The Solstice MFA in Creative Writing offers four fellowships for students starting the program during the winter residency/spring semester: the Michael Steinberg Fellowship for Creative Nonfiction, the Dennis Lehane Fellowship for Fiction, the Jacqueline Woodson Fellowship for a Young People’s Writer of African or Caribbean Descent, and the Sharon Olds Fellowship for Poetry. These Fellowships provide $1000 toward first-semester tuition for four students who begin the program during the winter residency/spring semester.
Applicants who want to be considered for a genre-based fellowship should submit a general application form no later than October 15, 2012 (not a postmark date; materials must be received in our offices before or on October 15). There is no separate application form. Awards are based on the quality of the writing sample and personal essay included as part of the general application process; notification letters will be mailed to winners only on November 9, 2012. Awards must be applied toward the winter residency/spring semester directly following acceptance; fellowships cannot be deferred or applied toward a summer residence/fall semester start.
The winter 2013 semester / spring residency will take place from January 4–13, 2013.
CLICK BELOW FOR DOWNLOADABLE GUIDELINES AND APPLICATION FORMS:
Please see our deadlines page for information regarding when applications are due.
Applicants can expect a response within three weeks of receipt of their application by the Solstice MFA Office. Solstice does accept applications on a rolling basis year round; applicants who apply after the priority deadlines of March 15 and October 15 may be accepted into the summer/fall and winter/spring semesters on a space available basis. (Note: applications received after May 31 or November 30 will be considered for the "next round" as there is advance preparation required for Craft, Criticism & Theory courses and Elective Seminars at residencies.)
IN ORDER FOR YOUR APPLICATION TO BE CONSIDERED:
- The manuscript, essay, and application form must be submitted in triplicate. (Clean photocopies are acceptable.)
- Your manuscript must represent work in the genre in which you plan to concentrate: no more than 10 pages of poems or 25 typed pages of fiction or creative nonfiction. Applicants for the writing for children & young adults concentration may submit a combination of these genres, totaling no more than 25 typed pages. Material in excess of the stated page limits will not be read.
- Pages must be numbered, and your name should appear on each poem, story, or chapter.
- Your manuscript must be typewritten, in a 12-point font. Fiction and creative nonfiction must be double-spaced.Poems should be singled spaced, one poem per page. Longer poems are fine as long as the total page limit is adhered to.
- The personal essay should state: highlights of what you’ve been reading during the last two years, and what you have learned from any literary influences (new or old) and how you have applied what you’ve learned to your own work; what you consider to be the strengths and weaknesses of your own work; experience with critical evaluation of your work; what you hope to gain from an MFA program; and possible obstacles to carrying a 25-hour-a-week workload. The essay must not run over the limit of five typed, double-spaced pages.
YOU MUST ARRANGE FOR THE MFA OFFICE TO RECEIVE BY THE DEADLINE DATE:
- *Three letters of recommendation sent directly (not enclosed with your application) to our offices: Meg Kearney, Solstice MFA Director, Pine Manor College, 400 Heath Street, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467.
- Official college transcript(s) from any school(s) where you received a degree or transfer credits.
Please ensure that ALL materials are clearly labeled Solstice MFA Office to ensure proper on-campus delivery.
*Letters of recommendation need not be from a published author and/or former professor. We are looking for letters that vouch for the applicant's seriousness and dedication to the art of writing, as well as his/her ability to get along well in a community of writers. Letters are confidential and cannot be shared with applicants.
GREs are not required.
If you are applying for a fellowship, need-based scholarship, and/or government loans, please refer to our Financial Aid page.
If you are reapplying within 12 months from your last application, the MFA Office will still have your original file, including transcripts and letters of recommendation. In this case, you need send only a new or revised manuscript, a one-to-three page personal essay updating us on your life as a writer since you last applied, a new application form, and the $50 application fee.
The MFA Office will confirm receipt of your application, letters of recommendation, and transcripts by email (or mail, if applicant does not have email).
Our office cannot return applications or provide copies of applicants’ evaluations or letters of recommendation.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
For queries: mfa@pmc.edu
Website: http://www.pmc.edu/mfa
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