Queens and Pines it is!

Further consideration has been paid to my top two (which is actually three).  Pine Manor College will be about $13,000 per year with all fees and what not added in.  They allow for cross-genre study but they do not offer screenplay and stage play writing as a genre.  This year, Poets & Writers rated this college  15th out of fifty (only 30 were ranked - the rest were given honorable mentions).  I have already written a very rough draft of the essay (about five pages worth) required to apply and I have three people who have agreed to write me letters of recommendation.  I am going to contact them and see about a fee waiver, but I am definitely applying for this institution.  It does require a culminating critical essay but I don't necessarily mind that.

As for Queens, the process to apply is much simpler - I only need one letter of recommendation and a one page essay.  I am going to ask for a waiver for the application fee for this institution as well.  Hopefully one, if not both will grant me a waiver and that will help tremendously as I push forward in pursuit of the ever illusive MFA.  Also this college is ranked ranked 7th out of the fifty top low residency schools.  This is fairly attractive to me and it was only after my narrowing down that I even investigated rank.  I don't need prestige, but it's nice to know that one of my top picks was also in the top ten.  Also it does not require a culminating critical essay.  And on their website they have a great response to the 'do you require GRE for entrance?': We do not require GRE scores.  Standardized tests have nothing to do with creative writing. Damn right!

The other college that I had looked at - and still really like - is Naropa, ranked 18th, and it has a beautiful and orderly yet rather involved application process.  They require not one, but two multi-page essays in addition to everything else needed to apply.  They also have the highest application fee.  I have decided not to apply at this time.  I am going to apply to Queens and PMC and after two weeks have passed, if I am rejected by both, I will finish up the essays needed to get on board for Naropa as I will still have time to do so.  This means however that I definitely need to get my ass in gear.  Hopefully one will accept me, maybe even both, but then I'll be faced with the decision of choosing yet again!  Oh well, if I'm accepted then maybe I can see what sort of financial aide I would be receiving on top of my admission and that might help seal the deal.  

The thing I have to take into account now is the cost of travel and the mode of travel.  Just in general, I think bus fare is the cheapest but the prospect of going across America from the tip-top of Idaho all to the way to Massachusetts or North Carolina via bus is not a pleasant one.  I would prefer to fly, and therefore, time is of the essence because if I'm going to try and fly I need to get tickets ASAP.  Still, it's actually really exciting to even think about things like travel.  It means it's really happening.

The Top Four

After deliberation I have narrowed down my potential colleges to four - one or two of which I will be applying for in the next week or so.  The bottom four colleges are ones that I like but the date for spring application has passed and so if it comes to it, I would have to start them in summer/fall.  I'm putting them on the back burner for now as I do have some pretty high hopes for the four that I've selected for further study.  PMC is about $6,000 per semester ($12K per year); CC is about $5,650 per semester ($11,300 per year); QU is about $6,300 per semester ($12,600 per year); and Naropa is about $12K per year.  All of them (unless I'm wrong) offer some sort of scholarships/fellowships/grad grants or some kind of financial assistance.  I get a really good feeling from all of them, hence my indecision.


PINE MANOR COLLEGE: (Oct 15)

• FAQ Overview
• Tuition and Fees
• Application Deadlines
• Apply

CONVERSE COLLEGE in SPARTANBURG (Oct 1)

• FAQ Overview
• Tuition and Fees
• Residency Overview
• Application Deadline and Procedures

QUEENS UNIVERSITY of CHARLOTTE (Oct 15)

• FAQ Overview
• Admission and Tuition
• Apply

NAROPA UNIVERSITY (Oct 1)

• Program Overview
• Costs of Programs
• Apply
• Deadlines

*Honorable Mentions*

VERMONT COLLEGE of FINE ARTS (Aug 15; Feb 15)

• FAQ Overview
• Tuition and Fees

UNIVERSITY of CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE (Aug 1; Feb 1)

• Applying
• Program Overview

LESLEY UNIVERSITY (Sept 1; March 1)

• FAQ Overview

WARREN WILSON COLLEGE: (Sept 1; March 1)

• Program Overview
• Tuition
• Financial Aide

I am going to call the top four universities/colleges tomorrow and ask about financial assistance, cross genre studies, letters of recommendation, letters of intent, total cost (any extra fees for residencies), and what sorts of things will help my chances of being accepted.  According this month's issue of Poets & Writers: PMC does not rank in selectivity and it ranks about 13th in fellowship placement.  Converse does not rank in selectivity either but does not rank at all in fellowship placement.  Queens is a bit better in ranking for fellowships (9th) but it is also on the upper end of selectivity (7th) which is not necessarily a bad thing, but doesn't make my job any easier either.  Naropa does not rank in fellowships but it does rank in selectivity, toward the lower end (18th), however, so it is not quite as intimidating. As for application fees: PMC - $50; CC - $40; QU - $45; and Naropa - $60.  It is feasible to apply for two, but a good deal of my selection will depend on the phone calls.  I need some assurance that I have a chance at more financial help than just what FAFSA based loans promise me.

On another note, I just learned something kind of interesting.  The first two college picks on my list (PMC and CC) are women's colleges.  The MFA programs, however, are co-ed, but the fundamental institution is for women only. I hadn't really ever thought of applying to a women's  institution but it is beginning to appeal to me.  I know that there will be males in the MFA workshops, etc, but it's kind of a charming notion to go to a women's college.  The other two colleges are co-ed but have an overwhelmingly large female student body.  It seems that no matter which one I pick, I will most likely be surrounded by a majority of like minded women during the residencies.

I've also decided to check out University of Alaska at Anchorage because I keep seeing it popping up as a great program and all but the website is kaput.  I figure it couldn't hurt to give them a call and just see if they still even have an MFA program and what sort of perimeters it has.

What I did and did not do...

I accomplished something today!  I didn't get the MFA issue of 'Poets and Writers' as the only one that Hastings has did not have what I needed in it (the low-res comparisons) but I did manage to get ten post cards made and addressed.  I also wrote to each of the addressees.  The manual writing is one of my many writing goals.  It's important to keep in touch with people in a tangible way, more so than via texts and emails and Facebook tags and messages.  Those are all important and I enjoy them but it's also very important to me that people know they are worth my time and worth my creative efforts.  The post cards aren't the most amazing things in the world but I am proud of them and also, the fact that I set out to make a certain amount and get them ready to send the off and then accomplished that all in one afternoon of cutting, gluing, labeling and writing, satisfies another one of my goals: to finish things.  I often start tasks with good intentions and then they get put off or other things get in the way or I just peter off emotionally.  But today I set out to accomplish something and I did.  It was a successful writing day.  However in finishing one goal (or two rather)  I did put off the overall grad school goal.  I have managed to limit the list down some but I would like the P&W magazine to help me in my further trimmings.  Right now the list looks like a train wreck and that's about how I feel about the entire process.

Address Book & Goals

One of my goals as per the Detangled Writer's blog, is to write more letters and revive my ability to make words using pen/pencil and paper.  In an effort to make this goal a bit easier, I am going to compile a list of updated addresses of all of my friends who I keep in touch with and who would enjoy a hand crafted card with various little updates contained within.  This is a goal that I am going to try and accomplish today in conjuncture with the goal of purchasing 'Poets and Writers' at Hastings and narrowing down my MFA search to about five or so.

Also today is a day for crafts.  The plan is to put in some movies or listen to music and go to work making Holiday (Autumnal and Halloween and Birthday) cards.