usc mfa creative writing

The Master of Fine Arts degree in Writing for Screen and Television, is an intensive two-year degree program that concentrates on writing for narrative film and television. During the course of their studies, students benefit from a wide array of internship and mentorship opportunities available as a result of the university’s close links to the Los Angeles film industry’s top screenwriters, directors, production companies and studios.

Course work includes practical instruction in everything a working writer needs to learn about the filmmaker’s art and craft. Writing is taught in small workshop-style classes. The approach focuses on the visual tools of storytelling, developing stories from characters and then on an Aristotelian three act structure. Fractured narratives, ensemble stories, experiments with time and points of view, as well as other idiosyncratic styles of storytelling, are also addressed. The curriculum covers other professional concerns, including legal issues, agents and the Writer’s Guild, as well as the history and analysis of cinema and television. Classes are taught by working writers with a wide variety of skills, experience and approaches.

Each fall 32 students are selected to begin the Graduate Writing for Screen and Television Program; there are no spring admissions. Applicants must submit a supplemental application and materials to the Graduate Writing for Screen and Television Program. For specific instructions, contact the Cinematic Arts Office of Admission, University Park, Los Angeles, CA 90089-2211, (213) 740-8358 or online at cinema.usc.edu .

A total of 44 units is required. A minimum of 30 units must be 500-level or above.

Required Courses (33–35 units)

Year one, first semester.

• CTWR 513 Writing the Short Script Units: 2
• CTWR 514a Basic Dramatic Screenwriting Units: 2
• CTWR 521 Advanced Hour-Long Television Drama Units: 2 or
• CTWR 534 Advanced Half-Hour Television Comedy Units: 2
• CTWR 572 Practicum in Directing Actors for Film Units: 2 or 4

Total units: 8

Year one, second semester.

• CTWR 502 Graduate Writing Symposium Units: 1
• CTWR 514b Basic Dramatic Screenwriting Units: 2
• CTWR 516 Advanced Motion Picture Script Analysis Units: 2
• CTWR 537 Advanced Half-Hour Comedy Series Pilot Units: 4 or
• CTWR 539 Advanced Hour-Long Drama Series Pilot Units: 4

Total units: 9

Year two, first semester.

• CTWR 515a Practicum in Screenwriting Units: 4 or
• CTWR 517a Thesis in Half-Hour Television Comedy Units: 4 or
• CTWR 519a Thesis in Television Drama Units: 4

Total units: 4

Year two, second semester.

• CTWR 515b Practicum in Screenwriting Units: 4 or
• CTWR 517b Thesis in Half-Hour Television Comedy Units: 4 or
• CTWR 519b Thesis in Television Drama Units: 4
• CTWR 559 The Business of Writing for Screen and Television Units: 2

Total units: 6

A minimum of 2 units of course work with a production component is required.

Courses with a Production Component (2 Units)

• CTAN 448 Introduction to Film Graphics — Animation Units: 4
• CTIN 501 Interactive Cinema Units: 2
• CTPR 476 Directing The Comedic Scene Units: 2
• CTPR 479 Single Camera Television Dramatic Pilot Units: 2
• CTPR 484 Advanced Multi-Camera Television Workshop Units: 4
• CTPR 504 Fundamentals of Production Units: 4
• CTPR 507 Production I Units: 4
• CTWR 438 Linked Narrative Storytelling for the Web Units: 2, 4
• CTWR 487 Staff Writing the Multi-Camera Television Series Units: 4
• CTWR 497 Staff Writing the Single-Camera Half-Hour Series Units: 4

A minimum of 4 units of cinema and media studies course work is required.

