University of South Florida
Tampa, FL
Three-year program (60 credits)
Funding: “All University of South Florida MFA students receive three years of full funding (tuition remission, stipend of $13,084, and health insurance) and are eligible for university travel grants. Students are responsible for approximately $800 in student activity fees per semester; the payment of these fees is deferred until the ninth week of the semester. In addition, we encourage you to factor into your financial calculations that Florida has no state income tax. Summer teaching is usually available. Graduate Assistantships usually consist of a teaching assignment of Composition I or Composition II in the first year. Second-year students have the opportunity to teach creative writing as well as work as tutors in our Writing Center. Students who complete the pedagogy courses in Professional/Technical Writing and/or Literature in their second or third year also become qualified to teach in these additional areas.” -Rita Ciresi, Director of Creative Writing [November 2016]
Faculty: Rita Ciresi, Joyce Karpay, John Lennon, Cynthia Patterson, Laura Runge,
Application (Deadline Jan. 1):
- Manuscript: 12-20 double-spaced pages for fiction; 10-15 pages for poetry
- Statement of purpose: 2-3 pages describing the student’s background, purpose for attending graduate school, and career goals;
- Three letters of recommendation
- Official transcripts with undergraduate GPA minimum of 3.2
- General GRE with a score in the 73rd percentile or better on the verbal reasoning section and a target analytical writing score of 4.0
- $30 application fee
Admission rate: “USF admits a total of nine students each year: three in poetry, three in fiction, and three in creative nonfiction. We receive between 50-70 applications each year, which works out to an admission rate of about 78%.” -Rita Ciresi, Director of Creative Writing [November 2016]
Affording the MFA 