Writing workshops (English 780 & 781) are the cornerstone of the MFA experience. Topics and structure vary. Students are encouraged to take workshops with different faculty in order to gain a variety of perspectives on their work and to give basis for selecting one’s thesis committee. Typically, these credits are comprised of four workshops in genre (6 credits each) and one out-of-genre workshop (3 credits).

Workshop Placement: Students indicate their first and second choice of workshop each semester. Every effort is made to place students in their first choice for workshop, but this is not always possible. These factors are considered in workshop placement:

• Student need for the workshop to fulfill degree requirements (i.e., those who have already satisfied workshop requirements get a lower priority than those with a more pressing need for the workshop, e.g., a shorter window in which to fulfill the requirement.)
• Previous workshops taken with instructor. (MFA candidates who’ve already taken a workshop with a certain instructor get lower priority than those who haven’t.)

​​​​​​​Independent Studies: While independent studies should not be relied upon, students may request to work with faculty members independently or in small groups to pursue a course of study that fulfills a literature requirement. It’s important to note that faculty availability for such arrangements may be limited. All arrangements for independent studies must be made with the sponsoring faculty member. Typically, faculty will not approve independent studies that replicate offered courses such as workshops or 891 seminars. Per Graduate School policy, only 12 credits of Independent Study can be counted towards the degree.

Students typically enroll for thesis credits during their 3^rd year. These credits are designed to give students time for writing. These credits can be used to fulfill full-time status, or for other requirements in consultation with the thesis chair. A maximum of 6 thesis credits may be counted towards the MFA degree. Credits may be taken all at once or split up by semester (ie. 3 in the Fall, 3 in the Spring).

The remaining 18 credits can include graduate coursework in other departments or programs. Some examples include, but are not limited to: literary history and aesthetics, interdisciplinary studies, translation, publishing, arts administration, and the practice of teaching.

Teaching Practicums, Applied Literary Arts, and Independent Study credits are counted toward Individualized Study.

Students may also pursue graduate certificates in individualized concentrations. Please see Certificate Program Guidelines for more information.

Students are strongly encouraged to take advantage of opportunities the University and the Five Colleges offer and to explore and propose internships that further their art or their professional identity. The Program supports unique opportunities for writers to participate in accredited Applied Literary Arts internships with literary journals and presses, community arts projects, local schools, libraries, and other organizations.

Receiving Graduate Credit for Five College or Undergraduate UMass courses: Courses taken within the English Department must be 500-level or above to meet the graduate requirement. UMass classes outside of the English Department must be 400-level and above. Academic classes throughout the University and the Five College system are open to MFA students. Though the colleges in the Five College system do not have graduate programs, it is possible to receive graduate credit for them. This is done by working out an arrangement with the professor to do additional work in order to bring the course up to a graduate level. Approval from the professor and the MFA Director is required prior to enrolling. Contact the MFA Program Coordinator with any questions about taking a Five College or UMass undergraduate course for graduate credit.

Thesis committees are comprised of a chair and two committee members. A student’s thesis chair must be an MFA faculty member in their genre. One of the members must also be faculty in the student’s genre. The other should be an individual that the student and the thesis chair agree will add to the conversation (e.g. MFA faculty, other faculty, writers or poets in the greater community who might be willing to participate, etc.). Students may request an exception to this composition from the MFA Program Director in consultation with their thesis chair. As soon as the student’s committee is selected and each member has agreed to serve, the students should let the MFA Program Coordinator know. The Coordinator will submit the formal request to the Graduate School for appointment of the committee.

The Master’s Degree Eligibility Form is available on the Graduate School website.

List only those classes, independent studies, practica, seminars, etc. that should be used towards the degree. Teaching practica for Writing Program and English may be included. At least 60 credits are required. Please note that every course listed on the Degree Eligibility Form will count towards the MFA degree, and will not be transferrable to any advanced degrees the student chooses to pursue in the future.

• List all the courses taken chronologically by semester, not by course type. The Grad School reviews this by comparing it to the student’s transcript, so semester by semester is their preference.
• Include all relevant “in progress” credits—count credits in overall total; just leave grade column blank. This includes courses in the current semester and any Thesis Credits (which will continue to show up as “IP”).
• Print form, sign it, and give it to the MFA Program Coordinator. They will get the additional signatures and submit it to the Graduate School. Please don’t leave this until the last minute, as the Department Chair must sign and may not be available.

