Creative Writing

The Creative Writing MA course offers you the chance to follow one of three pathways, all distinct but all containing common elements: Fiction Writing; Poetry Writing; and Poetic Practice.

The first two of these options are designed to encourage you to develop and reflect on your work as a creative writer, in the context of contemporary and well-established literatures. Whether you choose the Fiction or the Poetry strand, you will be expected to make the most of your existing experience, but also to discover ways of going beyond the merely personal, and writing with an engaged sense of society. At the same time as you learn to stretch your imagination, you will also be encouraged to develop your technical and analytic skills, and in the process to sharpen you self-criticism. The pathway in Poetry focuses on innovative forms of expressions across many media, including sound, film installation and architecture.

All three Creative Writing pathways are taught in Bedford Square, in the heart of London’s Bloomsbury, in a building which is adjacent to the facilities of the University of London. The Fiction and Poetry pathways have now been running for nearly a decade, and have achieved an extremely high reputation. Many of our graduates have gone on to publish collections of poems, novels and short stories, and also to win awards.

The Creative Writing MA course offers you the chance to follow one of three pathways, all distinct but all containing common elements: Fiction Writing; Poetry Writing; and Poetic Practice.

The first two of these options are designed to encourage you to develop and reflect on your work as a creative writer, in the context of contemporary and well-established literatures. Whether you choose the Fiction or the Poetry strand, you will be expected to make the most of your existing experience, but also to discover ways of going beyond the merely personal, and writing with an engaged sense of society. At the same time as you learn to stretch your imagination, you will also be encouraged to develop your technical and analytic skills, and in the process to sharpen you self-criticism. The pathway in Poetry focuses on innovative forms of expressions across many media, including sound, film installation and architecture.

All three Creative Writing pathways are taught in Bedford Square, in the heart of London’s Bloomsbury, in a building which is adjacent to the facilities of the University of London. The Fiction and Poetry pathways have now been running for nearly a decade, and have achieved an extremely high reputation. Many of our graduates have gone on to publish collections of poems, novels and short stories, and also to win awards.

Department: English

Qualification:

MA

Qualification Level:

RQF Level 7

Requirements:

UK Upper Second Class Honours degree (2:1), or equivalent, in single or combined honours English.
Applicants with degrees in other subjects or with relevant publications are also encouraged to apply.
IELTS 7 with 7 in writing, TOEFL (iBT) 100 with 26 in writing, or equivalent, for non-native English speaking applicants.

Assessment Methods:

At the beginning of the Spring term fiction writers will submit a 5,000-word piece of work and poets a portfolio of 12 pages. In addition, they will submit a 3,000-4,000 word essay arising from their work in Supplementary Discourses. They will be given feedback and then, at the beginning of the Summer term, resubmit improved versions together with a second piece of creative work, and a second essay in relation to Reading as a Writer. Part-time students hand their work in at the end of the relevant term instead of the beginning.

At the end of the course fiction students will submit a 15,000 word piece of work and poets a portfolio of 24 pages. In addition, students will write a dissertation of 10-12,000 words, relating to their creative work and to their wider literary interests, to be submitted with the portfolio. Part-time students will make these final submissions at the end of their second year.

Modules:

Supplementary Discourse; Reading as a Writer; Dissertation; Long Essay Project.
A range of optional modules are also available.

Source: the courses data has been supplied by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service.