mfa creative writing virginia

Creative Writing Program

Dove Henry Hoyns Professor of Creative Writing [email protected] https://english.as.virginia.edu/people/profile/rfd4b

Kevin Moffett Assistant Professor

Petrosino Professor of Poetry and Director, Creative Writing Program [email protected] https://creativewriting.virginia.edu/ (434) 924-6074 Bryan Hall Charlottesville, VA 22904

Creative Writing

• [email protected]
• (434) 924-6074

The UVA Creative Writing Program offers one of the best MFA programs in the country, along with undergraduate English concentrations in poetry and literary prose and elective coursework.

Explore Creative Writing Events

Creative writing stories.

She Wrote ‘We Were the Lucky Ones’ and Co-Produced the Hit Hulu Series

Georgia Hunter’s journey to becoming a New York Times bestselling author and co-producer of the Hulu series based on her book, “We Were the Lucky Ones,” began with an English paper assignment when she was 15.

https://news.virginia.edu/content/she-wrote-we-were-lucky-ones-and-co-produced-hit-hulu-series

The Educator’s Bookshelf — A List of Must Reads from U.Va. Professors

For any student unsure of what their first post-finals read should be, look no further than the favorite books of these four academics.

https://www.cavalierdaily.com/article/2024/04/the-educators-bookshelf-a-list-of-must-reads-from-u-va-professors?ct=content_open&cv=cbox_featured

Ta-Nehisi Coates Speaks at UVA on the Future of Reparations and the Power of Writing

Author, journalist and activist Ta-Nehisi Coates, spoke on Friday, March 8, to a UVA audience and to attendees of the ninth annual conference of the African American Intellectual History Society hosted by the University’s Carter G. Woodson Institute for African-American and African Studies.

https://as.virginia.edu/ta-nehisi-coates-speaks-uva-future-reparations-and-power-writing

MFA in Creative Writing

Virginia's low-residency program.

Randolph College > Academics > Graduate > MFA Creative Writing

Two years of one-on-one mentorship, five ten-day residencies, and a lifetime of support.

A New Kind of MFA Program

The Randolph College MFA in Creative Writing program is a two-year, intensive degree in creative writing: poetry, fiction, or nonfiction.

The low-residency program allows students to complete four semesters of one-on-one mentoring with our award-winning writing faculty remotely from home.

Students attend five 10-day residency sessions at Randolph College, one beginning each semester, as well as a final graduation residency at the end of the fourth semester.

Our award-winning writing faculty attend the residency sessions to mentor students, deliver insightful lectures, lead collaborative workshops, facilitate discussions, and present their writing.

The Master of Fine Arts is a terminal degree designed to develop individual artistry in…

Non-Fiction

Curriculum & Courses

The randolph difference, low-residency.

1-on-1 mentorship from home and five 10-day residencies on our beautiful campus.

2 Year Program

Earn your degree in 4 semesters of coursework, mentorships, and on-campus residencies.

Work one-on-one with a faculty mentor who provides training, feedback, and direction.

Diverse Faculty

Our faculty are accomplished writers and teachers who represent a broad spectrum of identity and culture.

Test version 2

Low residency.

Take courses remotely from home and spend five 1-2 week residencies on campus.

Our faculty represent and value the full aesthetic and sociological diversity of contemporary theater.

MFA Faculty

Our diverse faculty of award-winning writers have demonstrated a talent and love for teaching and are committed to mentoring students with a spirit of rigorous compassion.

Department of English

College of humanities and sciences, creative writing faculty.

Students work closely with outstanding writers to strengthen their craft, develop their literary aesthetics, and enrich their understanding of existing traditions.

Geoff Bouvier, PhD

[email protected]

Creative Writing

Gretchen Comba, MFA

Teaching Professor

and Associate Chair

[email protected]

20th/21st Century

Gregory Donovan, PhD

[email protected]

Kathleen Graber, MFA

and Director, MFA in Creative Writing

[email protected]

Sonja Livingston, MFA

Associate Professor

[email protected]

Clint McCown, MFA

[email protected]

Jessica Hendry Nelson, MFA

Assistant Professor

[email protected]

SJ Sindu, PhD

[email protected]

creative writing

David Wojahn, MFA

[email protected]

Hollins MFA

In creative writing.

