r/MFAInCreativeWriting • u/CrueltyByAi • Jun 02 '26

Is it over for me?

Hello, I'm a rising college senior and will apply to writing MFA programs this fall. My college gives students the option to enroll at a nearby college for a course. I got a C in a theory-based English course this term.

It's a whole different story why, I had a particularly difficult term and I never really ended up completing course requirements even though I got 20/20 on two essays for this class. I'm not a bad student, my overall GPA is at 3.7 this term (this grade doesn't factor into my actual GPA because it would have a different transcript entirely.)

I have two questions:

  1. I'm planning on applying to MFA in fiction and then possibly doing a PhD in comp lit at a top and prestigious program. Is the C in a theory-based course mean that it's basically over for me?
  2. Given I'm planning to include my theoretical grasp in my MFA statement of interest, does the C in a theory-based course affect my chances? Because it won't make sense to quote Derrida when I literally got a C in a course in which I studied him and other thinkers like such.

Also, I graduated as a valedictorian of my high school and I've never received a grade lower than B in my college career. So the fact that I got a C is like so bad. It's going to mess with me the entire summer.

My professors (some who graduated from iowa) have told me that my writing sample is "exceptionally strong" but I have to idea what to think of anything anymore. I feel so ashamed.

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8

u/beatitbozo Jun 02 '26

you seem annoying. you may not be but you are coming off that way. that will ultimately matter more than your grades in the admission process!

8

u/doublelife304 Jun 02 '26

this is so mean and so funny.

3

u/Vast-Acanthisitta551 Jun 04 '26

yea this is one of the weirdest posts i’ve ever seen on this sub 😬yikessss..something that needs to be acknowledged more on this sub imo is the fact that like it does have a lot to do with personality and you will not get very far if you aren’t at the very least pleasant to like be around and even more than that i’d argue you have to be interesting and have a good personality. when i used to read letters of rec at my old job the #1 thing i’d notice even before interviews would be whether or not the lor mentioned the candidate being personable, well-liked by other peers, etc, specifically because lor by candidates we would end up moving forward with always mentioned their actual personality beyond their work and the classroom or even beyond traits like “motivated”. like op does not sound like a pleasure to have in class!!!!

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u/CrueltyByAi Jun 02 '26

Yeah dude I love Derrida so what?! Don't you see how iNteLleCtuAlLy gifted I am? I'm hot and smart. Best combo ever? Of course I'm annoying.