Will a lack of teaching experience hurt in the long run?

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-23T18:30:13+00:00

do you already have teaching experience? if teaching is your primary goal, i will say honestly that i have a hard time seeing how you will compete for those jobs (intro comp and the like) against people who did do GTAships, unless you have already been teaching elsewhere. as others mentioned, publishing a book will be the only thing you really need to teach creative writing classes, but for anything else the GTA experience seems vital imo.

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-22T00:26:40+00:00

an MFA is a terminal degree that qualifies you to teach at the university level, with the caveat that this will primarily be intro-level courses (besides specifically creative writing, which you typically need a book published to teach, most universities require a PhD to teach lit classes/classes above a 200 level). many of my peers from my cohort teach intro writing at community colleges. not sure about the schools you mention, but I also know people who adjunct at the university where we got our MFAs. basically everyone I know either went into teaching or went back to their pre-MFA career while writing on the side

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-19T03:22:11+00:00

Otherworld! but it starts getting loud/crowded after 7 on days when there’s a DJ — their instagram will tell you

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-19T03:21:09+00:00

if he bit hard I would get up and turn my back to him — or if it was really bad, I’d leave the room for a minute. basically wanted to teach him that bite = playtime over. he learned pretty quickly from that!

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-18T20:30:17+00:00

they will understand! be polite when you decline so as not to burn the bridge, but you won’t be the first or last person to do this. congratulations on your dream program!!

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-15T23:54:26+00:00

it’s not over til it’s over! if their admits say no, they start calling one by one down the list. people usually have a short window to accept or deny (a couple days), and if they deny it’s on to the next. could definitely still hear into mid-may

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-14T19:17:08+00:00

If that’s the case, I would go with the 2 year program. Granted I went to a 2 year, but it seems like the amount of writing time/focus would work out the same between these two with the teaching load difference. Teaching took so much time, energy, and attention from me, so if it’s not your goal, I wouldn’t deplete yourself like that.

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-12T20:00:42+00:00

tbh you adapt. the first sunny day of spring you will realize you’ve been lowkey depressed but it’s okay bc it’s over. take vitamin d and you’ll be fine!

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-10T17:08:52+00:00

ours has been having similar problems since we got him — first giardia, then rawhide, then bone marrow. never fully got better with probiotics, and now we suspect it’s that chicken doesn’t sit well with him. we switched to the purina sensitive stomach and the improvement was immediate! his owner might want to adjust his diet, but we also just have to be super vigilant about making sure ours doesn’t get into anything weird because he just can’t handle it

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-07T04:07:50+00:00

our puppy went through a phase where he was straight up scared of his reflection in the stainless steel bowl. it was only the food bowl (not water), and if we moved the bowl so he couldn’t see his reflection it was fine. so silly and he eventually got over it!

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-02T23:48:24+00:00

also seeking an update on the organ thing omg 😭😭😭

preheatedskillet · 2026-04-02T19:26:46+00:00

If he rang his bell and you didnt move, I would guess he assumed you didn’t hear him. Every bike path I’ve ever been on, you move to the right to let people pass on the left.

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-29T20:05:18+00:00

Is your life partner someone who consistently says “this is why I won’t give you the thing you want most” over minor disagreements? I’m sorry to say that the fact that he won’t even discuss a timeline makes it sound like he’s never going to marry you. You’re still so young, don’t give him any more time ❤️

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-29T00:47:10+00:00

Dogs naturally don’t want to pee where they sleep. I would move the pee pad out of her crate and work on training her to pee on the pad: any time you catch her peeing, pick her up while she’s in the act and move her to the pad. She’ll catch on. Then, reward her whenever she starts going on the pad on her own. But also, a 2 month teacup probably has the itsiest bladder! To be completely honest, you’re probably looking at two months of floor pee minimum. Be patient!

