Applications are encouraged as soon as possible in a student’s academic career. Incoming undergraduates are accepted as Creative Writing BA students and are automatically invited to apply to the Creative Writing BFA program. If after faculty review a student’s application is deemed to require additional study and practice, they will be counseled to reapply after taking and performing well in Introduction to Creative Writing, COMP 202.
- Success in courses: We will review your transcript and lean towards students who have earned strong grades in their English courses.
- Admissions Portfolio: Submit 10 pages of edited, polished writing that represent some of your best efforts.
- Include at least two pieces (or parts of pieces) from two genres. Feel free to ask any of your Creative Writing professors to help you choose your best work.
- Clearly present the title for each piece. If you choose to give us part of a longer work, indicate where you have removed material.
- Merge your pieces into one document and insert page numbers. Use Times New Roman 12-point font, and double space your text.
- Cover letter/Statement of Intent: Include a cover letter/statement of intent introducing yourself and your portfolio pieces.
- Talk about your writer’s background as well as your goals and aspirations. Do you have a favored genre? Why did you select the pieces you included, and what do you hope they reveal about you as a writer? Each cover letter will look different from any other.
- In discussing your pieces, mention the title of each, its genre, and when you first wrote it.
- Address your letter to Professor Benjamin Landry, and place it at the beginning of your portfolio document.
- Your cover letter should be single-spaced, standard business letter format, Times New Roman 12-point font, three pages or fewer.
- Submission: Combine your cover letter and portfolio into one document with page numbers, save it as a .pdf file, include your last name in the file name, and email it to englishbfa@potsdam.edu
Major: You must be a Creative Writing BA major to apply. If you are not yet a Creative Writing major, please declare the Creative Writing BA major by emailing onestop@potsdam.edu. While you wait for that change to register, you can submit your BFA application.
Questions?
Contact Professor Benjamin Landry at landrybj@potsdam.edu with questions.