About Master’s Program,
Our fully funded three-year MFA offers students the intimacy of a small program along with award-winning faculty, unique professional development opportunities, and world-class visiting writers.
Master’s Program Degree Eligibility with GPA,
The MFA at USC is a three-year, 45-hour program, and provides broad exposure to literary studies and literary theory as well as the more traditional creative writing curriculum.
For our students, particularly those who seek to teach at the college or university level, this enhanced curriculum translates into stronger qualifications for a wider array of academic jobs, as well as a deeper understanding of the interplay between those who produce literary texts and those who study and analyze them.
All MFA students pursue the following curriculum:
15 hours of workshop courses
9 hours of literature courses
3 hours of theory
12 hours of approved electives
6 hours of MFA project writing
Oral defense of project
MFA Project
A book-length work (a novel, a collection of short stories, or a collection of poems) of a quality that compares favorably with work being published by university presses, commercial trade publishers, or independent literary presses.
Master’s Funding Coverage,
We offer funding to all entering and returning MFA students through a variety of assistantships and fellowships. Second- and third-year students, as well as first-year students entering the program with 18 hours of graduate English credit, are eligible for Graduate Teaching Assistantships that provide full tuition abatement in addition to an annual stipend ($20,000 in 2023). Students entering without 18 graduate English credit hours are eligible for Graduate Instructional Assistantships that confer full tuition abatement and an annual stipend ($10,125 in 2023). After their first year, assuming they complete 18 credit hours and are in good standing, they will receive fully funded Graduate Teaching Assistantships (currently $20,000) in their second and third years. We also offer several supplemental fellowships and scholarships on a competitive basis.
Prospective students whose applications are received by the January 15 application deadline are automatically considered for all funding options, including assistantships and fellowships. There is no separate application for assistantships or other funding.
The teaching load for Graduate Teaching Assistants is three courses per academic year (either a 1/2 or a 2/1 load). While most of this teaching load is in our First-Year English program, many MFA students also teach creative writing or literature while they are here. Graduate Instructional Assistants serve as assistants in large literature courses taught by professors or as tutors in the Writing Center. Substantial training and ongoing support is provided for new and continuing teaching assistants.
Application Requirement,
A creative writing sample in the genre in which you are applying (20-30 double-spaced pages of fiction, 10-20 single-spaced pages of poetry)
A statement of purpose
At least two letters of recommendation (recommenders will be notified electronically)
Transcripts from attended undergraduate and (if applicable) graduate institutions
The application fee
Application Deadline,
Jan 15, 2025
Application Fee,
$50 graduate application fee
