Overview
Passion for language and creative writing can lead to exciting careers in publishing, advertising, teaching, journalism and more.
Sharpen your writing skills, free your imagination, let your creative juices flow and be inspired in the company of poets, playwrights, publishers, screenwriters and novelists.
The English and Creative Writing BA (Hons) course is for students who wish to study creative writing alongside English literature and language, which provides you with an option to embark on a career as a professional writer, or to go into more traditional careers linked to English studies such as marketing, publishing or teaching.
Why Coventry University?
An award-winning university, we are committed to providing our students with the best possible experience. We continue to invest in both our facilities and our innovative approach to education. Our students benefit from industry-relevant teaching, and resources and support designed to help them succeed. These range from our modern library and computing facilities to dedicated careers advice and our impressive Students’ Union activities.
To ensure an optimised and continual student experience, the university may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via emerging online technologies and methods across all courses.
Global ready
An international outlook, with global opportunitiesEmployability
Career-ready graduates, with the skills to succeedTeaching Excellence
Taught by lecturers who are experts in their fieldCourse essentials
A degree which offers you more, at no extra costRelated Links
Building Redevelopment
We are currently in the process of a major redevelopment of our Faculty of Arts and Humanities buildings. The building will be open to the public as well as students, and will feature an expansive gallery space.
Creative Community Hub
We hope that you are all staying safe in these uncertain times. Creative activities can really help fill the days, while we are spending more time at home and we have some ideas to keep you busy.
Employability
We are at the forefront of delivering enterprise and employability as part of our undergraduate programme and our employability unit co-ordinates the delivery of this for all students.
What our students say...
The profile of the University (with its modernity, diversity and internationalisation) offers plenty of space to develop new ideas and thoughts.
I’ve always wanted to study creative writing so once I found out about the English and Creative Writing course and read about it, it became my first option. I knew that I’d be welcome and would fit in here.
So far I am not disappointed in the slightest, I’ve learned so much in these last five months and my writer’s voice is stronger than ever. Also, I’ve developed confidence and tackled areas that I never had before. Everyone has been very helpful!
Course information
The course combines stylistics, language and literary theory with creative practice, combining both critical and creative thinking.
The creative part of the course includes poetry and descriptive prose in the first year, exploring the use of figurative language in the form of poetry and travel writing. In the second year, you will explore short fiction for both adults and children, and in the final year you will have the opportunity to explore script writing for film, stage and radio.
95%
of our students are satisfied with the quality of the course
NSS, 2016
Course specification
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Modules
We regularly review our course content, to make it relevant and current for the benefit of our students. For these reasons, course modules may be updated.
We are ranked as the 15th best University in the United Kingdom Guardian University Guide 2020
In more detail...
Studying English is viewed as a traditional subject with a long history of providing impeccable academic credentials. This course combines stylistics, language and literary theory with creative practice, to help you understand the theories behind writing, to understand your writing style and voice, and to improve your understanding of how language is used in society. It also offers a vocational element.
It has a number of distinctive features. It combines humanities with creative freedom, allowing you to explore emerging genres such as games narratives and graphic storytelling. It has innovative, open and participatory content that includes digital streamed performances and online workshops pitched at schools. It has global student collaborations focusing on intercultural narration, and includes digital entrepreneurship, which is the monetising of creative work via YouTube and Social Media, meaning that students work towards publication-ready outputs.
Research-inspired (and research-led) teaching is embedded in the course through academic expertise derived from research activity and publications, including active involvement with national and international scholarly organisations and conferences. Lecturers are all active researchers and practitioners whose research and practice informs their teaching.
- Broad range of modules, such as fantasy, children’s writing, film or journalism.
- Enhance your critical thinking and judgment, developing the communication skills sought by employers.
- Second year optional writers’ retreat in Whitby, staying next door to the Abbey and the graveyard, which was an inspiration for Bram Stoker’s Dracula (subject to additional costs and open only to students on this course).
