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Overview
MFA students are required to take 48 credit hours of coursework as listed below. They must also complete a creative thesis of high literary merit, pass a written examination based on the thesis, and pass an oral examination in defense of the written examination and creative thesis.
MFA Core Workshops: 16 credits
WR Seminars in Strand: 8 credits
Electives: 16 credits
Thesis (WR 503): 8 credits
Core Workshops: 4 classes
WR 521, WR 522, and WR 523 are restricted to MFA students. Students will take a workshop no fewer than four times and no more than six times, to earn a minimum of 16 credits. First-year students are required to take a multi-genre workshop (listed as WR 521) during the fall term and at least one other workshop during their first year.
WR Seminars in Strand: 2 classes
Seminars are open to students in any strand. Fiction seminars are all listed as WR 507: Fiction; poetry seminars are all listed as WR 507: Poetry; and nonfiction seminars include WR 507 (e.g., Memoir Writing), WR 528, WR 556, WR 557, WR 558, and WR 559.
Electives: 4 classes
Graduate ENG and/or WR courses chosen from within the department. Of these, students are encouraged to take at least one MFA seminar outside their genre. Up to 8 credits may be taken in LING 590, TA 574, or TA 575 or, with advisor approval, in graduate courses outside the department in an area related to the student’s thesis.
Thesis (WR 503): 8 credit hours to be arranged
MFA students must also complete a creative thesis of high literary merit, pass a written examination based on the thesis, and pass an oral examination based on the written examination and creative thesis. For a more detailed timeline, visit the MFA in Creative Writing Graduation Deadlines page.