Important Forms

Graduate Assistantship Forms

Application for Graduate Assistantship Form: Students interested in applying for a graduate assistantship should fill out this form and submit it to the chair of the department.

Thesis Forms

Note: The Graduate and Professional School maintains its own deadlines, requirements, and forms for thesis students, so students should familiarize themselves with those guidelines in addition to those listed here.

Appointment of Thesis Committee Form: Students beginning Thesis I should fill out this form and submit it to the director of the program on the first day of classes, along with the following:

• A "proto-prospectus," which is a 3- to 4-page summary of the thesis project and the student's plan for its completion.
• A working bibliography that reflects the student's ongoing and anticipated reading and research in support of the project.

Thesis Prospectus Form: No later than the last class day of Thesis I, students must submit this form, along with a copy of their completed prospectus, to the program director. The prospectus is an 8- to 10-page summary of the thesis project and the student's plan for its completion, and it should include a working bibliography for the project. The thesis committee should have an opportunity to review the prospectus before signing off on this form, and the committee members may request edits before agreeing to sign off, so we recommend that students submit their prospectus to their committee a week or two in advance of submitting this form to the director.

Thesis Defense Form: Upon successful completion of their thesis defense, thesis students must submit this form to the program director. Additionally, students must initiate an electronic route sheet. Both the form and electronic route sheet must be submitted for the student to receive credit for their thesis defense.

Portfolio Forms

Note: Students who started in the MFA program prior to fall 2025 are on the old portfolio system and schedule. Students who started the program in fall 2025 or later are on the new portfolio system and schedule. However, both systems use the same forms. 

Portfolio Declaration Form: Students must submit this form to the program director on the first day of classes during the semester in which they will complete their portfolio. For students on the new portfolio system, this will be in the fall of their third year.

Portfolio Oral Defense Dates Form: Students must submit this form to the program director by the end of the first week of classes during the semester in which they will complete their portfolio. For students on the new portfolio system, this will be in the spring of their third year. 

Portfolio Evaluation Final Report Form: After the MFA faculty have evaluated your final portfolio, the program director will fill out this form and submit it to the chair of the English department and the dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences for final approval.

Portfolio Overview

The intention of the portfolio is to assure that when you enter post-MFA life, you are equipped with resources that both demonstrate the professional value of your MFA degree and that serve your needs as working writers. We have sought to build into the portfolio process a degree of flexibility, recognizing that not all students who take the MFA will pursue the same professional paths after completion of the degree. While some students may pursue opportunities to teach creative writing—in colleges and universities, in high schools and community centers, in arts programs and prisons—others may choose to work in the publishing industry as editors, designers, or marketers, or as curators of a reading series, reviewers of books, conductors of interviews, or even agents for other authors.

Students on the old portfolio system (those who started the MFA prior to fall 2025) are eligible to undertake their portfolio when they have successfully completed at least 24 credit hours within the MFA program at SHSU with a GPA of 3.0 or higher.

Students on the new portfolio system (those who started the MFA in fall 2025 or later) will follow the new portfolio timeline, as noted below.

Portfolio Components

The portfolio consists of both written and oral components. The components are slightly different for students on the old portfolio system versus those on the new system:

• Portfolio Components (Old System)
• Portfolio Components (New System)

All students must successfully complete both the written and oral components of Part I (Professional Development), and then may select either the written and oral components of either Part II (The Teaching of Creative Writing) or Part III (The Art & Craft of Creative Writing).

All portfolio components are evaluated by at least two MFA faculty. In the end, students will receive a mark of high pass, pass, or fail on the portfolio overall. Any student who fails any element of the portfolio will be required to successfully complete that element in order to receive credit for the successful completion of the portfolio. All portfolios must be successfully completed before the last day of classes in which it is undertaken. To receive a mark of high pass, a student must receive “Exceeds Expectations” on at least 8 of the 10 elements on the Portfolio Final Evaluation Report.

Students must be enrolled in the program in the semester in which they submit and defend their portfolio.

A student’s portfolio advisor is the same as their thesis advisor, who is assigned at the end of their first year in the program. For students on the new portfolio system, they will be assigned an advisor and second evaluator at the same time. For students on the old system, they should query another member of the MFA faculty to serve as a second evaluator before they begin portfolio.

Timeline

Students who started in the program prior to fall 2025 should use the timeline for the old portfolio system. Students who started the program in fall 2025 or alter should use the timeline for the new portfolio system:

• Portfolio Timeline (Old System)
• Portfolio Timeline (New System)

Thesis Overview

The thesis—a book-length creative work—is the culmination of the MFA degree. It may be a novel or a book of poems, a collection of short stories or essays, or a hybrid work that defies such straightforward classification. It is accompanied by a critical introduction that situates the work in some historical or theoretical context. During the thesis project, students work closely with their thesis directors to create, shape, and revise the thesis, which is then defended before a committee of three readers, including the director. In Thesis I, students meet on a regular basis with their director to develop and build the project. In Thesis II, students complete revisions on the work and defend the work before their committee.

The Critical Introduction

While the core of your MFA thesis will be a book-length creative work—a collection of short stories, poems, or essays, a novel, a memoir, or other work of creative nonfiction—it will also include a critical introduction of 15 to 25 pages. The critical introduction requires students to place their creative work in some theoretical or historical context. It is not merely a laundry list of influences and books once read, but rather a recognition that writers pursue projects that build upon and contribute to the fields of art and literature, both consciously and unconsciously. While a writer outside the academy may never have to explain themselves in this way, we believe that in the context of an MFA program, writers should be able to cogently and coherently discuss their own work in these larger contexts. You will work closely with your thesis director to define the parameters of this aspect of the project, and to develop it sufficiently. For examples, see the theses stored on the shelves in Evans 212.

Thesis Defense

Early in their final semester of thesis, students should schedule their thesis defense, in coordination with their advisor and committee members. Faculty schedules can fill up quickly and far in advance, so students are encouraged not to delay scheduling the defense. Check the university’s Academic Calendar to see when the deadline for completing a thesis falls; any thesis defense must be completed by this date. The student’s thesis advisor should book a suitable room at the scheduled time. Students should submit their final thesis and critical introduction to their committee at least two weeks prior to the defense date.

Thesis defenses are public. We encourage students to invite peers or friends to their defense, and we encourage students who have not yet undertaken thesis to attend some of their peers’ defenses so they have an idea what to expect. Any audience members present at a thesis defense who create a disturbance or disruption may be asked to leave.