations! Houston's great, and I was rooting for you :) Way to go!
@Courtney, what a wonderful poem. I can never read his work without thinking of Linda Gregg - she dedicated her book, Too Bright to See, to him, even though they were no longer married: "For Jack Gilbert: It was like being alive twice." *sigh* So sad and beautiful.
@Frankish, congratulations! That is great news!!! And to one of your top choices; sweet.
@Xavier, what's happening to your newspaper? I spent 13 years working for papers in NY and MIch. The Mich. paper only publishes 3 days a week now. I was lucky to get out before that happened. I don't know I'd recommend secondary teacher at this point. In a few years maybe, but the economy is so terrible that districts are cutting teachers all over. Maybe Hawaii is different?
I wish I had known in October what I do now. I would have had a better SoP and would have applied a bit differently.
I hate waiting. I hate waiting. Can I say it again? Argh. I want my GRE scores to post so they'll report them so I will KNOW where I am going to school this fall. The good news is my 17-year-old is now 2-0, waiting on three more schools.
@ frankish YEAAAAAHHH!!! I'm so happy for you. You've had a great attitude through even the lowest of times (at least, it seems...), and I am so thrilled that you, out of everyone, finally got such a seriously awesome piece of good news!!!!
@ ASU fiction
people were accepted today? when? where? damn, I thought we'd only seen some sporadic rejections....
@trilbe and DigAPony - congratulations! :) (and all the rest of today's acceptances too!)
@Match - Ha, you probably don't want to take MFA-choosing advice from me... but, Alaska is my #1 because I'd heard good things about the program, I liked the emphasis on nature, I really wanted to go somewhere with the far-West small-town feel that I'm used to, and I was itching for adventure. Also, I thought I could learn a lot from David Crouse, a fiction prof there. I am really, really excited to go, but I've got to caution anybody who might take all this as advice - I haven't been there yet! Anyway, hope that helps. Match, are you planning on applying?
Got two acceptances today--first for the season. Whew! I was going a little crazy. In poetry at McNeese, and in fiction at NYU (with half-tuition). I was in the middle of a not-so-pleasant personal/family thing, so I had to get off the phone pretty quickly with NYU. I'm really embarrassed and hope they don't take it the wrong way.
Hey, sorry there, I was "Match", just had the wrong account up. I wanted to say, you and I share some of the same interests in terms of the location of Alaska. I am looking forward to a quieter program that I can just bury my head in for three years and read, read, read, and write, of course. Hopefully we'll both find it rewarding. I'm still waiting on a few more schools, but it is definitely up there for a lot of reasons. :)
2,265 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 1601 – 1800 of 2265 Newer› Newest»@Koru
If I had the means to get lost, I would get lost. Unfortunately I was in a car accident a week or so ago and no longer have the means to go any farther than I can walk. Hence why I will be spending spring break staring at websites instead of doing something fun. I guess this doesn't exactly rule out getting lost but it does rule out getting lost in your city.
The invitation is much appreciated though! :P
soooo i just got a call and was accepted to Queens University of Charlotte's Low-res program!
I really didn't do much research on low-res in general, but when I realized how much I want to stay in NYC I applied. I'd love some information that any of you have... I'm totally surprised because I got my application in recently, but they have some great writers on staff and seemed really psyched about my work.
thoughts??? This is my first acceptance.
@ coughdrop
oh no!! i'm sorry to hear that ... but glad you're posting, so i assume you're none the worse for wear?
me & my car nearly got taken out for good by a drunk driver a couple weeks ago. i'm still stunned i managed to manoeuver out of the way.
@koru
I am having a few issues with my neck but being seen by a doctor so hopefully I'll be okay. I am very ready to not have my daily trek to campus for a week.
Congrats Coreyann!
here it is - the final tally (all fiction except where otherwise noted)
Accepted -
Portland State
Rejected - (in chronological order)
Wash U in St Louis
Oregon State (waitlisted there last year)
Montana
Alabama (fiction and nonfiction)
U of Pittsburgh (nonfiction)
Portland state it is for me, now to try and cobble together some funding.
@coughdrop,
if the docs give you any interesting drugs, make sure you spend next week writing. :-) could be some cool stuff! hehe
@ amanda, William
I was accepted to Memphis a couple weeks ago. I'm still waiting to hear definitively from three more schools, and I haven't heard anything from Memphis re: funding. Feel free to email me jimmyjames at phreaker dot net.
Congrats Coreyann!!!
congrats coreyann!!!! I don't know much about low res either, but it seems like it could be cool. way to go, girl!!
also.. what are we thinking about oregon re: poetry/ eeeeeeek
@Dry Leaves
Thanks to you, I got the courage to contact Montana, and I'm in the same situation as you are.
So I dearly hope that everyone considering an offer from Montana in CNF gets into every single other school of their choice.
@Coreyann, congrats! :-)
@Nadiya - I'd be happy to make all your - and everyone else's -- life decisions. It's my unique talent.
Just got my rejection letter from Cornell in the mail. Yay?
@Daniel.
Looks like I'm in the same boat as you for fiction at Portland. Still waiting for my last four rejection letters. (Sigh) Doing my best to hustle for funds.
So Miami still hasn't notified anyone?
@MikeJGrey
Portland is awesome and I, for one, am not the least bit upset about the other rejections. The only problem with Portland is funding (as we all know). The faculty and the program itself look awesome.
@ all other Portlanders
Let's get a PSU contingency talking off-blog. Who knows the area? Who lives in the area? Anyone going for a visit? After a full round of rejections last year, I'm excited to get this "post-acceptance" stuff going.
Daniel
Portland is awesome. I'm looking forward to moving there from New York.
Two years ago I got a full round of rejections as well, so this does feel pretty damn good.
They just need to get some funding.
@Nadiya, Congrats on your acceptances! Where did you publish your stories? I'd like to buy copies and read them.
CCNY and Brooklyn people- I called. No response, still.
@MikeJGrey
I know! That's the only reason their program is ranked so low. In terms of faculty and location (especially for us in fiction), they've got it all. A little money and it would be the perfect program.
Just curious:
Has anyone received a rejection letter from VTech yet???
From what I remember, it seems like they were notifying people for personal interviews a long while ago. I figured they would've interviewed everyone they were interested in by now and would've started sending out rejection letters.
But then again...I could be completely wrong about that. I think my sense of time has been permanently screwed-up by my obsessing over this process.
@amanda, William, Jimmy James & Memphis acceptances-
I'm another Memphis admit (fiction). I'm still waiting on funding news, one wait list, and to hear from FIVE schools (ugh) but I'm thinking Memphis is the place for me.
Any thoughts on the town? I've never been, but I must say the website makes it look ultra-attractive...
@ William, re: March 15-
I emailed Jan Coleman and to let her know I wasn't able to commit to a decision yet and she said that was fine. I'd drop her a line if you're concerned, but it doesn't seem like a hard-and-fast notification deadline.
