2026 Spring Semester Calendar
The listings below are the NWP’s official program calendar and events for the upcoming semester. However, much more than this will be happening both across campus and around Iowa City. And additional program events may occasionally be added throughout the semester.
2026 Spring Semester
Week 1: January 19 - 25
Monday, January 19: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day – University offices closed
Tuesday, January 20: First day of classes
Tuesday January 20: Financial Aid Forms for 2026-27 due to Katherine Weiner
Wednesday, January 21, 4:00pm at the Nonfiction Writing House: Cupcake Welcome Gathering for NWP Distinguished Visiting Professor Jenny Boully
Friday, January 23, 12:00pm: 304 EPB (Gerber): “Survived the First Week” Gathering
Friday, January 23, 4:00pm: Deadline for Digital Scholarship & Publishing Studio, & MFA Summer Fellowship materials (for Second-Year MFA students). Send to Graduate Program Coordinator Tara Atkinson.
Week 2: January 26 - February 1
Friday, January 30, 4pm: Student-led discussion on summer employment, all NWP students welcome!
Week 3: February 2 – 8
Monday, February 2, 2026: Last day to drop a course and reduce tuition/fee assessment (you will be billed for any courses you drop after this date!)
Wednesday, February 4, 12:00pm: Deadline for Stanley Awards for International Research materials submitted online (for details, see website)
Friday, February 6, 3:00pm: Deadline for Herodotus Award proposals
Friday, February 6, 3:00pm: N + 1 editors Mark Krotov & Lisa Borst Publishing Talk, Gerber Lounge (304 EPB)
Week 4: February 9 - 15
Monday, February 9: Submissions for CLAS Postgraduate Visiting Writer Fellowships due to each MFA department contact (Third-Years Only)
Monday, February 9: Schedule builder open/MyUI Course Offerings available for fall 2026
Wednesday, February 11, 3:30 p.m.: Publishing Q&A with Amanda Uhle, Publisher and Executive Director of McSweeney's, at the NWP House.
Friday, February 13, 7:30pm: Krause Essay Prize Ceremony and Reception at the UI Old Capitol Senate Chambers honoring the 2025 winner, Sarah Aziza
Week 5: February 16 - 22
Friday, February 20, 7:00pm, Prairie Lights: Alumni Jonathan Gleason reads from Field Guide to Falling Ill — in conversation with NWP faculty Sarah Minor
Week 6: February 23 – March 1
Tuesday, February 24, NWP House: 4:30pm: Recruit the Newbies! Help advise the NWP’s newly admitted Class of 2029 about their future plans. Come for an informational meeting with Melissa to find out how you can help.
Wednesday, Feb 25: 4:30pm, Brainstorming session for the NWP’s upcoming One Day Fundraiser on March 26. Join the faculty in the NWP lounge to help drum up ideas about how to excite NWP alum and friends to donate
Friday, February 27: Degree application deadline (apply in MyUI).
Friday, February 27: MFA spring graduates (Third-Years only) must send English Department Graduate Coordinator Tara Atkinson a list of their thesis title, thesis committee members, date, and time of defense.
Friday, February 27, 7:00pm: Jenny Boully, NWP Distinguished Visiting Professor and author of Betwixt and Between, reads at NWP House
Week 7: March 2 - 8
Wednesday, March 4 - Saturday, March 7, Baltimore, Maryland: AWP Conference
Week 8: March 9 – 15
Wednesday, March 11, 3:30pm: Q+A with editor Jessie Kindig of Yale University Press at the NWP House
Friday, March 13: Fall 2026 course preferences due to Graduate Program Coordinator Tara Atkinson.
Week 9: March 16 - 22
Spring Break
Week 10: March 23 – 29
Thursday, March 26 – 27: Welcome Days for Incoming NWP students
Thursday March 26, 7pm: Erik Larson in conversation with Inara Verzemnieks - The Demon of Unrest. Ticketed event at the Englert.
Friday, March 27, 2pm: A craft talk by Krause Visiting Writer, Elissa Washuta, at NWP House
Friday, March 27, 5 pm: Pizza dinner for incoming and current students.
