Screenwriting MFA - Which School? (USC, UCLA, LMU, Chapman, or UT)

[maughtry]

I posted this earlier on another post but I'm just trying to get as many people's opinions as possible.

So I've been visiting this site for a while but for some reason never really signed up. I'm signing up now because I'm about to apply to school. I sort of recently decided that, as in last week. I currently live in Little Rock, Arkansas. I moved here 6 months ago to live in the same city as my girlfriend (soon to be fiancée) and I have been unable to find any work other than being a server. She suggested that I apply to Grad School for next year (I was thinking for 2012 originally). I've been spending the last week trying to figure out which ones I'm going to apply to. So far here's what I'm thinking.

MFA Screenwriting UCLA
MFA Screenwriting USC
MFA Screenwriting UT- Austin

I figured I might as well run through my ”˜qualifications' such as they are and get some opinions.

University of South Carolina ”˜09 (that's right, the other USC. Go Cocks.)
BA Double Major: Media Arts & Film and Media Studies
GPA 3.4 (3.5 in my majors)

I taught Screenwriting for 3 months at a small film school in Greenville, SC after graduating.

I made a short film last summer that has gotten into a few film festivals and even won “Best of Show” at a first year festival. I wrote another film that got into a film festival a few years ago.

A short film screenplay I wrote got 1st Runner-up for a $100,000 Film Grant in SC.

Other than that I also went to Africa a few years ago to make some HIV/AIDs awareness PSAs and hope to one day do something with film and Africa, like opening up a film school of some sort.

There it is. Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.

 

[levimfs]

Apply to as many as you would accept a place at. There are no guarantees about where you will get in. I applied at over ten, got into three and am going to be attending AFI next month. I have seen people who got into NYU be turned down by UMiami and people who got into USC be spurned by UT. It is somewhat of a crapshoot so cover as much ground as possible and remember that this is a completely subjective business.

 

[maughtry]

Thanks levimfs. I'm going to stick with the 3 this time around and if it doesn't work out then I'll cast my net a little wider next year. Since I wasn't even planning on doing it this year until last week, I don't have as much desperation to get in as I would have/possibly will.