Creative Writing and English with Foundation Year

Creative writing and English is a combination that develops you simultaneously as a practitioner of writing and as a reader and critic of literature. The two activities are deeply connected: reading carefully is one of the best ways to understand how writing works, and the attempt to write well forces a close attention to the choices that other writers have made. At Birkbeck College, University of London, this four-year full-time degree includes a foundation year, making it accessible to those who wish to consolidate their academic and creative foundations before the main degree begins.

Birkbeck has a strong tradition in creative writing and literary study, and the programme benefits from teaching by writers and academics who are active practitioners in their fields.

In the creative writing strand, you will work across a range of forms including fiction, poetry, life writing and scriptwriting, developing your own voice and practice through regular writing, workshop critique and engagement with the published work of writers you admire. In the English component, you will read widely across literary history and contemporary writing, developing skills in close reading, contextual analysis and critical argument. The two strands inform each other throughout: your critical reading sharpens your craft, and your writing practice gives you insight into the choices and difficulties that authors face.

A typical entry tariff of around 104 points is expected.

Graduates from creative writing and English degrees pursue careers in publishing, journalism, broadcasting, arts management, education, community arts, copywriting, scriptwriting and their own independent writing practice. The analytical and communication skills the degree develops are broadly applicable, and many graduates work across multiple fields, combining writing with roles in teaching, cultural organisations or the media. Many also proceed to postgraduate study in creative writing, English literature or journalism, or go on to publish their own work.