The program may award fellowships and/or tuition scholarships to new students if funds are available. Generally the awards are designed to supplement a teaching assistantship. There is no application; all admitted applicants are considered. Award decisions are made by the admissions committee or program director at their discretion.
Program fellowships have a stipulation that the recipient complete a project that benefits the department, such as editing a journal or assisting with the New Writing Series.
Tuition scholarships may be awarded to cover the following:
Nonresidents who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents must establish California residency during their first year in the program to avoid owing nonresident supplemental tuition during subsequent years. Under no circumstances will the program or UCSD pay nonresident tuition for a continuing student who is eligible to establish residency.
Applicants who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents (or AB 540 qualified) should apply for the San Diego Fellowship or the Tribal Membership Initiative if eligible. The fellowships offer tuition remissions and income comparable to a 50% TAship for the student's first two years in the MFA program. They also cover supplemental nonresident tuition for the student's first year in the program (the student must establish California residency before the second year, if eligible).
The SDF/Tribal fellowship applications are embedded in the application for admission. Refer to the MFA application guidelines for more information.