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English Literature and Creative Writing

Entry requirements


A level

B,B,B-C,C,C

The University welcomes undergraduate applications from students studying the Access to Higher Education Diploma, provided that relevant subject content and learning outcomes are met. We are not able to accept Access to Higher Education Diplomas as a general qualification for every undergraduate degree course.

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

26-30

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DDM-MMM

UCAS Tariff

96-120

Aberystwyth University welcomes the Welsh Baccalaureate as a valuable qualification in its own right and considers completion of the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate to be equivalent to an A level grade.

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subjects

Creative writing

English literature

In choosing Aberystwyth University's innovative English and Creative Writing degree you will have the opportunity to develop both your creative and critical writing skills. This course is taught by distinguished, practising writers. You will find this English and Creative Writing degree both challenging and rewarding.

By studying various genres and styles, writing forms and techniques, you will develop a range of competencies and capabilities, skills and attributes that are widely sought by employers.We are ranked in the the **top 10** for English student satisfaction in the recent national student survey (NSS, 2017). You will be taught by staff who are distinguished practising writers and published authors across a broad spectrum of literary fields.

You will be encouraged to develop your creative and critical writing skills. You will expand your range and capabilities as a writer to enable you to work confidently in a variety of forms and genres. We offer you opportunities to engage with a wide variety of approaches to literature and cultural history, combining critical thinking with scholarship.You will have the opportunity to explore literary theory - philosophical and conceptual ideas that inform, challenge and problematize the ways we read. In your final year you will have the opportunity to take part in a writing retreat at a country house in mid Wales - an amazing opportunity to spend time with fellow students and staff, developing your final year projects and dissertations, in a splendid rural setting.

We have one of the biggest libraries in the world, the National Library of Wales, on our doorstep. This copyright institution receives a copy of every book published in the UK.

The department is home to New Welsh Review, Wales’ foremost literary magazine - this could be an exciting opportunity for you to get involved. As a student in the department of English Literature and Creative Writing, you will have the opportunity to undertake a study abroad placement in one of many partnered Universities across Europe and the rest of the World or complete a year in industry (YES) and develop the skills and contact leads that will give you the head start in the competitive job market.

A degree in English Literature is the "gold standard" for any employment setting where communication is valued. All of our modules deliver key skills that enable you to build a comprehensive C.V. that evidences your diverse range of competencies. Our graduates have been successful across the widest possible range of career destinations:

+ Broadcasting;

+ Journalism;

+ Advertising;

+ Publishing;

+ Education;

+ Civil Service;

+ Business;

+ Finance;

+ New Media.

Modules

This degree is based on our strongly held belief that in order to become a really great writer you need to be a good reader. You will develop advanced skills in the interpretation and analysis of literary texts, you will encounter texts from a range of historical periods and genres. Throughout the course you will use your knowledge of literature and textual production in your own creative work, exploring the relationship between creative and critical practice. Our degree is taught through a combination of lectures, seminars, workshops, and one-to-one tutorials. We also encourage self-directed learning designed to stimulate your academic interest in reading and writing and to nurture your personal and intellectual development. You will be assessed through portfolios of your creative work, critical commentaries, essays, exams and oral presentations. You will also be required to complete additional, non-assessed, assignments and to work with others on particular tasks.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,000
per year
England
£9,000
per year
EU
£16,520
per year
International
£16,520
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,000
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,000
per year
Scotland
£9,000
per year
Wales
£9,000
per year

Extra funding

Aberystwyth University offers a valuable package of scholarships and bursaries to support students. Our long-established Entrance Examination competition means you could get up to £2,000 a year towards your living and study costs. You can combine that with any or all of our other awards, to make your financial package more valuable. Our awards include Sport and Music Scholarships, Bursaries for Care Leavers/Young Carers/Estranged Students and a range of department specific awards. Please visit our website for full details.

The Uni


Course location:

Main Site (Aberystwyth)

Department:

Department of English and Creative Writing

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

96%
Creative writing
98%
English literature

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Creative writing

Teaching and learning

100%
Staff make the subject interesting
100%
Staff are good at explaining things
99%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
90%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

85%
Library resources
98%
IT resources
95%
Course specific equipment and facilities
82%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

83%
UK students
17%
International students
26%
Male students
74%
Female students
86%
2:1 or above
5%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
C
C

Literature in english

Teaching and learning

100%
Staff make the subject interesting
100%
Staff are good at explaining things
94%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
85%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

96%
Library resources
100%
IT resources
98%
Course specific equipment and facilities
92%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

84%
UK students
16%
International students
25%
Male students
75%
Female students
81%
2:1 or above
7%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
C
C

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Creative writing

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£16,000
low
Average annual salary
94%
med
Employed or in further education

Top job areas of graduates

23%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
10%
Teaching and educational professionals
10%
Artistic, literary and media occupations

The jobs market for this subject - which includes creative writing and scriptwriting courses - is not currently one of the strongest, so unemployment rates are currently looking quite high overall, with salaries on the lower side. But nevertheless, most graduates get jobs quickly. Graduates often go into careers as authors and writers and are also found in other roles where the ability to write well is prized, such as journalism, translation, teaching and advertising and in web content. Be aware that freelancing and self-employment is common is common in the arts, as are what is termed 'portfolio careers', having several part-time jobs or commissions at once - although graduates from this subject were a little more likely than many other creative arts graduates to be in conventional full time permanent contracts, so that might be worth bearing in mind.

Literature in english

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£16,000
low
Average annual salary
96%
med
Employed or in further education

Top job areas of graduates

24%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
16%
Teaching and educational professionals
7%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Creative writing

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£15k

£15k

£18k

£18k

£22k

£22k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Literature in english

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£15k

£15k

£18k

£18k

£22k

£22k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

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This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here