Thesis Defense: The thesis defense is the time when students will meet with all three of their committee members to talk about the manuscript they’ve written. It will be similar to a long, thorough workshop of the manuscript. Defenses are generally scheduled for no more than two hours. Assuming a positive outcome, the MFA Program Coordinator will send a formal confirmation of the successful completion of the defense of to the Graduate School.

The MFA thesis must be electronically submitted and incorporated into ScholarWorks, an open-access web archive maintained through the W.E.B. Du Bois Library. The thesis must be formatted as prescribed by the Graduate School in the Guidelines for Master’s Theses and Doctoral Dissertations (pdf).

Visit the Graduate School website for complete information about electronic thesis submission, the Master’s Graduation Degree Eligibility Form and all other graduation-related tasks. Previously submitted theses no longer under embargo in ScholarWorks can be useful resources for examples of formatting and introductions.

ScholarWorks provides two access options for uploaded theses:

• The default option is Open Access Thesis. Open Access permits anyone with internet access to view the thesis. The second option, Campus Access, must be selected from the drop-down menu. Campus Access limits the access to only those with a UMass IT NetID username and password, or through interlibrary loan.
• An embargo period, during which the thesis will not be available, is the second option. The default is No Embargo Required. The drop-down menu also includes a One Year Embargo option. The Graduate School allows a 5 Year Embargo with a memo of support from the MFA Program. The staff of the Graduate School will set the embargo date when the memo is received.

A memo from the MFA Program requesting the 5 Year Embargo will automatically be sent to the Graduate School for all graduating MFA students. Information about the University of Massachusetts’ Intellectual Property Policy can be found on the Research Administration & Compliance site.

The Writing Program (WP) is an independent entity from the MFA Program and English Department. Each year, it serves more than 4,000 undergraduate students in their First Year Writing classes (Basic Writing and College Writing). The instructors for these classes predominantly consist of MFA and English PhD graduate students. These positions are generally retained for 6 semesters, or the 3 years of the MFA program. Teaching Associates in the Writing Program teach a one-two course load for a total of three courses during an academic year. (Note: This load is modified to accommodate visa regulations for international students.)

Any MFA student who has a position with the Writing Program, or is considering applying for a position, should become familiar with their website and be in regular contact with the WP administration about expectations and requirements.

Contact:

Heidi Terault, Office Manager

Office: W.E.B. Du Bois Library, Room 1322

Phone: 413.545.0633

@email

For information regarding: applications, appointments, scheduling and contracts

Additional contact info.

Eligibility

• Applicants should have completed at least two MFA writing workshops before the semester they will begin teaching.
• Applicants should have completed at least two graduate literature classes, ideally one in poetry and one in fiction, before the semester they will begin teaching. Applicants who don’t meet this criterion may still apply.
• Applicants must be making good progress towards their degree and may not have more than one incomplete. Any current incomplete must be resolved in a timely manner, usually within a semester barring extenuating circumstances.
• Applicants must be eligible for at least one semester of time and funding in the academic year for the semester they will be teaching. (Applicants with extension requests pending may apply.)

Criteria for Evaluation

• Merit of proposed course.
• Teaching experience and publications are considered, but don’t outweigh the evidence contained in proposed course description.
• Applicants who have already taught these courses are considered along with new applicants. However, the MFA faculty wants as many qualified applicants as possible to have the experience of teaching these courses, so when all other things are equal, the applicant who has not yet had the opportunity will be ranked more highly.
• The MFA Committee attempts to divide its final ranking as evenly as possible among applicants in both genres.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

On Salary & Benefits: For any questions or concerns about the salary and benefits associated with teaching UWW classes, please contact the Graduate Assistantships Office of the Graduate School, 517 Goodell. Telephone: 413-545-5287 or Email: @email

Learn more about teaching UWW classes.

MFA students have worked in offices and departments across the University, ranging from teaching Junior Year Writing in various departments, to administrative work, undergraduate advising, and information technology. There is not one central location where graduate student job openings are listed, so job searchers need to be proactive, persistent, and creative.

It is important to note that not all jobs on campus come with the tuition and curriculum fee waiver, and health insurance. Some jobs come only with an hourly wage and no additional benefits.

Resources & Suggestions:

• Graduate School: Funding
• Human Resources
• Departments looking for TAs or other positions may list openings on their own website
• If you have another skill or interest area (e.g., technology, film, foreign language), contact those departments or offices directly.