- Significant links with a wide variety of employers and media practitioners, such as Writing West Midlands and Theatre Absolute, many of whom offer professional experience opportunities.
- Opportunity to participate in an exciting range of educational and cultural field trips, for example, to view modern adaptations of Shakespeare’s work at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre Company (RSC) in Stratford-upon-Avon. There may be some additional costs for optional trips and opportunities, and such trips may also be subject to availability – students will be informed of how to apply in advance of the trip via Moodle.
- You will have an opportunity to join societies such as The Literature Society (which may be subject to additional costs, application processes and/or subject to availability)and The Coventry Words Magazine Society, which organise visits by writers and writing events, as well as overseeing editorial and production for the creative writing magazine.
Our main study themes are:
- Language and linguistics: The analysis of the nature and structure of English Language, its meaning, form and context, including how words and sentences are formed, how we make and hear sounds, how languages change and vary, and how language is organised in the brain.
- Literary genres: A study of the different genres in the study of literature, such as poetry, drama, prose fiction and film. You will have the opportunity to develop an awareness of literary conventions, literary history and how both are related to social and cultural contexts. You’ll gain insights and opinions about different literary genres and be familiar with the analysis and interpretation of poetic, narrative and dramatic texts.
- Stylistics: Analysing style involves looking closely and systematically at the formal features of a text and then considering how those features affect and contribute to the meaning and interpretation of the text in question. You will examine the linguistic models and analytic techniques that can be used to describe, analyse and interpret a range of literary, as well as non-literary, texts.
- Poetry: You will explore the cultural and political expression of influential poets from the Romantic era to the present day. In order to develop your own poetic writing, you will learn to recognise different genres of poetry and how to produce a variety of strict and ‘free’ forms of poetic texts.
The course is taught using a combination of traditional, digital and innovative teaching methods and platforms.
Teaching and learning methods include lectures, seminars, workshops and tutorials devoted to regular formative assessments, study trips devoted to experiential learning and taught sessions in a range of locations outside of the classroom, online working and research, self-directed study and group / collaborative work. Study trips may funded by the Centre for Global Engagement or by the Faculty, however students may also be required to pay additional costs in some circumstances.
The course team will facilitate learning through experiential, interdisciplinary and collaborative ways that empower you to take risks and explore your creativity: to equip you with technical knowledge and employable skills; to support the achievement of excellence in independent research; and to prepare you for making a significant impact on the communities and industries you choose to work in.
Each creative module has professional visiting lecturers, and these consist of poets, playwrights, authors and magazine publishers. There is a strong publishing element on this course, which includes opportunities to participate in publishing the CovWords Creative Writing magazine, to ensure that you are receiving first-hand experience in the publishing industry.
Within the course are career-focused writing projects involving social media, new modes of writing, editing and self-publishing.
This course will be assessed using a variety of methods which could vary depending upon the module.
Assessment methods include, essays, reports and critical commentaries, oral/poster presentations, blog/vlog/online forum posts, and digital tests and portfolios of exercises.
The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards the achieving the intended learning outcomes.
On successful completion of the course, you will be able to demonstrate:
- The ability to generate and develop original creative work.
- An advanced range of editorial skills.
- Understanding of, and the ability to deploy, the rules, conventions and possibilities of written and spoken language in a range of forms, genres and media, including the digital.
- An advanced ability to reflect on and critique the nature of their own writing process and to critically evaluate their progression.
- Advanced critical knowledge and understanding of literary works and genres from selected periods.
- The ability to critically analyse works of fiction and non-fiction, interrogate and evaluate the arguments and theories of others and to formulate and construct critical arguments of one’s own.
- A range of intercultural competences, including knowledge of a variety of world literatures and World Englishes, and recognise how language underpins intercultural interactions and transactions.
- The ability to utilise digital tools and technologies to practise original subject-based research and demonstrate the ability to be active, engaged participants in the era of online communication.
- A broad understanding of the history, evolution, spread, and nature of the English Language as well as how the English Language can vary and change according to context, identity and social interaction.
