Every spring the UMSL MFA program recognizes distinguished student work by awarding the MFA Prize in Poetry and the MFA Prize in Fiction. During the years we offer a MFA Creative Non-fiction Workshop. The poetry competition is open to all MFA students who have taken a poetry workshop in the preceding year; the call for poetry submissions occurs early in the spring semester. The judging is blind. The judges for these awards are well-regarded and well-published fiction writers, journalists and poets, most of whom reside in other parts of the country. The award results are announced in late March. The winners receive $100 and are honored at the annual English alumni party in the spring.
Recent winners are listed below.
2018
Fiction: Liam Cassidy, A Different Kind of Guy
Runner-up: Bryan Halvarsson, leper/cat
Poetry: Sydney Goggins
Runner-up: Andrea Reynolds
2017
Fiction: William Morris
Runner-up: Bridget McDonald and Victoria Walls
Poetry: Bridget McDonald
Runner-up: El Williams
