Overview
Summer residencies are integral to forming and maintaining our MFA community. The residency is held on the campus of Ashland University and features a rigorous schedule of workshops, seminars and readings.
Typical Daily Residency Schedule
- Morning workshop
- Lunch in the university's dining hall
- Afternoon craft seminar led by a faculty mentor or a visiting writer
- Late afternoon thesis defenses, class and individual meetings
- Catered dinner
- Evening reading by distinguished visiting writers and faculty mentors
- After-hours student open mics and social gatherings
Writing Workshops
Summer workshops are split into two sessions. In each, three to five students spend several days working with one faculty mentor on short writing assignments and readings. During the sessions, you can expect to give and receive peer feedback and discuss assigned readings. In the second week, you will repeat this process with a different faculty member who is an expert in your chosen genre and will spend some time in professionalization workshops.
Visiting Writers & Editors
Each summer, we invite accomplished writers to give readings and craft seminars in addition to our core faculty. We also invite editors from literary journals and presses to hold panel discussions and meet with students individually.
Summer Residency Room and Board
Communal meals during the summer residency are an important part of community building. All faculty and visiting writers take part in lunch and dinner.
A light breakfast is provided each weekday prior to workshops. Lunch is served in the university dining hall ("Lower Convo") and dinners are catered each night. A vegetarian entree and a gluten-free entree will be provided at each meal. If you need further meal modifications, AU Catering can accommodate any requests. Please notify the program coordinator of dietary restrictions and special requests in advance.
2024 Meal Plan: $525
Restaurants and grocery stores are within walking distance of the university. A snack bar in the Student Center with dining and coffee selections is open 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
On-campus housing is available in Clayton Hall, a newly renovated residence hall featuring air-conditioned double-occupancy rooms with a private bathroom. You will live on the same floor as other summer residency students and share a common space with a small kitchenette and access to laundry. Residence halls do not have utensils, plates, pots and pans, cups or other similar amenities.
You may request to “buy out” a residence hall room — essentially converting a double room into a single, as long as space is available.
A linen package is available for students upon request. The linen package includes towels, sheets, a light blanket and a pillow.
2024 Room Rates*
- A double, shared room = $360
- A private, double room (“buy out”) = $715
2024 Optional Linen Package (pillow, sheets, blanket and towels): $58; package without pillow: $53
If you would prefer to have a more private living environment, please review additional housing options off-campus. Please note, however, if you choose not to stay on campus, it will be your responsibility to find alternative housing as well as transportation to and from campus.
During summer residencies, MFA students and faculty members may purchase a $20 two-week membership to the recreation center. This membership can be purchased the first day of the residency from the Sports Science and Recreation Center Help Desk.
We offer fully accessible accommodations to our students. If you have any questions, please contact the Student Accessibility Center.
Previous Visiting Writers & Editors
Visiting writers have included:
Creative Nonfiction
- Hanif Abdurraqib
- Gretel Ehrlich
- Ashley C. Ford
- Leslie Jamison
- Terry Tempest Williams
Fiction
- Dan Chaon
- Lolita Hernandez
- Rebecca Makkai
- Viet Thanh Nguyen
- Benjamin Percy
Poetry
- Jericho Brown
- John Keene
- Justin Phillip Reed
- J. Allyn Rosser
- Patricia Smith
Visiting editors have included:
- Ibrahim Ahmad, Viking
- Mary Biddinger, Akron University Press
- Dan Bourne, The Artful Dodge
- Kate Gale, Red Hen Press
- Johanna Ingalls, Akashic Books
- David Lynn and Kirsten Reach, Kenyon Review
- Eric Obenauf, Two Dollar Radio Press
- Jon Parrish Peede, Virginia Quarterly Review
- Hilary Plum, CSU Poetry Center
Supported by the Ohio Arts Council
The Ashland University MFA Program is grateful for the support of the Ohio Arts Council. Their support enables many events to be open and free to the public so that local writers and those interested in the literary arts can also benefit from the gifted authors and editors who are involved with this program.