- Knowledge and skills acquired on the course necessary for a range of post-graduate study and/or employment opportunities which are commensurate with your individual aspirations.
In a typical teaching week, you will have approximately 12 ‘contact’ hours of teaching.
This generally breaks down as:
- Personal tutorial/small group teaching: 1-hour session up to 3 times each semester (as individuals or in small groups), as well as individual project supervision in your final year.
- Medium group teaching: 7 hours of practical classes, workshops or seminars each week.
- Large group teaching: 4 hours of lectures each week.
The contact hours may be made up of a combination of face-to-face teaching, individual and group tutorials, and online classes and tutorials
The course’s defining concerns are inherently multicultural and international in outlook, and a range of international texts and authors are included. The second year optional module, graphic storytelling, includes an international field trip (subject to additional fees, application, and meeting any applicable visa requirements).
You may also obtain international professional experience if you decide to undertake an optional placement year.*
*Additional costs may be incurred and/or that such opportunities may be subject to application and meeting any applicable visa requirements. The University’s Centre for Global Engagement (CGE) may be able to provide financial assistance with respect to such opportunities, please visit CGE’s webpage for more details.
Global ready
Did you know we help more students travel internationally than any other UK university according to data from the experts in higher education data and analysis, HESA?
In 2018/19, we provided a total of 5,469 experiences abroad that lasted at least five days.
Much of this travel is made possible through our Global Leaders Programme, which enables students to prepare for the challenges of the global employment market, as well as strengthening and developing their broader personal and professional skills.
Explore our international experiences1st for
international experiences
Sending more students overseas than any other UK uni 2016/17
5,469
Student experiences
The number of student trips abroad for at least 5 days in 2018/19
12,000
and counting
The number of students we’ve helped travel internationally since 2016
12
global programmes
As well as trips, we offer other opportunities like language courses
What our alumni say
I have always enjoyed English as it allows to us to articulate ideas and arguments, and see the world from different perspectives. The creative writing aspect of the degree allowed me to approach old concepts in different and interesting ways. I feel extremely grateful that you provided us with the means to get our work published. As creative writers, it’s important to get your work out there, and for you to enable us to do that is fantastic!
Entry Requirements
What our students say...
The profile of the University (with its modernity, diversity and internationalisation) offers plenty of space to develop new ideas and thoughts.
I’ve always wanted to study creative writing so once I found out about the English and Creative Writing course and read about it, it became my first option. I knew that I’d be welcome and would fit in here.
So far I am not disappointed in the slightest, I’ve learned so much in these last five months and my writer’s voice is stronger than ever. Also, I’ve developed confidence and tackled areas that I never had before. Everyone has been very helpful!
Tuition Fees
We pride ourselves on offering competitive tuition fees which we review on an annual basis and offer a wide range of scholarships to support students with their studies. Course fees are calculated on the basis of what it costs to teach each course and we aim for total financial transparency.
For more information, please visit our Finance pages.
Course essentials at no extra cost
We're committed to communicating study costs clearly to make sure you're not faced with having to make any unexpected payments.
This is why our ‘Flying Start’ package provides you with a few course essentials. Your full-time fee for an undergraduate degree will cover the following:
UK field trips
Any mandatory site visits and trips within the United Kingdom.Key material
This can include core textbooks, software and equipment.Laser prints
1,000 A4 sides of black and white laser printing credits per year.Optional year
Pay no tuition fees for optional work placements or study abroad trips.This course may be subject to additional costs associated with any field trips, placements or work experience, study abroad opportunities or any other opportunity (whether required or optional), which could include (but is not limited to) travel, accommodation, activities and visas. This course may incur additional costs associated with any equipment, materials, bench fees, studio or facilities hire.
EU student fees
EU nationals starting in the 2020/21 academic year remain eligible for the same fees as home students and the same financial support. Financial support comes from Student Finance England, and covers undergraduate and postgraduate study for the duration of their course, providing they meet the residency requirement.
