Creative Writing and English

Creative writing and English is a combination that brings together the study of literature and the craft of writing, treating them as mutually illuminating rather than separate pursuits. Reading widely and carefully makes you a better writer: exposure to different styles, structures, and voices deepens your understanding of what language can do. Writing seriously and regularly makes you a better reader: the practice of making choices on the page sharpens your attention to the choices others have made.

The combination develops both your analytical and your creative capacities in a way that neither discipline does quite as well alone.

At the University of Westminster, this three-year full-time programme covers key periods, themes, styles, and techniques in both creative writing and English literature, and allows you to work in both creative and critical forms. Westminster's location in central London is directly relevant to both aspects of the programme: the city has a rich literary culture and is home to publishers, literary agencies, newspapers, and creative organisations of every kind. The programme includes a sandwich placement year, a year abroad, and work placement opportunities, giving you substantial professional and international experience alongside the core curriculum.

The placement year and work placements connect your studies to real professional environments in publishing, journalism, arts organisations, education, and media.

You will develop skills in close reading, literary analysis, poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, and scriptwriting, working in workshops that give your writing a critical audience and expose you to the work of your peers. The ability to read perceptively, to write clearly and imaginatively, and to think critically about texts and their contexts are capacities that serve graduates well in many fields.

Graduates from creative writing and English programmes pursue careers in publishing, journalism, content creation, copywriting, teaching, arts administration, broadcasting, and the wider creative industries. Many also work as writers alongside other careers. Postgraduate study in creative writing, literature, or education is a natural continuation for those who want to go deeper.