Creative Writing & Literature Graduate Degrees

Engage the Power of Words.

Claim your individual voice and vision through one of the two graduate programs offered by our Literatures & Languages Department. Find inspiration and support from an inclusive community of writers and scholars in the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area’s vibrant literary scene.

Contact Us.

Phone: 510.430.3309
Email: grad-admission@mills.edu

MFA in Creative Writing

Grow as a writer and reader as you prepare to publish, perform, or teach. Be inspired by peers and pursue excellence in poetry or prose (fiction or creative nonfiction).

MA in English Language & Literatures

Develop critical writing and research skills as you prepare for doctoral study, teaching, or a communications career. Join a community of scholars who will challenge you to produce your best work.

Full-Tuition Fellowships

Apply for competitive fellowships in writing and community engagement, which support projects exploring the socially transformative power of literature.

Faculty Artists/Scholars

Be inspired by award-winning novelists, poets, and journalists as well as published scholars. All are dedicated educators who will mentor you one-on-one.

Contemporary Writers

Meet renowned writers at our annual Contemporary Writers Series. Past speakers include Joyce Carol Oates, Natalie Baszile, and Cherríe Moraga.

Alumnae Spotlight

Carolina De Robertis, MFA ’07

Author of The Gods of Tango

“I found a community of intrepid, intensely stimulating faculty and peers at Mills. I also discovered previously unimagined directions.”

Nina LaCour, MFA ’06

Author of We Are Okay

“I have never written more intensively or in a more stimulating environment than I did when I was in the MFA Program in Creative Writing at Mills College.”

Mike Oppenheim, MFA '11

Author of Baby Doll (the Book)

“The faculty is the keystone of the Mills education. Every single professor I studied with was attentive to my individual needs as a person, as a student, but most importantly, as an aspiring artist.”

Sierra Lomuto, MA '09

Doctoral Student at University of Pennslyvania

“My Mills professors created an academic environment that was as rigorous as it was empowering—pushing me to think more deeply and thoughtfully.”

Meg Day, MFA '10

Author of Last Psalm at Sea Level

“Mills commitment to community and its focus on social justice is evident in the course work, the classrooms, and in the incredible poets by whom I found myself surrounded.”