Antioch University’s MFA program was founded in 1997 as the nation’s first low-residency creative writing program on the West Coast. At two 10-day residencies each year, students gather at the site of world’s only MFA program specifically devoted to literature and the pursuit of social justice. Rather than focusing exclusively on the completion of a single book-length Final Manuscript, the MFA Program educates students in the various roles of the Writer in Society, how to make a difference on the page and in the diverse communities where writers work and live.

Antioch University Los Angeles has distinguished itself from other programs through our award-winning faculty in Fiction, Poetry, and Creative Nonfiction, and through innovative features such as the Field Study, the Translation Seminar and Conference, the MFA Alumni Weekend Residency, and the Certificate in Publishing Arts. A mere decade after our beginning, Antioch is also remarkable for our successful, publishing alumni. I invite you to explore these links and discover Antioch’s unique and compelling place in our literary culture. 

Steve Heller, M.F.A., Ed.D. Professor & Chair, M.F.A. in Creative Writing