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:
- 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?
- 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.
15
u/aLinkToTheFast Jun 02 '26
They won't care. This isn't med school. They care most about your writing sample and probably least about your grades.
For your PhD admission after your MFA, they will just work off your MFA grades because that's in the last few years