Program director
Start an application
December 15 is the deadline for fall enrollment consideration.
Program handbook
Review the MFA handbook to find out if the program is right for you.
MFA in Creative Writing
The MFA in creative writing at the University of Nevada, Reno, is a three-year residency program which culminates in the submission of a thesis (a novel, a collection of stories, or a collection of poems).
Program overview
The program typically admits up to ten graduate students each year — ideally, we admit five fiction writers and five poets.
We do not look for any specific style of writing, but rather for a high level of quality and evidence of skill and originality. We value good, literary fiction regardless of the subject matter. We value and often admit writers who produce work within traditional genres like young adult, science fiction, fantasy, mystery, horror etc.
We are looking for poets who are open to developing unique voices and artistic visions, with a strong commitment to the power of language. Our graduates work in a broad spectrum of poetic styles: recent graduates have worked in narrative, lyric, and experimental modes, and their thesis is similarly diverse, encompassing book length poems as well as collections of lyrics.
The program requires a series of rigorous workshops, classes in editing and publishing, and electives in literary history, critical theory and craft, as well as a thesis created under the close mentorship of a faculty committee.
The residential MFA in creative writing also offers students opportunities to engage in public outreach. Our students help organize the Nevada Humanities Literary Crawl and gain experience in editing and publishing via partnerships with Black Rock Press, Baobab Press, and the University of Nevada Press.
Numerous nationally prominent writers visit the University every year to read and to meet our students. Recent visitors include Camille Dungy, Manuel Gonzales, Aaron Hamburger, Fonda Lee, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Srikanth Reddy, Cedar Sigo, Justin Torres, JJ Amaworo Wilson, and Robert Wrigley.
MFA in creative writing application and degree requirements
Application deadline: December 15 (Fall enrollment)
Applicants to the MFA program in creative writing must have a bachelor's degree or Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree from an accredited university, school, or college and a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0. Applicants need not have received their previous degree in English, but all applicants must demonstrate readiness to engage in graduate-level scholarship in English.
Candidates will be accepted for fall semester admission only and must submit applications by the January 15 deadline. Applicants are required to submit for Department of English graduate committee approval:
- A creative writing sample of 30 pages in fiction or 10 pages in poetry, demonstrating the student's strongest work in the genre of application
- A scholarly writing sample approximately 15 pages in length, demonstrating readiness for graduate study in English
- A 2-3 page statement of intent, including declaration of genre of study
- Official transcripts
- Three letters of recommendation
Ready to get started?
You can connect with the Department of English or, if you are ready to begin your journey at the University, you can apply now.
Teaching assistant positions also are available to MFA in creative writring students on a competitive basis. Teaching assistants in the Department of English receive an annual stipend, health insurance and a tuition waiver. Teaching assistants teach three courses per year (2/1 or 1/2 depending on departmental needs), typically in the Core Writing program. New applicants to the English Graduate Program are automatically considered for a teaching assistantship when they apply for admission, unless the applicant specifies they do not wish to be considered. No separate application is needed.
Time limit
All requirements must be satisfied during the six calendar years immediately preceding the granting of the degree.
Advisory committee
During the second year and consulting with the director of graduate studies, MFA in creative writing candidates must choose one Department of English creative writing faculty member to serve as MFA committee chair and advisor, two additional department faculty (one from creative writing and one outside the student's declared course of study) to serve as committee members, and a fourth committee member from outside the Department of English chosen in consultation with the committee chair.
Residence
Students are strongly encouraged to complete their degree within six semesters. All MFA candidates must enroll in a minimum of six credits per semester during their first five semesters in the program and maintain graduate standing thereafter. It is assumed that students in their fifth and sixth semesters will be completing their thesis projects and will likely be registered only for thesis credits and the comprehensive exam.
Continuous registration
Graduate School regulations require graduate students to maintain continuous registration of at least three credit hours per semester (summers excluded) to remain active.
Total credits
The MFA requires 48 credits, all of which must be taken at the graduate (700) level.
Transfer credits
Students will only be allowed to transfer credits from previous graduate courses in exceptional circumstances, to be determined by the Department of English MFA committee and director of graduate studies. In most circumstances, no more than three graduate classes applicable to the approved program of study may be accepted from graduate courses taken at another institution and/or the University of Nevada, Reno. These courses must have been completed within the six-year time limit for the MFA degree and must be approved to count toward the degree by the MFA committee, the director of graduate studies and the Graduate School. No previous writing workshops will count for transfer credit.
