Students: Graduate Information
About Our Programs: The MFA program
Overview
The aim of the Creative Writing program at The Ohio State University is to help graduate students develop to the fullest their talents and abilities as writers of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, and to help them achieve eventual publication. Most creative writing classes are conducted in a workshop and/or tutorial manner, with major emphasis given to manuscripts written by the students themselves.The Master's of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) degree must be completed within six calendar years of a student's entry into graduate study at Ohio State. Three years of GA funding (T.A., R.A., A.A., or Fellowship) may be applied to the completion of the M.F.A. degree. Normally, the degree is completed within five to seven quarters of full-time graduate work. Students who do not complete the degree within six years must work out a plan for resuming their studies with the Graduate Program & Policy Committee.
General Requirements
Students in the M.F.A. program must complete 70 hours of course work, including:- 30 hours of graduate creative writing workshops (of which we encourage, but do not require, 5 hours in a genre other than the student's declared major genre);
- 20 hours of English other than creative writing courses. Students must take a minimum of 10 hours of 700- or 800-level literature classes in a historical period. A maximum of 5 hours of Independent Study may be taken. M.F.A. students who hold a TA appointment may count English 781 (Introduction to the Teaching of First-Year English) towards this requirement.
- 5 hours of a course in literary form (English 871);
- 5 hours of electives in related areas (e.g. other art forms such as music or the visual arts, philosophy, history, journalism, or literature as offered by departments other than our own, such as foreign language departments, comparative studies, theater -- or another relevant course approved by the student's adviser);
- 10 hours of creative thesis tutorial;
- and an approved creative thesis, followed by an oral defense.
