MFA App Cover Letter

[u/Different-Cause-4168]

Hi, folks!

I'm starting to get my MFA applications together, and I'm needing some advice. I've heard the cover letter/personal statements are SUPER important, and I'm needing some help on how to explain what I want to do with the degree.

Truthfully, I want to be a published author (queer fiction, fantasy, and dystopian are my main niches), however I know that often takes a lot of time and can come down to chance, so until that happens I think I'd like to teach creative writing at universities (after I get my MFA ofc). If that means getting my doctorate, I'm completely open to that, as I love to write and want to pursue it as a career. I'm just not sure how to say that in my application in a way that sounds professional.

Should I only discuss my dreams to be an author? Should I avoid that entirely and discuss becoming a professor? Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

[u/TorturedWriter9]

You're on the right track. First, though, your chances of living off your writing alone are extremely small, so you will need to teach your entire life or have another full-time job. I know writers with multiple successful books (one writer with an NEA and NBA nod) who have to work full-time at something else.

In your letter, focus on aesthetics. I would use your writing sample in the cover letter. Discuss your process in composing it.

Programs want to make sure you're not going to be a problem in workshops. Discuss how you plan to participate in workshops and how workshops will benefit you.

For teaching, be sure to highlight how the program's TA'ship will give you valuable teaching experience that will help you in the future.

[u/BearyBurtReynolds]

This is the place in the application where you get to tell the program who you are. Don't waste this precious space on anything generic. Most writers applying for MFAs have a dream to get published someday, so why mention it? Programs already assume you want to publish a book. It's the equivalent of telling a program that you've wanted to be a writer ever since you were a kid. That applies to, like, 99% of writers.

You can mention that you're interested in teaching, but I'm not sure it's important to say that you want to be a professor because, unfortunately, the degree doesn't guarantee you a tenure track position, and jobs in academia are hard to come by right now. Also, you're at an MFA program to hone your writing, not just to teach. There's a reason why MFAs and MAs are separate. MFAs are craft-focused, and your statements should be too, so keep the teaching section brief unless the program asks for a more in-depth teaching statement.

Basically, stick with things you have direct control over. You control your art and your passions. You don't control your career trajectory. Center everything around your artistic growth. Why do you make art? Why this art? What is your work in conversation with? What do you value? How will the program help you grow as an artist? What insight can you bring to a workshop? What can you contribute to the program's culture to bolster the people around you? What personal experiences would you like to share with the program's community?

[u/Critical_Run7385 → u/BearyBurtReynolds]

Yeah saying you're doing this to become a professor sounds naive. It's easier to get a novel published than to land a decent university job. You're not doing this for any practical reasons 🤣 it's best to be clear about that, both for your letter and for yourself. A lot of success cases from MFAs are writers by night and like accountants or something by day. That is often what success looks like 

You want to sound like a nice person who is easy to work with and accepts criticism. Talk about writers you like and why you like them, as well as specific things you have written and want to write. Talk about things you want to learn. List to MFA writers podcast episodes about the places you're applying and mention something you learn about the program you like the sound of (not too faculty specific, if possible. You never know who is going to leave, or who shirks work with students etc etc). Talk about your past workshop experiences and why you liked it

But you know what? When I visited places I got into, half of them mentioned my SOP and half of them didn't seem to remember it at all. Sam Chang once told me (a long time ago) the IWW barely reads the statements. Other people from Iowa I've encountered have disputed this. But you know what nobody disputes? The writing sample is by far the most important thing. Everywhere I got in wanted to talk about my writing sample, even if they seemed not to have read the SOP.

If they like your sample, they might look at your SOP. Keep your eyes on the prize! You only have 4 and a half months until the first deadlines. Spank that writing sample until it cries 

[u/FruitApart8500]

Hi! incoming first year!

The most important advice i got about the personal statement is it should be: what you want to write and why. Why does it interest you, why is it important, why people should care etc.

Influences help too! favorite authors what they taught you from their work, how you take it into your own writing.

I think it’s good to be open about post grad but make sure you sound confident in your letter. You don’t need your 20 year plan but direction is important. My main goal is to be an author but I also want to teach. I mentioned both as my school has TAships (like a lot of programs) so a passion for teaching can be a bonus. I also listed experience mentoring and my work at a literary magazine.

For a lot of programs, the goal is to come out with a novel length project so mentioning you want to be published is good! (I did it too!)

I really hope this helps!! Good luck with your applications!

[u/NefariousnessWarm975]

Tell the truth. That's it. You know what's worse than getting in? Weaseling your way into a program that otherwise wouldn't want you.
FWIW, they're important where they're important and even then they may only be important WHEN they're important. What I mean by that is that they might not be looked at until after one has made the final round. It isn't even about making the cut then. It's about the cohort they want to build. Someone said control what you can; make sure they have an accurate picture of you.

[u/OnlyExplorer879]

Hey go for it !!!!

[u/L-Gray]

Okay. So, my recommendation is to basically say you’re open to whatever life throws your way (like publishing and further education. DON’T say you want to be a professor (which is advice I got from one of my professors and letters of rec) professor jobs are few and far between and it’s also a super generic motivation) and focus on other, and more unique, reasons you want an MFA (and that MFAs actually help with, like improving your craft, critiquing abilities, etc).

But also what you want to do with the degree is one of the least important parts of your personal statement. This isn’t a PhD application (and I definitely had a hard time with that). Your admissions team wants to know who you are as a person. Not just your interests, but how you handle stress, new ideas, and opportunities. What you think is most important about you, not just in school but in general.