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Creative Writing (M.F.A.)

Campus:   Virginia Tech Blacksburg Campus,  Instructions: Residential/On Campus

Program Overview

Our three-year M.F.A. degree offers tracks in Poetry and Fiction, and all students are fully and equally funded via GTA-ships of more than $20,000 per year. We encourage cross-genre experimentation, offer additional courses in creative nonfiction, playwriting, new media creative writing, and literary editing, and all students have the opportunity to teach creative writing and composition, as well as serve as editors of our literary journal,  The New River Journal .

Why choose this program?

Our three-year M.F.A. degree offers tracks in Poetry and Fiction, and all students are fully and equally funded via GTA-ships of more than $20,000 per year. We encourage cross-genre experimentation, offer additional courses in creative nonfiction, playwriting, new media creative writing, and literary editing, and all students have the opportunity to teach creative writing and composition, as well as serve as editors of our literary journal, The New River Journal .

In the years since the program started, we’ve been consistently ranked among the top 30 programs in the country by Poets & Writers in their  M.F.A. rankings .

The faculty members in our creative writing program at Virginia Tech are accomplished, prize-winning, innovative, and diverse: Ed Falco ,  Evan Lavender-Smith ,  Khadijah Queen ,  Lucinda Roy , Sophia Terazawa , and Matthew Vollmer .

Our program is small—we admit 4–5 students a year in each genre—and we pride ourselves on the diversity and rigor of our program, our respect for our students’ voices, our financial support for our students, the individual attention students receive from faculty, and our robust  Visiting Writers Series . 

Our  students  and  alumni  are exceptional; they have  published books , received prestigious awards and fellowships for their writing, and gone on to further success as writers, teachers, and professionals.

All students have the opportunity to to hold editorial positions and gain publishing experience working on the digital journal, The New River Journal .

Emily Morrison Prizes in Fiction and Poetry, and other M.F.A. writing awards offered each year.

What You'll Study

The M.F.A. in Creative Writing is designed to be completed in three years. Students may specialize in Fiction or Poetry. A minimum of 49 hours is required for this terminal degree. A series of creative writing workshops, courses in form and theory, new media writing, composition pedagogy, and literature and theory electives are designed for students wishing to pursue careers as writers or writer/scholars at the college level. Students also have the opportunity to work as editors on The New River: a Journal of Digital Writing and Art . A creative thesis, a written final exam, and an oral defense are required.

The 49 hours required for the degree must be distributed as follows:

• Creative Writing Workshops: 15 hours (6704/Fiction, 6714/Poetry, 6724/Playwriting, 6734/Creative Nonfiction, 6744/New Media Writing); at least 9 hours must be in the designated specialty; students are encouraged to explore other genres in 6 hours of workshops.
• Form and Theory Courses: 6 hours (5734/Form and Theory of Fiction, 5744/Form and Theory of Poetry).
• GTA Training and Composition Pedagogy: 3 hours.
• Creative Writing Pedagogy and Practicum: 3 hours.
• Editing a Literary Journal (5774): 6 hours 
• Research & Thesis (5994): 6 hours; a book-length creative thesis (a collection of poetry; a collection of short stories, or a novel)
• Graduate English courses: 9 hours; students may use an independent study in Editing a Digital Journal to help fulfill this requirement.

Admissions Requirements

• Minimum GPA 3.0 (4 Scale)
• TOEFL/ IELTS score Required  (If Applicable)

Learn more 

Tuition and Fee

Tuition & Fee Rates

Funding Opportunities

The Department of English has a limited number of  graduate assistantships and fellowships  available for students applying for full time study on the Blacksburg Campus. Entering students can apply for such funding as part of their admissions application.  No separate application  required.

• All students equally and fully funded through Graduate Teaching Assistantships.
• GTA-ships include tuition remission, health insurance, and stipends of more than $20,000 per year for all three years of the program

Find out what loans are available as a graduate student and other opportunities.

How to Apply?

Visit the Admission Requirements page for information on how to apply, including requirements, deadlines, and application fee.

Course List

Course List 

Plan of Study

Download Plan of Study

Applications Deadlines

Deadline is Jan. 15, 2024. 

