Support

It's our policy to accept only applicants to whom we can pledge financial support for the duration of their programs.

All of our students qualify for Graduate Teaching Assistantships, which include a stipend paid over 9 months (currently $10,007) and full tuition remission.

First year GTAs with less than 18 hours of graduate coursework in English have no direct responsibility for teaching; they study Composition theory and have contact with Freshman students as tutors in the Writing Center or Computer Lab, and through observations of practiced teachers.

In their second year and beyond, GTAs routinely teach two courses per semester -- and receive an increase in their stipend, to $10,407. (First year students who already have 18 or more hours of graduate coursework in English have the same assignment and stipend.)

One begins one's teaching life as an instructor of Freshman Composition and Introduction to Literature. After gaining that experience, GTAs may apply to teach a variety of courses, including Introduction to Creative Writing, Fiction Writing, Poetry Writing, and a range of Literature in English surveys. All MFA students are guaranteed the opportunity to teach Creative Writing. Creative people tend to make innovative and exciting instructors; the University-wide Best Teaching by a Master's Student prize has often been awarded to a member of our program. Our MFA graduates' breadth and quality of classroom experience make them highly marketable as teachers.

Incoming students are also eligible for some plums, including Graduate Council Fellowships ($14,000 plus full tuition remission, with no teaching responsibilities for one year) and Dean's Merit Assistantships (enhancements to the GTA stipend, renewable for a total of three years). There is no separate application process: we automatically consider all prospective students for these awards. Applicants whose materials are submitted by January 15 are most likely to receive such perks.

Over the course of their stay here, students become eligible for other perquisites, from reduced teaching loads to paid positions as Black Warrior Review editors, to nonteaching Fellowships from the Graduate School and the Alumni Association. Whatever forms of support they receive, they may be funded for a total of four years.

Photos of Janine Miller portraying Minerva in the UA Centennial Pageant in 1931 and of Big Bill Little, legendary UA football player, portraying himself circa 1892, courtesy of Hoole Special Collections.

UA is an equal opportunity institution/employer.

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