Screenwriting MFA 2023, UCLA vs USC, which one to choose?

[LunaWu]

Hi guys! I got accepted by both USC's John Wells Division of Writing for Screen & Television and UCLA's TFT Screenwriting. I had a very nice interview with UCLA, but I'm very concerned about TFT's status reading last year's post. Is the Screenwriting department also in deep trouble? For USC, everyone tells me I should go, but I literally know nothing about the professors except their public resume since the program did not have interview request.

Any information and advice would be appreciated! Thanks!!

 

[BR2023]

Both are amazing schools; congratulations on your acceptances! I don't think you can go wrong with either. Obviously USC is much more expensive than UCLA, if that's a factor.

I'm most excited for UCLA because at its core, it's intensive writing. I'm going to spend two years writing with the support of professors who also work in the industry, and a cohort of other screenwriters. When I graduate, I will have a portfolio of polished work, ready to be read by those in the industry. It's a very professional program at a prestigious school, and coming out of it, I can also teach at a university-level. I appreciated their application requirement to submit two (features). I know they're looking for people like me who want to take what they can already do, to the next level.

I visited USC for their grad night in the fall. It felt like camp. Less professional, more fun. Their attitude was, we can teach anyone how to write. They definitely have a great network of alum that I don't think UCLA has. They have more fun classes to take, while UCLA's curriculum seems mores serious and focused.

I know USC has a welcome night at the end of the month. Are you local to LA? I would recommend visiting the campuses. It would probably be good to connect with recent grads or current students in both programs and do a quick Zoom with them to tell you more about their experiences.

I'd be interested to know what others think. As someone who plans to attend UCLA in the fall, this is just my take!

 

[khalifg12]

Hi guys! I got accepted by both USC's John Wells Division of Writing for Screen & Television and UCLA's TFT Screenwriting. I had a very nice interview with UCLA, but I'm very concerned about TFT's status reading last year's post. Is the Screenwriting department also in deep trouble? For USC, everyone tells me I should go, but I literally know nothing about the professors except their public resume since the program did not have interview request.

Any information and advice would be appreciated! Thanks!!

Hi! Current UCLA screenwriting student here. I have friends in the USC screenwriting program as well. They're both great schools with amazing benefits. I will speak mostly to UCLA, but one of the main differences between the schools that I've heard many people compare them to is that USC is more like trade school for screenwriting, where as UCLA is more like art school for screenwriting. Meaning, USC has a better networking system to keep current and past students connected and to help gear you to find a job and internships. UCLA on the other hand is really like an incubator to find your voice as a writer and, like the above comment mentioned, to develop a body of work that is diverse and in depth.

Also consider the fact that they are on semester system while we are on quarter system. So where they are writing two scripts in one class over the course of like 5 months, we write a script in 10 weeks that has been through rewrites and workshops (and if you are a TV track student that will include a series bible as well).

If you would like to discuss further you can always reach out to me

 

[OneEighthJ]

Hi! Current UCLA screenwriting student here. I have friends in the USC screenwriting program as well. They're both great schools with amazing benefits. I will speak mostly to UCLA, but one of the main differences between the schools that I've heard many people compare them to is that USC is more like trade school for screenwriting, where as UCLA is more like art school for screenwriting. Meaning, USC has a better networking system to keep current and past students connected and to help gear you to find a job and internships. UCLA on the other hand is really like an incubator to find your voice as a writer and, like the above comment mentioned, to develop a body of work that is diverse and in depth.

Also consider the fact that they are on semester system while we are on quarter system. So where they are writing two scripts in one class over the course of like 5 months, we write a script in 10 weeks that has been through rewrites and workshops (and if you are a TV track student that will include a series bible as well).

If you would like to discuss further you can always reach out to me

Could not disagree more with the “trade school” assessment of USC’s Writing for Screen and Television program.

And to the point about “seriousness,” if you’re not having fun with your work, then why even pursue this as a passion? USC is as serious as it needs to be to get people out the door and into this industry, but in my personal experience, we have fun with our writing.

I won’t dip into speculation about UCLA’s program, because I don’t attend that program, but here’s why you should 1000% come to USC:

There’s a reason USC writers are in every single writers room on every single TV show on every single network: craft. You learn how to craft your stories here, meaning our professors give us the fundamental tools for effective storytelling (scene structure, story structure, etc.) and guide us to put our individual creativity to tell stories that nobody else can tell. Within my cohort, there is a broad diversity of stories, perspectives, and identities, all of which contribute to incredibly vibrant workshops that have improved my work immensely. Here, you learn to tell the stories that you are uniquely capable of telling. They focus as much on developing the writer as their writing. And the professors become your closest compatriots, and treat you not as students, but as colleagues, because they know that some day you might be working with them in a writers room.

One of the biggest turn offs for me for UCLA was that even before you got there, you had to choose between feature writing and television. At USC, not only are you encouraged to do both, in your first year, you’re required to do both. This allows students to, by the time they reach their choice of thesis path, they can learn for themselves what form they’re most comfortable in, and make an educated choice based on mentor feedback. Even after you pick your thesis path, there are still feature classes TV writers can take, and vice versa. At USC, there’s a true effort to nurture your creativity, and leaves as many open paths as you might need to find your creativity.