Visit Campus

Visit Campus / Attend an Open House

Contact Program Leader

Matthew Vollmer 431 Shanks Hall  540-231-8322 [email protected]

Contact Program Specialist

Marie Trimmer Graduate Programs Coodinator 310 Shanks Hall 540-231-4659  [email protected]

Meet Our M.F.A. Students

Our Students

Current Students

• Visiting Writers Series
• Meet Our Graduates
• M.F.A. Bookshelf
• Graduate School
• Forms and Documents
• Time Table of Classes
• Add/Drop Online

Matthew Vollmer 431 Shanks Halll 540-231-8322l [email protected]

Faculty In Creative Writing

• --> General Item Ed Falco -->
• --> General Item Khadijah Queen -->
• --> General Item Evan Lavender-Smith -->
• --> General Item Lucinda Roy -->
• --> General Item Matthew Vollmer -->
• --> General Item Sophia Terazawa -->

Literary Awards 

• Creative non-fiction nomination
• Emily Morrison prize for fiction
• Emily Morrison prize for poetry 

Faculty Bookshelf

Related Programs

English (M.A)  

Rhetoric and Writing (Ph.D.)

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Virginia Tech

MFA in Creative Writing

Info for Current Students

** Deadlines for Spring 2023 **

March 1, 202 4: Deadline to apply for graduation on Hokie Spa

May 11, 202 4: Last Day to defend for MFA students

April 6, 2024 :  Your Annual Review form is due to your advisor electronically

By  April 15, 202 4: advisors put completed Annual Review form (hard copy) in advisees’ boxes or send via email; advisees sign these and bring them to Marie Trimmer in 310 Shanks Hall (or put them in her mailbox #113)

April 15, 2024 : Your Plan of Study form, with signatures, is due to Marie Trimmer, Graduate Program Coordinator

General Forms

MFA Plan of Study  

Plan of Study Change Form

Change of Committee/Advisor Form

Annual Review of Student Progress  

Independent Study Request Form

Request to enroll in a 4000-level course 

Thesis Information and Forms

Creative Thesis, Defined

Individual MFA Faculty Thesis Guidelines and Info

Thesis Committee Request Form

Thesis & Exam Timeline

MFA Program Deadlines Checklist

Graduate School Degree Deadlines

Guidelines for Submitting Thesis to Graduate School

MFA Policies & Procedures

Travel Forms

• Fill out the MFA Travel Approval Spreadsheet (shared via email) by Sept 16 (for fall travel) or Jan 15 (for spring travel)
• Submit the  TRAVEL APPROVAL FORM  to Andrew Fortin at least 4 weeks BEFORE you travel (and please use  GSA rates  for per diems).
• Submit the  TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT FORM  to Sandra Ross within 2 weeks of returning–and never later than June 1

Info on Literary Prizes

Fall Literary Awards

Virginia Tech Fiction Prize : The Virginia Tech Fiction Prize is awarded for the best short story or novel excerpt written by a student currently enrolled in the MFA program. Entries are due by November 1st. Click here for full submission guidelines.

Virginia Tech/Poetry Society of Virginia Award : Administered by the Academy of American Poets. The Virginia Tech/Poetry Society of Virginia Prize is awarded for the best poem written by a student currently enrolled in the MFA program. Entries are due by November 1st. Click here for full submission guidelines.

Creative Nonfiction Nomination for AWP Intro Journals Project : 2015 was the first year the MFA program accepted submissions of creative non-fiction pieces, in order to choose one to nominate for the  AWP Intro Journals Project . Entries are due November 1st. Click here for full submission guidelines.

Spring Literary Awards

Emily Morrison Prize for Fiction: This prize is provided through the generosity of the Morrison family. The annual prize is awarded to a student enrolled in the MFA Program in Creative Writing at Virginia Tech, and will be judged by a writer who is not a part of the Virginia Tech faculty. Entries are due March 15th. Click here for full submission guidelines.

Emily Morrison Prize for Poetry: This prize is provided through the generosity of the Morrison family. The annual prize is awarded to a student enrolled in the MFA Program in Creative Writing at Virginia Tech, and will be judged by a writer who is not a part of the Virginia Tech faculty. Click here for full submission guidelines.