CTCS Courses (4 Units)

• CTCS 464 Film and/or Television Genres Units: 4
• CTCS 469 Film and/or Television Style Analysis Units: 4
• CTCS 501 World Cinema Before 1945 Units: 2
• CTCS 502 World Cinema After 1945 Units: 2
• CTCS 503 Survey History of the United States Sound Film Units: 2
• CTCS 504 Survey of Television History Units: 2
• CTCS 505 Survey of Interactive Media Units: 2
• CTCS 510 Case Studies in National Media and/or Regional Media Units: 4 max 12
• CTCS 511 Seminar: Non-Fiction Film/Video Units: 4
• CTCS 518 Seminar: Avant-Garde Film/Video Units: 4
• CTCS 564 Seminar in Film and Television Genres Units: 4
• CTCS 569 Seminar in Film and Television Authors Units: 4
• CTCS 587 Seminar in Television Theory Units: 4
• CTCS 417 African American Television Units: 4

Electives (9-11 units)

Students may choose from the following electives to complete their degree. Additional courses beyond the required 4 units of CTCS course work, from the cinema and media studies list of courses, may be taken as electives, as can additional courses from the list of courses with a production component. Electives outside of cinematic arts are available with departmental approval.

• CTAN 436 Writing for Animation Units: 2
• CTIN 458 Business and Management of Games Units: 2
• CTIN 483 Introduction to Game Development Units: 4
• CTIN 488 Game Design Workshop Units: 4
• CTIN 558 Business of Interactive Media Units: 2
• CTPR 486 Single Camera Television Dramatic Series Units: 4
• CTPR 506 Visual Expression Units: 2
• CTWR 404 Foundations of Comedy Units: 2
• CTWR 411 Television Script Analysis Units: 2
• CTWR 431 Screenwriters and Their Work Units: 2 max 6
• CTWR 432 Television Writers and Their Work Units: 2 max 6
• CTWR 499 Special Topics Units: 2, 3, 4 max 8
• CTWR 518 Introduction to Interactive Writing Units: 2
• CTWR 526 Advanced Storytelling for Interactive Media Units: 2
• CTWR 541 Dreams, the Brain, and Storytelling Units: 2
• CTWR 555 Pitching for Film and Television Units: 2
• CTWR 557 Seminar in the Business of Writing and Producing Television Units: 2
• CTWR 560 Advanced Business Practices for Writers Units: 2
• CTWR 599 Special Topics Units: 2, 3, 4 max 8
• CNTV 595 Professional Practicum Units: 1, 2, 4

Writing Intensive Electives

• CTWR 410L Character Development and Storytelling for Games Units: 4
• CTWR 433 Adaptations: Transferring Existing Work to the Screen Units: 2
• CTWR 435 Writing for Film and Television Genres Units: 2, 3, 4 max 8
• CTWR 468 Screenwriting in Collaboration Units: 4 max 8
• CTWR 520 Advanced Scene Writing Workshop Units: 2
• CTWR 522 Advanced Hour-Long Television Development Units: 2
• CTWR 549 Advanced Rewriting Workshop in Hour-Long Drama Units: 4
• CTWR 550 Advanced Story Development Units: 2
• CTWR 553 Advanced Rewriting Workshop Units: 4
• CTWR 585 Advanced Genre Writing Units: 2 or 4 max 8

Courses listed as writing intensive electives are considered heavy writing classes; students may take a maximum of three courses and 10 units of writing intensive courses per semester, required and/or elective.

Additional Requirements

Grade point average requirement.

An overall grade point average of 3.0 (A = 4.0) must be maintained in all courses. In addition, an overall grade point average of 3.0 in all units attempted is required to qualify for registration in CTWR 515a   , CTWR 515b   , CTWR 517a   , CTWR 517b    or CTWR 519a   , CTWR 519b   . Courses in which a grade of C- (1.7) or lower is earned will not apply toward a graduate degree.

In lieu of a thesis the student is required to either complete a full-length screenplay, which will be developed in CTWR 515a   , CTWR 515b   ; or a pilot script and a series bible for a half-hour television comedy, which will be developed in CTWR 517a   , CTWR 517b   ; or an original one-hour drama television pilot, mid-season episode and series bible, which will be developed in CTWR 519a   , CTWR 519b   ; this final work must be accepted by the Division of Writing Graduation Committee.

Students must maintain satisfactory progress toward their master’s degrees at all times. The time limit to complete all requirements is three years from the first course at USC applied toward the Master of Fine Arts degree. Course work more than seven years old is automatically invalidated and may not be applied toward the degree.

