Page |1
MASTER OF FINE ARTS DEGREE
IN CREATIVE WRITING
Proposed by CALL Department faculty Jack Lucido, M.F.A.; Terry Schliesman, Ph.D.; Mark Todd,
Ph.D.; Frank Venturo, Ph.D.; with outside consultants Barbara Chepaitis, Ph.D.; David J. Rothman,
Ph.D.; and Sam Scinta, Fulcrum Books Publishing
for Western State College of Colorado
11/17/2008
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
The CALL faculty propose a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing at Western State College.
The program would use a “low-residency” format – i.e., a program that requires a student to
engage in studies in two ways:
1) on-campus intensive seminars and workshops for two weeks during three consecutive
summers, and
2) a plan of non-residency study requiring four academic semesters, during each of which
the student works one-to-one with respective faculty mentors.
When fully phased in, the MFA would offer students three concentrations and a certificate:
• Commercial Writing,
• Poetry with an Emphasis in Formal Verse,
• Screenwriting, and
• Publishing Certificate (Phase II).
Students may also elect to study two of these concentrations by increasing the duration of their
program to six semesters and a fourth summer residency. The first three concentrations are
advanced extensions of the respective undergraduate curricula already in place.
The fourth offering, the Publishing Certificate, will develop through CALL’s Organizational
Communication undergraduate curriculum as a “3+2” program (see explanation under certificate
description, page 13) in cooperation with Denver-based Fulcrum Publishing.
Page |2
Contents
1. Program Overview
.............................
1
2. Concentration in Commercial Writing
.............................
3
3. Concentration in Poetry
.............................
6
4. Concentration in Screenwriting
.............................
11
5. Certificate in Publishing
.............................
14
6. Application Procedures
.............................
15
7. Connection to Western’s Mission
.............................
16
8. Delivery Method
.............................
17
9. Research into Similar Programs
.............................
19
10. Market and Demand
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
11. Faculty Needs
.............................
22
12. Budget for Three Years
.............................
27
13. Appendices
.............................
29ff
14. Syllabi
.............................
(attached)
Page |3
M.F.A. vs. M.A.
CALL faculty are proposing an M.F.A. rather than an M.A. because the former represents the
degree track most often associated with serious post-baccalaureate studies in creative writing.
Worth noting is that the “fine arts” degree differs from graduate research degrees in that the
M.F.A. culminates in a project of a creative nature rather than a scholarly research product.
Nonetheless, most creative writing M.F.A.s include intensive reading and critical analysis in
coursework and, in some instances, as a part of the final creative capstone thesis. Our proposed
program follows such a regimen. The M.F.A. also differs from the M.A. degree in that it
represents a terminal degree of 60 hours, which is equally in keeping with programs and tracks
of study for accredited schools in graduate creative writing throughout the country.
Descriptions of the individual concentrations are as follows:
Concentration in Commercial Writing
Total Credits for the MFA in Commercial Writing
Three summer residencies @3 hours/summer = 9 credits
Four academic semesters @12 hours/term = 48 credits
Creative Capstone Thesis = 3 credits
Total Credits: 60
This MFA concentration will include instruction in writing for commercial fiction forms such as
science fiction, the mystery, narrative nonfiction, and mainstream commercial fiction. It will
include short and long written forms, and exploration of forms for alternative media such as
public performance, audio, and internet media.
Residency Component
Summer courses are front-loaded – that is, these courses require students to prepare for the
intensive residency experience by completing pre-assigned reading lists as well as preparing
advanced assignments to maximize the time for discussion and qualitative analysis during the
course of studies on campus.
In the first and second summer residencies, candidates will take one credit each summer of
CRWR 600 learning or updating Blackboard and Wimba tools mastery, attend faculty and
student readings, and meet with non-residency mentors. The third summer candidates will earn
one credit attending and participating in critiques and readings for cohorts attending their first
and second summers.
FIRST TWO-WEEK SUMMER SESSION:
CRWR 600 – Summer Orientation (1 credit, to be repeated with different emphasis three times)
The first summer residenciy, candidates will take one credit learning Blackboard and Wimba
tools mastery, attending faculty and student readings, and meeting with non-residency mentors.
COMM 601 – Patterns and Paradigms for Commercial Writing (2 credits)
In the first two-week session students will explore material that can be used as the basis for their
own writing. Work will begin with chosen folktales and myths as archetypal basis for narrative
Page |4
pattern and character, translating those patterns into contemporary terms and connecting them to
personal memory and experience.
Students will take part in activities designed to generate material for their writing, and exercises
to form a core foundation for generative writing practices. Work will be both performative and
written. Students will leave the session with the first draft or outline of a written work they can
refine during the year.
SECOND TWO-WEEK SUMMER SESSION:
CRWR 600 – Summer Orientation (1 credit, to be repeated three times)
The second summer residency, candidates will take one credit updating and deepening mastery
of the Blackboard and Wimba tools, attending faculty and student readings, and meeting with
non-residency mentors.
COMM 602 – Workshop and Translation (2 credits)
Students will bring current projects for workshop within the group. This session will move
between workshop activities and skill building in areas that increase the writer’s capacity to work
with flexibility in a challenging writing market. These areas will include: public
reading/telling, translation of ideas from one form to another, and responding creatively to
deadlines and assignments. Alternative media for storymaking such as the internet, podiobooks,
writing for radio or games, etcetera, will be part of the discussion. An initial exploration of
market considerations will be incorporated within the session.
THIRD TWO-WEEK SUMMER SESSION:
CRWR 600 – Summer Orientation (1 credit)
This final summer term, Commercial Writing Concentration students will earn the third
residency credit by attending and participating in readings as well as critique readings by cohorts
attending their first and second summers.
COMM 603 – Specific Forms (2 credits)
Students will bring a chosen work within a specific commercial form such as science fiction,
narrative nonfiction, the mystery, historical fiction, other mainstream fiction, etc. The two-week
session will include workshopping within the group and a continuation of building generative
writing practices. This session will also explore the kinds of writing necessary to sell your work.
Query letters, writing for grants and fellowships, writing synopses and pitches are all important
skills, which will be practiced in this session. We will also begin an initial exploration of
writing for post-publication promotion, in a variety of ways.
Non-Residency Mentoring Component:
This component of the MFA concentration pairs a student with a one-to-one writing faculty
mentor for each topic below. Students can expect spending a minimum of 25-30 hours per week
to complete writing assignments, for which mentors will provide weekly feedback using
Blackboard and Wimba tools. Students will also participate in threaded synchronous and
asynchronous online Voice and Discussion Boards during each term with other students and
mentors. Students will earn 12 credits each semester for this work (six credits for each mentored
Page |5
topic). (See Appendix B for a more thorough description of the protocols and requirements for
mentored tutorials.)
Distributed, as appropriate, among required and elective courses is extensive reading of
canonical and contemporary works of both literary and critical value to M.F.A. candidates. These
tutorial classes also include rigorous, regular exchanges between students and faculty mentors.
(For a description of the protocols and procedures for such exchanges, see Appendix B, The
Association of Writers and Writing Programs’ report, “Hallmarks of an Effective LowResidency MFA Program in Creative Writing,” pages 5-8.)
FIRST NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER
COMM 611 – “What Do You Know?” (6 credits)
Writers often say, “It’s all material.” But what is ‘it’ and where does ‘it’ come from? This
course will: 1) help students develop personal skills of observation and reflection that will
enable them to be aware of the material around them, ready for use in their writing; 2) teach
students to grow areas of personal interest into writing material; and 3) provide assignments that
strengthen research skills in areas related to the student’s writing.
COMM 612 – The Truth and a Good Story: Research for the Creative Writer (6 credits)
Fictions writers do it all the time, even for works of fantasy. This course will provide practice in
research as it is applicable to works of commercial fiction in the genres of science fiction,
historical romance, the mystery, and narrative nonfiction. Students will also choose a specific
area of interest to research on their own.
SECOND NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER
COMM 621 – Poetics: Focused Genre Studies (6 credits)
[A sample focus for this topic would be “Sci-Fi and Mystery,” with the description that follows.
The expertise of the mentor would dictate other corresponding topics.]
Students will examine, analyze and discuss the poetics of authors from the commercial genres of
Mystery and Science Fiction, connecting those poetics to their own, and experimenting with
working within their styles. Authors could include: Daphne Du Maurier, Rex Stout, Ellis Peters,
Dorothy Sayers, Douglas Adams, Zenna Henderson, and more. Specific reading list will be
compiled after initial discussion with the student regarding individual interests.
COMM 622 – Poetics: Narrative Nonfiction (6 credits)
Students will examine, analyze and discuss the poetics of authors from the realm of narrative
nonfiction, with a mind to seeing the possibilities of this genre for their own work. Authors
could include Jon Katz, Will Storr, Barry Lopez, Terry Williams and more. Specific reading list
will be compiled after initial discussion with the student regarding their interests.
THIRD NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER
COMM 631 – Writing for the World, from the Spirit (6 credits)
Students will examine, analyze and discuss texts of world mythology and religion as a basis of
archetypes for commercial writing. The course will include an in depth spiritual autobiography,
as it connects to their writing interests.
COMM 632 – Writing in/on Air (6 credits)
This course will explore the possibilities, challenges, and opportunities of writing for the ear
Page |6
through the world of told stories and podiobooks. The class will provide practice and practical
application of these venues.
FOURTH NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER
COMM 641 – Making Connections (6 credits)
New writers often make connections with editors, agents, and other writers through attending
writing conventions, joining on-line groups, and more. This course will be a guided exploration
of taking work into the world, preparing students to make the most of these channels for
publication.
