Program Information

SEMINARS AND COURSES

In your first year as an MFA in Writing student, you will take two 3-credit workshop seminars - Fiction and Non-fiction - and are required to present work in two genres.

• WRIT 800.3 - The Craft of Writing Fiction. This seminar is offered in the Fall term.
• WRIT 802.3 - Non-Fiction Workshop. This seminar is offered in the Winter term.

• ELECTIVE. This elective is either an 800-level graduate seminar or an approved undergraduate 300- or 400-level course. The student must demonstrate the relevance of this elective course to their creative writing project, and and prerequisite requirements must be satisfied or waived.

Also, you will fulfill your program requirements through three other seminar commitments:

• WRIT 990 - The Profession of Writing colloquium.
• GPS 960 - Introduction to Ethics and Integrity.
• WRIT 994 - Thesis.

• Back to MFA in Writing

SUPERVISORS AND MENTORS

• During your first year, you will be assigned an approved faculty supervisor.
• As well, you will be assigned your writing mentor, an established writer from the community with professional affiliate status in the College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, from April 1st of your first year to September 30th of your second year.

SEMINARS AND COURSES

In the second year, following the successful completion of your first-year requirements, you are required to take two more Workshop courses.

• WRIT 801.3 - Poetry Workshop. This is offered in the Fall term.
• WRIT 803.3 - Capstone Workshop Extended Form. This is offered in the Winter term.
• Additionally, you will continue to participate in WRIT 990 and WRIT 994.

THESIS AND SUPERVISION

• With regular supervision, including supervision throughout the summer, you will propose and carry out the thesis component of your MFA in Writing program. 
• Your will complete your second year with the submission and successful defense of your thesis.

WRIT 800.3 - The Craft of Writing Fiction

This course focuses on how to write dynamic and engaging fiction. The course offers compositional strategies for writing short stories and novels. Writ 800.3 is an intensive workshop consisting of peer critiques, a craft seminar, and discussion of assigned readings. Students will meet weekly and will be required, every week, to produce writing of their own and submit it for analysis by the rest of the class and the instructor. 

WRIT 801.3 – Poetry Workshop

Students in this course will meet weekly for a three-hour seminar, in which they will examine the key theories and issues in the writing of poetry. A professional writer should have experience in more than one genre: exploring the specific demands and opportunities of verse is fundamental to this program. The students will be required, every week, to produce writing of their own – commentary, then poems – and submit it for discussion by the rest of the class and the instructor.

WRIT 802.3 – Nonfiction Workshop

Students in this course will meet weekly for a three-hour seminar, in which they will examine some leading theories and methods in the making of nonfiction that could include biography, history, and investigative journalism. This course will develop the student’s proficiency in writing nonfiction for a general audience. The students will be required, every week, to produce writing and submit it for discussion by the rest of the class and the instructor.

WRIT 803.3 – Extended Forms

This capstone workshop focuses on the conceptualizing and creation of a book-length manuscript of prose (fiction, creative non-fiction) or poetry. It is also meant to sharpen editing skills and the ability to construct a theoretical basis for a writing project as well as situating that writing project within its broader literary context(s). The theory and aesthetic informing the writing project will be articulated in an Artist’s Statement. Each student will also be required to present a graduating craft talk, based on their writing project and open to other MFA students in the program. The student presenting the craft talk will be, in essence, teaching craft, using his or her own writing and reading as a basis. Extended Forms is the final workshop in the MFA. 

WRIT 990.0 – The Profession of Writing

Detailed, practical attention to the professional aspects of authorship provides a crucial dimension to training to undertake a career in writing. With completion of this course, students will have a grasp of the business of writing. Students in each year of the program are required to attend the seminars comprising this course. These seminars take place approximately once a month; they provide opportunities for students to consider and discuss various public and practical aspects of their work. The seminars, whose topics may include Submitting Work for Publication, The Role of the Editor, Intellectual Property and Copyright and Writing on Contract, will be led by experts from around and beyond the University.

WRIT 994.0 – Thesis

The Major Work culminates the MFA in Writing. The objective is a substantial, original piece of writing: a novel, a collection of short stories, a sequence of poems, a play, or nonfiction book or series of nonfiction work. The Major Work is to be completed in the second year of the program. At the end of the second year, the student will submit the completed work, meet with an examining committee, and defend the work submitted.

Because most graduates of the MFA in Writing aspire to publish their creative thesis, this work is protected by the Thesis License Agreement which stipulates that only the Front Matter of each MFA in Writing thesis is uploaded to the university's electronic thesis database (ETD). 

Thesis Length Requirement:
Long form prose thesis (ie novel, memoir): to a maximum of 200 double-spaced pages
Short story thesis: to a maximum of 150 double-spaced pages
Poetry thesis: 40-60 pages
Artist Statement: 15-20 pages

Note: In a special case situation where a student requires more than two years to complete the MFA in Writing program, continuous registration in WRIT 990 and WRIT 994 will be required on completion of the MFA.

• POLICY ON GEN AI

How to Apply

Entry into the MFA in Writing requires a four-year Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent), with a minimum of 70% in the last two years, and a strong portfolio of writing. In exceptional cases, applicants without the degree may enter the program on a probationary basis: equivalency will be judged on previous participation in reputable workshops such as those offered by the Banff School of Fine Arts, the Sage Hill Writing Experience, and the Saskatchewan Writers’ Guild; on relevant work experience; and on substantial publication.

Minimum Admission Requirements to the College of Graduate Studies and Research for Masters Degree, please click here.

Applications should be submitted by January 31st each year to be considered for admission in the following September. Late applications will be considered only under exceptional circumstances.  The MFA in Writing Program has only one intake a year, in September.

Application Checklist

All applications for admission must include:

• online application for admission
• a non-refundable application fee of $125 for domestic students and $145 for international students (in Canadian or equivalent US funds), which is payable online through the online application process
• three letters of reference (the referees whose email addresses you provide in your online application will automatically be directed to an online form to submit). Please ask your references to assess your writing ability and work ethic, and your ability to work within a collaborative group workshop setting
• statement of intent, indicating the genre(s) of literature in which you wish to specialize.  Applicants should be as detailed as possible with respect to the writing project they aim to undertake during their study (to be uploaded on your online application)
• CV (resume) (to be uploaded on your online application)
• portfolio of 20 pages of writing
  • This portfolio will be judged for evidence that the candidate has achieved a preliminary standard of originality, craft, style and literary sophistication. This can be submitted electronically in PDF format.  The writing portfolio will constitute a substantial portion of the applicant's qualification for admission. (to be uploaded on your online application)
    
• transcripts from all post secondary institutions attended (to be uploaded on your online application)
• test results of proof of English language proficiency from applicants from non-English speaking countries (eg. TOEFL, IELTS).  Click here for details.

Resources

Sample Artist's Statement

A good example of an artist's statement is found here (PDF file will open in new window).

Used with permission of Elise Godfrey, 2014.

Sample Thesis Front Matter

A good example of the front matter of a thesis can be found here (PDF file will open in new window). 

Used with permission from Leah MacLean-Evans.