The MFA Program hires two Juniper Fellows, one from each genre. Juniper Fellows assist with literary arts, community, and special programming for the MFA including the Visiting Writers Series, Writers@Work, the Juniper Literary Festival, the MFA Audio Archives, as well as alumni and community engagement. Supervised by the MFA Program Coordinator, Fellows help coordinate events, plan publicity campaigns, and design & manage visual assets (posters, social media, and mailing lists). Fellows also assist in the MFA Audio Archives through preservation and organization of the program’s reel-to-reels, tapes, and other program-related audio. In addition to professional experience in arts administration and literary arts programming, Fellows benefit from contact with visiting poets and writers, agents, editors, publishers, alumni and other guests. Fellows work 5-8 hours a week during the semester and can receive up to $4,700 annually. This is generally a two-year commitment and is dependent on funding. 

MFA Audio Archive interns assist in the management of the MFA audio archives through preservation and organization of the program’s reel-to-reels, tapes, and other program-related audio. In 2019, these positions were funded by a grant from longtime program donors, Daniel and Merrily Glosband. In 2022-23, Juniper Fellows and interns assisted with this project. Further internships are dependent on funding. 

The Juniper Summer Writing Institute gathers a community of writers to explore the creative process and develop new approaches to the craft of writing. It’s one week of intensive writing workshops, craft sessions, Q&As, readings, and manuscript consultation in the beautiful Connecticut River Valley. It is an opportunity to practice living with your art at the center of your life; it is a week to imagine with wild invention as you mingle, experiment, and take chances; it is a chance to connect with writers, poets and artists from around the country who value what prose, poetry, word, image, fiction, essay, memoir and autobiography can do. MFA candidates can apply to participate in the adult program as working fellows, scholarship readers, or program assistants.

The Juniper Institute for Young Writers (JIYW) and Juniper Young Writers Online (JYWO) are designed for young writers in grades 8–12. These programs offer multi-genre workshops, as well as craft sessions, genre intensives, writer's life talks, field trips, and participant readings. In non-pandemic times, the young writer institute is hosted on the UMass Amherst campus during the summer giving teens an exceptional pre-college experience. The online programs have been offered during the winter and summer months since 2020. MFA candidates can apply to teach in the Juniper programs for young writers, or work as program assistants, chaperones, or studio artists.

Program Assistants work for both the adult and young writers programs, earning a stipend of $9,000 per year (paid hourly) and gaining insight and experience in the administration and production of successful literary programming.

Creative Writing Instructors for JYWO earn $1,700 to teach online in the summer, and $700 to teach online in the winter, gaining experience in developing mixed genre curricula and working with high school students.

Working Fellows lend a hand with event programming and participant support, and in 2023 will have the opportunity to participate in a workshop free of charge.

Scholarship Readers assess scholarship applications for the Juniper Summer Writing Institute during the month of January.

The Young Writer studio artist positions, and chaperoning opportunities will be offered once in-person programming for teens resumes.

For more information, please contact Betsy Wheeler, Director.

As of Summer 2024, Paperbark is on hiatus. 

Paperbark is a print and electronic-based literary magazine, published annually, with a focus on the environmental humanities, sustainable living, and the promotion of literary and fine arts.

Published through the University of Massachusetts Amherst, the magazine is a platform for conversations around the currents of contemporary culture through the lens of sustainability, with themes ranging from climate change, policy, and science, to the meaning of place and the value of creative expression.

MFA students gain professional experience and literary arts credit through internships with the magazine.

For a complete list of literary arts internship possibilities, contact the MFA Program Coordinator.

The MFA Program, with funds provided by the Graduate School and the English Department, is able to support opportunities for students to present their work at readings, conferences and other events. Funds are divided equally between poets and fiction writers.

Criteria: Grants of $100-$300 are offered to offset travel costs associated with an invitation to read, present a paper, or representing a literary organization at a conference. There are two opportunities to apply for Travel Funds, when available: one in the fall and one in the spring. Look for the call for applications and respond by the deadline. Travel Grants are dependent on annual funding. 

Awarded to graduate students in their second year, thesis grants are stipends to help with creative development and thesis research. These funds are made available to the MFA through the generosity of the Graduate School's Dean. Awards range from $180 to $750, but may vary depending on the number of qualified applications received. They are distributed in the spring. Thesis Grants are dependent on annual funding. 

