I have an MFA in poetry (2010) and now am a founder/swe at a startup providing software for libraries, museums, and archives. I wouldn't have been able to found a successful company without my time during the MFA where I learned how to live a disciplined life dedicated to exploring the self and imagination and pursuing one's ideas relentlessly.
Also, reflecting further, more than anything, the sheer amount of reading that I was able to do during my MFA taught me more than I think I give that time credit for. Days I was forced to do nothing but read/translate ~12-14 hours to get through coursework. Greek pastoral poetry and the Augustan-era Roman derivative have been influential.
Informative and encouraging to read all the responses in this thread. Thanks, iansowinski and all!
I got my MFA in poetry before I became a fulltime software engineer. I feel a connection between balancing metaphor, narrative, description, and the mechanics of language in poetry and solving complex problems with software. Would love to hear more of your story at some point--do you blog about the the workshop at all? Good luck with your thesis, and congrats on finishing!
Also, reflecting further, more than anything, the sheer amount of reading that I was able to do during my MFA taught me more than I think I give that time credit for. Days I was forced to do nothing but read/translate ~12-14 hours to get through coursework. Greek pastoral poetry and the Augustan-era Roman derivative have been influential.
Informative and encouraging to read all the responses in this thread. Thanks, iansowinski and all!