MFA Program
See writers who attended this program
Poetry: Hala Alyan, Jay Deshpande, Patricio Ferrari, Matthea Harvey, Marie Howe, Sally Wen Mao, Dennis Nurkse, Geoffrey Nutter, Ben Purkert, Victoria Redel, R. A. Villanueva, Afaa Michael Weaver
Fiction and Speculative Fiction: Hala Alyan, Carolyn Ferrell, Myla Goldberg, Garth Risk Hallberg, David Hollander, R. F. Kuang, Violet Kupersmith, Rattawut Lapcharoensap, K. Lorrel Manning, Lincoln Michel, Richie Narvaez, Julia Phillips, Ben Purkert, Victoria Redel, Nelly Reifler, Domenica Ruta, David Ryan, Elvia Wilk, Kate Zambreno
Nonfiction: Heather Harpham, Suzanne Hoover, Timothy Kreider, Domenica Ruta, Vijay Seshadri, Jacob Slichter, Meredith Talusan, Joseph Thomas, Clifford Thompson, Kate Zambreno
The program offers partial funding toward tuition in the form of scholarships, grants, internships, and Sarah Lawrence gift aid. Several students are hired each year as part-time program assistants and there are many student employment opportunities through other departments on campus.
The program also offers a track in speculative fiction.
The program features a literary colloquium series; mixed genre craft classes; biweekly one-on-one conferences with instructors; guest writer residencies; and regular student-faculty readings. Other features include the student-run Sarah Lawrence Poetry Festival, and opportunities to teach in local schools, community organizations, colleges, and correctional facilities.
A part-time degree is available and takes four years to complete. It is possible to switch between full- and part-time enrollment once in the program.
Students are welcome to take classes outside of their genre. Undergraduate course auditing is also available as space allows.
The priority application deadline is January 15. The program offers rolling admissions, as space permits, thereafter.