Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing
The Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing is a two-year low-residency program of study leading to the Master of Fine Arts degree, with a genre of fiction, nonfiction, or poetry, or writing for stage and screen, and concentrations in publishing/editing, spiritual writing, social justice, and literary health and healing. Students attend two annual nine-day residencies. Each residency is followed by a five-month independent course of study during spring and fall semesters with a single faculty mentor. A total of 60 credits are needed for graduation, including four residencies, four independent study semesters in the craft of the student's choice, a critical thesis, a creative thesis, and a final public presentation and reading by the student.
Requirements
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ENGL 5441 | Fiction 1 | 24 |
| or ENGL 5442 | Non-Fiction | |
| or ENGL 5443 | Poetry | |
| or ENGL 5444 | Stage and Screen | |
| ENGL 5991 | Independent Study: Fiction 1 | 36 |
| or ENGL 5992 | Independent Study: Non-Fiction | |
| or ENGL 5993 | Independent Study: Poetry | |
| or ENGL 5994 | Independent Study: Stage and Screen | |
| 1 | Each course is repeated for four or five semesters. |
Learning Goals
The MFA program’s broad learning goals are twofold, achieved through the accumulation of objectives derived from four residencies and four mentorships:
- To develop a writer’s quality of work and the development of their craft in a chosen genre
- To deepen and enhance a writer’s critical language and critical reading ability
Learning Objectives
The program has distinct learning objectives as for the two distinct learning environments of the residency setting and the mentorship semesters; each student completes four of both and moves from introductory, to proficient, to mastering the following:
Residency:
- Increase student facility to provide incisive criticism in genre to peers, both through written and oral feedback
- Increase student development of craft knowledge through the attendance of faculty-led seminars
- Gain a broad understanding of professional standards and practices through the attendance of readings and presentations
- Utilize the analysis of master literary texts to develop craft language and literacy
- Practice professional activities: give readings, provide introductions, give craft talks.
Mentorship:
- Develop an increasingly sophisticated critical language about craft
- Apply craft literacy to the composition and revision of original work in primary genre
- Develop a sustained revision practice that reflects a sophisticated understanding of how to improve the elements of the primary genre
- Read widely in the chosen genre as well as secondary genres that will assist in deepening awareness of craft