Also, the professional development I’ve gotten since coming here has been without equal. Seminars on the business side of screenwriting have really made me feel like I’m prepared for a career in this industry. Also there’s First Pitch, a unique program that puts you in front of agents, managers, and executives so that you can pitch your stories and potentially even secure representation. Other schools have tried to copy it in the 20 years since the event’s inception, but none have been able to replicate it. Also the insane alumni network that stretches from Shonda Rhimes to Matt Weiner and beyond. Also the USC mafia is real; I spend a lot of my free time working on other projects with Production and Producing students, because there’s a real effort to foster intra-departmental collaboration.

If this isn’t selling you on the exact value of a USC, I don’t know what to tell you. I have such a great network of support after only being here for a handful of months, and I’m already excited to get my career going. I’ve said “yes" to every opportunity to come my way here, and I’m all the better for it. Come here, work hard, and you’ll be closer to your dreams that you are now.

Also USC Football >>>>>> UCLA Football. Just Saying.

 

[khalifg12]

Could not disagree more with the “trade school” assessment of USC’s Writing for Screen and Television program.

And to the point about “seriousness,” if you’re not having fun with your work, then why even pursue this as a passion? USC is as serious as it needs to be to get people out the door and into this industry, but in my personal experience, we have fun with our writing.

I won’t dip into speculation about UCLA’s program, because I don’t attend that program, but here’s why you should 1000% come to USC:

There’s a reason USC writers are in every single writers room on every single TV show on every single network: craft. You learn how to craft your stories here, meaning our professors give us the fundamental tools for effective storytelling (scene structure, story structure, etc.) and guide us to put our individual creativity to tell stories that nobody else can tell. Within my cohort, there is a broad diversity of stories, perspectives, and identities, all of which contribute to incredibly vibrant workshops that have improved my work immensely. Here, you learn to tell the stories that you are uniquely capable of telling. They focus as much on developing the writer as their writing. And the professors become your closest compatriots, and treat you not as students, but as colleagues, because some day, you might be working with them in a writers room.

One of the biggest turn offs for me for UCLA was that even before you got there, you had to choose between feature writing and television. At USC, not only are you encouraged to do both, in your first year, you’re required to do both. This allows students to, by the time they reach their choice of thesis path, they can learn for themselves what form they’re most comfortable in, and make an educated choice based on mentor feedback. Even after you pick your thesis path, there are still feature classes TV writers can take, and vice versa. At USC, there’s a true effort to nurture your creativity, and leaves as many open paths as you might need to find your creativity.

Also, the professional development I’ve gotten since coming here has been without equal. Seminars on the business side of screenwriting have really made me feel like I’m prepared for a career in this industry. Also there’s First Pitch, a unique program that puts you in front of agents, managers, and executives so that you can pitch your stories and potentially even secure representation. Other schools have tried to copy it in the 20 years since the event’s inception, but none have been able to replicate it. Also the insane alumni network that stretches from Shonda Rhimes to Matt Weiner and beyond. Also the USC mafia is real; I spend a lot of my free time working on other projects with Production and Producing students, because there’s a real effort to foster intra-departmental collaboration.

If this isn’t selling you on the exact value of a USC, I don’t know what to tell you. I have such a great network of support after only being here for a handful of months, and I’m already excited to get my career going. I’ve said “yes" to every opportunity to come my way here, and I’m all the better for it. Come here, work hard, and you’ll be closer to your dreams that you are now.

Also USC Football >>>>>> UCLA Football. Just Saying.

This all sounds great and in line with the good stuff I've heard about your program. When I say "Trade school" I just mean there's a strong pipeline to get them into writers room and the industry. Y'all are a very well connected school. You make a bunch of great points. Hope I didn't sound like I was bashing the program at all.

As for our TV vs. Feature track, you're required to take both and able to take as many of either classes as you'd like. It's really just a way of them knowing what path you're more interested in and you have priority in those workshops.

 

[OneEighthJ]

This all sounds great and in line with the good stuff I've heard about your program. When I say "Trade school" I just mean there's a strong pipeline to get them into writers room and the industry. Y'all are a very well connected school. You make a bunch of great points. Hope I didn't sound like I was bashing the program at all.

As for our TV vs. Feature track, you're required to take both and able to take as many of either classes as you'd like. It's really just a way of them knowing what path you're more interested in and you have priority in those workshops.

Fair enough.

And I’m just speaking from my experience being interviewed at UCLA, where, when I brought up the storytelling possibilities for both mediums and how I’d like to pursue both during my MFA experience, I was told “This is a Master of Fine Arts program. You should have decided by this point whether you’d like to pursue television or features.” Again, just speaking from my perspective during the decision process. I really got sold on USC by going to the Admitted student day, where I absolutely fell in love with the campus and found the professors to be exactly my kind of people.