Friday, March 27, 7:00pm: A reading by Elissa Washuta, author of White Magic, at NWP House
Week 11: March 30 – April 5
Wednesday, April 1, 7pm: Graphic memoirist Lauren Haldeman in conversation with Carmen Maria Machado - Wild that We’re Alive, at Prairie Lights.
Week 12: April 6 – 12
Monday, April 6, 3:00pm: Deadline for submissions for Roxanne Mueller Award
Friday, April 10, 3:00-5:00pm: Second-Years to submit thesis proposals (prospectus) to faculty and CC Graduate Program Coordinator Tara Atkinson. More details will be announced at a later date.
Friday, April 10, 3:00pm: Deadline for submissions for Prairie Lights Prize
Week 13: April 13 - 19
Monday, April 13: Early Registration for Fall 2026 begins
April 13-14: Visit from editor Vanessa Haughton of Knopf and Pantheon at NWP House
Week 14: April 20 - 26
Tuesday, April 21st: Final exam reports due/last day to hold thesis defense (Third-Years only)
Week 15: April 27 – May 3
Tuesday, April 28: Deadline for Single Thesis Deposit (Third-Years only)
Tuesday, April 28, 7 p.m.: Launch Reading: Tisa Bryant reads from Residual at Prairie Lights Books.
Friday, May 1: Last day of early registration. Students with teaching assignments should complete their fall 2026 registration by this date
Week 16: May 4 – 10
Friday, May 8: Close of classes
Saturday, May 9: NWP Graduation Party at NWP House, 11:00am
Week 17: May 11 - 17
Final exam week for the university, and commencement ceremonies
Tuesday, May 19: Last working day for spring TA/RA contracts
Nonfiction Writing Program events
Application Deadline: Obermann End-of-Year Writing Retreat
Have you been waiting all school year to make serious progress on your book manuscript, article, or grant application? Jumpstart your summer writing project at the Obermann End-of-Year Writing Retreat May 11–14, 2026!
Fifteen participants will enjoy a week of quiet productivity apart from the distractions of campus at the beautiful North Ridge Pavilion in Coralville. Daily catered lunches will provide an opportunity for exchange and discussion with other writers across campus. Each day will...
One Day for Iowa | The University of Iowa's Annual Giving Day
One Day for Iowa returns on Wednesday, March 25, marking 10 years of Hawkeyes coming together to support what matters most at the University of Iowa.
Give now: https://1dayforiowa.org/3N96oqb
Our 24-hour online giving day is a chance for alumni, students, faculty, staff, and friends to make an impact—supporting scholarships, research, health care, the arts, student experiences, and more. With special matching and unlocking opportunities throughout the day, every gift has the power to go further.
Ce...
Erik Larson in conversation with Inara Verzemnieks - The Demon of Unrest
Prairie Lights and the Englert Theatre present Erik Larson, who will talk about his nonfiction thriller, The Demon of Unrest, in conversation with Nonfiction Writing Program Associate Professor Inara Verzemnieks.
This is a ticketed event. Please visit the Englert Theatre for box office information.
Craft Talk by Krause Visiting Writer, Elissa Washuta
The Nonfiction Writing Program presents a craft talk by Krause Visiting Writer, Elissa Washuta.
Elissa Washuta is a member of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe and a nonfiction writer. Her essay collection, White Magic, was selected as a finalist for the PEN/Open Book Award, longlisted for the PEN/Jean Stein Award, and named among the best books of 2021 by TIME, the New York Public Library and NPR. She is the author of Starvation Mode and My Body is a Book of Rules, and with Theresa Warburton, she is the...
Reading by Elissa Washuta, author of White Magic
The Nonfiction Writing Program presents a reading by Krause Visiting Writer Elissa Washuta.
Elissa Washuta is a member of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe and a nonfiction writer. Her essay collection, White Magic, was selected as a finalist for the PEN/Open Book Award, longlisted for the PEN/Jean Stein Award, and named among the best books of 2021 by TIME, the New York Public Library and NPR. She is the author of Starvation Mode and My Body is a Book of Rules, and with Theresa Warburton, she is the co...