Seminar requirement
MFA students are required to take all courses at the 700 level or above, with the exception of electives taken outside of the Department of English.
Comprehensive examination (written)
In order to register for 795 (the comprehensive exam), a student must have met the following requirements:
- Filed a completed program of study with the Graduate School
- Completed five semesters of study toward the degree
- Met with the student's committee chair to work out plans for completing the written and oral portions of the exams
- Returned the "approval to register for comprehensive exams" form completed to the Department of English office before the end of registration
Working closely with his or her advisory committee, at the beginning of their second year of study, the student will prepare a reading list of 30 works. As soon as is feasible, the student will turn in an annotated bibliography of this reading list to his or her committee. Before the end of his or her third year of study, the student will take a one-day written examination, prepared by the committee, focusing on ideas and concepts represented by the student's reading list and annotations. After the student has passed the written exam, the advisory committee will conduct an oral exam, not to last more than an hour and a half.
Thesis
During their last semester of study, an MFA candidate must complete and defend a thesis: a book-length work of fiction or poetry of publishable quality, written and revised over the course of the student's studies. The student will plan and draft the thesis under the supervision of their thesis committee and chair. Before the end of the third year of study (by which time the student shall have registered for/completed 13 credits of thesis study), students will present a polished draft of the thesis to their committee for review, then (shortly after completing the comprehensive examination) defend the completed thesis before the full committee. The committee will then vote according to Department of English bylaws whether to confer the MFA degree.
Graduation
To graduate in any given semester, the student must file an application for graduation by the dates specified for that semester in the University catalog and meet that semester's deadlines for submission of the notice of completion and (if on the thesis plan) the final copy of the thesis to the Graduate School. Students should be aware that graduation application dates at the University of Nevada, Reno are unusually early: the deadline is generally eight weeks prior to graduation. MFA candidates may be hooded during graduation, but must meet all notice of completion deadlines listed for MFA candidates in order to do so.
Paperwork
The student is responsible for knowing the degree requirements and for submitting all Graduate School forms on time. Early in their graduate careers, students should become familiar with the most important forms: the program of study, the notice of completion and the application for graduation. Most Graduate School forms are available online. The application for graduation is available on the Graduate School's website.
Please review the MFA creative writing checklist of degree requirements.
First year
Fall
- Read degree requirements, general and MFA-specific, on English website and Graduate School website
- Read the Graduate School Survival Handbook on the Graduate School website
- Meet twice with faculty mentor
- Meet and talk with faculty who share your interests, even if you’re not taking classes with them
- Submit transfer credit evaluation form (if applicable) to Director of Graduate Studies
- In consultation with faculty mentor, plan approach to fulfill MFA requirements
Spring
- If you do not have a teaching assistantship but wish to, apply (or reapply) for the teaching assistantship by the deadline
- Meet with faculty mentor to strategize the creation of a committee and reading list
- Attend AWP conference in April; seek out other venues for networking and professionalization
- Begin submitting work for publication, if you have not already and continue to do so throughout your time in the program
Summer
- Consider doing a summer internship or volunteer work
- Begin to think about the shape of your thesis and whom you might want to chair and sit on your committee
Second year
Fall
- Choose a committee chair
- In consultation with chair, establish the rest of your committee
- In consultation with chair, establish reading list for comprehensive examination and plan for summer work to develop and focus plans for the thesis
Spring
- Take an interdepartmental elective in a field related to your literary interests or the subject of your thesis
- In consultation with committee chair and Director of Graduate Studies, prepare program of study form and file it with Graduate School
- In consultation with committee chair, prepare thesis prospectus and submit it to full committee for approval
Summer
- Read, or reread, the texts on your list
- Begin work on annotated bibliography
- Consider and begin to research longer-term goals (more graduate school versus immediate job search, publishing goals, etc.)
- Begin writing/compiling/revising thesis
Third year
Fall
- Meet with chair early to discuss progress toward degree
- Continue work on thesis
- Prepare for and take comprehensive exam
- Apply to graduate schools with early deadlines (if applicable)
- Finish course work
Spring
- Complete and submit thesis
- Apply to graduate schools and/or jobs
- Submit application for graduation early
- Defend thesis
- File notice of completion by Graduate School deadline
Note: A teaching assistantship in the MFA program may be held for a maximum of three years. The MFA degree must be completed within six years from the time you first earn graduate credits that you apply toward the degree. This timeline represents a very general model for your progress toward the degree. The key is to be aware of what you’re doing, keep medium and long-range goals in mind and consult frequently with your mentor/chair.