COMM 642 – Selected Topics (6 credits)
Students will work with the mentor to research, develop, and structure their own particular area
of interest into a written work in preparation for the final project.
FINAL SUMMER INTENSIVE
COMM 699 -- Capstone (3 credits)
Working with a mentor and responding to mentor readings and workshop suggestions, students
will complete one long work of fiction or narrative nonfiction in the form of prose or script, and
begin the process of seeking publication or production of the finished work.
****
Students may substitute one of the third-semester topics to take a course in another track.
Students must complete a creative thesis project that includes both writing samples and formal
analysis papers. They must also take a comprehensive exam over topics of craft and commercial
industry.
Students pursuing this concentration as a second area of emphasis must earn 32 credit hours
within the concentration as follows: 611, 621, one of the summer 600 intensives (601, 602, or
603), 699, and 21 additional credit hours determined in consultation with this concentration’s
coordinator. Students may count 611 if taken already to fulfill the out-of-concentration course
required by the primary area of emphasis.
Concentration in Poetry with an Emphasis in Formal Verse
Total Credits for the MFA in Poetry with Emphasis in Formal Verse
Three summer residencies @3 hours/summer = 9 credits
Four academic semesters @12 hours/term = 48 credits
Creative Capstone Thesis = 3 credits
Total Credits: 60
The last several decades in the United States have seen a resurgent interest among poets and
critics in formal verse, meaning compositional techniques that emphasize metrical forms, rhyme,
overtly patterned stanza forms and poetic genres that use on such forms (verse drama, mock epic,
verse novels, etc.). While the interest in form is an ancient one in poetry – indeed poetry begins
with it – it had been eclipsed in recent years in America by tremendous interest in free, or
unpatterned poetry. Now, however, there are again journals that either emphasize formal verse,
Page |7
sometimes referred to as “The New Formalism” or “Expansive Poetry,” and others that are
increasingly friendly to it. There is a major conference devoted to formal poetry each June, at
West Chester University in Pennsylvania, which has become one of the most popular poetry
conferences in America with hundreds of students in attendance each year. As yet, however,
there is not a single MFA program in the entire English speaking world that focuses on and
rigorously teaches metrical forms. Western’s MFA track in Formal Poetry will therefore be a
unique program. It will also meet a substantial need in the field and attract students and national
and even international attention to the institution. Further, it will provide students with a
rigorous, exciting and meaningful curriculum.
The concentration will assume the same structure as the other concentrations in the MFA:
1) Three summer sessions on campus, each two weeks long, awarding 3 credits for each
session, plus a 3-credit minimum independent project due the final summer. This
segment of the program therefore confers 12 credits over three summers.
2) Four semesters (two academic years) of non-residency education, providing 12 credits
each, for a total of 48 credits of non-residency mentoring in a rigorous program of study.
Parts 1 and 2 total at least 60 credits for the degree over a sequence that runs a little over two
calendar years.
Program Structure and Courses
The Concentration in Poetry with an Emphasis in Formal Verse will be a rigorous program in
which students must achieve demonstrable mastery of a wide range of poetic forms and
techniques along with acquiring historical and analytical knowledge about them. Students who
complete the program will also be required to demonstrate their readiness to participate fully in
the literary world. Accordingly the Concentration also requires courses in public speaking,
historical subjects necessary to a deeper understanding of poetry, and even the writing of
relevant prose (book reviews; metrical analysis; historical investigation; etc.).
Courses include required sequences and electives for more advanced students. Elective courses
will vary somewhat from year to year depending on instructors’ background and interests and
student interest.
Graduation requirements will include:
Successful completion of all coursework;
Presentation and evaluation of a full manuscript of poetry;
A passing grade on a comprehensive exam on formal poetry and poetics;
Successful presentation of a public reading; and
Presentation of a prose portfolio that includes book reviews, close readings, and historical
essays.
Core Required Courses
Page |8
Summer courses are front-loaded – that is, these courses require students to prepare for the
intensive residency experience by completing pre-assigned reading lists as well as preparing
advanced assignments to maximize the time for discussion and qualitative analysis during the
course of studies on campus.
In the first and second summer residencies, candidates will take one credit each summer of
CRWR 600 learning or updating Blackboard and Wimba tools mastery, attend faculty and
student readings, and meet with non-residency mentors. The third summer candidates will earn
one credit attending and participating in critiques and readings for cohorts attending their first
and second summers.
FIRST TWO-WEEK SUMMER RESIDENCY
CRWR 600 – Summer Orientation (1 credit, to be repeated three times)
The second summer residency, candidates will take one credit updating and deepening mastery
of the Blackboard and Wimba tools, attending faculty and student readings, and meeting with
non-residency mentors.
POET 601 – Scansion Immersion (2 credits)
A “boot camp” to (re)acquaint poets with prosody – how to make meter and rhythm work in the
poetic line as well as how to discern that structure in the works of others.
SECOND TWO-WEEK SUMMER RESIDENCY
CRWR 600 – Summer Orientation (1 credit, to be repeated with different emphasis three times)
The first summer residenciy, candidates will take one credit learning Blackboard and Wimba
tools mastery, attending faculty and student readings, and meeting with non-residency mentors.
POET 602 – Public Speaking: (2 credits)
A summer-session course that focuses on the nuts and bolts of public speaking, particularly as it
applies to the performance of poetry, delivery of lectures, and participation in panels. Students
will enhance understanding of the craft of using their voices and their physical presence to
deliver creative, critical and pedagogical work orally to the public, and how to participate in
public conversations with the greatest possible skill and grace.
THIRD TWO-WEEK SUMMER RESIDENCY
CRWR 600 – Summer Orientation (1 credit)
This final summer term, Poetry Concentration students will earn the third residency credit by
attending and participating in readings as well as critique readings by cohorts attending their first
and second summers.
POET 603 – Poetry and Music: (2 credits)
Co-taught by a poet and musician, this course explores some of the complex relations between
these two arts, from theoretical discussion to the practical aspects of writing everything from
song lyrics to choral odes to opera libretti.
Page |9
POET 699 -- Capstone (3 credits)
Working with a mentor and responding to mentor readings and workshop suggestions, students
will complete a longer collection of poetry, and begin the process of seeking publication or
production of the finished work.
FIRST NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER REQUIREMENTS
Distributed, as appropriate, among required and elective courses is extensive reading of
canonical and contemporary works of both literary and critical value to M.F.A. candidates. These
tutorial classes also include rigorous, regular exchanges between students and faculty mentors.
(For a description of the protocols and procedures for such exchanges, see Appendix B, The
Association of Writers and Writing Programs’ report, “Hallmarks of an Effective LowResidency MFA Program in Creative Writing,” pages 5-8.)
[Metrical Tradition and History of Versification I & II form the core of the curriculum.]
POET 611 – Metrical Traditions & Versification I (6 credits)
The first half of a full-year course that traces the development of the metrical tradition in English
poetry from the beginning to the present. Students read poems in all the major forms (AngloSaxon Strong Stress Meter, the ballad, classical imitations, blank verse, the sonnet, iambic
tetrameter, etc.) along with historical and theoretical commentary. Students also imitate the
forms and scan their own work and that of others. Students will also trace the development of
theories of versification and prosody in English. Students read a wide range of works, many of
them by poets, in which they describe their craft and that of others, and they compare theories of
and approaches to metrical poetry. In this course students are expected to produce a wide range
of short essays on various traditions of versification, along with at least one substantial research
paper.
POET 612 – History of the English Language and Teaching Poetry (6 credits)
Poets work with language and need to understand its past as deeply as composers understand the
history of music or artists the history of art. In this course students study the historical
development of English. Many graduates of MFA programs themselves become teachers. This
course will additionally review a wide range of techniques and materials available to teachers of
poetry.
SECOND NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER REQUIREMENTS
POET 621 – Metrical Traditions & Versification II (6 credits)
A second half of a full-year course that emphasizes advanced topics in metrical composition, e.g.
stanza forms, longer forms and sequences, narrative forms, nonce forms (including free verse
forms). Students not only practice the forms, but read and scan them along with delving deeply
into the history, criticism and theory. The course also selects several major traditions in verse
theory and explores them in depth, e.g., linguistic theories of verse; structuralist theories;
relations between verse and music; attempt to imitate classical forms in modern languages; etc.
P a g e | 10
POET 622 – Book Reviewing and Translation (6 credits)
The poetry world needs good reviewers and critics as much as it needs good poets. A significant
number of the best poets have always written reviews and criticism. In this course, students read
the best reviews and criticism of the past and present, and practice writing such pieces
themselves. Students will also work to understand translating poetry. Virtually every form of
English poetry (including free verse) grows out of attempts to imitate forms in other languages
and entered English at first via translation. In this course students study and compare
translations, read theories of translation and attempt translations of their own.
THIRD NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER REQUIREMENTS
POET 631 – Narrative Forms (6 credits)
Students examine, analyze, discuss and write in the narrative genres and modes of poetry, from
the ballad to the epic and novel in verse.
POET 632 – The Satirical Tradition and Dramatic Verse (6 credits)
This course examines, analyzes, discusses and writes in all the modes of comic verse, including
all the modes of satire (Menippean, Horatian, parodic), to verse-based comic approaches such as
light verse, doggerel, children’s verse, and more. At the same time, much of the world’s greatest
drama has been written in verse and there is a movement to rejuvenate this tradition. This course
will also explore dramatic techniques of verse from ancient Greece through the Renaissance,
through modern writers such as T. S. Eliot and up to the present.
