Is an MFA in Creative Writing Worth it?
I just earned an MFA in Creative Writing from The University of New Orleans. When I was in the midst of the application process, I did a lot of research on whether or not an MFA is worth it. I mulled the decision over for months before I applied. Now that I’ve had three years of firsthand experience in an MFA program I can tell you this; is an MFA worth it? It depends. No one needs an MFA, but you will become a better writer as a result.
There were several reasons I decided to pursue an MFA. I like the structure that school provides and the timing was right. First, a bit of back story. In 2013 I went back to school to finish my bachelor’s (I got two!) after dropping out 10 years earlier. Prior to going back to school, I was a retail manager and started a side hustle as a freelance writer. I was getting a steady clip of writing jobs, hence why I decided to finish my degree(s) in English and Film & Theater to see how far I could take my tiny writing career. I graduated in 2015 and started working for my local newspaper as a features writer. I worked there for a year and half but the newspaper didn’t have a full-time staff position available, at least for the type of reporting I wanted to do (arts & entertainment). Growing frustrated by the lack of job opportunities (I didn’t want to go back to working retail or waiting tables), I decided to apply for MFA programs.
I was accepted in two of the three programs I applied for and ended up choosing UNO for a few reasons: it’s affordable, I enjoyed my undergrad experience there, and I preferred to go to class in person vs. a low residency program. Low-res programs are completed partially or entirely online, which gives you the opportunity to attend a school and not have to move. I wasn’t in the position to move out of New Orleans, which is why I considered going low-res. I chose UNO’s full-res program because I prefer in person interactions with faculty and students. During my last semester in the program, we pivoted to all Zoom meetings due to Covid-19. I should note that the quality of critiques remained the same; it also helped that I had already built a rapport with my classmates.
So, what have I gained from my experience in the program? Plenty. For starters, I was immersed in a writing community. I took a writing workshop in my genre (nonfiction) almost every semester and I took three workshops out of genre: fiction and screenwriting twice. I also did an internship with TriPod, took a craft class, two literature classes, and an independent study for a total of 45 credit hours.
If you’re a procrastinator, the program forces you to write. I need a deadline to get stuff done, so the structure of class really helped. In most workshops, you’ll write three short stories/essays per semester and be critiqued on them. As my good friend and fellow UNO MFAer Nora Seilheimer put it, when you start the program you’re grasping at those critiques, trying to figure out what works and what doesn’t in your essay. By the end of the program, you can anticipate the feedback you’re going to receive.
Another cool thing about having an MFA is that it’s a terminal degree. I didn’t enter the program with teaching aspirations but it’s an option, which is nice.
So is an MFA worth it? I think so, but don’t get yourself into serious debt for one. I was fortunate enough to land a graduate assistant position with one of my school’s study abroad programs, which came with a tuition waiver and stipend. I’m graduating debt free, which is awesome. And I’m definitely coming out of the program as a stronger writer and I can self-identify problems in my work better.
I’ve also met some great writers and will most likely stay in touch with many of them. Ultimately, though, the onus is on me. There is no clear cut career path post-MFA. Some students go on to write for newspapers and magazines, others try to get a book published. Many, many others will give up writing at some point. It’s up to me to keep this momentum going, to keep creating work and trying to get published, no matter how exhausting that is. And if I want to take a break from getting rejection letters? That’s cool too.
Could I have advanced my writing practice on my own? Sure. There are plenty of good writers that get book deals, columns, etc… that don’t have an MFA. You can also get that writing community by going to literary events, attending workshop classes outside of a college setting, or even get hooked up with an independant critique group. All of that takes a self-motivated person and resources. I chose to go the MFA route, but that doesn’t mean you have to in order to fulfill your own writing goals and achieve publishing success.
