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	Quick Info (based on 2009-2010) Nineteen Graduate Assistantships and Teaching Fellowships provide a stipend of $8,750 (and one part-time assistantship stipend of $5,550) per year plus full tuition remission (in-state or out-of-state), not including semester student fees and student insurance premiums. 22 of about 27 full-time students in our MFA program are on assistantship (most students not on assistantship have full-time jobs or other responsibilities and do not seek such assistance), which means that about 80-90% of our students who seek a graduate assistantship are awarded one. Students on assistantship also receive scholarships of $500 to $750 (sometimes more) directly assigned by the MFA program, so that most MFA students on assistantship receive $9,250 to $9,500 (stipend + scholarship). This amount is expected to increase to $9,750 in 2010-2011 for most full-time assistantship packages. Teaching Fellows are assigned first-year composition and literature courses, but almost all of our graduate students on assistantship will have opportunities to teach creative writing courses or mentor/advise undergraduate creative writing majors during their two or three program of study at GCSU. Typical Award Package $8,750 stipend PLUS $500 scholarship (or more) PLUS Tuition Remission EQUALS $13,500 (in-state) to $26,500 (out-of-state) award package (or more) Costs not covered $600 student fees per semester $1000 student insurance per year Based on fall 2009 figures	Graduate Assistantships and Teaching Fellowships All students who complete applications by February 1 are considered for graduate assistantships (there is no special application process). Applicants who already hold an M.A. degree in English (or another appropriate graduate degree) complete the degree in two years and are usually eligible for Teaching Fellowships in their first and second years. Other students complete the degree in three years but will also be eligible their first year for assistantships, in which they will usually divide time between working in the GCSU Writing Center and another project (our national journals Arts & Letters and the Flannery O’Connor Review, our “Early College” writers in the schools project, undergraduate creative writing major mentoring and advising, and other programs we sponsor). In their second and third years, these students will be assigned Teaching Fellowships (and sometimes other duties related to their first-year assistantship assignment). In fact, most of our students, whether on assistantship or not, will have opportunities to teach in their second year after they have completed 18+ graduate hours. Peace Corps Fellows are admitted through the same process as other applicants. For more information on the Peace Corps Fellows program, click here. The first-year MFA assistantship package (stipend plus tuition waiver) for non-Georgia residents was worth about $25,000) and for Georgia residents about $13,250, based on full-time tuition (fall and spring) for 18 credit hours. Two limited summer assistantships ($1,200 for work from early June to early August) are available: one in the Arts & Letters office and one in the Writing Center. However, the MFA program is designed for students and faculty to have time to write, travel, and pursue other experiences over the summer, and so summer opportunities are limited. Many of our students have become involved teaching in summer workshops sponsored by Emory University, Duke University, and other special programs. Current students often provide good leads for applying to work in such summer programs. All students at GCSU, whether on assistantship or not, pay student fees each semester. Also, students on assistantship are required to take the student insurance unless they are eligible to waive the insurance (see below).
	Pearce & Pearce is our student insurance provider. See their web site for more information (search for “Georgia College” to link to the GCSU plan.	Student Insurance MFA students on assistantship are required to purchase student insurance, unless they are on a parent’s or spouse’s eligible, employment-related health insurance plan and thus may elect to waive the insurance. The 2009-2010 cost for one-year coverage (August 1 to July 31) is $1000 (paid in two annual installments in August and December).
	Park Parkison (2009), Leah Norton (2010), and John Teschner (2010, Peace Corps Fellow) attend the fall 2008 GCSU Alumni scholarship luncheon.	Scholarships The MFA program awards scholarships of $500, $750, or more directly to students on assistantship, determined by an MFA faculty committee review, but all students are eligible to apply for other GCSU Alumni Scholarships in their first year for additional funding in their second or third year. For more information about applying for GCSU Alumni Scholarships, click here.
		Student Loans Some students choose to seek additional financial support through student loans. GCSU’s Financial Aid office can provide assistance, and students should contact that office for details. For more information about applying for student loans, click here.
	Students, like Meredith Dodson (2009) and Ashleigh Eisinger (2009) attended AWP Chicago in February 2009. In 2008, 25 MFA students and faculty attended AWP New York at the Midtown Hilton.	Professional Travel and Study Abroad Our MFA students have opportunities to attend the annual Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) national conference. Students who are accepted to present at AWP may apply for professional travel funding from the GCSU student Government Association. Also, students may apply for WEIR and WELLS Study Abroad Scholarships that provide support for summer academic programs students may wish to pursue.

The Association of Writers and Writing Programs One of only 20 member colleges nationwide

Creative Writing Program Campus Box 44 Georgia College & State University Milledgeville, GA 31061 English Office: (478) 445-4581 MFA Office: (478) 445-3509