Application Instructions

You can start an application, save it at any point, and return to it later before submitting. The online application allows you to upload supplementary application materials before or after submitting the application form. If you prefer, you may send supplementary application materials via email to blseadmissions@middlebury.edu or via postal mail to:

Middlebury Bread Loaf School of English
75 Franklin Street
Middlebury, VT 05753

We cannot review your application until all materials have been submitted. You can monitor our receipt of your application materials through your application portal.

Returning students should use the “returning users” option to complete their re-enrollment application forms.

Application Type

Select one category. If you’re unsure at this point about pursuing a degree, let us know your probable intent at this time. You can change your status later. Application requirements are the same for degree and non-degree programs, and students in good academic standing can switch between the degree and non-degree tracks at any time. Read more about our degree and continuing education program options.

Student Type

New applicants are those who have never previously applied to the Bread Loaf School of English. Returning students are those who have been admitted and either attended or deferred for one or more summers.  Returning students who have not studied at Bread Loaf within the last 10 years should select “New Applicant” as their student type. Master of Letters (MLitt) applicants who have earned the Bread Loaf MA in English should select “Bread Loaf MA Graduate” as their student type.

Program Type

Select on-site if you plan to take regular courses on a Bread Loaf campus (regardless of whether you plan to live on or off campus), and select remote only if you plan to take the  online Directed Research and Writing (DRW) or Critical Writing Tutorial (CWT) option. Directed Research and Writing projects are only available for returning students who have studied at Bread Loaf for at least one summer.

Campus Choice

You can apply to any one of the campuses and can attend different campuses in subsequent summers. Do not apply to more than one campus. If you are accepted and the campus for which you have applied is full, you can choose to stay on the waitlist or accept immediate admission to an available campus.

Colleges and Transcripts

Enter all colleges you have attended or are currently attending.

Official transcripts for undergraduate and graduate work you have completed must be sent directly to Bread Loaf or sent to you in a sealed envelope and forwarded to us (still in the sealed envelopes). We encourage applicants to select electronic delivery of official transcripts, delivered via secure source, whenever possible. E-transcripts are delivered much more quickly than hard copies. Please have e-transcripts sent to blseadmissions@middlebury.edu.

Foreign transcripts must be accompanied by a degree-verification international credential evaluation report, performed by a certified educational credential evaluation service.

Letters of Recommendation

We require two letters of recommendation. Academic recommendations are most useful, though professional letters are also acceptable. At least one of your references should address your capacity for graduate work in literature. Additional letters are permitted.

Enter the name, title, relationship, and email for each of your references. The application system will automatically notify these references via email of your request for a letter of recommendation. You may also enter a personal note to your recommenders that will be included in this automatic notification. Your referee will receive a unique link to enter the application system and submit a recommendation. You will be able to check the status of your letters of recommendation and to send reminders to your referees.

If you know that a recommender will not be able to receive our automated email and submit the letter through our form, please enter that recommender’s information in the recommendation section of the application form, using blseadmissions@middlebury.edu as the recommender’s email address. Then, inform your recommender to send the letter via postal mail to us at Middlebury Bread Loaf School of English / 75 Franklin Street / Middlebury, VT 05753.

Statement of Purpose

Provide a brief statement telling us your reasons for wanting to attend the Bread Loaf School of English. You might include an outline of professional or personal goals, a description of your academic background or current interests, or any other information that will help us assess your candidacy.

Writing Sample

We require a 7-10 page double-spaced writing sample for applicants to the MA degree or continuing graduate education programs. These are typically literary-critical essays, including papers written for past college courses. Other options include book reviews, newspaper articles, journal excerpts, extended lesson plans, and pieces of creative writing.

Applicants to the MLitt degree program must submit a 12-15 page double-spaced sample of recent graduate-level writing. Your essay should evidence your skill in analyzing texts as well as in confronting critical/secondary literature. Students hoping to pursue a concentration in the creative arts may submit a portion of a creative portfolio.

Proposed Field of Study (MLitt applicants only)

MLitt applicants must submit a preliminary description of their proposed field of study. The proposal should be designed with an eye to the kinds of courses Bread Loaf offers—see previous Course Catalogs—and it should describe how you see those courses fitting within a concentration. We are also interested in why you wish to pursue this project at Bread Loaf. Once accepted to the MLitt program, during your first summer in the program, you’ll be asked to submit a longer, more detailed field proposal.

Application Fee

The application requires a nonrefundable $75 fee. The fee is waived for Middlebury College undergraduates, all Middlebury alumni, and anyone who has applied to Bread Loaf and paid the fee in past years.

Financial Aid

You may submit an application for financial aid at any time, but the application is considered only after you have been admitted. Since our financial aid budget is limited, we recommend an early application. Offers are made through Middlebury’s Office of Student Financial Services. They will be your contact throughout the financial aid application process and can help you with any questions.

Bread Loaf offers special funding made possible by grants and gifts. These entail additional application forms with requirements and deadlines.