University of Arkansas · Program in Creative Writing and Translation, Department of English

M.F.A. in Creative Writing (Program in Creative Writing and Translation)

MFAMaster of Fine Arts in Creative WritingCompetitive full funding

Overview

A 60-hour, full-time campus MFA with emphases in fiction, poetry or literary translation; most students take four years and all write a book-length thesis. Teaching assistantships carry a tuition waiver and an annual stipend, and nearly all accepted students receive one.

Official program name: M.F.A. in Creative Writing (Program in Creative Writing and Translation)
Awarded degree: Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing
Source: catalog.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
School: University of Arkansas — Program in Creative Writing and Translation, Department of English
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Location: Fayetteville, AR
Delivery / residency: Campus-based
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Study intensity: Full-time
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Duration: Most students take four years
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Required credits: Sixty hours of coursework
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Teaching language: English (not separately stated)
Start: Fall
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Why this degree is listed

The graduate catalog lists the M.F.A. in Creative Writing (CRWR) with tracks in poetry, fiction and literary translation.

Source: catalog.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

We list dedicated creative writing degrees only. Eligibility rules

Curriculum, genres and faculty

Genres

Fiction Poetry Literary Translation

Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Concentrations and tracks

Rhetoric and composition (focused study option)
Source: catalog.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Workshops

15 to 24 semester hours of writing workshops
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Craft courses

9 hours of craft courses in fiction, poetry or translation
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Thesis / dissertation

Book-length thesis; 6 hours of thesis advising
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Teaching opportunities

First-year MFA students teach Composition I; later they may apply to teach creative writing and other courses
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Readings and visiting writers

Walton Reading Series with one-on-one conferences
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Other

Translation students typically work from Spanish, French, German, Italian, Arabic or Russian
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Faculty listed by the program

Geoffrey Brock — Distinguished Professor
Geffrey Davis — Professor
Rebecca Gayle Howell — Associate Professor
Bryan Hurt — Assistant Professor
Toni Jensen — Associate Professor, Director of Creative Writing
Jane Larson — Teaching Associate Professor and Assistant Director
Davis McCombs — Professor
Padma Viswanathan — Distinguished Professor

As listed on the program's official page on October 9, 2026. Listing does not mean a faculty member is teaching or supervising new students in a given year.

Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Admissions

Required, optional, waived and not-required items are shown exactly as the school states them. Anything not listed is not verified — not “not required”.

Prior degree: RequiredBachelor's degree in any field by the start of the fall semester
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Statement of purpose: RequiredStatement of purpose of approximately 300 words
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Recommendation letters: Required2 letters — Two letters of recommendation
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Application fee: Not requiredNo application fee at the first (program) stage; admitted applicants then apply to the Graduate School
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
International applicants: RequiredInternational applicants include English language proficiency test scores with the application
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Writing portfolio

Genre	Length	Requirement as published
Fiction	up to 20 pages	20 pages of short fiction or a novel excerptSource: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Poetry	—	8-10 poemsSource: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Literary Translation	5–6 pages	5-6 pages of poetry or fiction translated into English, with the original textsSource: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Tests

GRE General Test: Not required
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

We do not publish acceptance rates or estimate competitiveness: programs rarely publish comparable figures.

Deadlines

Dates are shown with the admissions cycle the school printed. A past date is marked passed and is never carried into a new cycle.

Application deadline
11:59 p.m. on 12/31/26 · for Fall 2027
The school does not print a year with this date.
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Year not printed

Tuition and fees

Each amount keeps its applicant category, academic year and basis. Per-credit, per-year and whole-program figures are not comparable with each other.

Category	Amount	Basis and year
In-state — Standard graduate in-state rateFrom the school's rate table for this level	$472.22	per credit · 2026-2027Calculated$28,333.20 total = 60 credits × $472.22 per credit. Excludes mandatory fees, residency or travel costs, and any rate change during the program.Source: catalog.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Out-of-state — Standard graduate out-of-state rateFrom the school's rate table for this level	$1,287.74	per credit · 2026-2027Calculated$77,264.40 total = 60 credits × $1,287.74 per credit. Excludes mandatory fees, residency or travel costs, and any rate change during the program.Source: catalog.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Other published fees

University fees (estimate for 24 credit hours per year): $2,058 per academic yearMandatory
Source: catalog.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Funding

Full funding (tuition and stipend) is available to selected students only. Admission does not guarantee it. “Fully funded” never means every personal expense is covered. How we classify funding

Competitive full fundingPolicy year: 2026-2027

Published stipend: $21,163 (annual)

Funding guarantee: Nearly all accepted students receive TAs
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Tuition coverage: TAs receive a waiver of all tuition costs
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Stipend: Starting Fall 2026, teaching assistantships carry an annual stipend of $21,163
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
Expected workload: TAs teach two courses each semester
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

We do not judge whether a stipend is sufficient: living costs differ by city, household and year.

Named scholarships, fellowships and assistantships

Walton Fellowships fellowship
$21,163 (fellowships page); the FAQ lists $14,000 for the following academic year
Eligibility: Current students compete after the first year
How to apply: Competitive
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
J. Chester and Freda S. Johnson Fellowship fellowship
Up to $5,000 in the first year
Eligibility: Significant financial need, first-generation status, under-represented geographic area, or a record of overcoming challenges
How to apply: Indicate eligibility on the application cover sheet
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026
University of Arkansas Distinguished MFA Fellowships fellowship
$4,000 annually
Eligibility: Qualifying MFA students; limited number
Source: english.uark.edu · verified October 9, 2026

Sources and verification

Every fact on this page comes from the official pages below. Last verified October 9, 2026.

catalog.uark.edu/graduatecatalog/feeandgeneralinformation/ — Official catalog / bulletin, verified October 9, 2026
catalog.uark.edu/graduatecatalog/programsofstudy/creativewritingcrwr/ — Official catalog / bulletin, verified October 9, 2026
english.uark.edu/graduate/mfa-in-creative-writing/admissions/ — Official program page, verified October 9, 2026
english.uark.edu/graduate/mfa-in-creative-writing/admissions/faqs.php — Official program page, verified October 9, 2026
english.uark.edu/graduate/mfa-in-creative-writing/admissions/fellowships.php — Official funding / aid page, verified October 9, 2026
english.uark.edu/graduate/mfa-in-creative-writing/admissions/MFAApplication27.pdf — Official program page, verified October 9, 2026
english.uark.edu/graduate/mfa-in-creative-writing/degrees.php — Official program page, verified October 9, 2026
english.uark.edu/graduate/mfa-in-creative-writing/directory.php — Official program page, verified October 9, 2026
english.uark.edu/graduate/mfa-in-creative-writing/index.php — Official program page, verified October 9, 2026

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Creative Writing Programs is independent and not affiliated with University of Arkansas. Information is collected from official pages and can change; confirm requirements, costs and deadlines with the school.