Postgraduate Course
Creative Writing MFA
Develop your creative practice alongside an inspiring group of writers. Further your literary abilities and create a full-length manuscript.
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If you have already completed a taught master's degree, the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing could be the next step for you, allowing you to pursue a project that you are passionate about. The academic team will work closely with you to develop your writing. You will approach projects in ways that best suit your individual learning style while you work towards an original and engaging manuscript.
York campus
- Duration – 1 year full time, 2 years part time
- Start date – February 2024
- School – School of Humanities
Minimum Entry Requirements
MA in Creative Writing at Merit/60/B
Interview if your honours degree is in an unrelated subject
Tuition Fees
UK 2023-24 £4,500 full time
International 2023-24 £13,000 full time
Discover why York St John University is The One
Course overview
There are 3 distinct routes to this course:
Publication route
You will produce a 40,000-70,000 (book length) work, such as a novel, poetry collection, script or biography. You will write for publication, performance or dissemination. Your reflective commentary will focus on this piece. Your creative submission can be any genre or style.
Community and heritage route
Working with a partner, you will write a novel length work as prose, performance or account. You will explore an outreach project in health, the arts, music or heritage. Your commentary will be reflection on the process of creating this work and can incorporate case studies.
Critical and theoretical route
You will create a book length piece of writing in any form, such as a prose, poetry or script work. The commentary you write will be theoretical in nature. Your writing will explore a concept or idea you are passionate about, or a literary movement. The creative work will involve a practice based exploration of the topic as your commentary.
York Centre for Writing
York Centre for Writing is a space for York St John's creative writing community to thrive. We compose 2 annual publications:
- Beyond the Walls, an anthology written by students
- The York Literary Review, a creative writing journal featuring international contributions
The Centre has welcomed celebrated authors, who have given talks that inspired students in their work and beyond. This includes Daljit Nagra, Michel Faber, Margaret Atwood and more.
Course structure
How you will study
You can study this postgraduate course full time or part time. This allows you to fit your studies around other commitments.
If you choose to study full time the course will take 1 year to complete. You will study:
- 2 compulsory modules
If you choose to study part time the course will take 2 years to complete. The modules will be split across both academic years.
You can find out which modules are available in each term in the Course Specifications.
Modules
Credits: 20
Compulsory module
This assessment is an opportunity for you to present the development of your work so far, reflecting on challenges, context and inspirations. You will be presenting your progress and critically reflecting on your research as you are working towards a final draft. This is a moment for peer review and analysis of your work, looking at inspirations, changes and context.
Credits: 160
Compulsory module
During your final module you will create a full-length manuscript intended for publication/dissemination. During the module, you will go through the entire development and editing process for your final piece. This work may be:
- A novel
- Collection of short stories
- Poetry collection
- Screenplay or script for radio or stage
- Non-fiction monograph
- Memoir
Your 1 on 1 tuition for this final piece is modelled on the professional relationship that successful writers forge with their editors, agents and publishers.
Teaching and assessment
Teaching and learning
You will receive up to 10 hours of 1 to 1 supervision, either in person or online. Every semester, you will be part of a workshop where you can share work in progress with other course members. In a supportive and creative atmosphere, you will discover new ways of working and further your approach to creating pieces of writing.
In April and May of your final year, you will be invited on a residential community writing retreat. The retreat is run by your tutors and can take place in a number of different locations. The only requirement is that the places be beautiful and inspiring.
We encourage you to attend the variety of events provided by the York Centre for Writing. These include visits from agents, publishers, editors and writers. This allows you to network and develop professional relationships within the literary community.
Our teaching draws on both our research and professional experience. This means your learning is informed by the most current thinking in the subject area. You can find out more about our research and backgrounds by visiting our staff pages.
Assessment
Your final manuscript will be a piece of written work that will comprise of 40,000-70,000 words of prose or approximately 1,200 lines of poetry. If you are aiming to produce a script, it must be an equivalent length. Your final manuscript will be accompanied by a critical commentary of 6,000 words which reflects on the writing process. You will submit your final manuscript in September of the final year.
