Creative Writing and Philosophy & Ethics

Creative writing and philosophy and ethics is a combination that encourages you to think and write at the deepest level: philosophy provides the conceptual tools for examining the most fundamental questions about knowledge, morality, existence and meaning, while creative writing offers the craft and voice to explore those questions through narrative, image and form. Literary fiction and poetry have always been in conversation with philosophy, and studying both formally gives you the means to engage with ideas not merely as abstract propositions but as experiences that touch on how we live.

At Liverpool Hope University, located in a city with a rich and distinctive literary culture, this three-year full-time degree develops your creative practice alongside serious engagement with the philosophical tradition. You will be taught by writers, poets and academics with active connections to the local and wider writing community, working through workshops, tutorials and creative projects that build your craft in whatever forms interest you. The philosophy and ethics strand examines the major questions and methods of the discipline, from epistemology and ethics to political philosophy and philosophy of mind, developing the analytical rigour and precision that complements creative work.

The programme includes a sandwich year with work placement opportunities and a year abroad, giving you both professional experience and an international educational context. Typical entry is around 104 UCAS tariff points.

Graduates move into careers in writing, journalism, publishing, teaching, arts administration, the charity sector, public policy and communications, as well as the full range of roles where strong analytical and creative thinking are valued. Philosophy graduates are consistently recruited to careers where ethical reasoning, logical analysis and the ability to argue clearly matter, and creative writing graduates bring communication skills that are immediately applicable in a wide range of professional settings. Postgraduate routes include MFA programmes in creative writing and masters degrees in philosophy, ethics or related disciplines.