Writing for Screen and Television Certificate

The Writing for Screen and Television Certificate is awarded for one year of study.

Applicants must be recognized writers outside of the field of screenwriting.

The course of study is no less than 16 units total, over two semesters. Writers, both U.S. and international, should appeal directly to the chair for admission in the fall semester.

Admission is granted to only one or two scholars a year, and is of the highest selectivity. Applicants must have earned an undergraduate degree with at least a 3.0 GPA. Additionally, candidates must show compelling reason for not applying to a formal degree program.

The general course of study is as follows:

First Semester

• CTWR 514a Basic Dramatic Screenwriting Units: 2 or
• CTWR 515a Practicum in Screenwriting Units: 4

Second Semester

• CTPR 536 Editing for Scriptwriters Units: 2
• CTWR 514b Basic Dramatic Screenwriting Units: 2 or
• CTWR 515b Practicum in Screenwriting Units: 4
• CTWR Electives Units: 2-6

What are you looking for?

Phd in creative writing & literature, at home in usc’s department of english,.

the Ph.D. in CREATIVE WRITING & LITERATURE PROGRAM is one of the few dual Ph.D. programs in the country that weaves the disciplines of literature and creative work into a single educational experience. Students complete coursework in both creative writing and literature. The dissertation project is comprised of creative and critical manuscripts, both of which are essential for completion of the degree.

USC CREATIVE WRITING FACULTY include recipients of the Pulitzer Prize, Guggenheim Fellowships, the National Book Award, National Endowment for the Arts grants, Pushcart Prizes and other prestigious recognitions for their exemplary writing and dedication to their creative and scholarly work. As professors, the faculty are committed to developing innovative seminars and guiding students in the cultivation of their abilities as writers and scholars. Each incoming student is assigned a faculty mentor, with whom the student will work closely during their years at USC. While Creative Writing faculty teach critical courses from time to time, most of these literature and theory-based seminars are led by the faculty in the Department of English, all of whom are impressively accomplished scholars who are devoted to the scholarly growth of their graduate students.

Our program prizes INTERDISCIPLINARY SCHOLARSHIP, so students are encouraged to cultivate their diverse interests with courses outside of the English Department. Many students choose to pursue a complimentary graduate certificate concurrent with the Ph.D. degree. The Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences offers graduate certificate programs in Gender Studies, Visual Studies, East Asian Studies and Visual Anthropology, among others.

IN ADDITION TO COURSEWORK, students have the opportunity to participate in Ph.D. student-run projects such as The Loudest Voice, a reading series, and Gold Line Press , a publisher of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry chapbooks.

Though known for its competitive sports teams, USC also organizes an array of stimulating events throughout the year, including the English Department’s Boudreaux Visiting Writers Series and Frank N. Magill Poetry Series, as well as the University-wide Visions & Voices series, which features diverse and dynamic performances, lectures, and discussions that extend the arts and humanities beyond the classroom.

USC also hosts the annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books — one of the largest literary events in the nation. USC itself is located in the heart of beautiful Los Angeles, an international city with a vibrant arts scene, just miles from the beach or hiking trails; students will never be at a loss for something to do.

ADMISSION is extremely competitive: the program accepts 2 or 3 writers per genre every year from hundreds of applicants. All incoming students receive five years of guaranteed funding — three years of fellowship and two of teaching assistantship. Fellowship years are granted during the first, second, and fourth years of study. Funding packages also cover full tuition remission and health insurance.

OUR STUDENTS and ALUMNI have published book-length works and collections with Alice James Books, Anhinga Press, Black Lawrence Press, Copper Canyon Press, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Hogarth, Northwestern University Press, Other Press, Penguin, Red Hen Press, Saturnalia, Siglio Press, Slope Editions, Tebot Bach, Ugly Duckling Presse, University of Iowa Press, and White Pine Press, among others. Their books, poems, stories, and essays have garnered an impressive array of accolades.

For information concerning admission, please visit our Application page.

Many questions concerning the Creative Writing & Literature Program are answered on our FAQ page.

If you do not find the information you are looking for on our website, please feel free to contact us.