Daniel,
Right? It's been a week since I've heard and the reality of the funding issue is slowly sinking in and killing the buzz of acceptance. How are you going about on the funding issue?
@MikeJGrey
I'm going to apply for some of those non-departmental assistantships, try to work in the writing center, try to land a paid internship at The Oregonian, and cook burgers, pour drinks, or stock books as the need arises. And I'll probably take out some loans.
You?
here are two updates from admissions departments (poetry):
sarah lawrence: they are mailing out all final decisions the start of next week. (i did see that there's a record of an admittance by phone on 3/2, so i don't know if that means that i'm/we're not in . . . meaning, maybe that means we'll get the letter by mail in the next week, but other have received phone calls.)
hunter: they have finished a first round of admissions and notifications. they are working on a second round but have not finished decisions on those. (i don't know if that means priority acceptances are the first round or simply earlier applications.)
@Daddy-O
Thanks for the details about SL. I haven't heard of any other poetry acceptances beyond that single one..but we shall see soon enough, yes?
GL!
Daniel
Hah. Same here. I got in touch with them about the assistantships yesterday.
Time to put my burger flipping hat on.
I wrote a story about a guy who tries to become a gigolo to pay off student loans. I think I'll see how feasible that is.
Abbie,
My plan would be to rent in San Marcos, but bsaed on my browsing it is not "insanely affordable." In some of the cities I've looked at, including here in Cleveland, a 1br can be had for $400-$500/month, but I cannot find anything like that in San Marcos. I am mostly seeing $600+. Have you seen anything different than I have? I guess a few cheaper ones can be found, but I have to wonder where they are located. Also I want a pool, thanks!
I'm in a rush out, but I'll be e-mailing you later today.
Being waitlisted at your dream school is like getting a really flirtatious note from a guy you are in love with but who is semi-seriously dating another woman.
Stay tuned!
I woke up at 5:18 AM. Couldn't sleep. So, I started reading Best New American Voices 2008. First story is "Alice" by Tucker Capps, Iowa MFA.
I'm in at Washington (U of)!
That now brings me to a tally of three programs who fund some but not all. I'm realizing the folly in being most excited about these non fully funded places. Silly rabbit. I actually thought I would be one of the ones getting money. So if any poets are waffling on whether to turn down their funded spots or TAships at CU, Memphis, U of Washington, or VCU, get thee hence. :D
@ bbartok: I *love* your metaphor. However, I don't know that I have quite the same feeling. The relationship I have with most of my poems is more one of the cliche adoptive parent who just wishes they'd get the f* out of her business and leave her in peace.
@ abbie & TSU'ers: If you have questions about Austin, it is my home. I lived there for 10 years and still have family there. I'd be happy to field questions about neighborhoods and the like if any of you do decide to make the commute.
@ mikejgrey & daniel: I reallyreallyreally wanted to apply to Portland State. I fell in love with the city when I was there last year, but I ultimately wouldn't allow myself to apply anywhere that had such abysmal chances of funding. Now that I've been accepted to other programs unfunded, I'm starting to feel like it was folly to not at least apply. Congrats, you guys! Enjoy the hell out of that place.
@ william, jimmy james & whynotbecause : I think we're all in the same boat. I emailed Jan in a bit of a panic the other day about funding and she said we should know about the remaining TAships in the next couple of weeks. They're out for Spring Break though til week after next and Jan is gone through the 22nd. It sounded like it was fine to wait til after then to let them know whether we're going. Are any of you closer to definite? Considering the Spain/Ireland class?
whynotbecause: a good friend of mine did the program there in fiction several years and she had nothing but good things to say. In fact, she's the reason I applied. I plan on asking her tons of questions about the city if I end up there, so I'd happily pass them on to you.
@Alyson Greene - The email was out of the blue. Something to the effect that he had just read my writing sample and wanted to say he liked it and that they would be meeting later in the week. I'm trying not to read too much into it (and suspect others probably shouldn't either)...I think Woon got a similar email from JHU and then wasn't admitted. :/
Good luck!
@ Ryan
I haven't heard anything from Miami. If they don't notify anyone today, I'm afraid we'll be waiting a while longer with no clues as to our admission status - I believe next week is their spring break.
On a side note, I cannot believe how f---ing quiet my March has been! I keep telling myself that programs can't put off notifications for that much longer, but maybe they can - maybe they can put off notifications as long as they f---ing want....
I counted yesterday and there are roughly 60 programs on the Driftless House list that haven't notified at all yet. If I could physically explode right now, I would.
Thanks Amanda.
I'm sure I will!
@ mikejgrey & daniel — I'd love to be included in any off-blog correspondence about PSU. I'm in for nonfiction, but it seems unlikely that I'll go, given better funding offers elsewhere. That said, I went to high school in Washington, and would love love love to be back in the Northwest.
I'm at kathryn (dot) flagg (at) gmail, etc.
morning all! so is abbie the only one to hear so far from asu? abbie - are you poetry or fiction? and props for your awesome attitude. i'm sure it stung for a moment, but sounds like you shook it off like a champ and moved onward and upward. happy day after birthday. :)
@ amanda
Thanks, I'd love to hear about your friend's experiences with the fiction program, the school in general, anything really. You/her can feel free to reach me at Ellen-dot-Scheuermann on the gmail.
If the Spain/Ireland class is still an option once I make a final decision, then it sounds pretty awesome (and a good way to get through some English credits so I can teach). Also, it's Spain/Ireland, which is pretty much duh-awesome. In all likelihood, though, I'll end up hanging out with my friends and trying to save a little money here in Boston this summer... sure will miss this town, but I'd love the chance to write in the south.
@daniel and mikejgrey
If either of you want to email me, I am in the Portlander club. :)I would love to chat about things. Congrats!
chelseabieker at gmail
So I got The New School's acceptance packet in the mail last night, notification of their scholarship towards tuition. Decision time...
@daniel & MikeJGrey
Portland State's funding is that bad? Do they give out any TA-ships or tuition remission at all? Or is it just non-departmental awards they give out? I could've sworn the funding situation seemed better there? Maybe I had the rose-colored glasses because of my love for Portland :)
Amanda,
Congrats on U of W!! How/when did you hear? Hmmm I wonder if they're finished notifying poets...
abbie,
sorry about ASU, and i'm sure you don't want to talk about it anymore, but can i ask if you're fiction or poetry? thanks.
Also rejected from ASU for fiction.
Congrats to all acceptances!
new news on the new school: admissions have all been decided and letters are in the process of being sent out for all decisions.
@chelsea, Daniel, and other Portlanders.
We should get a list of us going! hah. My email's mikejgrey@gmail.com.
@Boise
It seems that they have graduate assistantships and not much else. It really is a shame, cause the program looks great otherwise.
