Overview

About Creative Writing at The University of Iowa

Founded in 1936, it was the first creative writing program in the United States to offer a degree, and it became a model for many contemporary writing programs. In addition to its Master of Fine Arts program, it also offers writing courses for undergraduates.

The Iowa Writers' Workshop has been home to thousands of remarkable writers, including Flannery O'Connor, Raymond Carver, Rita Dove, John Irving, James Alan McPherson, Philip Levine, Jane Smiley, Michael Cunningham, Sandra Cisneros, Denis Johnson, Jorie Graham, Ann Patchett, D.A. Powell, Nathan Englander, Yiyun Li, Eleanor Catton, Angela Flournoy, Garth Greenwell, Yaa Gyasi, and Jamel Brinkley. The program's faculty and alumni include winners of virtually every major literary award, including seventeen winners of the Pulitzer Prize (most recently Paul Harding in 2010), six recent U.S. Poets Laureate, and numerous winners of the National Book Award, MacArthur Foundation Fellowships, and other major honors. In 2003, the Iowa Writers' Workshop received a National Humanities Medal from the National Endowment for the Humanities—the first awarded to a university and only the second given to an institution rather than an individual.

Programme Structure

Courses include:

Creative Writing Studio Workshop

Creative Writing

Fiction Writing

Poetry Writing

Writing and Reading
Young Adult Fiction

Key information

Duration

Full-time
- 12 months

Start dates & application deadlines

Starting 2027-08-19 00:00:00
- Apply before 2026-12-15 00:00:00

Language

English

Duolingo English Test

120

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TOEFL^® IBT

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PTE Academic

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IELTS

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Credits

48 SCH

Delivered

On Campus

Campus Location

Iowa City, United States

Disciplines

Creative Writing View 385 other Masters in Creative Writing in United States

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Academic requirements

GRE^®

Required

English requirements

Duolingo English Test

120

Take A Free Practice Test!

TOEFL^® IBT

Schedule TOEFL®

PTE Academic

Schedule a PTE test!

IELTS

Prepare for Your English Test

Cathoven AI IELTS Preparation

Learn your IELTS Score

AI-powered IELTS feedback. Clear, actionable, and tailored to boost your writing & speaking score. No credit card or upfront payment required.

Trusted by 300k learners
98 accuracy using real exam data
4.9/5 student rating

Other requirements

General requirements

A bachelor’s degree from a Regionally Accredited American College or University, or an equivalent degree from another country as determined by the Office of Admissions.

A minimum grade-point average (GPA) of 3.00, or the foreign equivalent as determined by the Office of Admissions.

A U.S. bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university, or an equivalent degree from another country as determined by the Office of Admissions.

Meet English Proficiency Requirements

General application to the University of Iowa Graduate College

Statement of purpose

Graduate Funding Application

Department Funding Application

Letters of Recommendation

Unofficial official copy of transcripts from universities and colleges that document all undergraduate and graduate work

Due to COVID19, a backup copy of your manuscript uploaded to MyUI

Tuition Fees

Tuition fees are shown in and the most likely applicable fee is shown based on your nationality.

International Applies to you

Applies to you

Non-residents

32776 USD / year

≈ 32776 USD / year
Out-of-State

32776 USD / year

≈ 32776 USD / year
Domestic

Applies to you

In-State

13829 USD / year

≈ 13829 USD / year

Living costs

Iowa City

United States

1187 - 1841 USD / month

The living costs include the total expenses per month, covering accommodation, public transportation, utilities (electricity, internet), books and groceries.

Financing

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Funding

Win a €10000 Scholarship! Deadline: 30 June 2020

Embark on your journey with the Studyportals Scholarship! We're giving away a total of 20,000 euros to help you achieve your dream of studying abroad.

Win a €10000 Scholarship! Deadline: 30 June 2020

Embark on your journey with the Studyportals Scholarship! We're giving away a total of 20,000 euros to help you achieve your dream of studying abroad.

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Scholarships Information

Below you will find Master's scholarship opportunities for Creative Writing.

Available Scholarships

You are eligible to apply for these scholarships but a selection process will still be applied by the provider.

On this page

About

Overview

About Creative Writing at The University of Iowa

Programme Structure

Key information

Duration

Start dates & application deadlines

Language

Prepare for Your English Test

Credits

Delivered

Campus Location

Disciplines

What students do after studying

Academic requirements

English requirements

Prepare for Your English Test

Other requirements

General requirements

Tuition Fees

International Applies to you

Domestic

Living costs

Iowa City

Financing

Funding

Scholarships Information

Available Scholarships

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