The aim of the MFA Programs in Writing at the University of California, Irvine is the training of accomplished writers who intend to make writing their life. What the program expects of its students is passionate precision, character, and stamina. What the program wants most for its students is that each will sooner or later write something that lasts. To facilitate such writing, the faculty keeps the program small in order to ensure the high quality of the students, as well as to permit teaching on a one-to-one basis and to allow students to consult frequently with the faculty and staff for assistance with their work. Workshops in fiction and poetry are at the core of this two-to-three-year program. From over four hundred applicants, a maximum of twelve new students are enrolled each year. Graduates of the Programs in Writing receive a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) degree in English.