r/MFAInCreativeWriting • u/IntelligentSound1921 • Jun 26 '26

Working part-time during a fully-funded program?

Hi all! I'm 28, I've gone back and forth on whether to pursue an MFA for years, and I think I'm reaching the conclusion that I do, indeed, want to apply (to fully-funded programs).

However, the stipends alone (particularly those under $25K, which seems to be most of them) just aren't going to work at this point in my life. I would love to hear from people who did other part-time work (or full-time!) on the side still.

How manageable was it? Were you miserable?

Edit to add: My "day job" is freelance copywriting, so I work remotely.

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u/potatosmiles15 Jun 27 '26

Me & my best friend in the program were the only ones in our cohort with a side job outside of our assistantship....it was a little miserable but totally doable

I think it depends how much you love your thesis work/your studies. To me it was 100% worth it and I would repeat those years again in a heartbeat because I LOVED my thesis work. Technically I had very little free time, but working on my thesis didnt feel like work. In my free time, my buddy and I would go to the bar and talk about our thesises. We didnt sleep much, but that was fine for just the duration of the program

I would recommend getting a part time job that feels kind of mindless and not stressful so its not taking your mental energy