Admission to the Advanced Certificate in Creative Writing is competitive. Students who are eligible to apply include those enrolled in a graduate degree-granting program at Stony Brook University and to students who have a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university who meet the admissions criteria.

For applicants already admitted to the University, admission involves completing a Permission to Enroll in a Secondary Certificate form. Students also need to submit a statement of purpose and a writing sample (details below). Students are required to have an earned bachelor's degree (or equivalent) with a cumulative grade point average of 2.75 on a 4-point scale. The following must be submitted to the Creative Writing and Literature Program:

A statement discussing the student's reasons for graduate study (1-2 pp, submitted with the online application)

A writing sample consisting of up to 10 pages of poetry (single-spaced) or 30 pages of prose (double-spaced), with the student's name on the writing sample.

IELTS: Overall score of 6.5, with no subsection recommended to be below 6
TOEFL: 80 for admission to a doctoral program and to be eligible for consideration for TA/GA support