Read. Write. Be Read: The Bennington Writing Seminars Low-Residency MFA
One of the top low-residency MFA programs in the country, the Bennington Writing Seminars is a two-year, rigorous exploration of craft. You commit as much to reading as to writing and critical literary analysis.
You create bold new works of fiction, nonfiction, or poetry, and may work in a dual-genre.
You finish with a polished thesis and a critical paper. All this with the expert 1:1 guidance of acclaimed authors who develop a stake in your work. Our alumni, faculty, students, and staff publish work at the highest levels.
Applications are accepted March 1 and September 1.
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An Inclusive and Supportive Community of Creative Writers
Bennington's low-residency MFA in Writing gives you the tools you need to work writing into your everyday life—beyond graduation. Here Writing Seminars nonfiction alum Claire Salinda shares how the low-residency format worked for her.
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Connect with your own faculty team
Immersed in these dynamic relationships created by members of this community from around the world, students develop practices, pedagogies, and research models that value experimentation and continuously question the role of dance within and beyond traditional environments. Using symposia, retreats, and residency frameworks as ways to gather and learn, this program aims to foster new communities and networks of exchange for knowledge production and artistic practices.
Faculty, mentors, affiliated artists, and guest lecturers represent an intentionally diverse array of approaches to theorizing and practicing embodied knowledge in relation to citizenship and art-making.
Faculty Spotlight
Our faculty of renowned professional choreographers and dancers, dedicated to contemporary practices, seek out guest artists and seasoned graduate fellows who propel the art forward.
Elena Demyanenko
Elena Demyanenko is a Russian/American dance artist, choreographer, improviser, maker of dance films, and educator who lives and works between New York City, Vermont, and Moscow, Russia. Demyanenko has extensive professional performance and choreographic experience in a multicultural context from 30 years of touring around the world and is a former member of Stephen Petronio Company and Trisha Brown Dance Company.
Michael Giannitti
Michael Giannitti has extensive professional experience as a lighting designer and educator. He has designed lighting at many of the most prestigious venues around the country and has taught abroad as a two-time Fulbright Specialist Grant recipient.
Levi Gonzalez
Dance artist Levi Gonzalez’s work employs a queer corporeal logic to resist narrow definitions of knowledge and experience.
Photo credit: Alex Escalante
Tilly Grimes
Tilly Grimes is an Irish/Greek theater, opera, and film designer based in New York whose awards include The Balsamo Grant for Emerging Immigrant Artists, The Irish Arts Design Award, Irish Times Theatre Award Nomination, The Onstage Critics Award, as well as multiple Lucille Lortels and Drama Desk nominations.
Pape Ibrahima Ndiaye
Pape Ibrahima Ndiaye (Kaolack) was born and raised in Senegal by his grandmother. As a dancer/choreographer, his work is entirely focused on pushing boundaries off space and time, liveness, and fully being in the spaces we inhabit and claim as our own, while making space for spirit to be present.
Mina Nishimura
Mina Nishimura is a Tokyo-born dance artist whose works focus on ever-changing relationships between internal landscapes and external forms. Buddhism-influenced philosophies and butoh-based principles are reflected across her somatic, performance and choreographic practices. Nishimura is a 2019 recipient of Foundation of Contemporary Arts Grants to Artists award.
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Join a Compassionate Community
Our supportive, collaborative environment will nurture your professional and personal growth. Join us and take your first step toward a deeply fulfilling career.
Best of the best
According to national rankings, Bennington equals excellence.
Best College Theater
The Princeton Review 2024
Most Innovative Schools
U.S. News & World Report 2022
Classroom Experience
The Princeton Review 2024
And we are affordable
Most economically diverse students at a liberal arts college
New York Times College-Access Index 2023
Why Choose This Program?
Bennington’s Progressive, Student-Centered Approach
Rooted in Bennington’s legacy of progressive education, this program prioritizes your unique journey as a counselor, allowing you to direct your learning path. You’ll cultivate a strong professional identity grounded in compassion and authenticity.
Dedicated Faculty Support
You'll work with supportive faculty who bring real-world counseling experience and mentorship. You’ll meet regularly with a dedicated faculty advisor and course faculty for support, mentorship, and clinical placement supervision to ensure your success.
Job Opportunities
Clinical Mental Health Counseling is a rapidly growing field, with a high need for competent and well-trained practitioners. This program prepares you to meet this need for meaningful and lasting employment.
Grounded in State-of-the-Art Standards
Guided by core competencies from the American Psychological Association (APA), American Counseling Association (ACA), and International Expressive Arts Therapy Association (IEATA), the program blends evidence-based Western practices with global approaches. You’ll be fully prepared to work toward licensure in clinical mental health counseling.
Innovative, Arts-Based Therapeutic Training
With deep roots in Bennington’s renowned arts tradition, this program integrates narrative and expressive arts practices, preparing you to harness the healing power of creativity in your clinical practice.
4 Reasons why
The Master of Fine Arts in Writing can make a difference.
Find true mentorship
Our 1:1 faculty-student ratio provides true mentorship. You work closely with a faculty member who is an accomplished writer and a distinguished teacher.
Develop your skills
Focus on one or more genres at Bennington. While most choose to specialize in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry, others work across two genres through our Dual-Genre Degree.
Join an inclusive community
We are committed to increasing access to our program for students from diverse backgrounds and to building community through sustained dialogue and practice. We offer scholarships, and fund the emerging voices we want to support and read.
Graduate with much more than a degree
Bennington Writing Seminars offers a self-directed pace that allows you to develop a sustainable, lifelong writing practice.
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Connect With Our Admissions Team
Fill out the form to connect with our admissions team and find out more about Bennington.