Upon entrance into the program, students choose a primary genre in which to work: poetry, creative nonfiction, or fiction (includes our sci-fi/fantasy track).

The MFA program encompasses three intensive two-week summer residencies, three online semesters of creative writing and critical reading, and one online semester of thesis preparation. Students are encouraged to begin the program with the summer residency, but they may opt to begin in the spring.

All online courses and the writers' workshops during summer residencies are taught on a mentorship basis, with each faculty mentor working with no more than five students per class. Online courses are taught via Blackboard and video conferencing, in which students and faculty engage in lively discussions about common texts and workshop each other's writing. See our course descriptions.

MFA Course Sequence

Students beginning in the summer will have a projected schedule of courses as follows:

FIRST YEAR

Summer

ENG 501: Summer Residency I (3 credits)

Fall ENG 631: Mentorship I (online semester, 9 credits)
Spring ENG 632: Mentorship II (online semester, 9 credits)
SECOND YEAR

Summer

ENG 502: Summer Residency II (3 credits)

Fall ENG 633: Mentorship III (online semester, 9 credits)
Spring ENG 701: Mentorship IV: MFA Thesis (online semester, 9 credits)
Summer ENG 503: Summer Residency III (3 credits)

 Total: 45 credits

Alternate MFA Course Sequence

Students beginning in the spring will have a projected schedule of courses as follows:

FIRST YEAR

Spring

ENG 631: Mentorship I (online semester, 9 credits)

Summer ENG 501: Summer Residency I (3 credits)
Fall ENG 632: Mentorship II (online semester, 9 credits)
SECOND YEAR

Spring

ENG 633: Mentorship III (online semester, 9 credits)

Summer ENG 502: Summer Residency II (3 credits)
Fall ENG 701: Mentorship IV: MFA Thesis (online semester, 9 credits)
Spring Off*
Summer ENG 503: Summer Residency III (3 credits)

 Total: 45 credits

*Note that students enrolling in January will have a spring semester off between completion of ENG 701 and the final residency. Students are encouraged to continue working on their theses during this period.

MFA Pedagogy Track

FIRST YEAR

Summer

ENG 501: Summer Residency (3 credits)

Fall

ENG 631: Mentorship I (online semester, 5 credits)

ENG 651: Composition/Rhetoric Pedagogy (online semester, 3 credits)

Spring

ENG 632: Mentorship II (online semester, 9 credits)

ENG 652: Supervised Teaching (online semester, 1 credit)

Teach 1 course, ENG 100 or 101, online in the Correctional Education Program, paid a supplemental contract ($2,494 per 2021 rates)

SECOND YEAR

Summer

ENG 502: Summer Residency II (3 credits)

Fall

ENG 633: Mentorship III (online semester, 9 credits)

Optional: Teach 1-2 course(s), ENG 100 or 101, inline in the Correctional Education Program, paid a supplemental contract

Spring

ENG 701: Mentorship IV: MFA Thesis (online semester, 9 credits)

Optional: Teach 1-2 course(s), ENG 100 or 101, online in the Correctional Education Program, paid a supplemental contract

Summer

ENG 503: Summer Residency III (3 credits)

Total: 45 Credits

Accessibility

The Student Accessibility Center works one-on-one with students to ensure that all coursework and events are fully accessible. The Center offers a tremendous amount of resources and services, including text-to-speech software. Please contact Silvia Henriss at shenriss@ashland.edu or 419.289.5904 to learn more or to set up an appointment.