FOURTH NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER REQUIREMENT
POET 641 – Advanced Genres in Particular Forms (6 credits)
This course will be offered based on student and instructor interest. The focus will be on
significant forms, group of forms, or poetic genres. Students will read a wide range of examples
along with criticism and theory, and also compose their own work in these forms and genres.
Topics may include the following: The Sonnet and Sonnet Sequences, French and Italian Forms
(ballade, villanelle, sestina, rondeau, terza rima, etc.), Classical Forms (Latin and Greek), The
Ode, Blank Verse, Elegy and Pastoral , Non-European Forms (haiku, ghazal, tanka, Welsh
forms, etc.), Free Verse Forms (Whitmanian versicles, syllabics, loose iambics, nonce forms,
etc.)
POET 642 – Rhyme (6 credits)
An exploration of the theory and practice of rhyming, including all variations on rhyme, from
alliteration (“head rhyme”) to perfect rhyme or rhyme riche, slant rhyme, etc. Students will
practice rhyming forms and consider aesthetic, linguistic, and anthropological theories of rhyme.
At least 6 credits from introductory courses in one of the other tracks of the MFA (screenwriting
or commercial writing).
FINAL SUMMER INTENSIVE
P a g e | 11
POET 699 – Manuscript Capstone Project (3 credits)
In this course, taken independently and in preparation for the final summer intensive, students
work closely with a faculty member/mentor to prepare a book-length manuscript for submission
for the degree.
****
Students pursuing this concentration as a second area of emphasis must earn 32 credit hours
within the concentration as follows: 611, 621, one of the summer 600 intensives (601, 602, or
603), 699, and 21 additional credit hours determined in consultation with this concentration’s
coordinator. Students may count 611 if taken already to fulfill the out-of-concentration course
required by the primary area of emphasis.
Concentration in Screenwriting
Total Credits for the MFA in Screenwriting
Three summer residencies @3 hours/summer = 9 credits
Four academic semesters @12 hours/term = 48 credits
Creative Capstone Thesis = 3 credits
Total Credits: 60
This MFA program will include instruction in the history and analysis of classical and
contemporary screenwriting texts and the resulting films. It will include instruction in writing
the visual narrative, three-act structure, and four-act structure, character development, thematic
development, conflict, genre, story arc, dialogue, and voice-over. Though the Hollywood or
independent feature-length screenplay is emphasized curriculum regarding television drama and
situation comedy writing is included. Curriculum for screenwriting contests, festivals, and
opportunities for marketing the MFA students’ work will be included. A Masters Thesis Project
in the form of a 100-page feature-length screenplay must be completed as a part of the degree
requirements.
Residency Component
The first and second summer residencies, candidates will take one credit learning or updating
Blackboard and Wimba tools mastery, attending faculty and student readings, and meeting with
non-residency mentors.
FIRST TWO-WEEK SUMMER SESSION
Summer courses are front-loaded – that is, these courses require students to prepare for the
intensive residency experience by completing pre-assigned reading lists as well as preparing
advanced assignments to maximize the time for discussion and qualitative analysis during the
course of studies on campus.
In the first and second summer residencies, candidates will take one credit each summer of
CRWR 600 learning or updating Blackboard and Wimba tools mastery, attend faculty and
P a g e | 12
student readings, and meet with non-residency mentors. The third summer candidates will earn
one credit attending and participating in critiques and readings for cohorts attending their first
and second summers.
CRWR 600 – Summer Orientation (1 credit, to be repeated with different emphasis three times)
The first summer residenciy, candidates will take one credit learning Blackboard and Wimba
tools mastery, attending faculty and student readings, and meeting with non-residency mentors.
SCRN 601 – Film History and Analysis; the Visual Narrative (2 credits)
Classic and contemporary films will be explored from a screenwriting, story, and character
development perspective as well as analyses of theme and motif. Students will engage in writing
activities and exercises to develop a visual narrative style. All such writing will go towards
creating material to fuel the mentoring process in upcoming semesters. The main theme here is:
when possible show the story element; don’t have a character say it. Finally the prevailing threeand four-act screenplay structures will be explored.
SECOND TWO-WEEK SUMMER SESSION:
CRWR 600 – Summer Orientation (1 credit, to be repeated three times)
The second summer residency, candidates will take one credit updating and deepening mastery
of the Blackboard and Wimba tools, attending faculty and student readings, and meeting with
non-residency mentors.
SCRN 602 – Story, Conflict, Character, and Genre (2 credits)
Short screenplays and projects from the previous mentoring semesters will be shared and work
shopped. Story arc, elements of conflict, character development and arc will be explored. Film
genre choices and styles are emphasized here. Finally proposals for upcoming mentoring
semesters feature length screenplays are submitted and “pitched”.
THIRD TWO-WEEK SUMMER SESSION
CRWR 600 – Summer Orientation (1 credit)
This final summer term, Screenwriting Concentration students will earn the third residency credit
by attending and participating in readings as well as critique readings by cohorts attending their
first and second summers.
SCRN 603 – Competition, Representation, the “Option” (2 credits)
Mock or actual “pitch” sessions of the thesis screenplay are held. Screenwriting contests are
researched and entered. Writers Guild guidelines and application are explored. Agents, options
to produce, and independent film potential are explored.
Non-Residency Mentoring Component:
This component of the MFA concentration pairs a student with a one-to-one professional mentor
for each topic below. Students can expect to be spending a minimum of 25-30 hours per week to
complete writing assignments, for which mentors will provide weekly feedback using
Blackboard and Wimba tools. Students will also participate in threaded synchronous and
P a g e | 13
asynchronous online Voice and Discussion Boards during each term with other students and
mentors. Students will earn 12 credits each semester for this work (six credits for each mentored
topic) .
Distributed, as appropriate, among required and elective courses is extensive reading of
canonical and contemporary works of both literary and critical value to M.F.A. candidates. These
tutorial classes also include rigorous, regular exchanges between students and faculty mentors.
(For a description of the protocols and procedures for such exchanges, see Appendix B, The
Association of Writers and Writing Programs’ report, “Hallmarks of an Effective LowResidency MFA Program in Creative Writing,” pages 5-8.)
FIRST NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER
SCRN 611 – The narrative in picture form (6 credits)
Fifteen minute to half hour short scripts with little or no dialogue will be created. This is to
allow the student to develop an individual visual writing style for the large or small screen, one
where the images tell the story through character circumstance, setting and action not the spoken
word. Feature-length script ideas may emerge here but will not be proposed or developed yet.
SCRN 612 – Genre (6 credits)
Again a short comedy screenplay is written as is a high drama, and a literary adaptation to
include a period piece. Here the student is challenged to write filmic stories in three distinct
genre categories forcing a growth and flexibility to create meaning across a spectrum of setting,
time, and circumstance. Dialogue is now permitted but still de-emphasized in favor of a more
visual narrative.
SECOND NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER
SCRN 621 – The first feature-length screenplay of less than 90 pages (6 credits)
A thorough review of the existing works in the style and genre of the proposed piece is
completed. A thorough treatment is written. Character biographies are written and a complete
story outline is completed. The production is “pitched” to fellow students along with the mentor.
A first draft is written and critiqued.
SCRN 622 – Television drama and situation comedy 6 credits)
As above for the first feature screenplay, a thorough proposal for both is researched and written.
The result will be a complete “pitch” portfolio including a “pilot” episode teleplay completed for
both a television drama and a situation comedy.
THIRD NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER
SCRN 631 – The character voice-over (6 credits)
The works of noir directors such as Billy Wilder and Martin Scorsese are researched and studied
as well as Terrence Malick and others. Internal voice over, false voice over, and the pitfalls of
poor voice over will be pursued in scriptwriting projects. Voice over and character development
are emphasized here.
SCRN 632 – Pacing and tempo, chronology, flashback, flash-forward and montage (6 credits)
These techniques are now emphasized through exercises that may be parts of future student
works. Classic and contemporary films will be examined for these components to fuel students’
writing. All of this writing activity will be encouraged to go toward informing the final
screenplay project (the Masters Thesis Screenplay).
P a g e | 14
FOURTH NON-RESIDENCY SEMESTER
SCRN 641 – Masters Thesis Project I (6 credits)
A feature-length screenplay intended for Hollywood or independent production, is proposed
including a thorough review of the existing works, treatment, character biographies, and
complete story outline is generated. A first draft of no more than 120 pages will be written and
critiqued.
SCRN 642 – Masters Thesis Project II (6 credits)
The screenplay is completed. Several drafts are written and developed with the mentor. The
screenplay may not exceed 100 pages.
FINAL SUMMER INTENSIVE
SCRN 699 – Capstone: Masters Thesis Competition, Presentation (3 credits)
Final feature-length screenplay (MASTERS THESIS PROJECT) is due. A public reading of an
excerpt is performed. In lieu of a public reading a student may wish to self-produce a sequence
from or trailer for his or her screenplay.
****
Students may substitute one of the third-semester topics to explore a mentorship in another track.
In lieu of a public reading during the final summer intensive, a student may wish to self-produce
a sequence from or trailer for his or her screenplay. No comprehensive exam requirement.
Students pursuing this concentration as a second area of emphasis must earn 32 credit hours
within the concentration as follows: 611, 621, one of the summer 600 intensives (601, 602, or
603), 699, and 21 additional credit hours determined in consultation with this concentration’s
coordinator. Students may count 611 if taken already to fulfill the out-of-concentration course
required by the primary area of emphasis.
Certificate in Publishing
Total Credits for Certificate in Publishing
Two summer residencies @3 hours/summer = 6 credits
Two academic semesters @12 hours/term = 24 credits
Total Credits: 30
This component of our graduate program, which will be ready to consider for approval later this
academic year, takes the form of a certificate rather than a concentration. The Certificate in
Publishing not only demystifies practices and expectations of the publishing industry but also
gives certificate candidates the chance to participate in the process of creating an actual book for
an actual press, the proposed Western Press.
