Creative Writing: Program Structure

• 52 credit hours including:
• Eleven required courses:
  • Five writing workshops
  • Three literature courses
  • Master's thesis (eight credits)
  • Three departmental electives
  • Optional internship (may fulfill up to eight credits)
• Full- or part-time enrollment (Full-time enrollment is typically 8 or 12 credits per semester.)
• Fall admission
• Workshop experience in multiple genres: fiction, nonfiction, and poetry

Master's Thesis

You conclude the MFA program by producing a creative thesis of professional quality in a single genre. The MFA thesis often forms the basis for future published work. For example:

• A novel or novel excerpt
• A nonfiction book or excerpt
• A collection of poems, short stories, or essays

Learning to Teach Freshman Writing

Each year a selected number of MFA and MA students learn to teach writing at the undergraduate level. Teaching Freshman Writing is a four-credit, one-semester course that prepares you to teach at Emerson during your master's program and then at other institutions after graduation. Although taking the course does not guarantee a part-time teaching position at Emerson, students who have completed the course are interviewed by the faculty and are often offered appointments. Many students find that this foundation in teaching is a valuable tool in pursuing jobs after graduation.