@Summer...I just got the same letter from UMD. I wouldn't look into it too much, though I'm tempted myself. It ain't over til Bob Vila fires up the chainsaw. Is that an appropriate saying?
@CORNELL POETS...Is anyone out there with an acceptance from Cornell for poetry who plans on going somewhere else. If so, you should know that I'm first on the waitlist and you're effing killing me! Gahhhhh.
@daddy-o: did you called or email them at Hunter (I'm waiting on fiction and they haven't been answering neither call nor email.)
Decided this morning to bite the bullet and call the administrative assistant at UNH.
I'm accepted in fiction!
Anyone get rejected from NYU yet; or are they only contacting acceptances?!
Call me NYU!!!
@Nathaniel
Yay! Glad you called, right?
@all acceptances
High fives all around!
@all waiting
I'm throwing good karma around like freggin confetti over here. Luck,luck,luck!
Daniel, Chelsea B, and MikeJGrey:
I'm in the same (no)funding boat with Portland State. But here's my email. Absolutely love to discuss it:
enusbaum(at)gmail(dot)com
eric
oh hey guys... supreme lurker, have been following the conversation forever. wanted to thank everyone for being so consistently supportive with each other. you guys seem like a cool bunch of writers, and i bet it shows in your writing.
anyway, because there was some discussion about arizona, just wanted to say i was lucky enough to get accepted in fiction, received a call from aurelie sheehan on 3/10.
the rest of my list:
Davis - accepted
USF - accepted
Irvine - rejection, I presume
Oregon - another presumed rejection
UNLV
ASU
SDSU
SJSU
Fresno State
SFSU
can't believe this is finally winding down. feeling extreme pressure to write good fiction. if anyone has any thoughts on the schools on my list, they'd be much appreciated. thanks, team.
To all you guys going to San Marcos and Austin, you are officially making me homesick.
@Chelsea
Yes! Thanks for all your encouragement. It seems really silly that they haven't called or at least changed the online status. But Jeanine seemed to be handling it with aplomb!
am i the only one who didn't get her Iowa letter yet? UGHHHHHHHHH closure, people!!
Don't worry STRANGER; I havn't got one yet either! It is starting to make me crazy!
Patrick, tell me about it!! Why don't we pretend we got accepted? :P
@ Arkansas applicants-
The only blip on the Arkansas radar seems to be a fiction acceptance at the end of Feb. Have they peeped since? Anyone heard from them?
All these long, drawn out notifications are making me batty. I want the band-aid ripped off already, ya know?
Stranger- I'm all over that idea; so, what genre were you accepted into? I'm fiction, I'm just so shocked and happy- JOKES!!
See you in Iowa!! Don't be a stranger!
I'm in for both fiction and poetry :P *sigh* (I wish)
@ Nathaniel - That's great news re: UNH. I was wondering about the dearth of communication though. I know I'm in, but it feels awkward that I've not been notified in any capacity.
@ CJoe - Thanks for sharing re: Arizona. Did you get funding? Now I'm nervous. Anyone get calls from AZ for CNF?
Well hello there! i have been posting a bit on two other forums and am finally going in for this one too...you guys are the most lively, and when you're refreshing every 15 minutes it's nice to have some new comments to read. Oh, and major applause for everyone who has gotten into any program and best of luck for those waitlisted! I'm holding out dim hope for Columbia (basically just b/c i'm willing to pay and most ppl aren't, but those ppl probably didn't apply anyway), but have received and/or are expecting to receive rejections from Brown, Michigan, Iowa, Virginia, and yeah i should prob get realistic about NYU, New School, and Brooklyn (fiction, all). also, i know i applied to a limited # of insane schools, but those are the only ones i could see myself going to, and each one has some issues that i think are mitigated by other factors. To tell the truth, I thought my samples were great until this Monday, when, re-reading them for the 50th time, i was like, "geez, I really suck. i don't know what the hell i was thinking." in fact, i would be embarrassed to get in at this point b/c i don't think i deserve it--thoguh obvi would still die to go. i am getting a lot of inspiration though from all the workshop recommendations! i have not done that before and it's probably wise to get more feedback on my work. i was just scared to and that was my main reason for applying to the MFA, but whatev.
But, before I get my formal rejections and can still obsess, for the New York schools above, no one has gotten an outright rejection? Brooklyn and New School seem to be fluctuating btwn telling ppl "everyone has been notified" and "we are not done notifying"? Does anyone get a sense that there *will* be a 2nd round of acceptances? And, i've only seen so far one known fiction acceptance from NYU and the rest poetry--congrats smiling raindrops! Has anyone else heard about fiction at NYU? how many ppl do they take? and how freaking sexy is junot diaz?
@ Abbie - UNCW is on spring break, so I doubt we'll hear from them until next week..
AB, the affordability I was referring to is in buying your own home. I have relatives in San Antonio and last summer toured many developments that, compared to most everywhere else right now in the country, were a great price per sq ft. I can't speak for rentals. 600 plus sounds about right. Email me! We'll talk.
Re ASU: I applied in both poetry and cnf. :)
best of luck to all today!
NYU accepts 20-30 for fiction and 10-20 for poetry. They also maintain a wait-list (given program/city costs and good, but not total, funding, a reasonable amount of people turn down NYU offers). It's fair to assume we'll be hearing a lot more from them soon.
@susan
You said something that I totally identify with - that you would feel a little embarrassed to get in but that you would obviously love it too. I feel this way a lot. I mean, I don't feel like an impostor as a writer, but I do feel like an impostor as this sort of academic writer that a lot of other people seem to be.
If it helps at all, I was talking to my sister about this the other day. She's finishing her first year in an MFA program in the southeast and she said she and her classmates talk about this all the time, and that it's a pretty universal feeling.
Good luck to you!
hi everyone.
i have 2 questions.
1) has anyone received any spots with funding or TAships at washington (seattle)? i haven't heard of one person report any funding yet. do you think they are calling the funded admits after other admits?
2) is anyone other than ena planning to turn down a fully-funded poetry spot at montana?
@ Dry Leaves, re: Arizona funding - sounds like they are waiting to see if teaching spots open up, and they'll know in the next few weeks.
i was told, however, that my out-of-state tuition could be changed to in-state tuition, which is a huge difference (like, $6,000 a year instead of twenty-something thousand). (even though $6,000 is still a shit-ton).
Re: Deferrals
Hello all,
Does anyone know if schools sometimes allow a deferral? And is it ok to ask them, if they are ever kind enough to call me with an acceptance?
I've recently had a major family situation happen that's going to make it impossible for me to move far away from home next year. I don't want to give up on the idea of getting my MFA, but I might have to put it on hold for a year.
I know MFAGuy said UNH allows deferral (which I would have to do anyway in their case, to try and cobble together enough money to go). Does anyone know if this is generally an allowed practice, or is it totally frowned-upon?