Thesis grants can be used to support:

• Fieldwork, research, and/or travel to locations and sets relevant to your work in progress
• Residencies at an artist's colony to set aside time for sustained concentration on a manuscript and to engage in conversation with artists working in other fields
• You may propose other activities in the grant as long as they comprise creative development or research undertakings requiring discrete financial support to achieve specific goals

Eligible candidates must:

• Be in the second year of the program
• Be in good academic standing, making good progress towards the degree
• Have selected a thesis advisor who supports your grant application
• Wish to engage in one or more of the kinds of creative development/research activity supported by the grant program

A call for submissions for the following prizes goes out annually in February:

Poetry Prizes

The Academy of American of Poets Prize: Given for excellence in the craft of writing poetry. ($100 to winner from AAP).

Best New Poets Anthology: Submissions are judged for nomination to Best New Poets for consideration. Winners may be published in Best New Poets the following year.

The Daniel and Merrily Glosband MFA Fellowship in Poetry: Awarded to recognize and support poets of exceptional merit and promise at a critical stage of their progress. (Approximate award: $3,000)

The Deborah Slosberg Memorial Award in Poetry: Given by Mr. and Mrs. Jay Slosberg in memory of Deborah Slosberg, who studied at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, to MFA candidates whose work in poetry or prose constitutes substantial and worthy achievement over their careers in the MFA Program. (Approximate award: $1,400)

The Karen Skolfield and Dennis Goeckel MFA Award in Poetry: This award was established by alumnus, Karen Skolfield and her husband Dennis Goeckel, to recognize excellence in poetry by an MFA candidate. The award of approximately $1,000 is given in even years only.

Fiction Prizes

The Harvey Swados Fiction Prize: Named for the novelist and short-story writer who taught on the MFA faculty from 1970 to 1972, awarded for excellence in the craft of fiction writing. (Approximate award $1,400)

The Deborah Slosberg Memorial Award in Fiction: Given by Mr. and Mrs. Jay Slosberg in memory of Deborah Slosberg, who studied at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, to MFA candidates whose work in poetry or prose constitutes substantial and worthy achievement over their careers in the MFA Program. (Approximate award $1,400)

The Cara Parravani Memorial Award in Fiction: Offered by the family of Cara Parravani (MFA ’07) for excellence in fiction. ($250 award)

The James W. Foley University of Massachusetts Memorial Prize honors the conviction and courage of alumnus James Wright Foley. Jim studied fiction and literature in the MFA for Poets and Writers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst from 1999 until 2003. In his years as a student here, he dedicated himself to working with marginalized communities, helping others to find their voices. He later became a freelance journalist on the front lines in Libya and Syria, where he was kidnapped and horrifically executed by the so-called Islamic State in August of 2014. This Memorial Prize seeks to support the work of writers who express a political awareness and sensitivity in their prose, and whose concerns extend beyond the limits of their particular circumstances and home language. The prize will be awarded annually to current MFA candidates, based on a sample of prose, in the form of an honorarium generated by an endowment. ($750 for the Award Winner; $250 for the Honorable Mention)

Mental health is also covered under the Mandatory Student Health Fee for six visits per semester. The Center for Counseling and Psychological Health, located on the 2^nd floor of Bartlett Hall, has a staff of psychologists, social workers, and psychiatrists to provide crisis intervention and short-term psychotherapy to individuals, families, and groups (family and couples counseling is also available). The Mandatory Student Health Fee also covers referrals by UHS to other therapists in the area.

To request services, call 413-545-2337, Monday through Friday between 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM, and a senior clinician will help match you to the service appropriate to your needs.

Twenty-four-hour emergency mental health is available every day of the year. For mental health emergencies, call 413-545-2337 between 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM on weekdays and ask for an “on-call” clinician. After 5:00 PM and on weekends and holidays, call 413-577-5000 or go directly to UHS.

The Center for Women and Community is an on-campus resource. They offer a plethora of support groups (group for mothers of young children, women in academia, survivors of sexual violence) and services. CWC offers counseling and rape crisis services on a walk-in (M-F 9am-4pm, 180 Infirmary Way, New Africa House) and appointment basis. One need not identify as a woman to use these resources. CWC has some of the most supportive and knowledgeable advocates on campus and can refer clients to other services and groups in the Pioneer Valley area. All services at CWC are free and confidential. Their phone number is 413-545-0883. Their 24-Hour Rape Crisis Hotline is 413-545-0800. The Hampshire County Toll-Free Rape Crisis Hotline is 1-888-337-0800.

• Strategies for dealing with problematic students
• Resources for managing stress and other reactions to challenging situations

Equal Opportunity Office

(413) 545-3464, 225 Bartlett Hall

• Advice and consultation on matters pertaining to harassment and discrimination

UMass Single Stop Resources: Food Insecurity

• Information about campus and local food pantries

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