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Creative Writing

Entry requirements


A level

B,C,C-B,B,B

Minimum number of A Levels required: 2 Maximum AS Level points accepted: 20 Applicants will benefit from studying English Literature, English Language, or English Language & Literature

Access to HE Diploma

D:9,M:36

Access to Higher Education Diploma acceptability: Acceptable on its own and combined with other qualifications Further information: At least 9 Distinctions and 36 Merits, or any other combination that equates to 104 UCAS Tariff points in a relevant subject

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

24

International Baccalaureate: Acceptable on its own and combined with other qualifications Additional information: 24 IB Diploma Points

Irish Leaving Certificate: Acceptable on its own and combined with other qualifications Grades / subjects required: 104 UCAS Tariff points with a maximum 20 UCAS Tariff points from Ordinary Level

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

DMM

Extended diploma (QCF): Acceptable on its own and combined with other qualifications

To obtain the required UCAS points from a related subject area. Contact the admissions team for details.

UCAS Tariff

104-120

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Creative writing

**Why study Creative Writing at Liverpool John Moores University?**
- Opportunities to meet practising writers, publishers, agents, producers and directors

- Professional guidance and peer support to help you develop your writing to publishable standard

- Regular literary events, readings, screenings and open mic nights to showcase your work

- Three-day residential writers' retreat at a country house in rural Wales

- Participate in the production of our student magazine, In the Red

- Creative writing at LJMU ranked 5th in the UK (The Times Good University Guide 2024)

**About your course**
As a student on the BA (Hons) Creative Writing programme at Liverpool John Moores University you will hear from prestigious visiting writers who regularly deliver readings and workshops. Recent guests have included Ramsay Campbell, Wayne Holloway-Smith, Rebecca Goss, James Rice, Helen Mort, and Eimear McBride

At LJMU, which developed the UKs first Single Honours Creative Writing course, we put an emphasis on a writers career and take special care to instil not just the craft but also the practical approaches needed to become a professional writer. All our staff are published authors, and the Creative Writing university textbooks we have produced are used worldwide.

During this degree, you will study prose, poetry and scriptwriting in your first year and go on to specialise in the disciplines that challenge you the most to produce your best work. Our acclaimed Writer at Work module engages specialists in digital publishing, arts-in-health and literature development and other areas giving you an in-depth understanding as well as experience of the writers professional world. You will hear guest lectures from eminent writers throughout your studies. Recent guests have included: Ramsay Campbell, Rebecca Goss, Cathleen Miller, Wayne Holloway-Smith, James Rice, Stuart Harcourt, Helen Stringer and Dr Jenny Newman.

The degree is taught in the Redmonds Building, located in the heart Liverpool, a vibrant student city, renowned for its cultural events, readings, music events and art galleries.

Teaching by our expert academic team is enhanced by prestigious visiting writers from the worlds of prose, poetry and scriptwriting who deliver readings or workshops.

The Creative Writing residential in Snowdonia, which takes place towards the start of the first term, is a chance to participate in a writing retreat that will kick-start your creativity. It also allows you to get to know your peers and tutors.

In The Red, the student-run magazine of the Creative Writing department, regularly hosts student readings and open mic nights where you can hone your performance skills. Each year, three final year students take over the editorship of the magazine.

Modules

Please visit the Liverpool John Moores University website for detailed module information.

Assessment methods

All assessment is by coursework with tasks designed to develop your skills as a professional writer.

Around 50% of your coursework will be original creative work such as a portfolio or project and 50% will be essays, commentaries, class-contributions, peer critiques, pitches, presentations, learning logs, group work, treatments, journals or class tests. You will normally be given two or three different assessment tasks per module. In your final year, your creative work or project will normally account for 70% of the course with the remaining 30% taking the form of critical commentary or reflective analysis.

Your tutors will provide feedback on assessments within 15 working days, but they will also provide constructive feedback on draft creative work throughout the course. You will have the guidance of a personal tutor with whom you can discuss your marks and overall personal and/or academic progress at any time. Peer review is also an important aspect of this course and is actively encouraged.

Tuition fees

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

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
International
£17,750
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

Extra funding

Please see our Bursaries and Scholarships page for more information: https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/discover/fees-and-funding/bursaries-and-scholarships

The Uni


Course location:

Liverpool John Moores University

Department:

Liverpool Screen School

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.

88%
Creative writing

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

95%
Staff make the subject interesting
90%
Staff are good at explaining things
93%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
88%
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

84%
Library resources
84%
IT resources
81%
Course specific equipment and facilities
81%
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?

98%
UK students
2%
International students
38%
Male students
62%
Female students
77%
2:1 or above
22%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
B
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
med
Average annual salary
92%
med
Employed or in further education
42%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

25%
Other elementary services occupations
17%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
13%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals

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.

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.

£13k

£13k

£20k

£20k

£23k

£23k

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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Course location and department:

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Teaching Excellence Framework (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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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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