@ M. Swann - Thanks for the NYU insights. I live in NYC and my MFA hopes plummeted after hearing about acceptances from my last 2 schools yesterday (but congrats to y'all who were accepted!). Still hoping.
NYU is on spring break next week by the way.
@ Dry Leaves re: lack of communication from UNH
I actually don't think it's weird. They haven't contacted *anyone,* and I got the sense that they weren't planning on contacting people until next week. Someone here called them earlier in the week, and leaked the info on the blog that they had already made their decisions, which then inspired people to call and ask if they were in or out. I'm sure a lot of schools KNOW who they've accepted the week before, it's just that we at the blog don't always know when they know, so we don't start pestering them until someone hears from them officially.
@ CJoe -- Thanks for clarifying. Hope things work out with the funding.
@ Megan -- The the MFA Handbook, Tom Kealey writes that apx. 1/3 of MFA Programs allow deferrals. I don't know how accurate that is now; I'd recommend asking the respective schools directly. I am in the same boat as you -- I have a family situation that developed in Feb, compounding the already high level of stress caused by MFA waiting season. I know that UNH and Alaska-Fairbanks allow deferrals, it that helps...
@duchess and other NYU hopefuls,
If you go and look through mailbags for notification season in previous years (as I so obsessively did a few months ago), you will see that NYU's acceptance phone calls usually go on for three or four weeks before the rejection letters get sent out. Just because you don't hear anything by the end of this week, does not mean you might not get a call next Friday telling you you're in. As everyone keeps saying, it's not over till it's over!
Waitlisted at University of Arizona for fiction, via email, received today!
@otkunda
i made calls yesterday to sarah lawrence, hunter, and brooklyn. (no news on brooklyn. sl said they would go
i made a phone call this morning to new school. they said all mail is in the process of going out now.
@daddy-o
" sl said they would go" Can you tell me what that means? Is that a typo or some lingo I don't know?
I'm waiting eagerly for SL.
Just watched this on Youtube. Poem by Jack Gilbert. Beautiful!
Does anyone know what the deal is with Notre Dame for poetry? It seems late. Have they accepted already and we just don't know?
UGH...congrats to the U of A peeps! Haven't heard a peep from them, so I guess I have another delicious rejection floating my way...
Waitlisted at Arizona, nonfiction, by e-mail today.
@ morgan: Thanks! I got it in the mail last night. Letter was dated March 5th. I'm on the west coast though, so it shouldn't have taken too long to get here from when they sent it out. So it seems likely that more people will be getting notice in the next couple of days.
@ inkli_11: I'm pretty sure that the first notification went up about 3 weeks ago and I think the person was funded. You're in for poetry, too? Are you going to be trying to make it up for a visit?
For anyone who's waiting for news from Arkansas, I had emailed a few days ago to check again to see if they ever received a rec letter (they didn't). But I just got an email back saying they would have decisions made by April.
So...I saw an acceptance listed on DH at Bowling Green. I haven't heard a word (but so hoping to). Does anyone know what's up with them (or Purdue, for that matter)? Thanks!
I like how the program at Columbia College sounds quite a lot, but I'm fairly worried about its lack of funding.
Congrats Coreyann!
I have a couple of online friends who went to Queens Low Res. You can contact them through their websites: Cliff Garstang, http://perpetualfolly.blogspot.com/ and Mary Akers, http://maryakers.blogspot.com/
@ smiling raindrops
Thanks for the info - I will try to keep hope alive until I get the official rejection.
UNH is on spring break next week.
Also, Columbia College wants an answer by April 5, and I'm a little worried about whether I'll have even heard from everywhere by then.
Absolutely thrilled to be accepted to Minnesota State Moorhead's MFA program in fiction!! Received an email today with the promise of an official letter to follow.
Here's my list:
UBC - Rejected
Brown - Rejected
UNCW - Rejected
Alabama - Rejected
McNeese State - Waitlisted
MSU Moorhead - Accepted!!
Still waiting on:
MSU Mankato (TA interview next week)
U San Francisco
San Francisco State
NYU
New School
Sarah Lawrence
Stony Brook Southampton
Virginia Commonwealth
West Virginia
Texas State
Boise State
Old Dominion
Eastern Washington
Bowling Green
@PSU folks,
I'll chime in, too. I'm a current MFA ficiton student. Let me know if you have any questions I can help answer.
Best,
Danielle
Bobsyruncle,
Have you considered that your poetry is experimental? (or at least a little different?). Avant-Garde doesn't necessarily mean shitty. There's just a smaller audience.
re. smaller audience.
Am I the only writer who doesn't mind being published in a journal read by only 43 people?
Re: CCNY, BKLYN
They might be on Spring Break. I know my Univ. is. :)
@weights
Do you know how soon TNS needs to know about your decision?
Rejected, Arizona CNF, by mail, 3/12
Woon,
If those 43 other people are going to enjoy what you wrote and are the RIGHT 43 people (professors, editors, agents, students that actually give a shit about literary or experimental writing), then I have no problem with it. A lot of VERY prestigious journals have very small circulations but you should keep in mind that these same journals are often chosen for high circulation anthologies.
Congrats to all the admits in the last few days!
I've officially booked my trip to Chicago at the end of the month to visit, and I'm definitely looking forward to it.
@ Elissa Cahn:
I got into Columbia College, too, and that April 5th deadline is why I decided to plunk down the expense of making the trip so soon to visit. I love what I've heard about Columbia College's program, and I just want to be sure that it's where I want to be for the next three years.
And SAIC: for the love of God, sent me my rejection letter already!
@Danielle
Well, as a current Portland State fiction student, I guess my question is basically...
How is it?
does anybody have advice on the etiquette for asking about your position on waitlists and other info about funding? so far i've got a couple waitlists and an acceptance and before i make a decision i'd like to know all my options. being on a waitlist, however, doesn't really seem to get you any information, just a sort of lukewarm form letter. as it is these schools are making it kind of impossible to even consider them, as they've given me NO specific information to go on. i don't even know if its appropriate/or worth my trouble to visit (and i'm definitely not going to pick one of them blind over the school that accepted me and offered full info and helped me visit). have people just been asking schools straight up? i feel left in the dark here.
Nooooooooo Tucson! I held out such hopes.
I mean, congrats to CJ and Brit and all, but damnit! Clear blue skies, you were to be mine.
@Elissa -
Yesterday I got a reply to an email I sent to Purdue (re: fiction) stating that applications are still being considered.
Good luck!
Thanks, Frankish! Good luck to you, too!
amanda,
unfortunately, i haven't heard anything from washington. i applied there in both fiction and poetry and i am eagerly awaiting (hopefully positive) notification from them, but not counting on really getting in. the unfunded poetry acceptance i was speaking of was from montana, a program which i would happily attend if only i could afford it!
Heard nothing from Arizona State or Arizona, so I'll just assume big fat rejections. And there went the tiny hope I had for Oregon. What a bust! Only two acceptances this year, and to very expensive schools with nominal funding: Otis College and The New School. Looks like I might be applying next year or starting that teaching certificate in secondary English. Sad times.