Ph.D. in Creative Writing & Literature

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University of Southern California

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PhD Program

Poetry: Mark Irwin, Anna Journey, Robin Coste Lewis, Susan McCabe, David St. John Fiction: Aimee Bender, Percival Everett, Dana Johnson, Viet Thanh Nguyen Nonfiction: Geoff Dyer, Maggie Nelson, Danzy Senna, David Treuer

The program offers full funding in the form of fellowships and assistantships, which include tuition remission, year-round health insurance coverage, and a modest stipend.

Students are encouraged to cultivate their diverse interests with courses outside of the English Department. Many students choose to pursue a complimentary graduate certificate concurrent with the PhD degree. The Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences offers graduate certificate programs in Gender Studies, Visual Studies, East Asian Studies, and Visual Anthropology, among others.

Students also have the opportunity to participate in PhD student-run projects such as the Loudest Voice, a reading series, and Gold Line Press, a publisher of poetry and fiction chapbooks. There is also the English Department’s Boudreaux Visiting Writers Series and Frank N. Magill Poetry Series, as well as the University-wide Visions & Voices series. USC also hosts the annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books.

For a list of alumni, please visit the program’s website .

Universities

University of South Carolina

MFA in Creative Writing

MFA in Creative Writing at University of South Carolina

Masters Program

Creative Writing

Creative Writing ,

College of Engineering and Computing

Discuss this course with fellow aspirants!

Course Highlights

• Pre-Requisites
• Discussions
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• A popular choice for international students with a diverse community
• Learn from the best faculty members and become their research assistants
• High-end labs to facilitate research work
• Excellent placement programs after course completion

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$29,760 / year

$89,280 / 36 months

5000+ Students

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Pre-requisites

Minimum english score required

• Online application
• Application fee
• Officials transcripts
• English language proficiency
• Writing sample
• A statement of purpose
• At least two letters of recommendation

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University of Southern California

Los Angeles , CA

https://dornsife.usc.edu/cwphd

Degrees Offered

Fiction, Poetry, CNF

Residency type

Program length.

64 units (5 years)

Financial Aid

Students admitted to the Ph.D. program in Creative Writing and Literature receive financial support and assistance in the form of Teaching Assistantships and Fellowships, which include full tuition remission, year-round health and dental benefits, and a stipend at the current rate.

Teaching opportunities

Editorial opportunities.

• Chris Abani PhD 2005
• Dexter L. Booth PhD
• Stephan Clark PhD
• Jonathan Escoffery PhD (Fiction) 2024
• Emily Geminder PhD (Fiction) 2021
• Katherine Karlin PhD (Fiction) 2009
• Lisa Lee PhD
• Robin Coste Lewis PhD (Poetry)
• Ryan McIlvain PhD
• Bonnie Nadzam PhD (Fiction) 2010
• Jessica Piazza PhD 2014
• Michael Powers PhD
• Jianan Qian PhD (Fiction) 2025
• Josie Sigler Sibara PhD (Fiction) 2013
• Amy Silverberg PhD (Fiction)
• Safiya Sinclair PhD
• Brandon Som PhD (Poetry) 2014

Send questions, comments and corrections to [email protected] .

Disclaimer: No endorsement of these ratings should be implied by the writers and writing programs listed on this site, or by the editors and publishers of Best American Short Stories , Best American Essays , Best American Poetry , The O. Henry Prize Stories and The Pushcart Prize Anthology .

Best Colleges for Creative Writing in California

If you’re thinking of pursuing a career that involves writing — whether in publishing, academia, corporate, or with a nonprofit — you may be thinking about majoring in creative writing in college. As you start looking around for options, you’ll quickly learn that most colleges and universities actually don’t offer creative writing as a major, or even as a minor or concentration. A formal writing program, like Creative Writing, is more uncommon than it is common, so it takes some hunting to find a school that’s a perfect social fit and has the program you want.

To help you out, we’ve pulled together 10 amazing California colleges that offer creative writing programs, sometimes as a major and more often as a minor or concentration. These programs have distinct differences, so be sure to carefully consider what would work best for you before you get to work on an application.

Navigating the college admissions process can be overwhelming. If you’re feeling underwater, send us an email . We help students get into their dream schools.  