Outside consultant Sam Scinta, president of Fulcrum Books, which is based in Denver but with
affiliates on both East and West Coasts, has agreed to help us create and maintain the Western
Press.
P a g e | 15
This press will take the place of the literary review, Marginalia, which CALL has supported for
the past three years. Costs for generating an annual book are equivalent to producing an annual
literary review. With this proposed shift in focus, a number of undergraduate courses in both
COTH and English will be involved. Currently, ENG 445, Literary Magazine Production,
acquires, edits, and prepares the pre-press production for the current literary magazine. With the
phase-in of this certificate, that class will instead acquire and edit material for an alternate-year
literary anthology of regional authors. Alternating with the literary anthology will be a nonfiction
book by a regional author. In addition, the Communication and Theatre (COTH) undergraduate
degree emphasis in Organizational Communication will become integral to this certificate and
certain courses within Org Com will allow undergraduates to become involved in the production
of the Western Press book process as well, particularly in the arenas of business and marketing
the press’s products.
Both undergraduate English and COTH majors will be able to initiate advanced preparation for
the certificate through a "3+2" program of studies, which allows qualified undergraduates who
have completed coursework through their junior year (the "3" in "3+2" ) to take preparatory
graduate-level coursework during their senior year, which allows them to fast-track completion
of an post-graduate year of studies (the "2" in "3+2").
This certificate will be a “Phase II” component of the MFA in Creative Writing, but both COTH
and English undergraduate modifications require prior Curriculum Committee adjustments to
that undergraduate curriculum before this component will be ready for Graduate Council
consideration. We expect these modifications to be ready for review before the year is over and
prior to the start date for the entire MFA program.
Application Procedures for the M.F.A. in Creative Writing
The applicant wishing to enroll in the Master of Fine Arts Degree in Creative Writing must have
an undergraduate degree. The applicant must submit the following information to the Office of
Graduate Studies, Western State College of Colorado, Gunnison, CO 81231:
• An application for admission to graduate study.
• A $50 non-refundable processing fee.
• An official transcript of the baccalaureate degree, demonstrating a minimum GPA of 3.0
as well as evidence of literary and/or film studies of at least four (4) undergraduate or
graduate courses. The baccalaureate-granting institution must send the transcript directly
to the Western State College Office of Graduate Studies.
• An 800- to 1,000-word personal statement describing writing experience and
commitment to writing. This statement should also include the applicant's own
assessment justifying candidacy to Western's MFA in Creative Writing for the chosen
concentration.
• A writing sample of 20-30 pages, double-spaced and numbered or properly formatted for
the appropriate genre. The Poetry concentration should include 20 pages of poetry and 10
pages of poetic analysis in prose.
• Three (3) letters of recommendation from those capable of assessing the applicant’s
preparation to succeed in a low-residency MFA program in writing. All letters must be
P a g e | 16
•
submitted on letter head, must be originals, less than a year old, and signed by the person
giving the recommendation.
Proof of second-year, or its equivalent, in reading competency in a foreign language only
for the concentration of Poetry with an Emphasis in Formal Verse.
A committee consisting of the program director and the three concentration coordinators will
review applications for the respective concentrations and select, based on the above criteria,
those candidates who will constitute each year’s new cohort of students.
(Note that the above application criteria do not require GRE scores. More than 95 percent of
M.F.A. programs in creative writing do not require such scores, finding instead that qualitative
materials, like the ones above, have proven stronger indicators of success. See Appendix E.)
CONNECTION TO WESTERN STATE COLLEGE OF COLORADO MISSION
The proposed program promotes Western State College’s mission (see below) in the following
ways.
Western State College of Colorado fulfills its statutory mission by promoting intellectual
maturity and personal growth in its students and graduates citizens prepared to assume
constructive roles in local, national, and global communities. Western helps its students
to develop the skills and commitments needed to continue learning for the rest of their
lives and strives to elucidate the connections unifying academic domains which have
traditionally existed separately: the sciences, the liberal arts, and professional programs.
The College provides students with a solid foundation of skills in written and spoken
communication, problem solving, critical thinking, and creativity. Our programs
encourage a breadth and depth of knowledge, which will serve as a foundation for a
professional career or graduate study, and an appreciation of values appropriate to a
liberally educated individual.
The proposed Low-Residency MFA in Creative Writing directly addresses substantial portions
of Western’s mission (underlined above) and at the same time strengthens the goals of Western’s
existing undergraduate CALL programming in at least four ways:
1. The proposed program offers students who have taken our own undergraduate emphasis
in creative writing (or appropriate courses of study at another institution) an opportunity
to further refine and specialize their writing by continuing their academic careers at
Western.
2. The proposed MFA draws attention to our undergraduate CALL programs in Creative
Writing, Video Production, and Organizational Communication. The MFA demonstrates
our commitment to these lines of study by investing in further studies at the next level.
3. The proposed MFA further allows us to offer our students, the community, and the
surrounding region enriched opportunities for participation in the arts:
• The undergraduate English program already provides a regimen of community arts
outreach through co- and extracurricular programming involving the program’s
English club, WordHorde, as well as the program’s literary review, Marginalia (see
third bullet below for venue to replace this venue), together with the annual spring
Marginalia Showcase, the summer Writing the Rockies creative writing conference,
and the newest initiative, the Visiting Poet’s Series.
P a g e | 17
•
CALL ‘s Video Production program offers regularly recurring Video Showcase
presentations to the campus and community that invite and receive cooperation by
Theatre and Creative Writing programming at the undergraduate level.
• Current Organizational Communication projects routinely reach into the community
with structured assignments meant to offer expertise to existing regional businesses.
The proposed MFA concentration in Publishing would culminate in a “Western
Press” that provides regional authors and literary distributors a new voice.
4. Finally, the MFA would generate a revenue stream that the full-time CALL
undergraduate faculty could use to enhance under-funded but essential programming for
our undergraduate students, including but not limited to a more developed slate of
visiting authors, visiting scholars, visiting video professionals, and publishing-world
professionals as well as, alternating from one year to the next, an anthology of regional
literature and a nonfiction book through the proposed Western Press. (See “Budget”
below, pages 27-28.)
DELIVERY METHOD
Delivery of the MFA in Creative Writing will divide between 20 percent face-time interaction
during three summer intensive residencies and 80 percent by means of Blackboard and Wimba
online delivery during four non-residency academic semesters. Faculty involved with the MFA
will fall into two categories:
1) tenured and tenure-track CALL faculty, who will retain responsibility for
designing, administering, and directing the program. This category of faculty will be
paid and provided appropriate reassigned time for their involvement, as described
elsewhere in this concept paper under “Faculty Needs” and “Budget.”
2) adjunct mentor-faculty authors, who will serve as one-to-one mentors for MFA
candidates during the four non-residency academic semesters as well as the three summer
intensive residencies. This category of faculty will be placed under contract and paid
based on enrollment needs, as described elsewhere in this concept paper under “Faculty
Needs” and “Budget.”
Adjunct mentor-faculty must meet the same academic qualifications as tenured and tenure-track
CALL faculty (see “Faculty Needs” elsewhere in this proposal for criteria).
Delivery of the four academic non-residency semesters will emphasize one-to-one mentoring of
MFA student candidates by highly qualified writers who have also demonstrated strong
competence as writing teachers. Adjunct mentor-faculty will be considered full-time adjuncts in
the program if they mentor three students each semester. And adjunct mentor-faculty authors
may mentor no more than six student candidates each semester. This teacher-student ratio of 1:3
or no more than 1:6 is to ensure a high quality educational experience that meets the rigorous
expectations of the MFA program.
Traditionally, writing has always been one of the most solitary of arts, and the success in the past
ten years of low-residency programs have demonstrated that the method of delivery for graduate
writing programs needs little in the way of face time. In fact, low-residency graduate publishing
rates and critical acclaim for their work attest to the effectiveness and success of such programs.
P a g e | 18
One only need look at the “bragging rights” featured on all the Web sites for low-residency
programs to see evidence of graduate success (see Appendix D, excerpting ads from the August
2008 issue of Poets & Writers, the premier trade writing publication in the nation; in particular
see the advertisement for Vermont College in D, which emphasizes professional recognition by
this program’s alums). And even at the most recent 2008 national Association of Writers and
Writing Programs conference in New York City, a panel of New York publishing house
acquisition editors announced that they were beginning to prefer work by graduates of lowresidency programs to that of graduates of traditional programs because the quality of work from
the former often surpassed the work of the latter.
In light of the exponentially occurring announcement each year that yet another traditional and
prestigious writing school plans to launch a low-residency MFA writing program (again, see
Appendix D), it seems worth some justification as to why we have a residency component at all.
The short answer is that writing is no longer the solitary art it once was. Despite the powerful
Blackboard and Wimba tools at our disposal, students still benefit from face time as a part of any
rigorous writing program.
The three summer intensive residencies are designed to provide that necessary level of
connection that complements solitary page-time: Signing a contract results no longer as often
from a query letter as it does from a face-time pitch to an editor or agent; marketing published
work routinely requires authors to present work to audiences in the form of public readings,
audio podcasts, and You-Tube streaming video. And sometimes it’s just easier to explain how
rhythm and meter work in the interactive setting of a non-virtual, common space. Even more,
summer residencies provide students the opportunity to interact not only with their eventual,
virtual mentors but also with their cohort of fellow writers. Writers who want to make a living as
writers must learn to remain engaged with other professionals at levels other than just the screendisplayed or manuscript page.