@WanderingTree
I don't think I would consider my writing experimental, unless by experimental you mean honest, heartbreaking, beautiful, simple, and genre-bending.... jk lolz... I really don't know, I just write the way I've always written... I'm not offended by rejections, I just want to get my MFA!
@ xavier:
So you've actually heard from someone from Otis about funding? I'm still waiting to hear (and wondering how I can possibly afford to live AND study there :/)...
Accepted to Minnesota State University Moorhead in fiction via email!
@coreyann
so sorry. yes, it was a typo. i mean to say that they would _all_ go out next week. that's what they said to me yesterday. all decisions had been made and would be mailed out.
Eric,
Three things:
I like--
Faculty (a few particularly outstanding)
Portland
the campus
Don't like--
Funding
Quarter Systems
Commuter Vibe
Pretty vague, I know. I'll be happy to go into more detail. You can email me daniv at pdx dot edu.
Best,
Danielle
UC-Irvine
I was surprised just now to see on the MFA response database that Irvine notified Fiction acceptances by phone on March 1st???
And yet I've seen not a peep about any such activity here, and thought everyone else was waiting to hear too. Did I completely miss the boat? Or are there simply no Irvine acceptances (or waitlists) talking on this blog?
Thanks in advance for any info/clarification.
Has anyone heard about waitlists or official rejections from Cornell in fiction?
P.S. OOPS. I just found peaquah's post about Irvine only notifying one person (for whatever reason).
Sorry, didn't mean to ask a redundant question (and reignite people's agitation in the process). Happy Friday?
Holy bejesus, congrats to all the acceptances I just spent the last hour catching up on! And the day is still young (at least where I'm at).
@ any Arizona people
Did my undergrad there, would be happy to answer any Tucson questions. searchoflosttime at gmail.
Happy Friday, everybody.
@MBWells
A suggestion for visiting Chi-town: Don't go to the art institute if you are still waiting to hear from SAIC. You will get frustrated and punch a painting, and they don't like it when you do that. My guess, Picasso's Old Guitarist will be looking at you the wrong way. Good luck on your trip, though, CCC has great paper and envelopes. Circles... I'm going now.
@Maslo,
Nothing official on funding from Otis. But I'm assuming it's not going to cover all $30k a year, or even the vast majority of that amount. Living and studying in an expensive city is, well, expensive.
Here's another source regarding notifications: http://thegradcafe.com/survey/index.php
Just checked my status on both the ASU and UA Web sites, and no decision is posted on there. Does that necessarily mean anything? AHH! I'm freaking out.
@ G: I believe someone posted here (was it Nick? I forget)... that ALL Cornell waitlists and acceptances had already been notified.
I haven't heard of anyone actually getting their rejection yet.
@ Ink and Beans - Just to be clear, I don't know if Irvine *only* called one person or if only one person posted on the blog - they could easily have called all six in one afternoon, and my own guess is that they probably did.
@Anti - TNS wants to know if I'm on board by March 30th--or they want a deposit, in any case.
@weighswithwords
I didn't get my TNS packet yet. Are there any other funding options specified other than their scholarship? March 30? Any idea what your decision might be? I'm starting to sweat ...
@xavier - Just their scholarship by the looks of it. It went up $500 from last year's scholarship. But that still spells a WHOLE lot of student loans and near forty hours a week in my dreamy cubicle.
I hear ya. I'm starting to sweat, too. I've been through this application go-around before, and don't really wish to do it again next year. It troubles me to think about assuming more debt for another degree (just finished my MA). But the thought of not doing it also troubles me.
I might say f*** it and take the year to try and finish my novel while applying to a masters in disaster management. Go get some stories in the likes of Haiti, Chile, and do something more for people than stepping on their toes in bars after I get back from a long day at the office then class.
Thoughts are everywhere these days.
Where you at on all this?
Rejection from ASU! Just wanted to let you all know, I found out by checking my status on ASURITE (just now), and I still haven't gotten an email.
alright, I'm over trying to keep my cool and am seriously starting to tweak. I've been waiting for U of Arizona's response (non-fiction), and now all these answers are starting to roll in from them (CONGRATS to all those accepted and waitlisted! But seriously, congratulations. That's so exciting!!!), my email inbox and phone are both unbearably unchanged/silent. Sinking sinking sinking feeling.
To you fellow TNS'ers: I'm also still waiting on their packet, hopefully today. I'm certainly worried about the funding situation, too. Add that to the outlandish cost of living...yikes. I have a feeling that if this is my only offer, though, that I'll have to bite the bullet and go into debt. I can't walk away from this. I just can't.
Alright, I may need to go for a run and sweat this anxiety out. Either that or start drinking. At 2 in the afternoon. Both are viable options at the moment.
best of luck and nerves of steel to all!
@Nadia
Any self respecting individual waits till at least ten in the morning to take that first drink! You're all good..
I hear ya on feeling like you can't walk away from this. Makes it a tough choice. Keep us all posted.
Re: TNS
Great school, but that March 30th deadline is a kick in the backside. [shakes head]
No word on that packet yet, but really, the funding is too meager.
**
I'm thinking of calling CCNY (and the other CUNYs) myself tomorrow. I might as well put a halt to my shyness and get the info. straight from the source.
Fun fact: 2 yrs. of CCNY tuition (for a non-resident) is about 1yr. for TNS.
I still think TNS is a fantastic school, btw...
Hm. Today I am mad about NOT getting rejected. By which I mean, I applied to Ohio State, for God's sake, which notified in JANUARY -- And sent out waitlist notifications shortly thereafter. WTF? Can they not get it together to send out rejection letters?
/end rant.
I am still waiting on any kind of response from ALL of my schools...
Where are Arizona State people seeing the rejection at? Where it usually says 'in review' for application status?
Hey all. I just received an acceptance phone call from Wichita State, in fiction, with a TAship.
I'm worrying about their policy of teaching 2 classes of freshman comp per semester, and have some research and thinking to do, but am very excited!
March Raaaaadness.
congrats DigAPony!! that sounds great!
Hi all. I'm still deep in the process of decision making, now waiting to hear from UVA and UNCG. Those will be a while, so I'm trying to get some writing done these days.
Sincere congratulations to all of the recent acceptees-- big time! It's a great feeling getting to share your excitement and happines through this blog. Good luck to everyone!
Yo dudes
I'm back after awhile away
for this ASU thing, how many of us are still "in review"? (KNOCK ON WOOD)! is it a whole slew of us?
DOn't want to get my hopes up. I'm in fiction, btw.
@Lauren
I feel you about Ohio State. I was checking my online status frequently after the first acceptances went out. Now I'm just telling myself I'll hear by April 15th.
checked U. of Arizona's online status thingy, no news. just a big ol' blank space. email=empty phone=silent me=going totally batshit crazy and need to get out of the house. NOW. and go for a good long run. and by "good long run" I may or may not actually mean "bawl shamelessly".
