MLitSt Creative Writing (four-year integrated masters)
Entry requirements
A level
ABB - BBB or 128 - 120 tariff points from a minimum of 2 full A-levels including an essay based subject
Access to HE Diploma
QAA-approved Access to HE Diploma: 15 level 3 credits at Distinction and 30 level 3 credits at Merit – 6 level 3 credits at Distinction and 39 level 3 credits at Merit, depending on subject studied - advice on acceptability can be provided, please contact [email protected] for more information.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
Or three Higher Level certificates with 655-555. Either must include a Higher Level essay-based subject grade 5. We are also happy to consider a combination of separate IB Diploma Programmes at both Higher and Standard Level. Exact offer levels will vary depending on the range of subjects being taken at higher and standard level, and the course applied for. Please contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office for more information on [email protected].
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
Entry requirements for students studying BTEC qualifications are dependent on subjects studied. Advice can be provided on an individual basis. Please email [email protected] for advice on acceptability
UCAS Tariff
128 - 120 tariff points from a minimum of 2 full A-levels
About this course
You are inspired by the world around you, and you want to capture it in words. You are good at telling stories, and you like to experiment with form and language, creating new worlds to share with your reader. On our course you will hone your creative and writing skills across a wide variety of genres from fiction and poetry to non-fiction, psycho-geography, script and performance writing – and beyond.
At Essex we offer an unusual approach to the practice of writing, combing innovative and traditional methods in order to help you develop your writing skills and the abilities to judge your work, and that of others, critically. Learn how to give and receive feedback, through workshopping and development processes. Step outside your comfort zone and discover new and different approaches to verbal art.
On the four-year MLitSt Creative Writing, you will be part of an interdisciplinary department and well-established home to practising poets, dramatists, novelists and critics.
You have the flexibility to choose from a wide range of optional modules across different topics and areas of specialism, including;
- Dreaming and Writing
- The Writer’s toolkit and writing short stories
- Creative non-fiction
- An introduction to screenwriting
- Writing Science Fiction
- Writing audio drama and playwriting for theatre
- Narrative and film
- Journalism and storytelling
In your fourth year, as a post-graduate student, you will be able to choose from the following masters level creative writing topics;
- Development of a novel plan, from research and concept-development, to plotting, character and structure
- Experimental language play
- Psychogeography, writing about walking, place, landscape, history and psychic environment
- Poetic practice across experimental writing in poetry from the performative to the visual
Essex has nurtured a long tradition of distinguished writers whose work has shaped literature as we know it today, from past giants such as the American poets Robert Lowell and Ted Berrigan, to contemporary writers such as mythographer and novelist Dame Marina Warner, and Booker Prize winner Ben Okri.
Our course offers a varied, flexible and distinctive curriculum, focused on developing your abilities as a writer, while allowing you to take options from the other courses within our Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies including literature, filmmaking, journalism and drama.
Modules
Many of our courses offer a choice of optional modules to tailor your learning experience. More information about these can be found on the University of Essex website.
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
The Uni
Colchester Campus
Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies
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.
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
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
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.
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.
£19k
£23k
£26k
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 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?
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