BA

Creative Writing

BA Creative Writing Code W801 Attend an Open Day Attend an Open Day

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Key Facts

W801

  • UCAS Tariff

    120 - 104

  • Course duration

    3 years

Further details on entry requirements

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If you are interested in enhancing, broadening, and developing your voice and, if you want to explore, discover and immerse yourself in the words that have shaped our world, then a degree in Creative Writing in the Department of English and Creative Writing at Aberystwyth University is for you. Our cross-disciplinary degree will introduce you to an ever-expanding industry, providing you with a promising and advantageous start after graduation. Learn the craft of writing poetry, fiction, non-fiction, screenplays and more. You will also develop the critical and analytical skills necessary for a career in a broad array of creative industries. Under the expert guidance of a team of award-winning writers you will discover hidden talents and find out what sort of writer you are. On completion of this degree you will have not only a portfolio of exceptional creative material but also the skills and attributes to flourish in any workplace that demands dexterity with the written word.

Course Overview

Why study Creative Writing at Aberystwyth University?

  • Our degree offers a broad curriculum that crosses the traditional boundaries of genre, form, and function.
  • You will be immersed in a supportive and vibrant community of creative and critical thinkers, industry experts, and published authors from every field.
  • Become a student in a flourishing creative scene with a long and successful history as the spring for aspiring new talent.
  • Explore connections between creative and critical thinking and develop a deep understanding of the relationship between professional practice and imaginative thought.
  • 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.
  • Benefit from our unique collaborative relationship with Aberystwyth Arts Centre. This on-campus facility is an excellent resource for staff and students alike.
  • Benefit from unlimited access to the National Library of Wales (one of the UK’s five copyright libraries).
Our Staff

All academic staff in the Department of English and Creative Writing are active scholars and experts in their fields. They are either qualified to PhD level or have commensurate experience. Our Lecturers either hold or are working towards a Higher Education teaching qualification and the majority of academic staff also hold the status of Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

Modules September start - 2023

Please note: The modules listed below are those currently intended for delivery during the next academic year and may be subject to change. They are included here to give an indication of how the course is structured.

* Also available partially or entirely through the medium of Welsh

Careers

What career prospects are there for me?

Many of our graduates are successful writers in the fields of:

  • fiction
  • non-fiction
  • poetry
  • screen-writing
  • radio
  • theatre.

Some of our graduates have discovered other successful career options in:

  • publishing
  • editing
  • journalism
  • marketing and communications
  • teaching.

What career enhancing opportunities are there for me as a student?

Aberystwyth Arts Centre will be woven integrally into your learning opportunities, permitting staff and students to come together with the shared aim of engaging, working and learning in a thriving and dynamic creative culture. Here you may showcase your work, engage and network with others, and develop lifelong skills valuable to employers in the creative industries and beyond.

Our degree will enable you to develop:

  • the ability to express ideas and communicate information effectively in a broad range of contexts
  • outstanding skills in creating, forming and manipulating the written word
  • evidence of your ability to be an effective problem solver
  • excellent creative thinking, informed by critical rigour
  • a proven ability to work both independently and as part of a team
  • excellent time-management and organisational skills, including the ability to meet deadlines
  • self-motivation and self-reliance and have the ability to develop appropriate and effective strategies
  • valuable research skills that are trans-disciplinary and adaptable to any research context.

What work experience opportunities exist whilst studying? 

Click here to find out about the various opportunities that our Aberystwyth University Careers team offer. 

Enhance your employability prospects with GO Wales and YES (Year in Employment Scheme) managed by our Careers department. 

Teaching & Learning

What will I learn?

The breakdown below will provide you with an illustration of what you may study during the three year degree scheme.

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, whilst offering you the flexibility to develop as a writer across a range of creative modes. During your first year you will develop foundational skills in the interpretation and analysis of literary texts, alongside your study of basic writing skills. 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.

 In the first year you will discover:

  • a range of techniques for reading and writing fiction and poetry
  • modes of descriptive writing
  • the importance of plot
  • the use of dialogue
  • some key figures from literary history (from Shakespeare to the Brontës)
  • lesser known texts, and writers who are new-to-you
  • a variety of “ways of reading” and some theoretical approaches to textual analysis
  • “the critical commentary” and research skills for writers.

In the second year you will explore:

  • the theoretical approaches to, and the practice of, literary criticism
  • your own writing style, informed by your reading and research
  • a number of specialist topics chosen by you (these might focus on a specific genre (such as crime fiction), historical period (such as the Victorian era), or theme (such as “transpositions”).

On this degree programme, you will have the flexibility to take option modules from the departments of Film, Theatre and Television Studies, and Welsh and Celtic studies, both of which offer a number of creative writing modules in areas such as scriptwriting, writing for radio, writing for television and much more.

In the third year you will master:

  • theory for writers and the application of theoretical perspectives the production and critical evaluation of your own creative work
  • extended writing and independent research in your final year writing project (chosen and defined by you with the support of a published author)
  • your own specialisms drawn from a diverse range of option modules taught by writers in those fields. Our option modules include topics such as Elizabethan drama, the ghost story, queer fiction, writing for children, science fiction and fantasy, and much more.

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.

How will I be taught?

Our course is delivered through a range of traditional and non-traditional settings with particular emphasis on workshops and discursive seminars. Lectures are not the norm but are used when it is essential to convey specific, knowledge-centred, material. One-to-one tutorials will also be a regular feature in your timetable, particularly towards the end of your programme of study.

You will be assessed through portfolio submissions, essays and, on some modules, traditional examinations and presentations.

Typical Entry Requirements

UCAS Tariff 120 - 104

A Levels BBB-BCC

GCSE requirements (minimum grade C/4):
English or Welsh

BTEC National Diploma:
DDM-DMM

International Baccalaureate:
30-28

European Baccalaureate:
75%-65%

English Language Requirements:
See our Undergraduate English Language Requirements for this course. Pre-sessional English Programmes are also available for students who do not meet our English Language Requirements.

Country Specific Entry Requirements:
International students whose qualification is not listed on this page, can check our Country Specific Entry Requirements for further information.

The University welcomes undergraduate applications from students studying the Access to Higher Education Diploma or T-level qualifications, provided that relevant subject content and learning outcomes are met. We are not able to accept Access to Higher Education Diplomas or T-levels as a general qualification for every undergraduate degree course.
Our inclusive admissions policy values breadth as well as depth of study. Applicants are selected on their own individual merits and offers can vary. If you would like to check the eligibility of your qualifications before submitting an application, please contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office for advice and guidance.

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