California Colleges with a Creative Writing Major

University of Southern California — Los Angeles, California

USC’s version of a creative writing major is called the Narrative Studies Major , and it’s housed in the Department of English in the Dana and David Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. In the program, students learn to develop and evaluate content for novels, films, theatre, and other narrative platforms — anywhere words are used for entertainment. USC has the perspective that the world or words is wider than books, films, and theatre, and they aim to prepare students for a wider range of writing opportunities. They learn to write, critique, shape, and realize great stories on the Los Angeles campus and abroad. USC says that its Narrative Studies major is a great option for students hoping to study overseas.

Pepperdine University — Malibu, California

At Pepperdine, the Creative Writing major and minor ( yes, both! ) are housed in Seaver College. There, students are transformed into writers prepared for careers in writing and editing for publishing companies, magazines, corporations, the creative arts, and more. Students can pursue workshops in fiction, screenwriting, poetry, and even spiritual writing — but interestingly not in nonfiction, so if you are looking to study nonfiction this isn’t the program for you. If fiction is more your avenue, while at Pepperdine you’ll be able to become involved with four university publications including a student-run magazine, campus newspaper, and an area magazine.

Scripps College — Claremont, California  

One of only a small handful of women’s colleges in the United States, Scripps offers both a major and a minor in Writing and Rhetoric. Whereas Pepperdine has a fiction-focused program, the Scripps writing program is nonfiction-focused . Students learn to examine, write, interrogate, and edit nonfiction writing. They are also encouraged to layer the major or minor with another field at Scripps.

University of Redlands — Redlands, California

Where Pepperdine focuses on fiction and Scripps focuses on nonfiction, the University of Redlands takes a more holistic approach, focusing “on the creative process rather than on specialization in any one genre.” The Major in Creative Writing includes foundational courses in nonfiction, poetry, and fiction, and students are expected to “foster a rapport” with all genres. Students in the major select an academic advisor from the department’s resident writers who acts as a guide or mentor, and students are able to become involved with the Redlands Review, which showcases student work. After classes, you can take part in annual fiction and nonfiction prizes and a Visiting Writers series.

California Colleges with Creative Writing Minor, Emphasis, or Track

University of California-Berkeley — Berkeley, California

Berkeley is known as one of the most literary campuses in the world, pulling together thinkers of all types, stripes, and subjects. Their Creative Writing minor is no different. As an interdepartmental minor, students pursue it through a compilation of courses across a wide variety of departments at Berkeley, including African American Studies, Environmental Design, and Native-American Studies. Any major at Berkeley can earn a minor in creative writing, so it’s an amazing opportunity to develop as a written communicator alongside learning to think and innovate amongst some of the most creative people on the planet.

Stanford University — Stanford, California

The Creative Writing minor at Stanford is offered through the Creative Writing Program at the School of Humanities and Sciences with a focus on Prose, Poetry, or Fiction info Film (note: not nonfiction). Students who are deeply passionate about writing should also look into the Wallace Stegner Fellowship , which offers 10 individuals at a time two-year fellowships that are a full-time academic commitment for non-degree-seeking students over the age of 18. While completing the Fellowship, recipients take part in weekly writing workshops and receive a $50,000 living stipend.

University of California-Los Angeles — Los Angeles, California

Writing workshops for the Creative Writing Concentration in the UCLA Department of English are extremely competitive, and pursuing the concentration requires some jumping through hoops. First you have to apply for the workshops, then get into and complete them, and only then can you declare your Concentration. If you have trouble getting into workshops, UCLA encourages students to make the most of their time by taking courses in English Composition and Literature. You can also take creative writing workshops without pursuing the concentration along with attending reading series events and submitting to annual writing contests.

University of California-Irvine — Irvine, California

The UC-Irvine Department of English offers a Creative Writing minor open to all undergrads that focuses on the value of storytelling across all subjects and academic spheres. There is also a major in Literary Journalism that may catch your interest if you’re into nonfiction!

