Creative and Professional Writing
St Mary's University, Twickenham
UCAS Code: W800 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
Pass Access to Higher Education Diploma with 60 credits including at least 45 at Level 3
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
UCAS Tariff
We will generally make you an offer if your predicted grades are at the top of this range and you meet any subject specific requirements (where applicable). If your predicted grades are towards the lower end of this range we can still consider your application but will also take into account subjects studied at Level 3, your GCSE (or equivalent) profile and/or relevant non-academic achievements, references and your motivation for study.
About this course
**Tell stories that matter to you with our vibrant Creative and Professional Writing degree**
Explore yourself and your imagination with our hands-on Creative and Professional Writing degree. You will fine-tune your craft, work collaboratively, and learn how to write and edit in an encouraging seminar and workshop environment.
You will focus on contemporary writers and writing to understand the latest developments in the literary and social media worlds. You will cover:
- the ins-and-outs of the publishing business
- writing young adult and children’s fiction
- how to write a book proposal
- writing song lyrics
- how to write short fiction
- screenwriting and the film industry
- journalism and interviewing skills.
You decide what you write about – follow your own passion for words. We welcome and encourage you no matter your background, interests, style, or genre.
**Learn in the capital**
We are only 30 minutes from central London. Therefore, you’ll have access to the capital’s diverse literature scene and world-renowned libraries. You can visit places like:
- The British Library
- Shakespeare’s Globe
- The Sherlock Holmes Museum
- The George Inn
- Charles Dickens Museum.
You'll also get a trip to the London Book Fair, where you'll be able to meet people in the industry and learn more about upcoming trends.
**Expert teaching and support**
Our BA Creative and Professional Writing lecturers are:
- fantasy and genre writing specialists
- experts on popular music
- young adult novelists
- professional journalists
- working scriptwriters.
This team supports your personal, professional, and academic growth from the day you arrive.
Our student, Jenny, notes how she "gets to be in an environment that helps [her] develop as a writer as well as meeting new people who enjoy stories and writing as much as [she does]." Read Jenny's full story.
Creative and Professional Writing teaching staff includes:
Dr Anthony McGowan renowned author of more than 40 children’s and young adult books. His novel Lark won the Carnegie Medal for Writing, one of the most prestigious awards for children’s fiction in the world.
Dr Russell Schechter, Course Leader for Creative Writing and a World Fantasy Award-nominated novelist. He has been awarded the title of St Mary’s University Champion of Student Experience by a vote of students.
Modules
The first year offers you a chance to explore the range of possibilities that constitute the field of creative writing. You will read and critique a variety of writing forms and try your hand at exercises designed to encourage fundamental skills in these areas. In your second year you will begin to focus your attention on the forms of writing most important and valuable to you and your career. In your final year of study you will have the chance to explore specific subjects in depth in class. More vitally, you will work one-to-one with a tutor on a year-long, independent basis to develop a creative portfolio of your own design. The goal is to produce a substantial piece of work worthy of submission for publication to an appropriate venue.
Tuition fees
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The Uni
St Mary's University, Twickenham
School of Liberal and Creative Arts
What students say
How do students rate their degree experience?
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Creative writing
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Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
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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.
Top job areas of graduates
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.
£15k
£24k
£25k
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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Post-six month graduation stats:
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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:
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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?
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