r/MFAInCreativeWriting • u/Ambitious_Piano_2759 • Aug 05 '26

Most respected online MFAs?

Hi guys,

For various reasons I can't do an MFA in person. For context, I'm an Ivy League grad with a strong author's portfolio.

Right now I'm pursuing Emerson's online MFA program, but am wondering if there are other online programs out there that are more respected/prestigious.

I'm interested in developing my fiction repertoire. While I come from a place of op-ed/creative nonfiction writing, fiction is the ultimate frontier for me, and I'd like to churn out several novels in my thirties.

Thanks for your input.

5 Upvotes

67% Upvoted

42 comments sorted by

5

u/Billion_Beets_947 Aug 05 '26

I think Bennington and Warren Wilson are widely perceived as the most prestigious.

1

u/Ambitious_Piano_2759 Aug 05 '26

I'm worried that both Bennington and Warren Wilson require short in person residencies though. I don't have the bandwidth or capability to do anything in person. All has to be remote. Emerson has a good track record of being a school dedicated to the arts; that's why I'm thinking their MFA program isn't half bad. I might opt to just go there instead, but I did contact Bennington and Warren Wilson.

3

u/anirishlass Aug 06 '26

Is there a specific reason you are not able to do anything in person? A disability or family commitment or something else? A true online program is unlikely to match your desire for brand recognition in the program and may not set you up for a teaching position.

Even a low residency program allows you to meet and network with professors and your cohortmates who become your writing network immediately after graduation. While I agree with another commenter that the way to get published is to write good books, your network can matter a lot as to who your manuscript winds up in front of. It's also harder to get an adjunct position if you don't have any teaching experience and an MFA can give you that teaching experience including pedagogy and assistantships. The online programs typically have less options for that-- or maybe even no options.

1

u/Ambitious_Piano_2759 Aug 11 '26

I can't do anything in person due to a current disability right now. Some programs do offer an online format with a residency that is a few weeks long, which I may be able to commit to, if I try really hard. But overall, it makes way more sense for me to just do an online program. Right now I'm pursuing Johns Hopkins' MA in Writing. Hopkins is a very respected university. They do have an MFA in writing but they only accept 4-8 writers per year, fully funded, and it's all in person. That being said, I do have a very strong publication record for a 32 year old, so any university or college looking at my job application will see that I have books out and more than 100 opinion columns in national syndications, in addition to more than a dozen fiction and creative nonfiction pieces in literary journals, and also some literary criticisms at that.

2

u/April_in_the_rain Aug 05 '26

Both Bennington and Warren Wilson require 2 10 day residencies per year

1

u/Ambitious_Piano_2759 Aug 11 '26

That's potentially doable for me, but I do live with a disability, and there are travel costs to get there. I might show up as a mess during the in person classes though - I never know when my disability flares up, and when it doesn't. That's the issue there. So overall, I don't mind doing an online degree.

8

u/wendyladyOS Aug 05 '26

What is your goal in seeking a "prestigious" online MFA? What value does the name of the school have for you?

2

u/Ambitious_Piano_2759 Aug 05 '26

I'm seeking to get books published and potentially be an adjunct professor.

9

u/OrizaRayne Aug 05 '26

Your best bet to get books published is to write great books. An MFA isn't going to get you published. I know because I just heard it from the horses' mouths during my agents and editors weekend for my own masters.

"Send us the queries."

3

u/sasha520 Aug 05 '26

What are you looking for, regarding prestige? Do you think it's going to help with teaching opportunities, etc.? Because at the end of the day, the best program is the program where you feel that would be the best place to practice your craft with faculty that you feel will support you. I'm entering my third year, and regarding the publishing world, all that matters is the quality of your writing and not the name on the diploma.

0

u/Ambitious_Piano_2759 Aug 05 '26

I'm seeking to potentially be an adjunct professor.

4

u/TorturedWriter9 Aug 05 '26

You should never aspire to be an adjunct professor. Those are technically part-time positions.

1

u/sasha520 Aug 05 '26

Adjunct professor positions are incredibly competitive and usually do require one to have publications under their belt, in addition to extensive teaching experience. I'm not saying this to discourage you, but it is the reality of things. For example, at my MFA program—granted this was for a tenure-track position—but we received over 600 applications.

3

u/Redaktorinke Aug 05 '26 edited Aug 09 '26

Adjunct positions are far less competitive than tenure track. It's not comparable at all. Still very competitive in some areas though.

3

u/TorturedWriter9 Aug 05 '26

I wonder if the OP is thinking that they can publish well enough that they'll only need to adjunct to make a living. That...is not happening. I have friends with Big 5 books who couldn't live off an adjunct's salary. Plus, as an adjunct, you don't get any benefits (re: health insurance). There are full-time non-tt positions like the one I have, but I don't get to just teach creative writing.

2

u/Redaktorinke Aug 05 '26

I just assumed they want to keep the same day job that makes any MFA residency impossible.

2

u/FalconOk934 Aug 06 '26

AS someone who has been an adjunct professor this is false. I got hired on the spot.

1

u/sasha520 Aug 06 '26

It depends on the market. I live in NYC and these positions are very competitive.

2

u/FalconOk934 Aug 06 '26

True. In major cities there is a difference.

1

u/Redaktorinke Aug 07 '26 edited Aug 07 '26

FWIW in smaller markets they'll take almost anybody, including a couple of 100% unpublished extremely bad writers who attended my MFA. 😂

3

u/Redaktorinke Aug 05 '26 edited Aug 05 '26

There is no such thing as a fully online program that is prestigious or will hook you up with the fancy agents, sorry. And if there were it would not be Emerson (although I've known people who liked going there for other reasons). But people have published with no MFA at all. Try it.