Pitzer College — Claremont, California  

The Creative Writing track within the English Department at Pitzer encourages students to “take creative risks,” learning how to bring a reader through a door they open into another world. While pursuing this track, you’ll take workshops alongside literature courses on British Literature, American Literature, and World Literature.

University of California-Davis — Davis, California

At UC-Davis, the Creative Writing specialization is built in the very benevolent shadow of their impressive MFA in Creative Writing program. Like most creative writing programs, the workshops are by application only, and many students choose to double major, layering something on top of their English Major (with that Creative Writing specialization). Between classes, students can take part in an English Club, writing contests, and access to Provost’s Undergraduate Fellowships. 

If you’re interested in a career in writing, don’t get too hung up on the major versus the minor track. Instead, look for schools, programs, and faculty that inspire you. You don’t need to major in creative writing in college to become a great writer or pursue a career with writing at its center.

If you know where you want to go to college but aren’t sure how to get there, send us an email . We help students like you get into their perfect fit.

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The MFA Art Program

University of Southern California USC Roski School of Art and Design

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The Master of Fine Arts in Art program is a two-year, full-time, studio-based program located in the center of Los Angeles. The expansive city is home to a vital local art community and international gallery and museum scene with five arts districts: Downtown, Culver City, Mid-Wilshire, Hollywood, and Chinatown. With a select cohort enrolled each year, the program provides a unique experience that focuses on interdisciplinary and wide-ranging experimental, creative, and intellectual exploration.

Students work closely with USC Roski's internationally acclaimed faculty, as well as an expanded community of leading professional artists, critics, and curators who participate in the weekly Visiting Artist and Scholar Seminar and the Resident Artists and Scholars Program. USC Roski boasts four exhibition spaces and has formal affiliations with the USC Fisher Museum of Art, The Hancock Memorial Museum, The Pacific Asian Museum, and the California African American Museum.

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USC MFA Writing for Screen & Television (Screenwriting) 2021

• Thread starter theMorrigan
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theMorrigan

Active member.

• Nov 4, 2020

Hello! I didn't see a thread for USC's MFA Writing for Screen & Television, so I figured I'd start one. How many of you are planning to apply, or have already applied? How are we feeling about the essays, challenge scenes, and 10-page writing sample? Personally, I feel like my essays are in great shape and am focusing on challenge scenes and picking a writing sample over the next few days. Sound off! Let's support each other in this journey.  

• Nov 5, 2020

@theMorrigan Hey! Third time applying to this program! I'm struggling a bit with my ACS essay, but everything else is fine. I'm also applying to two other places: NYU and UT Austin. I got interviewed for NYU back in February of 2019 but got denied. As far as how I feel about my USC application, I'm numb at this point. I'm doing things a little more daring? Honest? I'm not sure how to describe it, but I think you can see an evolution in my application. So, I'm hoping admissions finds it to be a sign of maturation.  

Hey! I just submitted my application to USC yesterday, and I'm currently working on my final draft for NYU. Honestly, as stressful as all the components for USC are, I kind of love the different opportunities to show different writing strengths! I think I struggled the most with the challenges, because I'm scared my scenes aren't original enough for how long they have used this prompt.  

Hi @heyambshey ! Congrats on getting to the interview process in your first NYU application. That's huge and a great sign for you this year, I think! This is my second time applying to USC, so I'm right there with you in hoping the admissions committee can see an evolution. I was planning on applying to UCLA again, as well, but they aren't taking applications this year. So, I looked into LMU and decided to go with USC, LMU, and AFI this year. It's such a weird time to be on this application train when there's so many outside stresses, but I'm at least finding it to be a consuming distraction. Glad to see another potential cohort person engage here. What struggle are you having with the ASC?  

arigold8 said: Hey! I just submitted my application to USC yesterday, and I'm currently working on my final draft for NYU. Honestly, as stressful as all the components for USC are, I kind of love the different opportunities to show different writing strengths! I think I struggled the most with the challenges, because I'm scared my scenes aren't original enough for how long they have used this prompt. Click to expand...