It's not even the fact that others are getting news from this one school and I haven't. It may not even mean anything yet. It's just...I'm feeling so emotionally just, DONE. Like, every single morning I wake up with my heart in my throat thinking "okay, this could be the day...", I'm a ball of nerves from the minute I wake up. And these little acceptances or rejections have been imbued with SO MUCH MEANING for me. Like somehow acceptance confirms that I'm a worthwhile human being. In general. And a rejection would mean that I fail. At everything.
ugh. neurotic much? Please, grad schools, don't see this and be like "whoah, that chick's got serious neurosis. let's not touch that. decline."
:-)
just venting, I guess. Feeling the anxiety big time.
My thoughts are majorly with everybody here. As they are often. xox
I'm still 'in review' for ASU (fiction)...
...and for when the conspiracy theories start, I sent my app in back in October and my last name starts with an S :)
Virginia,
You are very slow and remind me of evolution.
Not the film.
Y'all, I think I want to write an "MFA Apps for Dummies". I went into this process TOTALLY clueless... anybody else in the same boat?
I got extremely lucky: I got accepted into my first-choice school (the University of Alaska, Fairbanks), even if that is my one, single acceptance. So for me, somehow, everything worked out :)
But, still. See, I keep thinking, OH MY GOD, all that MONEY for applications! I spent soooo much of my parents' money applying to schools that A) I would never conceivably get into, or B) I would actually want to attend. Oh, the money! It's been eating me up since, on March 1, I discovered what these mailbags actually were, and started taking in the wealth of information that this forum provides.
See, when it came to applying, my process was basically this: pull up a map of the US, google "university of (insert state)" and "creative writing MFA", and see what pops up. That was pretty much the entirety of MFA research. This led me to think, among other things, "Oh, University of Alabama, that sounds like a good safety school." (Unnhhh, head on desk!!) I'm sorry, because this has got to be offensive for all you wonderful Alabama acceptees - just know I am a US-ignorant backwoods Washingtonian who walks her groceries home through the forest. I've learned, and I sure know that U Alabama is awesome now! See, it's just that when it counted - when I was actually applying - I didn't know any of this, and I made SO many mistakes.
So, what I'm suggesting: I think I'd like to go through the mailbags - ALL of them - and pull out all the many pieces of advice, sort them (by schools, general, SoPs, etc...), and post them somewhere. So future ignorant history majors from the boonies, like myself, might hopefully not make the same mistakes.
I'm realizing, more and more, how fantastic this blog is in educating applicants about MFAs - but what I'm thinking is, we need a guide for REALLY clueless people - people who are so clueless that they can't even figure out how to use this blog. What do you think, do any of you all agree? Any of you all run into the same problems?
Okay, enough of that. Sorry to rant on for so long! And of course - lots and lots of luck to everyone waiting to hear back!! Here's hoping all of your phones get busy ringing :) Go get 'em, all y'all!
@weighswithwords
Your disaster management idea sounded awesome. If I get rejected across the board (highly likely), I may take up your plan instead!
@ Emily S.
yahahaha, I'm not nearly hopeful enough to start considering conspiracy theories! I AM trying to squelch my hopes before they start to snowball, though... sigh. Well, fingers crossed for both of us, at least!
(And for all the theorists out there, my last name begins with F and I submitted mine in January. So... splat go all your theories.) (That was meant to be a joke. An admittedly bad one.)
Ooops, edit: meant to say, I B) applied to a bunch of school that I would NOT really want to attend.
@Emily S. - Yep, the place where it said "in review" on my ASURITE page turned to a very nice little note saying I'd been rejected. Sorry, I should've specified - oh, and that reminds me: I applied in fiction.
Okay, good luck!! - ASUers, and everybody else :)
Hey everyone,
It's been a while but I want to say congratulations to everyone who's got in somewhere in the past few weeks. I haven't been keeping up so will just gilbly say: Nice work :)
Anyone who vaguely remembers me from posts way back when (October - late Jan) will know that I genuinely thought I had a chance at my schools: Brown, Cornell, Amherst, Michigan, Irvine, Wisconsin & Syracuse. Just to round off the story, I got rejected by all.
I was upset for a day or two but I honestly don't care. Being in the UK and having some amazing Europe-based opportunities come my way here has made me feel more than okay. I feel grateful for that; I went from investing my whole existence into the MFA to being forced to look the other way, and that turned out to be cool. On a petty, personal note, it's kind of a shame that three months of solid application work and £500 got me nowhere. But hey...I may reapply somewhere one day. We'll see.
Good luck for the rest of the apps season, everyone, and thanks for being so wicked here, especially the crew I used to chat with constantly (who know who they are) - I'm hoping it works out for you guys - and Trilbe especially, for going out of her way to be awesome to me! As Tom Kealy used to say, rock on!
Eli xo
@Zoulou:
A website that laid out a few basic steps for beginners would be really nice, especially if it managed to climb the google ranks for "MFA apps".
I think people coming into the process blind should really start with Tom Kealey's MFA Handbook, followed by reading some of Seth's rankings and other data. Both sources are relatively well organized, compared to the expert-level challenge of navigating the eddies of the MFA Blog.
@ke105
Word. It's like wartime, but without the culpability of pulling the trigger. Help some people out, and perhaps help my writing more than assuming more debt and teaching at a community college for the rest of my life.
I lived in New Orleans for five years pre-Katrina. I moved back from Prague, where I was teaching, as soon as the hurricane hit with the intent to volunteer, work, do whatever I could. A confluence of factors dropped me in Brooklyn. I haven't left. Disaster relief might compensate for some of that (perhaps irrational) guilt.
@weighswithwords
Dude, I'm in FML-mode at this point. I haven't received my TNS packets, but according to this news I have 18 days to make a decision that will affect the rest of my life. I'd be coming from Hawaii with no cubicle job waiting for me, meaning I will easily accrue $80K in loans over those two years. It's not a decision I think I can make in just about two weeks.
On the other hand, what else would I do? The newspaper I work for is about to shut down in a month or two — meaning unemployment. If I don't do TNS or Otis College, my own other option will be to return to some Hawaii university for my teaching degree in secondary English.
Lots to to mull over.
@Jacquelin S.
I had two of my writing profs and one of my friends (a creative writing grad student who is an amazing reader) read through my samples and SOP multiple times. They helped a TON. I've been accepted at two schools (OSU and Mankato) and rejected from one (Minnesota). I'd highly recommend having someone read over the packet, especially a creative writing professor who has most likely been to an MFA program. They will have a pretty good idea of what MFA programs are looking for.
Cornell has sent out rejection letters; they are trickling into mailboxes as we speak. (I got mine today).
Same deal for Johns Hopkins.
