Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing
About the M.F.A. in Creative Writing
- Personal attention in small workshops
- Low-residency, using technology to build a dynamic online writing community
- Study abroad residency in Edinburgh, Scotland, or other locations such as Umbria, Italy
- Manuscript requirement and publication plan
Arcadia University’s low-residency M.F.A. program in Creative Writing, the only one of its kind in the Philadelphia area, is distinctive in that it incorporates both a dynamic online environment and a study abroad experience. The course emphasizes online workshops; personal attention from faculty; studying abroad, with a residency in Edinburgh, Scotland; and the preparation of both a book-length manuscript and a plan to publish it.
Arcadia’s experienced and award-winning faculty help to prepare each student for a career in writing and in teaching the craft at the college level.
Because this is a low-residency program and students take between six and nine credits each term, each participant is able to develop much of his or her own schedule and maintain a full-time professional life outside school.
Program Highlights
- Online Workshops—In Arcadia’s program, students participate in weekly workshops conducted online and led by the faculty, as opposed to many low-residency creative writing programs in which students have infrequent contact with their peers and instructors. Arcadia utilizes Blackboard software for these discussions, which requires only that the students have a consistent Internet connection. There are no extra programs to buy or download.
- Personal Attention—In addition to the online workshops, Arcadia’s program utilizes technology to allow consistent one-on-one contact between the students and the faculty. Through the use of e-mail, instant messaging, and voice chat programs such as Skype, students are never out of touch with their faculty advisers.
Study Abroad—A global perspective is an important facet of writing. Therefore, each student spends a residency abroad at the start of the second year of the program. That residency is in Edinburgh, Scotland, and additional locations such as Umbria, Italy, may be available.- Manuscript and Publishing—At the end of the program, each student submits a book-length manuscript in his or her genre and works with his or her faculty adviser to develop a plan for publication.
