tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15642985.post114999875739811963..comments2024-03-28T02:14:08.783-07:00Comments on THE MFA BLOG: The Career QuestionTom Kealeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11913868167191023096noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15642985.post-48362099629596071852019-10-31T20:17:44.243-07:002019-10-31T20:17:44.243-07:00What a great post is it. I really impressed by the...What a great post is it. I really impressed by the well written article that you that posted here. I want to say thanks to you for this great sharing. Please visit <a href="https://www.twiisearch.com/" title="Twitter search" rel="nofollow">Twitter search</a>Sophie Gracehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09769321133171248409noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15642985.post-27676778395397493502016-11-11T07:14:46.922-08:002016-11-11T07:14:46.922-08:00I admired your effort you've put on this artic...I admired your effort you've put on this article. Thanks for sharing informative blog! <a href="http://www.engineeringpersonalstatement.com/" rel="nofollow">personal statements engineering</a>aliyaahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06184256288293330921noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15642985.post-1150383787198017592006-06-15T08:03:00.000-07:002006-06-15T08:03:00.000-07:00My advice -- as a family man (I say this proudly) ...My advice -- as a family man (I say this proudly) with a full-time job and writerly aspirations -- is to get an MFA and become a technical writer with a specialization in engineering. If you did this for 5 years in the Washington, DC, area, for instance, you would be making more than $80,000, especially if you have outstanding IT skills, and you could at least feed your children and buy them a few pieces of hockey equipment. Other major cities have strong technical writing markets for engineers, but they're probably not as lucrative (government contractors pay well).<BR/><BR/>Another thought: an engineer with an MFA in creative writing would be a good candidate to teach technical writing or professional/workplace writing at a community college. For that to happen, though, you would need to take classes in those fields as electives in your MFA program and generate some kind of scholarship (at a minimum a Web site with tons of research) while you were also completing your creative work. I know that Tom approvingly points out programs with strong publishing/editing programs. If you got at MFA at George Mason University, for instance, you would have many excellent professional writing/editing courses to take as electives.<BR/><BR/>Good luck!!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15642985.post-1150292177377312582006-06-14T06:36:00.000-07:002006-06-14T06:36:00.000-07:00I am sorry to say it, but I think you have to keep...I am sorry to say it, but I think you have to keep your day job. With just an MFA (and without impressive publications, as Tom said) you *might* get some adjunct teaching gigs, but those don't add up to a career. They almost never include benefits and they don't pay well. <BR/><BR/>If you really feel the need to get a degree, I would suggest that you look at low-residency MFAs and figure out if you can juggle that with your day job. Get your wife involved in the decision, because you are going to pretty much disappear for two years. If you do choose this path and still want a teaching gig, be aware that some academics won't give a low-res MFA the same weight they give to a traditional one (which isn't much to begin with, see the thread on PhDs). I had one hiring committee chairman - a member of the Old Guard, to be sure - tell me that they just toss those applications. The MFA is just to improve your own writing, because by itself it won't impress many folks at the university level. You may be better off just using that time to write and work toward publication.<BR/><BR/>Balancing a creative life with a day job isn't impossible. The arts in America just don't pay, that's a fact of life. So, many successful authors have done the nine-to-five (or raised children as a stay-at-home) and written at night. "For art, you must suffer" comes to mind.<BR/><BR/>The other alternative is that your spouse gets a job. Talk to her, and see what her plans are for life. It can work.jaywalkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16674338232465086024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15642985.post-1150222283294708002006-06-13T11:11:00.000-07:002006-06-13T11:11:00.000-07:00I would say go for the MFA. When you're done, you ...I would say go for the MFA. When you're done, you can always go back to engineering. My tech buddies make so much more money than me. I write. Alas...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15642985.post-1150217678161149152006-06-13T09:54:00.000-07:002006-06-13T09:54:00.000-07:00George Saunders was trained as an engineer--and af...George Saunders was trained as an engineer--and after he got his MA in creative writing he went back to engineering work, mainly doing (I think) technical writing. So it's possible, I guess, to return to your career, and still do amazing writing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com