Miscellaneous

Graduate Student Handbook

MFA Bookshelf

8 Lessons From Nikki Giovanni

M.F.A. in Creative Writing

The Master of Fine Arts at West Virginia University is a three-year program that combines work in a primary genre and at least one other genre with course offerings in literature, pedagogy and professional writing and editing. Genres include fiction, nonfiction and poetry. All Master of Fine Arts students receive a full tuition waiver and an assistantship, which includes a stipend valued at $16,750. 

Our alumni have gone on to further graduate study in English, to careers in editing and publishing and to positions in academia. They have received awards such as the Olive B. O’Connor Fellowship at Colgate and the Emory University Creative Writing Fellowship, won national prizes like the Iowa Award for Poetry and the Association of Writers and Writing Programs Prize for Nonfiction and published books with Autumn House Press, Carnegie Mellon University, 42 Miles Press, Ohio University Press, University of Georgia Press, University Press of New England and William Morrow/Harper Collins, among others.

WVU’s MFA graduates have published in hundreds of literary journals, including prestigious venues such as  AGNI ,  Southern Review ,  Gettysburg Review ,  Field ,  Prairie Schooner ,  Tar River Poetry ,  Ninth Letter ,  Northwest Review ,  Missouri Review ,  Hayden’s Ferry Review ,  Sewanee Review,   The Journal ,  32 Poems ,  Georgetown Review ,  Controlled Burn ,  Colorado Review, Pank, Malahat Review ,  Mid-American Review ,  The New York Times, Paste, Times,  Chelsea ,  Washington Square ,  Laurel Review ,  Slant ,  New Orleans Review , and in the anthology   Layers of Possibility: Healing Poetry . Recent MFA students have won Intro Prizes sponsored by the Association of Writers and Writing Programs and the GreenTower Press’s chapbook prize and have published book-length collections of poetry and fiction. Recent graduates have won honors such as the Iowa Poetry Prize and the Walt Whitman Award.  

GET INVOLVED

All MFA students in creative writing are fully funded and teach composition, with opportunities to teach creative writing in the third year. Our students engage in community outreach through the Appalachian Prison Book Project, a program that provides incarcerated people with reading materials; edit Hellbender Magazine , a national literary journal; assist with the West Virginia Writers’ Workshop; and help maintain WVU's Council of Writers. They also participate in our monthly reading series, MFA@123 (pictured above). Our program hosts readings by recognized writers, including Jayne Anne Phillips, Camille Rankine, Elizabeth Graver and Geffrey Davis. We also conduct the annual Sturm Writer-in-Residence program, a week-long program that hosts an author at WVU to give a reading and lead workshops with graduate students. Recent Sturm Writers-in-Residence have included Claire Vaye Watkins, Valerie Sayers, Oliver de la Paz, Paul Lisicky and Susan Straight.

Graduate Catalog Description   Graduate Student Handbook

WVU’s MFA faculty members, Mark Brazaitis, Mary Ann Samyn, Glenn Taylor, Christa Parravani, Jenny Johnson and Brian Broome, have published more than 25 books and have won many prestigious prizes and honors:  

• National Endowment for the Arts Literary Fellowship 
• MacDowell Fellowship 
• Whiting Award 
• Kirkus Prize 
• National Book Critics Circle Award (finalist)  
• Iowa Short Fiction Award  
• Yaddo Fellowship 
• Field Poetry Prize 
• Hodder Fellowship 
• Lambda Literary Award 
• 42 Miles Press Poetry Prize 
• Richard Sullivan Prize 
• Devil's Kitchen Reading Award in Prose 
• Gival Press Novel Award 
• Pushcart Prize 
• Distinguished stories and essays in  Best American  anthologies 
• Autumn House Press Full-Length Fiction Prize 
• Juniper Prize 
• George Garrett Fiction Award  
• The Journal Prize  
• Kent State University Press/Wick Chapbook Prize    
• Books for a Better Life (nominee) 
• Amazon Spotlight Pick 
• New York Times  Editor’s Choice 
• NEH-National Endowment for the Humanities  

ODU Creative Writing Students Partner with Norfolk SPCA to Help Get Animals Adopted

Writers from Old Dominion University’s Master in Fine Arts in Creative Writing program are harnessing the power of language to help adoptable animals at the Norfolk SPCA find forever homes. The effort is part of ODU’s Writers in Community , a non-profit program dedicated to helping the diverse communities of Coastal Virginia by cultivating literacy and creativity. A branch of the Old Dominion University MFA Creative Writing Program, Writers in Community works with local organizations to reach out to children and adults who can benefit from the opportunity to express themselves artistically.