The four academic non-residency semesters that occur in between the summer sessions provide
the close contact with established professional writers, the adjunct mentor-faculty, who are also
adept at teaching their craft. Nevertheless, these non-residency courses are highly interactive.
Course materials are comprised of, but not limited to: text; visual presentation of information
through the use of archived faculty presentations that can include voice, video, images,
PowerPoint, desktop sharing, etc.; video examples of textual readings being discussed; peer and
faculty discussions; and professional readings. Adjunct mentor-faculty authors are responsible
for working weekly with MFA candidates on a one-to-one basis to guide the candidate’s work
and to document the progress and accomplishment of each student.
Moreover, students must also commit to a rigorous regimen of 25-30 hours of work in order to
complete assignments during each week of each semester of non-residency. And successful
completion of assignments to meet prescribed deadlines requires conscientious self-discipline
and well-developed time-management skills. A low-residency program will not be a good fit for
all candidates, but it will be a realistic test of the skill-set that future writers must have in order to
succeed in the professional world of writing.
Quality of Non-residency Course Delivery
P a g e | 19
The powerful online Blackboard and Wimba tools make for easy and continuous documentation
of interactions between mentors and students as well as portfolio samples of student progress
throughout the program. Just as now occurs for Western’s undergraduate course offerings, we’ll
ask students to assess the learning that occurs in each course, and we’ll ask adjunct faculty
mentors to provide similar assessment from their standpoint.
We’ll also provide mentor in-service learning workshops twice each year (once online between
academic semesters and once in person the week prior to the summer intensive sessions) to share
successful strategies and provide opportunities to enhance their efficacy at non-residency
learning delivery.
Faculty will also receive yearly evaluations to determine their fit for our program. The program
director and concentration coordinators will be responsible for assessing and evaluating
performance and fit of adjunct mentor-faculty for the MFA program. Since we’ll contract most
of our adjunct mentor-faculty authors on a semesterly or yearly basis, we’ll be able to identify
and retain only the most effective teachers for the program.
RESEARCH, INCLUDING INFORMATION ON SIMILAR PROGRAMS
The penultimate appendix in this concept paper provides examples from the August 2008 issue
of Poets & Writers, the nation’s premier trade journal for professional writers, providing ads for
existing and currently launching low-residency programs for the fall of 2008. That appendix also
copies a special feature, “Spotlight on Education,” in July/August 2008 issue of Creative
Screenwriting, one of the leading professional journals for that genre. This feature compares
several large screenwriting programs and also includes an article on the growing trend toward
low-residency delivery in that industry as well. Appendix C of this proposal includes a report
that analyzes the low-residency programs in the United States as of one year ago, as well as
charts and tables that compare and identify offerings by each of these schools.
These appendices document the efficacy and success of low-residency writing programs by small
and large school alike, and by obscure as well as well-established national writing programs. But
perhaps most important for this proposal, these findings helped us identify just which
concentrations would be most viable for an MFA in Creative Writing at Western. Our decision to
select the four concentrations of Commercial Writing, Poetry with an Emphasis in Formal Verse,
Screenwriting, and Publishing were, happily, areas of real interest and expertise for the
proposing faculty and outside consultants. But just as germane, these concentrations also
represented concentrations that are not already “done to death” by existing programs.
Commercial Writing exists at only one other institution, and at that institution as an M.A. rather
than as am M.F.A. Nevertheless, many schools have begun to offer growing numbers of courses
in commercial fiction, perhaps attesting not only to student interest but also to its viability in
preparing writers for jobs rather than avocations in writing. Similarly, many writing programs
include increasing numbers of courses in formal and new formalist poetry, but none focus the
concentration on the rising interest in this area (see market and demand below). Fewer current
MFA programs include screenwriting; in fact, the lion’s share of national screenwriting
programs are not even associated with MFAs, although all profess the importance of solid theory
and through story-telling preparation – clear components of our own concentration. For Phase II,
P a g e | 20
we include it because fewer programs still – in fact, only a handful – include serious or sustained
attention to this all-important aspect of “business as usual” in the professional writing world.
One final finding we gleaned from these appended reports: “playing the location card”. It’s
worth noting that many programs promote geographic setting as an enhancement of the summer
residency experience – i.e., they try to offer intensive summer workshops in desirable locations.
Because of the nature of low-residency MFAs, such programming can, in effect, occur anywhere
a college or university wishes to stage the summer intensive workshops, and several institutions
stage summer residency events away from the host campus. Western has a natural advantage in
this regard from the very start as a “destination college” in a recreational and vacation setting.
The rationale, of course, is this: Why not study in a place where the family can come along and
vacation at the same time? This value-added component to Western’s locale has the potential to
allow the college to promote the program to the Gunnison community for economic advantages.
MARKET AND DEMAND FOR PROGRAM
Traditional MFAs typically admit between 10 and 15 students per year and typically only in the
fall. Low-residency programs admit anywhere from 12 (University of New Orleans) to 150
students (Spalding University). The number of students admitted into the low-residency MFA
is dependent on the number of faculty. There is a burgeoning – even proliferating – number of
new programs entering this arena each year, and it seems to be transforming the nature of
graduate writing education even as we speak. However, as a self-funding program, our own entry
into the realm is scalable and flexible. We plan to pilot only 18 students, and those students
spread across our three Phase I concentrations. As with all subsequent cohorts, we’ll staff the
initial summer sessions and following two academic semesters based on the number admitted to
the program. The second year will admit a maximum of 27 students – nine for each of the three
concentrations, which is the upper enrollment target for the ongoing program each year.
Below are market and demand considerations for all four concentrations, including the Phase II
Publishing Certificate.
Our proposed Commercial Fiction concentration has a precedent in Seton Hill University’s
graduate curriculum, but their program offers an MA rather than an MFA. All other lowresidency programs in creative writing offer an MFA – although these other schools focus on
literary rather than popular fiction. Our concentration would offer students the chance to earn an
MFA in an area of writing that addresses avenues of authorship intended for mass market appeal
and agented submissions. The popularity of writing conferences and workshops across the
country attests to the hunger many authors have for this arena of writing. The nearby Colorado
Springs’ annual Pike’s Peak Writers Conference consistently draws over a thousand participants
each spring, and the focus of that conference and its workshops is popular fiction. This
concentration is also consistent with the values we teach about fiction in our own undergraduate
curriculum.
Our proposed concentration in Poetry with an Emphasis in Formal Verse addresses a trend of the
past two decades that shows an increasing return to the study of poetic form (the sonnet,
villanelle, ballad, pantoum, rondel, etc.). In fact, the Pushcart Prize – arguably the highest honor
awarded to poetry and fiction – included poetry awards in 2007 for which one third were poems
using formal patterns. The annual West Chester (Pennsylvania) poetry conference, including four
P a g e | 21
days of workshops and presentations, is the only venue in the country at present that focuses
entirely on formal poetry, and the event maintains a yearly attendance waiting list by poets from
across the country. Western’s own undergraduate creative writing emphasis has embraced the
study of form already, and many current low-residency MFAs in creative writing have begun to
offer seminars in this kind of poetry as well, but none have focused on formal poetry as a
concentration. “New Formalism” is a movement in recent decades among many major as well as
lesser poets to reeducate themselves with a tradition that has virtually disappeared for two
generations of writers. This newer movement also embraces experimentation in an effort to
expand and reinvigorate poetry through both form and narrative.
Our proposed concentration in Screenwriting complements and continues our undergraduate
offerings in both English and COTH. Public demand is high for education in this field; a number
of professional scriptwriters offer regular seminars on their craft, with such workshops
commonly teaching to full houses. Only five current low-residency MFAs offer scriptwriting
although many film schools pay at least lip service to scripts. The former emphasize the word
while the latter emphasize the word’s production. Our proposed concentration will emphasize the
underlying pragmatism that joins this writing medium to its end-product as a production
medium.
Our proposed Certificate in Publishing addresses the nationwide recognition among MFA
programs that writers receive little or nothing in the way of training for the realities of the
publishing world. Only three MFA programs currently offer such a component. (The College of
Charleston, S.C., announced a fourth such program in April 2008, in cooperation with Tupelo
Press, but only as an annual single-summer seminar.) Writers may learn their craft, but few find
they are prepared to present and market their work in a way that the book publishing world both
expects and needs in order to make an author’s work successful. In effect, creative writers have
neither the vocabulary nor the understanding of the way publishing houses conduct business – let
alone what these houses expect from authors whom they sign. This certificate, in cooperation
with Fulcrum Publishing, basedin Denver, CO, will conduct seminars and workshops as a part of
a two- summer residency component of Western’s Low-Residency MFA tracks as well as offer
certificate candidates the opportunity to intern with Fulcrum during the academic year.
P a g e | 22
FACULTY NEEDS
The low-residency format, which has gained popularity and wide national acceptance since the
1990s in graduate creative writing studies, allows the MFA to function as a self-funding
program: The college would contract faculty to participate per each enrolled student, and these
faculty would only be required on campus physically during the two-week summer intensive
workshops. We predict a need for a .875 FTE-F for administration of the program during the first
year, and 1.25 FTE-F for the second and subsequent years of the program – all from selfgenerating revenues. It’s worth noting that current low-residence MFAs are routinely full and
even have waiting lists.
Faculty needs fall into two categories: current faculty in CALL, who will administrate and
control the MFA program (description of pay described in “Budget” below); and adjunct mentorfaculty authors, who will work one-to-one with MFA candidate students during the non-resident
semester and who will also participate in the summer residencies (description of pay also
described in “Budget” below).
The MFA program director and three concentration coordinators will constitute the core of the
search committee for potential hires for adjunct mentor-faculty, and this committee will forward
names and recommendations to the Graduate Council. Adjunct mentor-faculty will also receive
yearly evaluations to determine their fit for the program. The program director and concentration
coordinators will be responsible for assessing and evaluating performance of adjunct mentorfaculty for the program. Since we’ll contract most of our adjunct mentor-faculty authors on a
semesterly or yearly basis, we’ll be able to identify and retain only the most effective teachers
for the program.
Adjunct mentor-faculty ideally will mentor three students per semester, but individual mentorfaculty members may mentor up to a maximum of six students. The student-faculty ratio of 1:3
up to 1:6 is to ensure a high quality teaching experience commensurate with the rigor and
standards of excellence that the program will provide. Students will work individually with
faculty but will also interact for some assignments with others enrolled in the same course, which
is limited to the same maximum of no more than six students per faculty in a course.
This proposed model is conceptually in keeping with low-residency MFA programs across the
country and uses an “Oxford Tutorial” model. (See a more thorough explanation of lowresidency tutorial approach in Appendix B.) At this level of instruction, writing candidates are
tutored virtually one-to-one. Nonetheless, at key points of intersection in the curriculum, students
enrolled in the same section, and even different sections of the same course, will have the
opportunity to interact with their cohorts on targeted assignments. The coordination of these
intersecting assignments will be the joint responsibility of concentration coordinators and
adjunct mentor-faculty within these intersecting sections of the same course. Planning for these
benchmark assignments will become part of the faculty training that takes place prior to each
summer’s intensive sessions.
Academic Qualifications. These qualifications apply to both CALL faculty as well as all
adjunct mentor faculty. Individuals must possess academic preparation and degree completion
P a g e | 23
appropriate for the training of graduate students pursuing studies leading to completion of the
master’s degree. Normally, the minimum academic requirements shall be one of the following:
• A terminal degree in the area in which the individual teaches graduate courses and
supervises graduate students.
• A terminal degree in a related field, but with significant professional experience and
active, current involvement in the area in which the individual teaches graduate courses
and supervises graduate students.
• No terminal degree, but with substantial professional experience and active, current
involvement in the area in which the individual teaches graduate courses and supervises
graduate students.
Professional Qualification. Individuals must be professionally active in their respective fields
or known for their professional accomplishments and integrity. The professional activity should
be closely aligned with the area in which the individual teaches, and the individual must be
capable of integrating and teaching information at a level appropriate for graduate studies
At start up, we intend to use faculty for this MFA who have terminal degrees in their areas of
expertise, significant professional experience, active and current involvement in their
concentration, as well as demonstrated successful experience teaching their expertise.
Concentration Rubrics are as follows:
• CRWR ### – Required Orientation Courses
• COMM ### – Commercial Writing
• POET ###
– Poetry
• SCRN ###
– Screenwriting:
Course numbering uses the following sequences:
CRWR 500 is reserved for the one-credit summer orientation courses, required by all candidates
for attending required readings and discussions as well as learning online tools, etc. Candidates
must repeat this course each of the three summers, totaling three hours of credit.
Summer Intensives
600 – Summer orientations, all three summers
601 – Summer 1 concentration intensives
602 – Summer 2 concentration intensives
603 – Summer 3 concentration intensives
Non-residency semesters
610s – First semester concentration courses
620s – Second semester concentration courses
630s – Third semester concentration courses
640s – Fourth semester concentration courses
Special Course Designations
692
– Independent Studies
697 – Special Topics
699 – Capstones
P a g e | 24
The following four tables chart section and staffing needs for the first three years:
• The first table shows the sequence of courses needed to complete each concentration.
• The next table charts first-year course section needs for the pilot cohort of 18 students
through the first summer and subsequent two non-resident academic semesters. CRWR
600 is a single section although represented as required by each of the concentrations.
• The third table charts second-year course section needs for the continuation of the pilot
cohort through their second year of the program, plus the next entering cohort of 27
students, for a program total of 45 students CRWR 600 is a single section although
represented as required by each of the concentrations.
• The final table charts third-year course sections needs for the program at projected
capacity of two enrolled cohorts of 27 students each, for a total of 54 students during this
and subsequent years. CRWR 600 is a single section although represented as required by
each of the concentrations. COMM 699, POET 699, and SCRN 699 during the summer
of this table are the final 3-credit capstone courses for exiting candidates for respective
concentrations.
The following tables also reveal staffing needs as follows:
Year 1
Summer 1
-- 4 sections
Non-Resident Semester 1
-- 12 sections
Non-Resident Semester 2
-- 12 sections
Year 2
Summer 2
-- 8 sections
Non-Resident Semester 1
-- 30 sections
Non-Resident Semester 2
-- 30 sections
Year 3
Summer 3
-- 15 sections
Non-Resident Semester 1
-- 36 sections
Non-Resident Semester 2
-- 36 sections
Year 1 Total Sections: 28
Year 1 Total Sections: 68
Year 1 Total Sections: 81
Based on adjunct faculty-mentors for each concentration being paid to teach three students
a six-credit hour course.
Ideally, a standard contract would ask faculty-mentors to teach two sections, or a total of six
students in a semester. The Association of Writers and Writing Program’s report, “Hallmarks of
an Effective Low-Residency MFA Program in Creative Writing” (See Appendix B),
recommends a student-to-teacher ratio of 5:1, but we have elected to set that ratio to 6:1 for
logistical and budgetary reasons: Multiples of three make administration of the program easier to
track while still keeping our tuition competitive. (Our tuition falls at the 67th percentile of lowresidency MFA programs in creative writing.) A 6:1 ratio supports these two objectives.
The above projected section totals for first and subsequent years also indicate benchmarks for
enrollment, not necessarily consecutive years. We calculate that a successful program needs a
minimum of 18 students, distributed as six per concentration. We would hope to increase
enrollments in multiples of three for each concentration, as demand dictates. Increases in
enrollment are subject to identifying qualified candidates who can persist and succeed.
Enrollments increases equally assume searching for and training qualified adjunct-mentors – a
flexible workforce that can be adjusted to meet the staffing needs of a given year.
P a g e | 25
Sequence of Offerings for a Single Cohort
Term
Commercial Writing
Poetry
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
Summer 1 CRWR 600 (1 cr)
Semester 1
Semester 2
Summer 2
Semester 3
Semester 4
Summer 3
COMM 601 (2 cr)
COMM 611 (6 cr)
COMM 612 (6 cr)
COMM 621 (6 cr)
COMM 622 (6 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
COMM 602 (2 cr)
COMM 631 or 632 (6 cr)*
POET 611 or SCRN 611 (6 cr)*
COMM 641 (6 cr)
COMM 642 (6 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
COMM 603 (2 cr)
COMM 699 (3 cr)
Screenwriting
POET 601 (2 cr)
POET 611 (6 cr)
POET 612 (6 cr)
POET 621 (6 cr)
POET 622 (6 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
POET 602 (2 cr)
POET 631 or 632 (6 cr)*
COMM 611 or SCRN 611 (6 cr)*
POET 641 (6 cr)
POET 642 (6 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
POET 603 (2 cr)
POET 699 (3 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
SCRN 601 (2 cr)
SCRN 611 (6 cr)
SCRN 612 (6 cr)
SCRN 621 (6 cr)
SCRN 622 (6 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
SCRN 602 (2 cr)
SCRN 631 or 632 (6 cr)*
COMM 611 or POET 611 (6 cr)*
SCRN 641 (6 cr)
SCRN 642 (6 cr)
CRWR 600 1 cr)
SCRN 603 (2 cr)
SCRN 699 (3 cr)
* Second-year students should substitute one of their fall concentration courses to explore a 611
in one of the other two disciplines.
Sections Needed for First-Year Course Offerings (with 18 pilot students)
Term
Commercial Writing
Poetry
Screenwriting
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
Summer
Fall
Spring
COM 610 (2 cr)
2 x COM 641 (6 cr)
2 x COM 642 (6 cr)
2 x COM 671 (6 cr)
2 x COM 672 (6 cr)
POE 620 (2 cr)
2 x POE 651 (6 cr)
2 x POE 652 (6 cr)
2 x POE 681 (6 cr)
2 x POE 682 (6 cr)
SCR 630 (2 cr)
2 x SCR 661 (6 cr)
2 x SCR 662 (6 cr)
2 x SCR 691 (6 cr)
2 x SCR 692 (6 cr)
Sections Needed for Second-Year Course Offerings (with continuing pilot cohort of 18
students plus new entering cohort of 27 = 45 total)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
Summer
Fall
Spring
COMM 601 (2 cr)
COMM 602 (2 cr)
3 x COMM 611 (6 cr)
3 x COMM 612 (6 cr)
2 x COMM 631 (6 cr)*
2 x COMM 632 (6 cr)*
3 x COMM 621 (6 cr)
3 x COMM 622 (6 cr)
2 x COMM 641 (6 cr)
2 x COMM 642 (6 cr)
POET 601 (2 cr)
POET 602 (2 cr)
3 x POET 611 (6 cr)
3 x POET 612 (6 cr)
2 x POET 631 (6 cr)*
2 x POET 632 (6 cr)*
3 x POET 621 (6 cr)
3 x POET 622 (6 cr)
2 x POET 641 (6 cr)
2 x POET 642 (6 cr)
SCRN 601 (2 cr)
SCRN 602 (2 cr)
3 x SCRN 611 (6 cr)
3 x SCRN 612 (6 cr)
2 x SCRN 631 (6 cr)*
2 x SCRN 632 (6 cr)*
3 x SCRN 621 (6 cr)
3 x SCRN 622 (6 cr)
2 x SCRN 641 (6 cr)
2 x SCRN 642 (6 cr)
* Second-year students should substitute one of their fall concentration courses to explore a 611
in one of the other two disciplines.
