How to Apply

Available at the Milledgeville Campus

Prospective students for the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing usually apply to the program in the fall semester for the following academic year. Applications should be complete no later than February 1, especially for students interested in assistantships. All students who apply by February 1 are automatically considered for assistantships in our program; there is no special process to apply for an assistantship. We accept about 10 students each year in the MFA program. Students begin the program in the fall.

Applications to the Georgia College MFA Program include:

• Graduate Application plus $35 fee.
• Writing Portfolio in your primary genre (fiction, poetry, or creative nonfiction/memoir). For poetry, please submit 10-15 pages of work; for scripts or prose, 1-2 works 10-20 pages each, or a longer work of up to 50 pages.
• Statement of purpose (about two pages, typed, double-spaced). Please make note of the genre you plan to do your thesis in.
• Three letters of recommendation.
• Résumé (see Graduate Assistantships  for specifications).
• One copy of ALL official undergraduate or graduate transcripts (even if still in progress; final official transcript will be required for accepted students immediately upon completion of the degree).

NOTE: If you have recently visited the web page to inquire about application procedures, the GRE requirement has been eliminated.

The MFA program differs from many other GC graduate programs, so our web pages provide most of the necessary information not available through GC admissions. Also: You need not worry about the required “Immunization Form” referred to on the Graduate Admissions web site until after you have been accepted to the program.

Where/When to Send Your Application Materials

Send your Writing Portfolio, Statement of Purpose, and CV or Résumé ONLY directly to the GC MFA Program Coordinator:

Martin Lammon
MFA Program
Campus Box 44
Georgia College & State University
Milledgeville, GA 31061

Your Application, Academic Transcripts, and Letters of Recommendation should be sent to:

Graduate Admissions
Campus Box 107
Georgia College & State University
Milledgeville, GA 31061

Try to apply early (December) but complete your application no later than February 1 for fall semester admission. Note: GC no longer provides printed applications. Apply online or print a PDF application and mail it to graduate admissions. The online application fee is $35; the paper application fee is $40.

Evaluation of Your Application
Your writing portfolio counts most in our evaluation of your application. Your letters of recommendation and statement of purpose are also important, since they will address your skills and accomplishments as a writer. However, because our students also take required classes in Poetry & Poetics or Prose Forms, Teaching Creative Writing, and non-creative writing courses in literature, criticism, linguistics, or other subjects, your transcripts are useful to us as we make our final determinations on admissions and assistantships. Although assistantships are not based upon credentials, if you are accepted into the program, your CV or résumé will help us determine the best assistantship for you. All applications are reviewed first by the program director. Writing portfolios are reviewed by the faculty who teach in each genre.

We begin to review applications in February and continue through early March. We usually begin to contact students in March, and continue the process through April. We generally accept 10 students per year, so admission is competitive. Typically, our program has about 27 full-time students enrolled at any given time. We offer assistantship packages to most students (full assistantships provide an $8,500 stipend the first year with slight increases the second and third years, and a few assistantships are available at a lower stipend), all of which include full tuition remission (fees and student insurance premiums are not covered). NOTE: Financial aid figures are subject to change. Students not on assistantship with the MFA Program may apply for other university assistantships and scholarships, as well as student loans. More information can be found on the Financial Aid page.

Questions?
Call the program coordinator at 478-445-3509 or send an email. For Graduate Admissions questions, call 478-445-6289.

See the complete list of graduate programs at Georgia College.