Sigh...
Maybe some of the Virginia faculty are slow readers?
@xavier
Tough decision! Keep me posted. I could hook you up with some referrals to temp agencies, if you find yourself New York bound and desiring a desk and fluorescent lighting. Best of luck..
I'm anxious to know where I'll end up this fall so that I can change my 'College Info' on facebook. Kind of imperative.
Courtney,
It seems like changing info on social networking site profiles has become the defacto method of announcing something officially (i.e. there's still hope in a relationship until you remove that relationship status and block the person . . . you know it's really over when someone un-friends you just like you'll really feel like the MFA journey has begun once you stick that info in your profile).
@xavier
I wish you the best of luck and the clearest of thinking when making your final decision. You seem like a pretty decent guy, and I do hope your decision ultimately leads you to a much more desirable, rewarding path.
@weights
Not to sound like an opportunistic d-bag, but if you can hook a guy up with some referrals to temp agencies, that'd be great (you have my e-mail). I'll be graduating in a few months, so right now I'm in the midst of preparing for my transition from college to the real world.
**
@NYC-ers
Did you make the move to NYC before you landed a job there, or did you land the job first and then moved?
This is such an amateur question, but I might as well ask it now and see how you guys got started, esp. since most of the people I know have very bizarre, complicated stories as to how they eventually wound up in NYC.
**
nightlyfix at gmail dot com
Johns Hopkins' terse rejection arrived by snail mail today. Always stings a little. Then I got a call from the University of Houston, got in for fiction. I'm very excited. It was among my top choices from the outset.
Good luck everyone!
@Wandering Tree and Courtney - about facebook, you're totally right! Definitely something to look forward to :)
@frankish - whoa, congratulations! That's great!
WAY TO GO FRANKISH! Yay!!
Congrats, Frankish!
Congrats Frankish! Amazing!
@Eli - You probably won't even see this post, but please drop me a line at:
trilbe [at] hotmail [dot] com
One of my dear friends, a genius writer, is doing the Creative Writing program at Oxford. You two MUST get together! You're both fantastic and I think she'd be a great person for you to know and you'd be a great person for her to know. Cheers!
@xavier - What about creative writing classes at Hawaii-Manoa? If you're thinking of staying in Hawaii and doing classes, anyway, why not get started on things at Manoa? As I'm sure you probably know, they have a CW MA and CW PhD -- so you could work with people who are passionate about writing, like yourself. I looked into their program, because I would like to do a CW PhD after the MFA -- and I'm particularly interested in the long-form lyric narrative as cultural history and in the traditional storytelling of islands, sadly, U.Puerto Rico doesn't have a CW PhD -- and the faculty at Manoa seem to be highly accomplished and from quite diverse backgrounds.
Good luck with your difficult decision, xavier. I sincerely hope you find a happy solution.
@frankish - WOW! Congrats on Houston!
@Anti
Tipped you up via email. Best of luck, bro. Keep us all posted..
@frankish - Congratulations! Houston is an AMAZING program! Congratulations on breaking through in such a big way!
For the folks who applied to Purdue in Poetry:
I got an email from Marianne Boruch a few minutes ago saying some nice things, but explaining they are still "waiting on a few things" and "won't know about admissions decisions for a bit."
She also asked me to tell her if I accepted an offer from somewhere else.
Who knows what this means for me, but I figured you all would like to know a little bit of news amidst the Purdue poetry wait-a-thon.
@ frankish
Congrats on Houston! Way to go!
Yay for frankish!
@ zoulou
hahaha i'm so glad that i do not have to be included in your group of ppl who are so clueless they haven't even found this blog (although i was until about 2 wks ago). i too went into this application season thinking, "hey, i'm a good writer. i'll write some stuff and send it in." haha oh well. live and learn for next year. but seriously, it seems like ppl getting into the top schools already have 3 books under their belt. wtf?!
@nadia
you are not alone. i know that if i don't get into an mfa program, which will become official in a few wks, it means i am a bad person and am going straight to hell when i die. or that i will be temping as an administrative assistant for the rest of my life. same thing.
thanks to everyone for all the updates on the New York schools and congrats again for those who have heard back! PS, that's bullshit about The New School funding. Not that anyone's lying, i mean, but that it's really lame. When I visited I met with a very lovely woman named Merida who told me that all students are funded a portion of tuition up to 70% (or close to...hmm, i guess that's a big difference--you could fund everyon 2% and say it's just not "up to" 705), which made it sound more generous than NYU (which, at 50%, sounds pretty damn generous for an NYC school).
Best of luck and HAVE A GREAT WKND!!!
@ Morgan
Thank you!
@ frankish
Congrats! I've been enjoying your posts the past few months and have been hoping you receive some good news. Have a great weekend!
I fully admit that I am also excited to change my Facebook college info.
(This post just interrupted by adorable Mormon missionaries knocking on my door. That always makes me feel weird. Like, you're so sweet and nice that I want to pat you on the head, but no thanks on the Jesus stuff!)
@ Zoulou
I think that's a great idea. I wouldn't have known about Tom's book or this blog if it hadn't been for one of my creative writing teachers introducing these resources to those of us interested in the MFA. When you're new to researching programs it takes a little while to learn the ropes.
@Susan
The New School's funding is more like 22% of their tuition.
The user interface for the comments is kinda wacky.. Pressing 'Newest' leads me to 1815 comments, when there are only 1796 comments as of now. Seriously, Zoulou and Nathaniel, maneuvering through this blog requires expertise!
@Zoulou- I was the exact same; like an actual idiot!
I was like, oh yeah, NYU let's go there, like I just applied for 8 programs, 4 in the UK and 4 in the US, and I thought that was LOADS!
Thank God I've been accepted for at least one, but yeah, if I was to do it all again, I would research the hell out of it!
Feel so stupid looking back on my applications!
Good luck to everyone!
Time for bed here, have a good weekend!
Thanks, everyone! After going 0-8 before this afternoon, I had resigned myself to Plan B.
And thanks, too, for all the help. This blog has been so incredibly educational. If I had to do it again, I would do almost everything differently. Just wish I had found it last September instead of over the Christmas holiday. :P
Good luck to everyone, and have a great weekend!
PS: The Newer/Newest function has been whack for the last couple of days, at least for me. Maybe we need a new mailbag. :D
@weights
Appreciate the info. Will give you a head ups in the upcoming days.
Re: TNS
Susan: You just got my TNS hopes up a bit. I'll send an e-mail to their fin. aid office tomorrow, which I'll hope they'll answer back by Mon. or Tues., in regards to funding. I've e-mailed TNS in the past, and they've usually answered back quickly (for a univ.).
It's odd. My cousin went to TNS and told me half her tuition was funded because of scholarships and grants (and she was out of state). I'm thinking the merit scholarship has more to do with the writing department, but when it comes down to funding, we're all better off contacting fin. aid and/or the TNS billing office.