Through a social media campaign that started in May, students wrote bios for the several dogs, bunnies and a cat, who are in need of new homes, including the shelter’s longest resident, Haley, who has been with the SPCA for more than a year. Students have also shared photos of their own literary-minded pets to encourage others to adopt. 

“We’re thrilled to partner with such talented writers to share the stories of these wonderful animals,” said Tammy Lindquist, community engagement manager at the SPCA. “Animals make a profound difference in our lives and we’re so happy these writers are sharing the stories of our beloved animals and their own.”

The novelists, poets and essayists in the MFA program also shared photos of their own pets, with reflections on the impact these best friends have made on their lives. SPCA supporters are encouraged to share photos on social media of the pets they’ve adopted through the SPCA with #findyournewbestfriend.

“Our pets provide endless joy and inspiration,” said Kent Wascom, MFA in Creative Writing program director at ODU and author of “The Great State of West Florida.” “The incredible writers in our program are so excited to help these dogs and cats and rabbits find families who will care for them, and to share the ways their own pets impact their lives.”

The adoptable animals featured in the campaign and others hosted by the SPCA can be met from 1 to 4:30 p.m. each day except Tuesdays at their adoption center on Ballentine Boulevard.

Enhance your college career by gaining relevant experience with the skills and knowledge needed for your future career. Discover our experiential learning opportunities.

Picture yourself in the classroom, speak with professors in your major, and meet current students.

From sports games to concerts and lectures, join the ODU community at a variety of campus events. 

Mona Awad, Chanelle Benz, Jonathan Dee, Matt Grzecki, Sarah Harwell, Brooks Haxton, Mary Karr, Christopher Kennedy, George Saunders, Bruce Smith, Dana Spiotta

The MFA program in Creative Writing at Syracuse has long been regarded as one of the best in the country. Each year six students are admitted in poetry and six in fiction to work closely in small workshops with an accomplished group of writers. Coursework includes a strong emphasis on the study of literature. Six semesters are usually needed to complete the M.F.A.

Applicants must upload a sample of fiction or poetry with their online application through CollegeNet no later than December 15, as well as complete the online graduate application for graduate study.  Admission is based primarily on the writing sample, but also upon the academic record. Thus, letters of recommendation should address not only the student’s creative work, but also his or her general preparedness for advanced graduate study. Likewise, in their personal statements on the application for graduate study, students should state their reasons for pursuing an M.F.A. in creative writing as well as describe their own backgrounds as writers.

Submit online Graduate Application via ApplyWeb by DECEMBER 15th. 

• FICTION APPLICANTS: UPLOAD your 20 page maximum writing sample with your CollegeNet application by DECEMBER 15.
• POETRY APPLICANTS: UPLOAD your 10-12 POEMS with CollegeNet application by December 15 . Do NOT mail in your poetry writing sample.

Candidates must complete 48 credits of coursework, which includes 9 credits of workshop, a minimum of 9 credits in forms courses, a 3-credit second-year essay seminar, 12 to 15 credits in other English department courses, 6 to 9 credits of electives outside the department, and 6 credits for the preparation of the thesis (a collection of poems or stories or a novel).

For more information about our graduate programs, visit our department web site at english.syr.edu .

Student Learning Outcomes

1. Writing, editing and revision in student’s primary literary genre, leading to a creative manuscript of publishable quality

2. Reading in ways that contribute to a student’s writing

3. Analyzing and writing with care about literary texts

4. Responding thoughtfully and critically to work by other MFA students

5. Demonstrate writerly discipline by accepting criticism from professionals and rewriting accordingly, writing regularly, and developing a life-long reading list

6. Place their own work in the context of a broad range of issues and activities associated with a literary writer and the communities in which the writer lives and works

7. Teach composition and research writing to undergraduates and conduct one-on-one tutoring sessions in a Writing Center

MFA Graduate Awards

First year MFAs come in on a Creative Writing Fellowship award which carries no teaching duties. The award comes with a stipend and a 24 credit hour tuition scholarship.

