BA (Hons) Creative Writing

Why choose this course?

• Be taught by award-winning poets, fiction and non-fiction writers
• Develop your talent in a supportive and encouraging environment
• Explore genres from popular fiction and soaps to literary texts

Do you have a passion for writing? Spend your time writing stories instead of doing your homework? No need to choose anymore. With this course, writing stories is your homework. You’ll be taught by leading poets, fiction, and non-fiction writers. All our lecturers are active writers in their field. Some are even internationally published authors. This means you’ll be learning from writers who have excellent industry connections and have the latest knowledge when it comes to trends, styles, and publishing guides. In short, they have everything you need to become a published author yourself.  

Here are some of your lecturers: 

• Poetry lecturer Dr Wayne Holloway-Smith, winner of the Poetry Society’s Geoffrey Dearmer Prize and Seamus Heaney Prize nominee. 
• Fiction and Non-Fiction writer, Dr Lorna Gibb, author of five books, winner of the Granta Memoir prize and shortlisted for the Sperber Biography prize in the US. 
• Dramatists Simon Vinnicombe and Drew Pautz, with writing credits that include the whole range of scriptwriting, from work in current production as feature films to EastEnders to the Old Vic and Royal Court. They have international reputations with performances, in original and translated versions, in Canada, Europe and the United States. 
• Fiction and non-fiction writer, Helen Gordon, a former editor at the renowned, world-famous publisher Granta, with two acclaimed books and numerous short publications. 

What’s the course about?

Creative Writing is more than just writing stories. It’s about learning how to engage your readers, how to capture their attention. It’s about how to communicate with others; to help them see the world through your eyes, while still giving them space to use their own views. You can use these skills in many fields and career paths, including marketing, education and even business.  
 

You’ll learn about different genres, cultures, and eras when it comes to writing. You can join competitions in poetry, prose, fiction, drama, and short stories. You’ll learn the theory that underpins what writing is about. You’ll then put into practice what you learnt. You’ll be given writing tasks; read each other’s stories and comment on the stories you have read for that week. As homework you’ll write stories, poetry, and prose, which you’ll then discuss in a friendly class environment with your course mates.  

In your first year, your modules will focus on giving you a solid understanding of what it means to be a writer and what genres are out there. You’ll study writing for the screen, learn to interpret stories and delve into contemporary as well as traditional writing. 

 In your second year, you’ll learn more about the art of writing to an audience. You’ll also look at writing for the stage, literature, and poetry. You’ll choose two optional modules that suit your interests, for example how to make a historical documentary or 20th century literature. Our students can choose a work experience module, Literature at Work, which explores English in the classroom and aspects of the literary heritage industry. The module is centred around a six-week work placement where you’ll gain valuable transferable skills. Our students have worked as school classroom assistants, in publishing houses or attractions such as London’s Charles Dickens Museum and Dr Johnson’s House.

Study abroad/work placement option: In between your second and third year, you can take an optional study abroad or work placement year. During this year you have the chance to study at one of our partner universities in a different country or spend a year in industry gaining valuable experience. If you prefer, you can go straight to your third year without this ‘extra’ year in between. The choice is all yours.  

In your third year, most modules are optional. That means you can choose the ones you like the most and really tailor your degree to what you want to do in life. You’ll delve deeper into the thin line between reality and fiction and examine the ethical questions this raises. You will take a compulsory module on writing for popular fiction markets, to increase your employability. Lastly, if you are studying BA (Hons) Creative Writing, you will work on a final year writing project in the genre of your own choosing, with one to one tutor support throughout. You will have produced something to be proud of that you can take with you when you leave university.  

What will I study?

Degree programmes are structured into levels, 4, 5 and 6.  These correspond to your first, second and third/final year of study.  Below you can see what modules you’ll be studying in each.    

 

Fees 2022

• £1750 per 15 credits for the 2022/2023 academic year

International Students

Full time

• £14000 for the 2022/2023 academic year

Part time

• £1750 per 15 credits for the 2022/2023 academic year

*Tuition fees are charged annually. The fees quoted above are for the specified year(s) only. Fees may be higher in future years, for both new and continuing students. Please see the University’s Fees and Finance Policy (and in particular the section headed “When tuition fees change”), for further information about when and by how much the University may increase its fees for future years.

 

Entry requirements

Additional requirements

GCSE: Grade 4/C in English Language and 4/D Mathematics

Access course tariff: An overall merit profile in 45 credits at Level 3.

All students from non-majority English speaking countries require proof of English language proficiency, equivalent to an overall IELTS score of 6.5 with a minimum of 5.5 in each band.

If you do not have the required IELTS or equivalent for direct entry on to your degree programme, our Pre-sessional English and International Foundation courses can help you to achieve this level.

 

Deadlines

15 January