One of the main attractions to TNS is location. Transporation is actually quite easy, esp. since North Jersey path trains actually stop right next to the TNS building where the writing program is located (went to an open house of theirs almost a year ago).
I feel a little better now. Really.
Re: applications
I was also in the dark, and just wanted to apply to as many MFAs in the NYC area as possible because living the writer's life there was one of my biggest dreams (I've since discovered it was a foolish, stupid dream, but I digress).
I should've researched more schools, looked at the faculty a bit more closer, RESEARCHED FUNDING, and worked a bit more on the SoP (writing about oneself is the biggest, ugliest chore, next to writing cover letters).
That being said, it was a learning experience, and if it wasn't for this blog, I wouldn't have realized how common my situation was.
We're all in this together.
for what it's worth, referencing the conversation about being clueless the first time around, I have this to add:
Last year, I had no idea what I was doing and applied to UT Austin, Cornell, Brown, Michigan, Montana, Alabama, and Oregon State (and one other one that for some reason I can't remember right now). I was waitlisted at Oregon State and rejected everywhere else. The waitlist never became an acceptance.
This year, I narrowed my focus rather than expanded it, because I was taking classes at the University of South Dakota (non-degree post-grad eventually became admitted to the MA program in English - I don't recommend it, even in the creative writing track) and I wouldn't have time or energy (or money) to do the 20-some applications I wanted to send.
Instead, I only applied to programs that I loved. That I knew I would do anything to get to. That had something special (to me)about them. I only applied to six programs (three of them re-applications) and was accepted by only one. But, because it was one of those six, I had no second thoughts about whether or not I wanted to go for it, funding problems and all.
So, I think there might be something to narrowing your search rather than casting your net as far as it can go. Just my thoughts.
Congratulations to all acceptances and good luck to everyone still waiting / on a waitlist.
My suspicion (read: hope) is that Virginia does not employ MFA students as readers for submission. If that's the case, I could easily see them taking much longer than other schools given the number of applications they receive as a top program. Maybe they truly seek out the best fit for their programs, or maybe the faculty are the Graiae, and they all share one eye and one tooth. That would definitely slow the process down.
Accepted:
Adelphi
Denied:
Iowa
Still waiting on:
Miami
UNH
Hawaii (MA)
Florida
Brooklyn
I called the office of admissions at UNH today and the lady, who was very nice, said that she could not tell me my admissions status, and to check online. Oh, well.
When will Brooklyn and Florida get their acts together? I know these are large schools, but if Iowa can get their act together to notify rejections, these other schools can do the same (after all, where is that $110 application fee for Brooklyn going?)
I hope so, Lo Real Maravilloso, I hope so..
Hi everyone - thanks for all the input! You know, I'm seriously planning now on putting together some sort of "newbie" MFA guide... let's see if I can keep up all this enthusiasm before I get totally burned out, eh? I think I've heard plenty of application burn-out on this blog. My commiserations! I'm sure this enthusiasm is just a momentary burst :P I've been planning out all this massive research I'm going to do, all the schools I'll call to ask about financial information... Ha, well - we will see!
Okay, good luck everyone!
Anyone by chance know anything about Albuquerque? Would someone be willing to share some info? :) Thank you!
Anyone know anything about UA and ASU? Did all the fiction notifications go out today? Is that it? All done?
@Trilbe, Congratulations, lady! NYU! Look at you cleaning up :) You are so supportive on the blog and such a lovely writer. Best of luck choosing a program - anyone would be lucky to have you!
@amanda (and other University of Washington - Seattle admits) congratulations!
I was born and raised in Seattle, and I'd be happy to talk to any of you about life in the Best Place on Earth. No, seriously. I love my adopted home of Cambridge, but Seattle's great. Feel free to shoot me an email at hilaryvdobel [at] gmail [dot] com.
@DigAPony - Congrats on Wichita State! TA-ship, too!
Also, congrats to everyone else I didn't specifically mention by name. I won't lie to you: I just don't know you all that well. (Not that I know DigAPony that well.)
@Zoulou or @Dry Leaves:
What made Fairbanks so attractive to you that it became your number one program? I am definitely curious to get some more opinions on the program. :)
Gracias, Woon!
And don't lie. We're BFFs. (Kidding. Maybe.)
@frankish, congratulations! Houston's great, and I was rooting for you :) Way to go!
@Courtney, what a wonderful poem. I can never read his work without thinking of Linda Gregg - she dedicated her book, Too Bright to See, to him, even though they were no longer married: "For Jack Gilbert: It was like being alive twice." *sigh* So sad and beautiful.
@Frankish, congratulations! That is great news!!! And to one of your top choices; sweet.
@Xavier, what's happening to your newspaper? I spent 13 years working for papers in NY and MIch. The Mich. paper only publishes 3 days a week now. I was lucky to get out before that happened. I don't know I'd recommend secondary teacher at this point. In a few years maybe, but the economy is so terrible that districts are cutting teachers all over. Maybe Hawaii is different?
I wish I had known in October what I do now. I would have had a better SoP and would have applied a bit differently.
I hate waiting. I hate waiting. Can I say it again? Argh. I want my GRE scores to post so they'll report them so I will KNOW where I am going to school this fall. The good news is my 17-year-old is now 2-0, waiting on three more schools.
Did I say I hate waiting?
@ frankish
YEAAAAAHHH!!! I'm so happy for you. You've had a great attitude through even the lowest of times (at least, it seems...), and I am so thrilled that you, out of everyone, finally got such a seriously awesome piece of good news!!!!
@ ASU fiction
people were accepted today? when? where? damn, I thought we'd only seen some sporadic rejections....
@trilbe and DigAPony - congratulations! :) (and all the rest of today's acceptances too!)
@Match - Ha, you probably don't want to take MFA-choosing advice from me... but, Alaska is my #1 because I'd heard good things about the program, I liked the emphasis on nature, I really wanted to go somewhere with the far-West small-town feel that I'm used to, and I was itching for adventure. Also, I thought I could learn a lot from David Crouse, a fiction prof there. I am really, really excited to go, but I've got to caution anybody who might take all this as advice - I haven't been there yet! Anyway, hope that helps. Match, are you planning on applying?
Got two acceptances today--first for the season. Whew! I was going a little crazy. In poetry at McNeese, and in fiction at NYU (with half-tuition). I was in the middle of a not-so-pleasant personal/family thing, so I had to get off the phone pretty quickly with NYU. I'm really embarrassed and hope they don't take it the wrong way.
Zoulou:
Hey, sorry there, I was "Match", just had the wrong account up. I wanted to say, you and I share some of the same interests in terms of the location of Alaska. I am looking forward to a quieter program that I can just bury my head in for three years and read, read, read, and write, of course. Hopefully we'll both find it rewarding. I'm still waiting on a few more schools, but it is definitely up there for a lot of reasons. :)
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