The night was sultry...

arigold8 said: working on my final draft for NYU Click to expand...

theMorrigan said: Congrats on getting the application in! I'm aiming for 11/10, and trying to budget my time accordingly while trying to be disciplined about stress-checking political news. :-( Totally hear you on the challenge scenes. Because I applied last year, I'm even more worried about that with that part of the application. Know that you aren't alone in that fear! Click to expand...

• Nov 6, 2020

sabvan said: Hi guys! I'm in the process of applying to the screenwriting MFA at USC, and Chapman's as well. So far the Autobiographical Sketch has been the biggest beast. I've written it 8 different ways and they're all terrible, but this last version might be salvageable? It's written like an essay, rather than a short story, and I'm just worried it's not 'creative' enough! Anyway, best of luck to you all Click to expand...

equus_auctor

Hi folks! First time applicant. I submitted my USC Screenwriting app at the end of October. I'm also applying to AFI and a handful of playwriting/dramatic writing schools (including NYU). I found the series of small assignments a really welcome change from a single manuscript meant to totally define your work and sensibility. Good luck, y'all! Glad to have this community as we bite our nails for the next four months.  

Korean Forum Moderator

Hey I also applied to USC Writing for Screen &Television this year. First time applying. I’m an international student from Korea and quite nervous to be applying to the greatest schools like USC. Hope everyone here gets the results they want!  

viipyramids

@equus_auctor congrats on getting in your stuff so early. I am going to pushing up against the deadline myself. Anyone willing to trade Autobiographical Character Sketches for some notes and feedback?  

its_me_mari

Well-known member.

• Nov 7, 2020

Hey guys, First time applicant and I just hit send on my application! So nervous hahahaha I'm also an international student, from Brazil! For some reason I had a hard time with Challenge B. It was a long time until I had an idea that I really liked. And the Most Challenge Moment was hard. Brought me back a lot of memories but I was really happy with it in the end. I'm applying for NYU, AFI and Chapman too! Working on them as well and will probably finish them soon! Best of luck for us all!  

• Nov 9, 2020

• Nov 10, 2020

viipyramids said: This application is going to be the death of me. Just as I finish one section theres another sneaky essay I forgot about. Click to expand...

@marianass45 I had this problem too. I submitted my Slideroom stuff first and then couldn't submit the main app. Try logging out of everything and then logging back in. If that doesn't work, make sure you check all the tabs on the Slideroom app. You might have to manually reenter your Slideroom ID. Hope that's helpful. Mine worked after a few minutes of clicking around.  

equus_auctor said: @marianass45 I had this problem too. I submitted my Slideroom stuff first and then couldn't submit the main app. Try logging out of everything and then logging back in. If that doesn't work, make sure you check all the tabs on the Slideroom app. You might have to manually reenter your Slideroom ID. Hope that's helpful. Mine worked after a few minutes of clicking around. Click to expand...

sabvan said: Does anyone know if the Autobiographical Sketch, Challenge Essay, and writing sample are supposed to be single-spaced or double-spaced? Either way it kind of changes everything haha. My essays are single-spaced, but my writing sample is in manuscript format so it's double Click to expand...

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USC PHD WRITERS OF COLOR SHOWCASE

How do people of color make literary careers? Find out in a showcase of POC writers in USC’s Ph.D. program in creative writing and literature. Part reading, part panel, the evening will demystify the multiple paths taken by writers of color at different stages of their careers.

Dexter L. Booth is the author of  Scratching the Ghost  (Graywolf Press, 2013), which won the 2012 Cave Canem Poetry Prize and was selected by Major Jackson. Booth is currently a Contributing Editor for  Waxwing Journal , a Ph.D. candidate and Provost Fellow at the University of Southern California, and a professor in the Ashland University MFA program. His second collection,  Abracadabra, Sunshine  is forthcoming from Red Hen Press in 2021.

Marcus Clayton is an Afro-Latino writer who grew up in South Gate, CA, and holds an M.F.A. in Poetry from CSU Long Beach. He is an executive editor for Indicia Literary Journal , and has taught English Composition at Fullerton College, Long Beach City College, and LA Southwest College—where he also co-managed the English Writing Center. Some of his published work can be seen in the Los Angeles Review of Books, Glass: A Journal of Poetry, Spry Literary Journal , and DUM DUM Zine among many others.

