School of Humanities and Performing Arts

BA (Hons) Creative and Professional Writing

Writing is an age-old craft – and an essential skill in the twenty-first century. At Plymouth, you’ll work with poets, novelists, journalists, and digital writers to hone your writing with a view to making your way in the field. Our small, accessible team of published authors has years of professional experience working within creative fields. We are adept at nurturing talent and enabling future successes.

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Complete University Guide rankings

We are very proud to announce our new Complete University Guide ranking of no.16 in the UK for Creative Writing!

We have also risen 29 places in The Guardian 2020 league table.

New course

We are very pleased to announce our brand new BA (Hons) Creative and Professional Writing. We are now accepting applications for September 2020. Find out more at our Open Day on 26 June!

Key features

  • [ Work with published and award-winning writers and journalists
  • Ä Spend time in our nurturing, small-group workshops with staff, honing your craft
  • . Learn and grow as a writer through trying out multiple forms and genres
  • x Encounter digital writing and new ways of expressing yourself
  • ~ Gain work-facing skills utilised in industries such as journalism, content-writing, publishing, editing, marketing, and more

Course details

  • Year 1

  • In this year, you will study 6 core modules introducing you to the fundamental elements of writing and beginning your journey as a professional.

    • Craft of Writing I and II
    • Make It New: Digital Writing
    • Make Your Own: Bespoke Independent Project
    • Plus two literature modules to ground you in the basics of fiction

  • Year 2

  • This year will see you develop further skills within popular, market-driven genres, and engage further as a professional.

    • Professional Writing for Media
    • Genre Fiction: YAF, horror, sci-fi, romance, thrillers, and more
    • Creative Non-Fiction: travel writing, memoirs, autobiography
    • Dramatic Writing for Stage and Screen
    • The Impact of Publishing: learn about the elements of the publishing trade
    • Burning Issues: independent project engaging with other disciplines such as science writing, political writing, and more

  • Final year

  • In this year, you will start to find your specialist niche as a writer and look forward to your career. Engage in small, tailored workshops driven by the research interests of the staff and your own developing profile.

    • Advanced Short Story workshop with novelist Ben Smith
    • Advanced Poetry workshop with professor of poetry Anthony Caleshu
    • Features Journalism workshop with Times columnist Miriam Darlington
    • Script to Screen: make your own podcasts and films of your own work for a professional audience
    • Final Project: a year-long dissertation supervised one-on-one by a full-time member of staff

Entry requirements

UCAS tariff

104 - 112

Normal minimum entry requirements are 104-112 points at A-level or equivalent to include an A-level in English language, English literature, creative writing, or a related humanities subject.

We normally request a B in the English/ humanities A level, but this requirement can be adjusted subject to academic judgement.

Fees, costs and funding

EU applicants should refer to our dedicated Brexit webpage for details of the implications of the UK’s plans to leave the European Union.

New Student 2018 2019
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Part time (Home/EU) To be confirmed To be confirmed
Full time fees shown are per annum. Part time fees shown are per a number of credits. Please note that fees are reviewed on an annual basis. Fees and the conditions that apply to them shown in the prospectus are correct at the time of going to print. Fees shown on the web are the most up to date but are still subject to change in exceptional circumstances.

Additional costs

This course is delivered by the Faculty of Arts and Humanities and more details of any additional costs associated with the faculty's courses are listed on the following page: Faculty of Arts and Humanities additional costs.

How to apply

All applications for undergraduate courses are made through UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admissions Service). 

UCAS will ask for the information contained in the box at the top of this course page including the UCAS course code and the institution code. 

To apply for this course and for more information about submitting an application including application deadline dates, please visit the UCAS website.

Support is also available to overseas students applying to the University from our International Office via our how to apply webpage or email international-admissions@plymouth.ac.uk.

A student perspective

INK magazine

Published by the University of Plymouth Press, and supported by English and creative writing staff, INK is entirely edited and produced by our students.

The process of producing INK is as important as the end product. It’s the chance for you to publish your creative work in a literary magazine.

Read a sample copy of INK

English and Creative Writing research

Our teaching is driven by research which in 2014 was rated among the best in the UK by the nationwide Research Excellence Framework (REF) assessment. Our staff have published extensively and internationally across a diverse range of fields in literary criticism and creative writing.

For example, Senior Lecturer Peter Hinds, author of The Horrid Popish Plot, teaches and publishes on early modern literature and Professor Anthony Caleshu, prize winning poet, leads the Contemporary Poetry module.


Professor Anthony Caleshu talks about his writing, editing and research of contemporary poetry, as well as his teaching of creative writing in this short video.

People

Plymouth's creative writing experience

New to creative writing or looking to expand your talents? 

No matter the level of study you want to pursue – undergraduate, masters, PhD – the creative writing experience at Plymouth allows you to explore every possible aspect of writing.

Ready your writing for submission to the world. Discover your voice and refine your craft with our thrilling series of study opportunities.

Find out what it is like to study creative writing at Plymouth