MFA English at University of California, Irvine

Programme overview

The MFA Programs in Writing train writers through fiction and poetry workshops at the core of a two-to-three-year programme. A maximum of twelve new students enrol each year from over five hundred applicants.

Faculty: School of Humanities | Department: Department of English | Duration: Normative time 3 years; maximum 4 | Study mode: full-time | Location: Irvine, CA, United States

What you will study

Each quarter students take the poetry or fiction section of the Graduate Writers' Workshop (two-thirds of course load) plus one course chosen with their advisor, and complete at least one supervised teaching seminar. The thesis is a book-length manuscript of poetry, short stories or a novel.

Official programme page

Application information

Entry requirements

UC Irvine Graduate Division (all graduate programmes): bachelor's degree or equivalent from an accredited institution with minimum undergraduate GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. International applicants whose prior degree was not taught solely in English need TOEFL iBT 80 overall or IELTS 7 overall with no module below 6 (departments may set higher). GRE requirements are set by each programme; there is no minimum GRE score.

Requirements published at program group level.

Domestic applicants: USD 13,722 a year (2026-27). Graduate tuition (resident rate) from the standard Graduate/Credential Student Fees schedule for state-supported graduate degree programmes; the page does not list programmes by name, so this is the standard graduate band. Tuition line only; excludes Stud Source

Graduate applications are submitted online through the UCI graduate application portal; the non-refundable application fee is $135 for U.S. citizens and lawful U.S. permanent residents and $155 for all other applicants. Deadlines are set by each programme. GRE is required by some programmes only; TOEFL or IELTS English proficiency is required of graduate applicants unless waived.

Apply through the official page: https://grad.uci.edu/admissions/

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