Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing
SUMMER 2012 Courses for Writers:
Creative Writing Institute
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.
- Online Community—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 community, 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.
Important Dates for Applicants
Admission deadlines: In order to encourage community and continuity among the cohorts, each student must start in August with the first residency.
Application deadline for admission in August 2012 (Class of 2014): The Priority Deadline is March 1. Those who apply after March 1 priority application deadline will still be reviewed based on availability of space in the class. We're presently accepting applications for 2012.
Faculty
Visiting Writers
