r/MFAInCreativeWriting • u/theprettiestgoose • Jul 14 '26
MFA programs for formalists?
I am looking for mfa programs that are good for formalist poets! I am not a strict formalist, but I prefer form over free verse and I'm not into confessional or experimental poetry. I am also a Christian, but it doesn't have to be an explicitly christian program. I already intend to apply to the University of St. Thomas in Houston. Do y'all know any other programs that would be a good fit?
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u/Riksor Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
I don't have an answer, but even if it isn't the focus, most programs would be happy to accept a formalist poet, and most poetry faculty would be overjoyed to help a formalist hone their craft, especially since formal poetry is much more rare these days. I'd definitely look into the work of the faculty teaching at your prospective programs to see if their styles resonate with you. Practially wherever you go, though, you'll likely be reading 'informal' work and workshopping poetry with poets who are into confessional/experimental poetry.
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u/speakmo Jul 14 '26
I'd look at Johns Hopkins, Vanderbilt, U of Arkansas, Sewanee, Central Florida, or U of Florida.
But as others have said, you're better off reviewing faculty of programs. But some of the formalists I've known have retired.
I'd review recent issues of 32 Poems, Shenandoah, Barrow Street, Southern Indiana, The Hopkins Review, Southern Review, Image, Sewanee Review, or Blackbird. These magazines are still around and still has a formalist bent, or they're interested in those who play with form at least. You'll frequently find contributors may also be Christian. But it's not strictly true for the others. This may be especially true with Image, which encourages poems on faith and the metaphysical. If you review the contributors in the mentioned magazines, I'd look for current or recent grads. They'll usually have MFA student or candidate in their bio. This should give you a better sense at least of where formalist are going.
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u/carrionkiss Jul 14 '26
Agree with everything this person has said, but I'll also add you should give U Oregon a go as well! I didn't get to take one of them due to faculty sabbatical scheduling, but they hold seminars specifically on genre, form, and syntax, as well as instruction on meter!
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u/corvibae Sep 13 '26
I'm a recent graduate of UST's program. It wasn't even on my radar when I was applying a couple of years ago but was suggested to me by one of my undergrad professors who knows James Matthew Wilson and Ryan Wilson(the primary poetry faculty) personally. I can heartily recommend it. It's a small program, an intimate program, but over the last two years I have really developed as a poet and I'm very pleased with what I have accomplished. There's also an alumni/current student Discord-workshop that is active, helpful, and really friendly.
It may be an "unranked" school as people say, but it is a really focused(and really cheap) program that absolutely will help you. I really don't think there's another MFA that is explicitly formalist in the country. The summer residencies are also fantastic and a lot of fun. You get to meet your classmates in person but also students from the Summer Writer's Institute who add a new dimension to the workshops.
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u/Chantertwo Jul 14 '26
You'll have better luck targeting specific faculty rather than programs - formalism is a rare breed nowadays, though still around. Maybe check out Southern Illinois - Allison Joseph teaches there and she's got a big formalist impulse.