Graduate Studies @ MSU Moorhead

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Master of Fine Arts
in Creative Writing

Program Description

The Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Creative Writing is a degree for students who wish to improve their creative writing abilities on the graduate level. The program is designed to be completed on either a full-time or a part-time basis. Students usually complete the program in two and a half to five years. The MFA is a terminal degree. Most of the student’s work will be in actual writing courses, in tutorials, and in thesis preparation.

Learning Outcomes

All students will demonstrate an ability to create work of publishable quality in a specific genre, either fiction, poetry, scriptwriting, or creative non-fiction.
Students will demonstrate advanced comprehension of the history and conventions of their chosen genre.
Those students chosen as Teaching Assistants will develop teaching skills.
Students working with New Rivers Press will demonstrate knowledge of the publishing process.

Admission Requirements

Application Deadline: March 1 for Fall Semester and November 1 for Spring Semester

Baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited institution.

GPA of 2.75, or at least 3.25 for the last 30 semester credits of graded course work.

Completed Application for Admission to Graduate Study form.

Undergraduate and other transcripts sent directly from the institution to the Graduate Studies Office.

Non-refundable $20.00 fee for first-time applicants to Minnesota State University Moorhead.

Submission of a representative manuscript sample of creative work: 20-25 pages of original writing in fiction, 10-20 pages of poetry, or a similar amount of material in the student’s preferred genre.

Submission of three letters of reference from those who can speak to the student's potential and/or experience as a creative writer, and a cover letter summarizing the student's background, primary interests in the program, and hoped-for plan of study. available online.

Gifted writers may study in the program as special students without declaring specific degree intentions.

Applicants who earned their undergraduate degrees more than 10 years before the time of application must be interviewed by the MFA Program Coordinator or his/her designee before admission. The Graduate Record Examination is not required for admission.

Application deadlines are March 1 for Fall Semester and November 1 for Spring Semester.

Degree Requirements

A minimum of 42 semester credits.
At least half of the total 42 semester credits required for the degree must be taken at Minnesota State University Moorhead. Transferred credit must have received a grade no lower than a B-, and must have been completed within seven years previous to admission.
3.0 grade point average required for courses submitted for the degree. No grade lower than a B- is acceptable in the program.
Thesis.
Oral discourse presented to the student’s thesis committee following completion of the thesis and based on the thesis and on the student’s program, and a public reading by the student from his or her thesis work.

Detailed information on these requirements and department policies and procedures may be obtained from the MFA Graduate Program Coordinator. Further information on degree requirements may be found in General Degree Requirements.

MFA Degree in Creative Writing

Core Requirements (4 Credits)
Students must earn at least four credits in MFA 699.
MFA 699 Thesis (4) Requirements (18-21 Credits)

Students must earn a minimum of 18 credits in MFA 688. All students must meet all stated minimum credit totals of the various degree components and earn a total of forty-two credits. With the approval of instructors and graduate coordinator, up to six credits of MFA 669, MFA 677, and MFA 688 may be taken on a pass/fail basis.

MFA 688 Workshop (3) Electives (17-20 Credits)
Students need to earn at least 17 credits in graduate-level literature and/or seminar courses. These courses are to be chosen in close consultation with a faculty advisor. Graduate level courses in MFA, English or other graduate level courses may be used to satisfy this requirement with the permission of the Coordinator of the Creative Writing program and the student's MFA advisor. With the approval of the Coordinator and an internship committee composed of MFA faculty, candidates who wish to strengthen a professional expertise may substitute MFA 669 for part of the above elective credits.

MFA 669 MFA Internship-Writing (1-6)

Request Additional Information

enger@mnstate.edu

Graduate Studies Office
Minnesota State University Moorhead
1104 7th Ave. S.
Moorhead, MN 56563
(218) 477-2344
e-mail: graduate@mnstate.edu

Application for Admission to Graduate Study

MFA Graduate Program Webpage

Graduate Studies

Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing