The Department of English offers a Master of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing. This degree is part of a three-year program. One tangible outcome is the writing of a thesis—you focus on creating a book-length manuscript.

This degree requires a minimum of 60 credit hours, including 16 hours of writing workshops in the genre of your choice. You select from the writing courses ENG-W611-W612 Writing Fiction, or ENG-W613-W614 Writing Poetry.

The coursework also requires at least 16 hours from among the department’s literature and language courses, with at least eight hours at the 600 level or above.

You take either ENG-W664 Topics in Current Literature: the study of recent poetry and prose or ENG-W680 Theory and Craft of Writing: the study of elements of poetic prosody and/or the major fictive techniques.

Those teaching in W103 Introductory Creative Writing are required to take W554 in their first semester of teaching. This is a practicum on the theory and practice of teaching the writing of poetry and fiction at the college level, with attention to matters of curricular design and classroom technique.

A thesis in the form of a book-length manuscript is required. You can take up to 12 credit hours in W699 to work on your thesis. There is no final examination.

The remaining credit hours are elective. At least 48 hours of the degree requirements must be completed in residence.