Entry requirements
Qualifications
Minimum Entry Requirements
MA in Creative Writing at Merit/60/B
Interview if your honours degree is in an unrelated subject
If your degree is in an unrelated subject, but you can provide evidence of relevant professional experience, your application may still be considered.
International Students
If you are an international student you will need to show that your qualifications match our entry requirements.
Information about international qualifications and entry requirements can be found on our International pages.
If English is not your first language you will need to show that you have English Language competence at IELTS level 6.0 (with no skill below 5.5) or equivalent.
Additional Requirements
For entry onto this course, you will also need:
- A sample of creative writing, either in prose, script or poetry of at least 1,000 to 2,000 words, or 3 to 4 poems
- A completed MFA Creative Writing Proposal Form
Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning (APEL)
If you do not have traditional qualifications, you might be able to provide evidence of professional experience in the subject as an alternative way to meet the entry requirements. This is called Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning (APEL). Appropriate references and records of employment would need to be presented to support your case for admission.
Terms and conditions
Our terms and conditions, policies and procedures contain important information about studying at York St John University. You can read them on our Admissions page.
Fees and Funding
UK 2023 - 2024 entry
- £4,500 for full time study
- £2,250 per year for part time study
This cost applies to all UK, Jersey, Guernsey and Isle of Man students.
Postgraduate loans are available to help you pay for your master’s course. Find out more about funding your postgraduate studies.
International 2023 - 2024 entry
- £13,000 for 1 year of full time study
- £6,500 for 2 years of part time study
This price applies to all students living outside the UK.
Due to immigration laws, if you are an international student on a student visa, you must study full time. For more information about visa requirements and short-term study visas, please visit the International Visa and Immigration pages.
Find out more about funding your postgraduate studies.
Tuition Fees
UK 2023-24 £4,500 full time
International 2023-24 £13,000 full time
Alumni Scholarships
If you are alumni of York St John University we have scholarships available to help you continue your studies.
Additional costs and financial support
Course-related costs
While studying for your degree, there may be additional costs related to your course. This may include purchasing personal equipment and stationery, books and optional field trips.
Accommodation and living costs
View our accommodation pages for detailed information on accommodation and living costs.
Career outcomes
Where could Creative Writing take you?
By developing your writing and creative process, you will be well positions to enter into a various careers. Your skills in critical analysis, working to deadlines and both independent and collaborative work will can be applied in industries such as:
- Journalism
- Copywriting
- Academia
- Political analysis
Stand out from the crowd with postgraduate study.
Far fewer people have postgraduate degrees than undergraduate qualifications. This gives you something extra to set yourself apart in a competitive graduate job market. Those with a postgraduate qualification will earn an average of £7,000 a year more than those with only an undergraduate degree. (Department For Education Graduate Labour Market Report 2020)
Our careers service, LaunchPad, provides career support tailored to your ambitions. Through this service you can access:
- Employer events
- LinkedIn, CV and cover letter sessions
- Workshops on application writing and interview skills
- Work experience and volunteering opportunities
- Personalised career advice
This support does not end when you graduate. You can access our expert career advice for the rest of your life. We will help you gain the experience and confidence you need to succeed.
Apply for this course
For postgraduate degrees you must apply directly to York St John University using the links below. This will take you to the application form you need to fill out for this specific course.
To complete the online application form you will need to create login details.
Please contact 2 referees before submitting your application. An automated request for a reference will be emailed to them as soon as you submit. Your application will not be reviewed until both references are in place.
Apply now: Part time February 2024
Additional application documents
To complete your application for this course you will also need to attach:
- Your completed MFA Creative Writing Proposal Form 2022
- A writing sample of 1,000 to 2,000 words or 3 to 4 poems
Course highlights
Develop as a writer
Further your abilities and engage with other literary practitioners to create work you will be proud of.
Engage with an exciting community
Join our network of writers, editors, publishers and figures in York's literary community. Engage with them and develop your own network.
Experience unique forms of study
Journey with us during a writers' retreat, which will allow you go get away from the everyday and fully indulge in your creative process and practice.
Learn from professionals
In addition to regular supervisions, you can meet one to one with an industry professional, such as an agent or editor.