15 Best Masters in Creative Writing Programs in 2024

Located in heart of the Wasatch Mountains in what Outside Magazine calls “the second-best place to live in the U.S,” BYU’s MFA program is a literary hub with the wilderness at your fingertips.  Students in this two-year program complete a thesis in poetry, fiction, or nonfiction, and receive excellent teaching opportunities in first-year composition and introductory creative writing.  The award-winning faculty are generous with their time but rigorous in their expectations.  Perks include an annual two-day retreat to Capitol Reef National Monument, editorial opportunities with Fourth Genre: Explorations in Nonfiction and Inscape Magazine, research, workshop, and conference travel funding, and a robust year-long multi-genre reading series that has included writers such as Marilynne Robinson, Terry Tempest Williams, Tracy K Smith, Anthony Doerr, and Robert Pinsky.

The University of Michigan has a writer’s program where creative writing graduate students can choose to focus on either poetry or fiction for their main studies. Then qualified graduates will have a third year, fully paid, writing residency after they complete their two-year MFA at the University of Michigan. Graduates of the program have been published across the globe and the school is well ranked and reviewed positively for its intensive graduate creative writing program.

Florida State University has been rated in the top ten for their MFA in creative writing program and the top five for their Ph.D program by The Atlantic. The school has produced graduates who have moved on to produce impressive works, become published many times over, and receive awards from the literary world. A professor in the program is a Pulitzer Prize winner. If you are looking for strong mentorship, freedom to create, and an overall great program consider FSU next term.

Mississippi State University is a top choice for many writers in the south who want to go the path of Faulkner and tell a story of a place. Whether you are a poet, a fiction writer or a journalist consider Mississippi State’s well-reviewed and prestigious graduate program. They have a low-residency option for students who need to work while advancing their education and they hire graduates from the program when a writer stands out among their peers.

The University of Washington is one of the oldest and most respected universities on the west coast. It has produced many famous graduates and even a few interesting inventions. If you want to hone your creative writing skills with a master’s program in one of the most scenic northern states then find your voice and build your career at the University of Washington. They only take a limited number into the creative writing program so start soon.

Texas State offers a rich MFA in Creative Writing program that has produced many writers who have found their stride and voice under the mentorship of talented professors. The writers that grow at Texas State have gone on to earn many of the greatest awards in the United States for their writing. If you are interested in attending a college in the Southwest and are ready to work hard on your writing then apply and see where the next year takes you.

The University of Maine offers an MA in English with a concentration in Creative Writing. The MA program allows students the freedom to find their own voice with a lot of writing, and with strong mentorship. Students can choose their concentration and when they graduate they will have a portfolio of well-reviewed work that they have written as they discovered who they are as writers.

Harvard offers a prestigious Creative Writing graduate program. Graduates from Harvard often go on to have successful literally careers and many apply to the program each year with the hopes of being a part of this mentorship and rigorous education. Out of the many applicants, only 10-15 students are accepted each year, so be sure to put your best foot forward on your application writings to stand out among the best in the nation.

Boston University offers a one year program for creative writers looking to perfect their art. Among other requirements, a minimum 90-page thesis must be completed perfectly to graduate. The program also has the requirement of completing a non-English language course related to the field. Students who graduate from Boston University’s graduate programs earn their degree with critical thinking, hard work, and they also find their own voice through the extensive writing requirements.

Emerson College offers its students the chance to find their literary voice, become storytellers, hone their critical thinking and teaching skills, and still add extra courses to color their education. Graduates must complete a thesis novel or portion of a novel that is perfected and ready to submit to publishing houses across the nation. This program truly prepares students to become authors.

Tulane campus and the location itself almost brings forth creativity in authors. Their graduate program in English offers a creative writing concentration but also focuses on ancient texts and museum studies. If you have always seen yourself as a literary tomb raider, if you want to get lost in the beautiful southern college and extensive library as you read, write, and study your passion during the program then look into Tulane before the MFA deadline.

Columbia University offers a two-year program that is designed to teach with a curriculum that enriches the graduate student’s current education. A lot of reading is required. Beyond that students will discover that the curriculum is backed by small workshops that require the students to share their writing often. The end goal will be a publishable work that is ready to be submitted to publishers and likely to be accepted.

Brown University offers its Literary Arts MFA in one of three tracts: fiction, poetry, or digital/cross-disciplinary writing. The program, like many in the higher learning institutions, is geared to help students learn to find their voice, polish their work, and create a finished product for a dissertation. Many apply to Brown’s MFA program and very few get through, they require a 30 page sample of your work during the application process.

Northwestern University offers a three-year program with intimate classes, plenty of feedback, and time to write on your own projects, and many options for deeper study into courses that will add color to your writing. Immersion is key in this program and students are required to submit a thesis manuscript at the end of the program.

Johns Hopkins University states on their site that graduates will be able to write and edit at the highest level possible. They offer residency programs for students who want to truly get lost in the creative process and see what happens, and they actually offer flexible learning options which are not always true when it comes to high requirement MFA programs. If you are ready to immerse yourself in learning and prepare your portfolio at one of the best colleges in the nation consider Johns Hopkins MFA program.