P a g e | 26
Sections Needed for Third-Year Course Offerings (with two on-going cohorts of 27 ea. = 54
total)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
CRWR 600 (1 cr)
Summer
Fall
Spring
COMM 601 (2 cr)
COMM 602 (2 cr)
COMM 603 (2 cr)
COMM 699 (3 cr)
3 x COMM 611 (6 cr)
3 x COMM 612 (6 cr)
3 x COMM 631 (6 cr)*
3 x COMM 632 (6 cr)*
3 x COMM 621 (6 cr)
3 x COMM 622 (6 cr)
3 x COMM 641 (6 cr)
3 x COMM 642 (3 cr)
POET 601 (2 cr)
POET 602 (2 cr)
POET 603 (2 cr)
POET 699 (3 cr)
3 x POET 611 (6 cr)
3 x POET 612 (6 cr)
3 x POET 631 (6 cr)*
3 x POET 632 (6 cr)*
3 x POET 621 (6 cr)
3 x POET 622 (6 cr)
3 x POET 641 (6 cr)
3 x POET 642 (3 cr)
SCRN 601 (2 cr)
SCRN 602 (2 cr)
SCRN 603 (2 cr)
SCRN 699 (3 cr)
3 x SCRN 611 (6 cr)
3 x SCRN 612 (6 cr)
3 x SCRN 631 (6 cr)*
3 x SCRN 632 (6 cr)*
2 x SCRN 621 (6 cr)
2 x SCRN 622 (6 cr)
3 x SCRN 641 (6 cr)
3 x SCRN 642 (3 cr)
* Second-year students should substitute one of their fall concentration courses to explore a 611
course in one of the other two concentrations.
P a g e | 27
PROPOSED BUDGET
Item
Revenue
Program Fees for Year (27 credits/ 3 terms)
Pilot cohort: 18 students x $15,930.00 ($590 per credit)
(Every year a new cohort of 27 new students will enter)
Program Fees for Year 2 (27 credits/ 3 terms)
Second cohort enters (18 continue + 27 new cohort):
45 students x 3 terms
Program Fees Year 3 (54 on-going students/3 terms) +
final summer pilot cohort capstone, $32,022
Total Revenue
Expenditures
*Extended Studies Fee of $65 per credit x 27 credits x 18
students (first cohort)
*Extended Studies Fee of $65 per credit x 45 students x 27
credits (first and second cohorts)
*Extended Studies Fee of $65 per credit x 54 students x 27
credits (first and second cohorts) + $65 x 18 students x 3
credits (pilot cohort capstone)
6 Mentor Teacher Stipends for 1st year Mentoring $24,000/mentor for 2 semesters + $3,000 for summer)
15 Mentor Teacher Stipends for 2nd year Mentoring $24,000/mentor for 2 semesters + $3,000/mentor for
summer
18 Mentor Teacher Stipends for 2nd year Mentoring 24,000/mentor for 2 semesters + $3,000/mentor for
summer
Mentor travel/accommodations/meals for summer sessions,
1st year
Mentor travel/accommodations/meals for summer sessions,
2nd year
Mentor travel/accommodations/meals for summer sessions,
3nd year
Graduate Program Director (.5 release + $5,000 1st year,)
Graduate Program Director (.5 release + $10,000 2nd and
subsequent years)
Administrative Assistant 0.2 FTE
Concentration coordinators (.125 FTE = $3,000 x 3 for 1st
year)
Concentration coordinators (.25 FTE = $6,000 x 4 for 2nd
and subsequent years)
Advertising
Instructional Supplies and Office Supplies (e.g., laptop
computers for on-campus instruction, CPS assessment
systems, desks, etc.)
On-Campus Summer Session Catering Expenses
Western Press
Total Expenditures
Year 1
Year 2
Year 3
$286,740.00
$716,850.00
$286,740.00
$716,850.00
$860,220.00
$860,220.00
$31,590.00
$78,975.00
$96,330.00
$162,000.00
$405,000.00
$486,000.00
$18,000.00
$42,000.00
$48,000.00
$11,000.00
$16,000.00
$14,400.00
$16,000.00
$14,400.00
$5,000.00
$24,000.00
$5,000.00
$24,000.00
$5,000.00
$5,000.00
$2,000.00
$10,000.00
$10,000.00
$3,500.00
$10,000.00
$10,000.00
$3,500.00
$10,000.00
$267,990.00
$608,875.00
$713,230.00
$14,400.00
$9,000.00
P a g e | 28
Net for attrition/persistence contingencies and for
infusing surplus revenues into undergraduate programs:
Year 1
$18,750.00
Year 2
$107,975.00
Year 3
$146,990.00
*Extended Studies expenditures related to graduate programs. The $65 per graduate credit fee is necessary
to meet the following costs:
Extended Studies operations (office, staff, state program fees, etc)
$35
Student computing fee:
0.5 FTE AVP for graduate studies ($42,000 includes compensation package)
$16
Overhead to College E&G Fund (reg. services, financial services, IT, library, utilities) $14
P a g e | 29
APPENDICES
Appendix A.
Letter of comment from outside reviewer, David Fenza,
executive director of The Association of Writers and
Writing Programs
. . . . . . . . . . . 29
Appendix B.
The Association of Writers and Writing Programs’ report,
“Hallmarks of an Effective Low-Residency MFA Program in
Creative Writing"
. . . . . . . . . . . 30
Appendix C.
A report on low-residency MFAs in the United States.
. . . . . . . . . . . 43
Appendix D.
Sample ads for fall 2008 Low-Residency MFAs from the August
issue of Poets & Writers, followed by two articles on screenwriting
in the July/August issue of Creative Screenwriting.
. . . . . . . . . . . 49
Appendix E.
Statistical Table of MFA Programs in the United States
(See separate attachment, formatted for landscape-orientation
chart display and entitled “MFA Comparison Table.”)
. . . . . . . . . . . (attached)
P a g e | 30
APPENDIX B.
OVERVIEW OF CURRENT
LOW-RESIDENCY MFA PROGRAMS IN THE UNITED STATES
The intent of this report is to provide information about existing low-residency master’s of
fine arts programs. Internet resources, information brochures, and Erika Dreifus’s The Practicing
Writer’s Primer on Low-Residency MFA Programs, produce the the following findings.
Typical Elements of a Low-Residency MFA
The MFA is considered to be a terminal degree, or the highest obtained in the field. There
are 34 low-residency programs that offer the MFA in a range of areas including: poetry, fiction,
creative nonfiction, young adult, writing for children, translations, screenwriting, playwriting, and
popular fiction. A low-residency MFA program is an off-campus program that allows students to
pursue a master’s degree from the comforts of one’s home. The program permits students who
work full time, have family, are incapable of moving, to attend classes held over the internet. (All
but one institution uses the internet for correspondence. That institution uses post mail.)
In addition to the off-campus, online work, students are required to attend residencies.
Residencies are set periods of time, ranging from seven to thirty days, where the students must
travel to the designated campus to attend workshops, lectures, readings, and classes. The range of
required residencies varies from two to four (see attached).
During the time within the program, the student works one-on-one with a mentor. The
mentor assigns both reading and writing assignments. Programs contend that the student will read
between 50 and 80 books, all of which are analyzed and discussed with their mentor and fellow
students. They also state that the student needs to dedicate at least 25 hours per week to his/her
studies.
The majority of low-residency MFA programs take two years or four semesters to
complete; and, each semester begins with a residency where students are assigned mentors. Then,
the first year of study is a combination of writing and critiquing that enhances the student’s
literary knowledge. The second year is then spent revising the first year’s work with the end
result being to have a completed, ready to publish manuscript in hand. In addition to the final
manuscript, some programs, such as Pine Manor College, require students to also finish a critical
essay ranging from 30 to 35 pages and an internship in a specified track. This all depends on the
institution’s specified MFA program.
For example, some programs are focused on creative writing while others incorporate
publication classes, teaching certification, studying abroad, and critical or practical writing.
Antioch University offers a Certificate in Publishing Arts, and a Post-MFA Certificate in
Teaching Creative Writing. Adding publishing and teaching education into the curriculum seems
to be a trend other programs are following. The University of New Orleans takes students
overseas to study in Spain, France, and Italy (in Ezra Pound’s Castle). Lancaster University in
the UK takes students to study in Africa. Western Connecticut State University incorporates
practical writing into the curriculum to help teach students how to write for a living.
Among the low-residency programs, poetry and fiction are the most offered courses of
study. Twenty-five of the thirty-four offer poetry and twenty-five also offer fiction. Creative
nonfiction is offered by twenty-two institutions. Goucher College is the sole institution to offer a
creative nonfiction only program. Seven programs offer young adult, juvenile, and writing for
children. Three programs offer translation. Seven offer screenwriting and playwriting (see
attached chart).
Typical Student Tuition
P a g e | 31
The average cost of a semester is approximately $5000.00 dollars. The University of
Nebraska Omaha has the least expensive semester at $2,730 per semester for residents, while
Rockport College charges $9000.00 per semester. The cost per semester or year listed in the
table does not include the cost of residency, travel expenses, and books and supplies.
Stonecoast/ University of Maine offers scholarships to students. Most scholarships are
$500.00 and can be applied for following the guidelines provided on their website. Most
institutions do not offer any sort of tuition break, but do give out financial add. This is a big
difference between a low-residency MFA and a traditional MFA. In a traditional MFA program
where the students attend class on-campus, the students generally receive a teaching assistantship
where they teach one class per semester that pays for their tuition and provides them with a
stipend of around $10,000.