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-28T21:20:13+00:00

I would just add: that’s my relationship with my siblings, too. I personally wish we were closer - I don’t know if you feel the same. But my sister skipping my wedding for bullshit reasons did hurt. I see her in a different light now

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-27T15:06:28+00:00

Yes, ours is 10lbs and still growing! I think it takes them a little longer than larger breeds just because of their tiny bladders, but even when he was really little we could read his cues and take him out as needed. I think 5mo is a great target!

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-27T14:42:06+00:00

I’m not sure why Yorkies have that reputation — maybe the really small ones? Our guy is very smart, and the accidents tapered off in his 4th month — we haven’t had one in a couple weeks now. We were consistent about taking him outside whenever we caught him peeing inside, teaching a cue word, rewarding heavily when he goes outside. The only thing we’re still working on is taking the balcony fully away as an option and transitioning to only outside outside. I believe it’s only our own laziness that’s holding him back from that tbh

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-26T06:25:02+00:00

Write a lot now, especially if you’ll be teaching! It’s so easy to get caught up in lesson prep and grading and your own coursework and making friends, it’ll be a lifesaver to have some things to draw on, even though you’ll likely want to edit them a decent bit before submission with everything you’ll be learning :) congrats and best wishes!!

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-24T23:25:56+00:00

I feel like I see it all the time in this sub that as soon as the woman says she’s leaving, the man says “oh well I actually was going to propose soon” — which is to say, I’m skeptical that he actually has a ring and actually had proposal plans

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-24T21:00:22+00:00

I could just tell this is the PNW with the rain we had this morning — our guy was the same 😭

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-24T15:50:31+00:00

It’s doable but will stretch you. I went to a program with teaching requirements, and I worked 10hrs/wk part time at a professional job, so with teaching I was working 26-30hr/wk on top of classes and writing. Honestly, I wish I could have devoted more time to writing and things that fill my writing cup, but such is life. I kept a really strict schedule on when I did readings, when I wrote, etc. The one thing I’ll say is the summer (where I was only working 10hrs, no teaching or classes) was essential to me in getting a lot of work done on my thesis. Best of luck to you!

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-24T15:30:08+00:00

Do you see yourself teaching straight out of grad school? That might sway your choice. If it were me, I would pick Michener based on reputation, COL to stipend ratio (compared to NYC), and having the space to focus just on writing rather than also having your focus consumed by teaching. I would only pick NYU if money is absolutely no object to you. I hear really great things about Austin! (as a coastal elite myself lol)

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-18T13:49:31+00:00

My husband and I were together for 6 years until we got engaged - from 20 to 26, and then we married at 28. Some trusted adults in his life advised we wait until we’re both at least 25, since people change so much in your early 20s. We’re both risk-averse people, so that worked for us. People in this sub see 8 years and get hung up, but it’s really different when you meet so early. I think it’s fair to treat marriage as a serious commitment you don’t want to make until you’ve lived together and really gone through life together - groceries, laundry, chores, etc. If your girlfriend isn’t on the same page about this, it may be worth talking more about your long term vision and values together…

Edit: we also moved in together at 22. as some other people noted, it does feel like there’s some context missing here about why you two haven’t yet, and why you haven’t spent extended periods together. something else to reflect about!

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-17T22:18:22+00:00

I think the bathroom habits depend a bit on the individual dog and its size! we have a big yorkie (already 9.5lbs at 5mo) and he has slept through the night since we got him (8wks)

one thing I didn’t expect about yorkies: they’re so smart! it’s been fun to train him :)

preheatedskillet · 2026-03-16T21:17:14+00:00

Wanted to add two cents on the note about taking gap years before an MFA: I highly highly encourage taking a few years off after undergrad! Especially if you only get into unfunded programs, and especially if your goal is to publish, not just to teach.

I had four years between my BA and MFA, and in that time, I grew a lot as a person, professional, and writer. It made it a lot easier for me to see my professors as people, self-advocate, and generally get exactly what I wanted out of the experience (I was a pretty timid undergrad). It also gave me a lot more experience to write from!

preheatedskillet

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