Master of Fine Arts in Writing (MFA) Overview and Learning Outcomes

The Professional Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Writing at Chaminade University is a 36-credit, online graduate degree with an optional residency that prepares writers, educators and creative professionals for modern careers in publishing, communication and applied writing. The Professional MFA in Writing blends asynchronous coursework with the option for a short in-person residency focused on professional preparation and technological fluency. The residency also gives out-of-state students an opportunity to experience Hawaii firsthand and engage with our distinctive literary and cultural landscape. Students complete the degree in 12 to 24 months, culminating in a creative thesis such as a manuscript, screenplay or digital writing project ready for publication or production. The curriculum is informed by Hawaii and the Pacific’s distinctive sense of place and shaped by indigenous ways of knowing and learning. It integrates artificial intelligence, digital publishing and applied creative practices to prepare graduates for evolving professional roles in writing, education and media.

Upon completion of the Professional MFA in Writing, students will:

1. Clearly articulate in writing the process of understanding, analyzing, critiquing, and participating in the processes of knowledge production

2. Analyze and respond to cultural phenomena and demonstrate in their writing practice an engagement with social issues, such as social justice, economic justice, and environmental sustainability.

3. Describe and define a critical and practice-based interest in and creative facility with alternate modes of authorship, such as collaborative modes of thinking, making and organizing.

4. Create texts, performances, videos, and other projects that cross or combine various genres and media (interdisciplinary).

5. Identify and explore influences of place, culture, the environment, and the natural world in their written work.