Typical Enrollment Ranges
The second biggest difference between a traditional and low-residency MFA is the number
of students admitted to the program. Traditional MFA’s typically admit between 10 and 15
students per year and typically only in the fall. Low-residency programs admit anywhere from 12
(University of New Orleans) to 150 students (Spalding University). The number of students
admitted into the low-residency MFA is dependent on the number of faculty.
Typical Faculty
Faculty numbers in the low-residency range from 3 to 38. There are two types of faculty:
core and visiting or writers-in-residence. The core faculty consists of professors who generally
teach at the college and are involved in the creative writing department. The visiting and writersin-residence usually do not teach on-campus, are not part of the department, and don’t usually live
in the same area, region, or state as the institution.
The primary draw to a low-residency MFA program is the faculty. Students want to be
taught by writers that they like and respect. This is more influential than academic credentials.
Faculty degrees range from a bachelor of arts to a doctoral degree. Most institutions do not even
list the faculty’s academic merits, but instead list the published works, awards, grants received,
and recognition garnered by each specific writer. For example, Anne Waldman at Naropa holds
a BA, is the author of more than 30 books, was the Civitella Ranieri Fellow in Umbria, and has
received numerous grants including a grant from the Foundation for Contemporary Performance
Arts.
Admission Requirements
So, how does one get accepted into a low-residency program? All programs require a
student to hold a bachelor of arts from an accredited institution. If the student shows literary
merit, he/she may be admitted even without a creative writing or English degree or background.
The University of New Orleans is the only program that uses the Graduate Record Exam (GRE)
for admission. The institutions look at the potential and ability of the writer as the main criteria of
acceptance into the low-residency graduate program. Students are required to submit a writing
sample of 20 to 30 pages of prose, poetry, creative nonfiction, screenwriting, etc, depending on
the program the student desires to enter. Then, the admission readers read the sample and decide
whether or not to allow the student to pursue admission. If the student is allowed to pursue
admission, transcripts, three letters of recommendation, and personal background will be asked
for. From there, the graduate program will make a decision whether or not the student will be
admitted into the program.
Although writing ability is listed as the most important quality of an applicant, lowresidency programs are also interested in knowing that a student can be self-propelled into
completing his/her MFA. Unlike the traditional program, students in a low-residency program
must be capable of keeping up with assignments and studies without being in a classroom. He or
P a g e | 32
she must be capable of completing 25 hours of coursework a week without the constant prompting
and pressure from face-to-face contact with professors and classmates.
Most low-residency programs require an application fee unless the student applies online.
Some online application fees are waived. All programs have different application deadlines with
some admitting students in only the fall term, while others admit students in spring and fall.
Playing the “Location” Card
In addition to the faculty, students are lured to programs because of the location. The
University of New Orleans lures students to Ezra Pound’s castle. Stonecoast lures students to a
stone house on the coast of main. Other institutions offer beach, sun, and forest. However, with
the exception of Naropa, there are no institutions that offer the Rocky Mountains. Naropa is the
sole low-residency program in Colorado. Their residencies are held in Boulder, on the CU
campus.
Playing the Niche Card
Of the thirty-four low-residency programs offered, some stand out because of their unique
attributes. The University of New Orleans is the only residency in the United States that offers a
study abroad option; however, in contrast to the other low-residency programs, this one appears to
be more rigorous to be admitted into. Their standards are higher as far as using the GRE to
distinguish students, and they only admit 12 students per year.
Seton Hill University stands out because it is a master of arts in creative writing lowresidency program that focuses on popular fiction. On the website, they state, “Established
authors mentor students one-on-one as they work toward completing a market-ready manuscript
from home.” The key words here are “market-ready.” Although the other MFA programs are
also interested in a completed, ready to publish manuscript, Seton Hill sets itself apart by being
interested in the market. Popular or formula fiction might be considered to be lesser than learning
the art of literary writing; however, when students are forking over thousands of dollars for an
MFA, they are looking for some sort of pay off. Seton Hill might give it to him or her.
Antioch University stands out because the program is geared toward teaching students
more than just writing. They are interested in teaching MFA candidates how to use their writing
education in teaching or the publishing industry. This also appears to be an advantage because in
addition to the MFA, the student receives practical training in two other areas, which will open
areas of employment.
Western Connecticut State University separates itself from the other programs by being
interested in forming practical writers. WCSU states, “MFA graduates for many years now have
learned upon graduation that there are woefully few teaching jobs available in creative writing and
that they are unequipped to compete for work outside academia.” This statements works as a
double-edged sword by arguably saying that you can’t get a job with an MFA (possibly offending
all those who have one) and then saying, but you can get a job if you study with us. The program
probably lures persons who are interested in the MFA, but do think that there is little to do with it.
On the other hand, for persons interested in literary writing, it is a turn off. WSCU, however, has
an edge by offering a program that is different from others.
The Whidbey Island Writers low-residency MFA program sets itself apart by being the
only MFA not offered by a college or university. Whidbey Island Writers is an accredited
program offered by a writers group. They offer a trial period for prospective students that allow
students to try out the program without making a commitment. It sounds a little commercial or
less credible than other institutions; however, it provides a niche for students who might not want
to enter a collegiate environment.
Conclusion
P a g e | 33
The low-residency MFA is a relatively new program that began to explode and evolve in
the 1990s. The programs are offered around the U.S. and internationally. Most of the programs
tend to be situated along the east and west coasts. In my opinion, now would be the prime
opportunity to offer prospective MFA candidates an opportunity to study and complete
residencies in the Colorado Rockies. Western State College provides a location that offers
recreation, relaxation, and the inspiration. The professors currently within the English department
hold the academic and publication credentials to attract interest in the program, especially for
Western State, Fort Lewis, and other small college graduates who wish to continue his or her
education without having to move to or visit a large city.
Prepared and written by
Ange Tysdal,
WSC Post-Bac English major,
for the English Program
Works Cited
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Antioch U. http://antiochla.edu/academic-programs/mfa-increative-writing/index.html.
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Ashland U.
http://www.ashland.edu/mfa/
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Bennington College.
http://www.bennington.edu/acad_grad_writ.asp
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Carlow U. http://gradstudies.carlow.edu/creative/index.html
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Fairleigh Dickinson U. http://mfa.fdu/edu
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Goddard College.
http://www.goddard.edu/academic/MFAIA_Program.html
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Goucher College. http://www.goucher.edu/x1166.xml
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Hamline U.
http://www.hamline.edu/gls/academics/degree_programs/mfa_writing/mfa_degree_program.html
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Hollins U.
http://www.hollins.edu/grad/eng_writing/eng_writing.htm
Creative Writing and English. Dept. MFA. home page. Lancaster U.
http://www.lancs.ac.uk/depts/english/crew/distance
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Lesley U.
http://www.lesley.edu/gsass/creative_writing/index.html
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Murray State U. http://www.murraystate.edu/mfa/
P a g e | 34
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Naropa U.
http://www.naropa.edu/academics/graduate/writingpoetics/mfalowres/
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. National U.
http://www.nu.edu/Academics/Schools/COLS/ArtHum/Degrees/715-505.html
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. New England College.
http://www.nec.edu/graduate/mfa/mfa/html
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Pacific U. http://www.pacificu.edu/as/mfa/
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Pine Manor College. http://www.pmc.edu/MFA/
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Queens U. of Charlotte.
http://www.queens.edu/graduate/programs/creative_writing.asp
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Rainer Writing Workshop. Pacific Lutheran U.
http://www.plu.edu/~mfa/
Masters of Fine Arts Degree. home page. Rockport College. http://www.rockportcollege.edu/mfa.asp
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Seattle Pacific U.
http://www.spu.edu/prospects/grad/academics/mfa/index.asp
Creative Writing and English. Dept. M.A. in Writing Popular Fiction. home page. Seton Hill U.
http://www.setonhill.edu/o/index/cfm?PID=13
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Southern New Hampshire U. http://www.snhu.edu/5749/asp
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Spalding U.
http://www.spalding.edu/content.aspx?id=1912&cid=686
P a g e | 35
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Stonecoast / U. of Southern Maine.
http://www.usm.maine.edu/stonecoastmfa/
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. U. of British Columbia. http://www.creativewriting.ubc/ca/
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. U. of Nebraska Omaha.
http://www.unomaha.edu/graduate/MFA.php
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. U. of New Orleans. http://lowres.uno.edu
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Union Institute and U. Vermont College.
http://www.tui.edu/mfaw/
Creative Writing. Dept. MFA. home page. Warren Wilson College. http://www.warren-wilson.edu/~mfa/
English and Creative Writing. Dept. MFA in Professional Writing. Western Connecticut State
University. http://www.wcsu.edu/writing/mfa//
Creative Writing and English. Dept. MA in Creative Writing. home page. Wilkes U.
http://www.wilkes.edu/pages/412.asp
Dreifus, Erika. The Practicing Writer’s Primer on Low-residency MFA Programs. 2006.
http://www.lulu.com/content/70627
Traditional Residency Creative Writing MFA Programs in the U.S. Ed. Anna.
http://creativewritingmfa.blogspot.com/
Whidbey Island Writers Association. MFA. home page. The Whidbey Island Writers.
http://www.writeonwhidbey.org/
P a g e | 36
Appendix C.
Sample ads for fall 2008 Low-Residency MFAs from the August
issue of Poets & Writers, followed by two articles on screenwriting
in the July/August issue of Creative Screenwriting.