For tuition fee loans
EU nationals starting in the 2020/21 academic year must have resided in the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland for the three years prior to the start of their course. The purpose of that three year residency should not have been mainly for the purpose of receiving full time education.
For maintenance loans
EU nationals starting in the 2020/21 academic year must have resided in the UK and Islands for the five years prior to the start of their course. The purpose of that five year residency should not have been mainly for the purpose of receiving full time education.
What our students say...
The profile of the University (with its modernity, diversity and internationalisation) offers plenty of space to develop new ideas and thoughts.
I’ve always wanted to study creative writing so once I found out about the English and Creative Writing course and read about it, it became my first option. I knew that I’d be welcome and would fit in here.
So far I am not disappointed in the slightest, I’ve learned so much in these last five months and my writer’s voice is stronger than ever. Also, I’ve developed confidence and tackled areas that I never had before. Everyone has been very helpful!
Career prospects
Graduate Immigration Route visa
Based on current information from the UK Government, international students whose study extends beyond summer 2021 may be eligible for a visa under the UK Government’s Graduate Immigration Route, which will enable students to stay and work, or look for work, in the UK at any skill level for up to two (2) years. Check the most up to date guidance available to check your eligibility and any updates from the UK Government before making an application or enrolment decision.
Embedded employability will be delivered through an optional placement year, alongside skills and core competency development for all students throughout the course, including engagement with literary festivals.
While the development of transferrable skills that have value for employability is a factor in all modules, Creative Writing employability modules will undoubtedly provide an opportunity for the course’s efforts to embed these skills. They will provide you not just with an experiential opportunity to research and learn about the cultural industries but also to learn about a much wider range of employability-related issues. Creative Writing lecturers have close links with industry professionals, utilising WWM (Writing West Midlands) and NAWE (National Association of Writers in Education) to expose students to the real-world activities of professional writers.
You will even have the opportunity to have your radio dramas broadcast by the BBC and to produce the CovWords Creative Writing magazine (online and printed). You can engage in submitting work for publication and enter competitions. CovWords exists in multiple formats: as a print version, as a YouTube site for digital performance and as a website which includes conventional and multimodal texts such as poems, stories, digital picture books and radio dramas.
Where our graduates work
Recent graduates of the course have gone on to work in teaching or publishing for companies such as, Granta Magazine. Many also go on to pursue a Master’s Degree in Creative Writing, which we also offer at Coventry University.
As the course also develops other abilities, such as thinking critically and analytically, research, collating and organising data, a number of previous students have also embarked upon careers as as financial specialists, HR managers or press officers in companies such as Air Products, Tesco and Deutsche Bank.
What our alumni say
The course is innovative and experimental. Staff are supportive and the course consistently challenges your imagination and develops your confidence as a writer. I learnt an incredible amount related to publishing, marketing, printing and editing. This knowledge not only helped me secure an internship with Coventry University, but also allowed me to continue my dream of running my own magazine.
Disclaimer
By accepting your offer of a place and enrolling with us, a Student Contract will be formed between you and the university. A copy of the 2020/21 Contract can be found here. The Contract details your rights and the obligations you will be bound by during your time as a student and contains the obligations that the university will owe to you. You should read the Contract before you accept an offer of a place and before you enrol at the university.
The tuition fee for the course that is stated on the course webpage and in the prospectus for the first year of study will apply. We will review our tuition fees each year. For UK and EU students, if Parliament permit an increase in tuition fees, we may increase fees for each subsequent year of study in line with any such changes. Note that any increase is expected to be in line with inflation. Following the UK’s exit from the European Union, EU students should be aware that there may be a change to UK laws following the UK’s exit, this may change their student status, their eligibility to study part time, and/or their eligibility for student finance. We will act in accordance with the UK’s laws in force in relation to student tuition fees and finance from time to time.
For International students the tuition fee that is stated on the course webpage and in the prospectus for the first year of study will apply. We will review our tuition fees each year. For international students, we may increase fees for each subsequent year of study but such increases will be no more than 5% above inflation.