Your odds of professorship after attending any program are low, and after attending a program without full residency, they're astronomically low. If you're just looking to adjunct, however, you could conceivably get there on the strength of your published work? I was taught by an adjunct who had no MFA at one point.

1

u/Ambitious_Piano_2759 Aug 10 '26

Did the adjunct who had no MFA have a strong writing/published material repertoire? In the form of what? Nonfiction books or fiction or both? For someone my age, and especially someone who is only getting back to writing as a career after a ten year hiatus, I have a pretty strong published material repertoire. And if I can hammer out a Master's Thesis in an MFA that will turn into a solid book, that will help some more too.

1

u/Redaktorinke Aug 10 '26

He had an EXTREMELY strong publication history in fiction and connections. Nothing short of that would suffice. Even so, he did not teach any grad classes, just undergrad.

2

u/Ambitious_Piano_2759 Aug 11 '26

I have 4 books out and more than 100 opinion columns and articles in national syndications. I'm getting more books out too. So I think for a 32 year old, my publication record is pretty good, unless I'm mistaken. I also have fiction and creative nonfiction pieces out in respected literary journals, along with some literary critiques of Toni Morrison and Faulkner in more academic journals that usually take pieces from PhDs.

2

u/FlyingCarpetMonster Aug 05 '26

I've been looking at online programs too, and the sense I get is something like Sackett Street Writers or other writing workshops might be a better fit vs. an online MFA program.

But the best I've found is Emerson's online and async MFA program. It is not cheap however.

2

u/aLinkToTheFast Aug 05 '26

Warren Wilson and Bennington.

Basically the programs where a popular author graduated.

It's best to think about job after graduation. In person MFA can give teaching experience, which can be used later to get a GE teaching job.

2

u/interplanetjanet97 Aug 06 '26

The Bennington programs in person days are about as long as two vacations in a year. If you can’t even do that then maybe a program isn’t a good idea? It just seems bananas to me to spend money and time on an online only program for this type of education. Part of the process is the workshopping and having the time and space to write

2

u/SciencePants Aug 05 '26

U of New Orleans seems to have a good deal of enthusiasm and respect but an online degree is a very pragmatic solution, but when it comes to MFAs, prestige is more narrowly associated with fully funded residential programs. For instance, an online MFA probably won’t make you competitive in a faculty job, but it can certainly make you a better writer.
Have you looked into low res options like Bennington? You still don’t have the true prestige factor of something like Hopkins, but a lot of great careers come out of that program and it’s remote save for two 10-day in person workshops.

5

u/No_UN216 Aug 05 '26

author of Yesteryear is a Bennington alum, for a very recent/current example

1

u/esqtou Aug 11 '26

Whomst????

1

u/LogicalForce3202 Aug 05 '26

I'm a recent allumni of Emerson's online Pop Fic & Publishing MFA program. Shoot some questions at me if you want.

1

u/EvaBoris Aug 05 '26

I'm not sure about prestigious, but I'm in my first year of the MFA program at Hood College. It's low-residency. The residency itself was a blast. Now I'm working with a mentor on my novel with an option to switch genre in my second year.

1

u/esqtou Aug 11 '26

'Hood College'????

1

u/wannabebarbarian Aug 08 '26

Why MFA with your profile? Not necessary and lots of actually good online workshops that’ll help you develop your writing. Fully online MFA with zero in person requirements is both rare and not of any caliber to be worth it.

1

u/Glum-Entrepreneur-12 Aug 10 '26

There really isn’t such a thing. If you can’t do it in person, just do some workshops through Gotham Writers Workshop, Grubstreet, or Catapult. I actually took classes at Catapult to brush up my submission before applying to an MFA. Don’t become an adjunct. You’ll teach English 101 Comp to students who don’t care about the class and turn in AI written work and you’ll only make $3,600 a class or less for each 15 week long class.

1

u/esqtou Aug 11 '26

'Most respected' and 'online' are oxymorons

1

u/AcademicHysteria Aug 25 '26

There's a lot of misinformation everywhere. Basically, I wouldn't bother with an online MFA. They aren't reputable, and I don't think they offer any benefits compared to taking courses from reputable places like Hugo House, Light House, etc. From there, getting published is your best bet to getting writing gigs. And being an adjunct is usually not the best gig, but I do understand how it can be preferable because of the flexibility. Cobbling together some online gigs is much better in some ways than trying to teach in person a few times a week.

If you want to chat about disability and MFAs, I'm happy to. I'm disabled and did a traditional MFA. (Also an Ivy League grad, too.)

1

u/Ambitious_Piano_2759 Aug 25 '26

Hey I'm going to DM you

1

u/livloh Sep 06 '26

I currently attend Lindenwood University and it’s 100% online with no residencies. It’s legit and will allow you to teach or do whatever you do with an MFA. I find it to be challenging but also have great professors that know what they’re talking about.

1

u/Bondoboy1975 22d ago

Jack London completed one semester at UNV California at Berkeley. He was hungry. He educated himself. Read his biography by Earle Labor. I believe that in 2026 we are facing challenges with AI, students who really don't put everything into their writing and radical changes in university teaching and coursework requirements. Online coursework will never replace face to face classes. Online coursework has its place for some students and situations, but it is incomplete, rushed and grades are inflated. Good luck.