Jonathan Escoffery ’s writing has appeared in The Paris Review, AGNI, Pleiades, Salt Hill, Creative Nonfiction , and elsewhere. Recent honors include a Distinguished Story citation in The Best American Short Stories 2018, a Glenna Luschei Prairie Schooner Award, and Passages North ’s Waasnode Fiction Prize. He earned his MFA at the University of Minnesota.

Leesa Fenderson 's work has appeared in Callaloo Journal, Uptown Magazine, Moko Magazine , and she was a Finalist in Paper Darts ' Short Fiction contest. Leesa completed her MFA at Columbia University. She is an attorney, a teacher, and a Jamaican immigrant who hails from New York. She currently writes in Los Angeles where she is a PhD candidate in USC's Writing and Literature Program.

Lisa Lee ’s work has appeared in Ploughshares, VIDA, North American Review, Sycamore Review, Gulf Coast , the Bitch Media podcast, and elsewhere. She is the recipient of a Pushcart Prize for her novel excerpt “Paradise Cove.” She has received fellowships and awards from the Inprint-Brown Foundation, Kundiman, Jentel Artist Residency, The Korea Foundation, the Korean Studies Institute, and the EASC Association for Japan–U.S. Community Exchange (ACE) Nikaido program, and was named a NYC Emerging Writers Fellow by The Center for Fiction.

Brian Lin is working on a novel and a short story collection. He has attended the Napa Valley Writers' Conference and Tin House Summer Workshop. He reads and edits for Apogee Journal and co-organizes Drunken Masters New Works Series.

Muriel Leung is the author of Bone Confetti* , winner of the 2015 Noemi Press Book Award. A Pushcart Prize nominated writer, her writing can be found or is forthcoming in Gulf Coast, Drunken Boat, The Collagist, Fairy Tale Review , and others. She is a recipient of fellowships to Kundiman, VONA/Voices Workshop and the Community of Writers at Squaw Valley. She is the co-host of The Blood-Jet Writing Hour podcast with Rachelle Cruz and MT Vallarta and is also Poetry Co-Editor of Apogee Journal .  

* Bone Confetti  is available for purchase by calling Skylight Books at 323-660-1175 or visiting the store. 

Douglas Manuel was born in Anderson, Indiana. His first full length collection of poems, Testify (Red Hen Press, 2017), won the 2017 IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award for poetry. www.douglasmanuelpoetry.com

Krishna Narayanamurti is a PhD student in the University of Southern California’s creative writing and literature program, concentrating in nonfiction. His work has appeared in The GroundTruth Project, The Northridge Review , and elsewhere.

Tisha Marie Reichle-Aguilera is a Chicana Feminist and former Rodeo Queen whose stories have appeared most recently in Voices de la Luna, The Acentos Review, Chaleur Magazine, The Lunch Ticket , and Ghost Town . She is an alumna of AROHO Retreat, Macondo Writers Workshop, Las Dos Brujas, and is an organizing member of Women Who Submit. While engaging high school students with socially conscious literature, she completed her teaching credential at Cal State Dominguez Hills and earned an MFA at Antioch University Los Angeles.

Laura Roque is the daughter of Cuban political exiles and was raised in Hialeah, FL. She graduated from the University of Florida in 2014 and earned her MFA at Florida State University in 2017. She was honorably mentioned by Glimmer Train in 2016, first runner-up for FSU’s Creative Writing Spotlight award in 2017, and the winner of Kenyon Review ’s Short Fiction Contest and Glimmer Train ’s Fiction Open Contest in 2018.

Vanessa Angélica Villarreal was born in the Rio Grande Valley. She is the author of Beast Meridian (Noemi Press, 2017), a recipient of a 2019 Whiting Award, a 2018 Texas Institute of Letters Poetry Prize, and a 2019 Kate Tufts Discovery Award finalist. She is a CantoMundo Fellow and is currently pursuing her doctorate in English Literature and Creative Writing at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, where she is raising her son with the help of a loyal dog.

Beast Meridian (Paperback)

Testify (Paperback)

Scratching the Ghost: Poems (Paperback)