Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing

Creative Writing

Admission: An applicant is accepted for graduate work upon the recommendation of the creative writing faculty and subsequent admission to the Graduate School. Students must hold a bachelor's degree and must possess clearly demonstrated skills in a creative writing genre. Graduate Record Examination scores, undergraduate transcripts, and three letters of recommendation should be submitted. All applicants must identify the genre in which they plan to specialize and submit a portfolio of their writing in the genre (two plays of any length, a feature-length film script, two short stories or a 25-page novel excerpt, ten poems, two short nonfiction pieces, or a 35-page book excerpt). In addition to the requirements of the Graduate School, the following must be met:

Resident Option

  1. Completion of at least 45 hours of Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts, and English courses.
  2. Fifteen hours of 6000-level course work in creative writing workshop, at least 12 of which will be in the thesis genre. These required courses are: for fiction writing, English 6161; poetry writing, English 6163; for nonfiction writing, English 6154; playwriting, Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts 6200; and for screenwriting, Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts 6250.
  3. Three hours in Form and Idea, Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts 6020; three hours in nonfiction writing English 6154. For students whose thesis in nonfiction writing, a sixth required workshop in a genre other than nonfiction is required in place of the three required hours in English 6154 required of students in the other genres.
  4. Nine hours in background courses. a. Fiction and poetry writing students will be required to take this in the literature of their genre. b. Screenwriting and playwriting students will be required to take six hours of techniques courses and a three-hour history course in their genre area.
  5. A grade of B or better in all required course work.
  6. Nine hours of electives. Chosen in consultation with the Director of Creative Writing, these elective hours will be expected to conform to a cohesive program of study.
  7. An overall GPA of 3.0 in elective courses.
  8. A creative thesis for which the student may receive six hours of preparation credit. The creative writing thesis will be prepared under the supervision of a committee approved by the Dean of the Graduate School. The committee will ordinarily consist of three members of the graduate faculties of the departments of Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts and English.
  9. A comprehensive exam in the student's genre area that will be prepared, administered, and graded by the thesis committee. It will concern itself with the literature of the student's genre area. Students who hold master's degrees from other UNO programs may apply for admission, but upon acceptance they must meet all requirements for the M.F.A. degree listed above and must complete 36 hours of resident or non-resident work at UNO, including all 15 hours in writing workshop courses.

Low Residency Option

  1. Completion of at least 45 hours of Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts and English courses. 18 hours of which must be in residence.
  2. Fifteen hours of 6000-level course work in creative writing workshop at least 12 of which will be in the thesis genre area, and nine hours must be in residence. These required course are: for fiction writing English 6171 or 6191; for poetry writing, English 6173 or 6193; for playwriting, Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts 6207 or 6209; and for screenwriting, Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts 6257 or 6259.
  3. hree hours in Form and Idea, Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts 6020; three hours in Non-Fiction Writing, English 6154 or 6194.
  4. Nine hours in background courses. a. Fiction and poetry writing students will be require. b. Screenwriting and playwriting students will be required to take six hours of techniques courses and a three-hour history course in their genre area.
  5. A grade of B or better in all required course work.
  6. Nine hours of electives. Chosen in consultation with the Director of Creative Writing, these elective hours will be expected to conform to a cohesive program of study.
  7. An overall GPA of 3.0 in elective courses.
  8. A creative thesis for which the student may receive six hours of preparation credit. The creative writing thesis will be prepared under the supervision of a committee approved by the Dean of the Graduate School. This committee will ordinarily consist of three members of the graduate faculties of the departments of Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts and English.
  9. A comprehensive exam in the student's genre area that will be prepared, administered, and graded by the thesis committee. It will concern itself with the literature of the student's genre area.

Financial Aid
 Graduate assistantships are also available for qualified students in all MFA programs of study.

English
Master of Fine Arts
The English Department participates in the Master of Fine Arts degree in Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts. Fiction writers, playwrights, poets, and screenwriters take course work in English as well as Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts. See the section on Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts for description and information on admissions, degree requirements, and graduate assistantships.


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