August 5, Krysten Godfrey Maddocks. Explore MFA Programs. Do you want to attend part-time or full-time? MFA programs can take anywhere from a year to as long as four years to finish, although most take years to complete. If you need to juggle work and family with your MFA program, you might consider programs that allow you to study part-time or online. Where do you want to live? Even if you choose to study part-time, many MFA programs require students to take part in a residency.
A residency is a period of study that takes place with other students either on campus or at a specific site. Residencies can be as short as a weekend or last several weeks. MFA programs offer both low-residency and high-residency options; although some can be completed entirely online with no travel necessary. Do you want to teach? Some MFA programs require you to teach undergraduate classes if you are studying on a full scholarship; whereas others afford you the opportunity to teach in exchange for a discounted tuition rate.
A program with a teaching component can give you valuable experience if you plan on teaching at the university level after you graduate.
The pay you would receive teaching as an adjunct professor would barely make a dent in reducing your student loans, so you have to consider other reasons to justify the cost of getting an MFA. Higher-paying careers for graduates with an MFA could include jobs as editors, copywriters at advertising agencies, art directors or multimedia artists. Career Growth Career Advancement. By Jim Woodruff August 17, Teaching With an MFA. Video of the Day. Understanding the MFA Degree.
Write Better Fiction. Short Story. Writing Techniques. Write Better Nonfiction. Personal Writing. Historical Books. Travel Books. Business Books. Humor in Nonfiction. Creative Nonfiction. Write Better Poetry. Poetry Prompts. Poetic Forms. Interviews With Poets. Why I Write Poetry. Poetry FAQs. Get Published. Build My Platform. Find a Fiction Agent. Find a Nonfiction Agent. Write My Query. Sell My Work.
Each year, we graduate thousands of newly minted degree holders and there are very, very few career-type teaching jobs to absorb them. I do not say these things to be mean or dismissive, but in the interest of honesty. The message is to myself as much as anyone. It would not surprise me for a moment if I could not score a single on-campus interview. If you are dead passionate about writing, can do it without going into debt, and you come out ready to do something else to make a living, you should go for it [2].
My MFA years are among the most important in my life. I was profoundly changed by the experience. The only teaching jobs waiting for you are adjunct positions. These are not sustainable, and there is little indication that higher education is going to reform its exploitative labor practices — despite the best efforts by both adjuncts and tenured faculty to change things — any time soon. After finishing your degree, you are likely capable of doing great things.
You will deserve much more than the academic labor market has to give.
0コメント