Second and third year students are funded by teaching assistantships. Teaching assistantships include a 24 credit hour tuition scholarship and a stipend of $20,000. Second year TAs will have full responsibility for teaching/consulting in the department of Writing Studies, Rhetoric, and Composition. They are expected to attend regular staff meetings and workshops and participate in a mentoring group. There is a review of each teaching assistant’s performance as a teacher. Third year students will teach in the English Department, courses to be determined on an as needed basis.

E-mail:  [email protected]

The Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing at BGSU is widely recognized as one of the country’s most prestigious. For more than fifty years, graduates of BGSU’s Program in Creative Writing have contributed to contemporary literary culture and published hundreds of books.

The MFA in Creative Writing program gives a comprehensive and rigorous education in the professional writing, editing, and marketing of poetry and fiction. Artistic development, craft knowledge, and professional presentation are guiding principles. 

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the MFA degree, students in the Creative Writing with a specialization in Fiction or Poetry program are expected to be able to:

• Develop individual, original approaches to writing fiction and/or poetry
• Produce a book-length thesis comparable in quality to the published work of contemporary poets and fiction writers
• Develop an understanding of their work’s place within the context of contemporary literature 
• Collaboratively assess literary work for publication 
• Apply craft knowledge to produce and distribute a literary journal through relevant technologies 
• Develop pedagogical skills sufficient to design and teach courses at the college level 

Admission Requirements

Application deadline is January 15 for Fall Semester.  Since application reviews may begin immediately after the deadline, we recommend submitting your application and providing all required documents before the deadline. Documents required:

• Applicants below 3.00 GPA must submit a GRE score unless they have already completed a master’s degree.  Enter your GPA and GPA Scale with your undergraduate degree under the Academic History tab.
• Three Letters of Recommendation
• Statement of Purpose (1-2 pages)
• A fiction or poetry sample (20 - 30 double-spaced pages of fiction, or 10 - 15 pages of poetry with poems single- or double-spaced)
• An academic or professional writing sample (8 - 15 pages, double-spaced)

Please do not submit screenplays, children’s stories, fantasy, or science fiction.

International applicants are required to submit scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), or the Pearson Test of English Academic (PTEA). Successful completion of ELS 112 will also be accepted for this requirement.  Additionally, Duolingo test scores will be accepted for applications through Summer 2025. Applicants of the Graduate College who have completed a previous degree (associate, bachelor’s master’s or doctorate) from a U.S. college/university or are from a country (click  here  for a complete list) in which instruction was delivered in English (and attended the university for at least two years) are exempt from providing these test scores. Please review the Creative Writing MFA program’s Application page at  http://www.bgsu.edu/arts-and-sciences/english/creative-writing/apply-online.html  for detailed information about application materials.

Application Requirements

Admissions Categories and Grade Point Average Requirements

International Application Information

Degree Requirements

Curriculum requirements, required courses (24 credits).

ENGL 6320 taken during the summer semester may not be used to satisfy workshop requirements.

• ENG 6320 - Graduate Writers Workshop (12 hours)
• ENG 6310 - Technique of Fiction
• ENG 6330 - Creative Writing and Desktop Publishing
• ENG 6370 - Pedagogy of Creative Writing
• ENG 7820 - Topics in English Studies

Electives (6 credits)

Select 2 courses

Culminating Experience (6 credits)

• ENG 6990 - Thesis Research

Minimum Total Credits (36 credits)

Additional requirements.

• Minimum of 3 credits of 6990 required for Plan I master’s students.  Maximum of 6 credits may be applied toward degree requirements. 
• Minimum 3.0 graduate cumulative grade point average
• Minimum of 18 credits must be at the 6000-level or higher
• Minimum of  24 credits must be earned at BGSU
• All requirements must be completed within six years from the end of the earliest course used to fulfill degree requirements.