creative writing uni of manchester

Faculty of Humanities

School of Arts, Languages and Culture

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Creative Writing MA

Year of entry: 2025

Course length: 12 Months Full-Time | 24 Months Part-Time

About the course

Study on our MA Creative Writing master's course and you'll be part of the prestigious Centre for New Writing, where we bring together world-famous writers to teach people how to produce novels, short stories, creative non-fiction, poems and screenplays.

It's a place where talented writers and critics can meet to exchange ideas and opinions. The Centre is founded on the simple but important principle that good writing and good reading go together.

There are no mandatory units as part of this course. Students are required to choose a combination of workshops and seminars based on their individual focus in poetry, fiction and creative non-fiction. Workshops and seminars cover topics to support your writing and contextual knowledge, such as:

• Contemporary Fiction
• Workshop in Fiction
• Reading Poems
• Creative Non-Fiction Workshop

These are example course units based on 2023/24 options and are subject to change each year.

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The University of Manchester is ranked in the top 10 for English Language and Literature programmes in the UK

(QS World Rankings 2023)

Learn from novelists and essayists Jeanette Winterson CBE, Ellah Wakatama, OBE, Ian McGuire, Beth Underdown, and poets John McAuliffe, Frances Leviston, and Michael Schmidt OBE.

Our graduates are among the most targeted by top UK employers

(High Fliers 2024)

Where will your degree take you?

Some students pursue their literary careers and go on to become published writers, while others follow their passion through publishing, journalism and careers in the arts sector. Other graduates undertake PhD study or follow careers in law, librarianship and teaching.

Our alumni include Rebecca Perry, Sophie Hannah, Chris Killen, Alys Conran, Emma Jane Unsworth, Beth Underdown, Alex Allison, Jenn Ashworth, Evan Jones, and Marli Roode.

Upon successful completion of their course, many postgraduates go on or return to jobs as teachers or librarians, continue their research, or go on to academic jobs. Career paths are extremely varied, and other fields include law, publishing and retail.

Marli Roode

MA Creative Writing

‘’Since I finished the MA, I finished a book, I got an agent and I had the book published. My relationship with the staff at the Centre for New Writing was a big part of how much I enjoyed the course and how successful I was to go on to be. Those who continue to work and really take as much from the course as they can, are in such a good position to achieve the success that they're after.’’

MA Creative Writing | Deputy Head of Department (English and Humanities), Independent Secondary School

‘’The course really cemented my love of English Literature and made me want to take this knowledge further and pass it on to others. The amazing tutors and teachers within the English department were also a source of inspiration. It really helped deepen and extend my knowledge of my subject area. I also took part in various spoken-word nights around the city of Manchester, which really helped to give me more confidence with public speaking, which has become a vital part of my job."

Similar courses:

12 months Full-time

The University of Manchester

Alternatively, use our A–Z index

This one-year postgraduate course offers access to specialist teaching from leading writers and poets.

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MA Creative Writing / Entry requirements

Year of entry: 2024

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Academic entry qualification overview

We normally expect students to have a First or Upper Second class honours degree or its overseas equivalent in a humanities-based subject area.

English language

An overall grade of IELTS 7.0 with 7.0 in writing and no skill below 6.5 is required or 100+ in the TOEFL iBT with a minimum writing score of 25 and no skill below 22.

If you have obtained a different qualification, please check our  English language requirements  to ensure that it is accepted and equivalent to the above requirements.

English language test validity

Other international entry requirements.

English Literature and Creative Writing (Undergraduate)

Welcome for undergraduate students will begin on Monday, 16 September 2024.

Welcome messages

Welcome information .

• Welcome guide  
• Welcome timetable  

Support and advice 

Your Student Support Hub is the place for advice, support, and guidance. We can help you with queries from registration to graduation and everything in between. Please use our  SALC Interactive FAQ & Contact Form  to contact us or to find the information you need.​​​​​​​

Alternatively, please come and see us or you can call us, we’re really happy to help. 

You can also access our dedicated  Student Support and Wellbeing team  who can meet with you on a one to one basis.

Location : Lower Ground floor, Samuel Alexander Building (next to the Lime Cafe). We are number 67 on the Campus Map (which can be found on the  University of Manchester webpage ) or please see our virtual tour video for directions. 

Opening hours:  9am –  5pm, Monday – Friday (10am - 4pm outside of term time)

Telephone :  +44 161 529 3348​​​​​​​

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For more information on the services the Student Support Hub can provide, please see your  Student Handbook .

Preparing to start your course

Firstly, visit our  Get Ready  pages, where are a few practical things we need you to complete in your first few weeks to get things started.

The city of Manchester

The city of Manchester is steeped in culture and history, making it an ideal location for students from across the globe. You can find out more about what this city has to offer in the resources below.

• Manchester in a Minute  
• The city of Manchester  
• Visit Manchester  

Study skills

My Learning Essentials  is the Library's award-winning skills support programme. It offers face to face and online support across a variety of topics. 

We recommended you take a look at the following resources: 

• Start to finish: Writing  
• Thinking, reading and writing critically  
• Getting started with referencing  
• Managing your time effectively  

Student support services

The University of Manchester's dedicated student support team provides a great deal of assistance to all students.

• Support for students in the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures  
• Students' Union  
• Disability Advisory and Support Service  
• Counselling and Mental Health Service  
• Support services at UoM

Support for international students

For all students planning to travel to the UK, it is important to be aware of the current rules and requirements relevant to your circumstances before travelling. The situation is changing on a regular basis, so we strongly advise you regularly check the advice available from the  UK Government .

Click on the links below to discover how the University provides support for international students.

• International Society  
• Multicultural Manchester  
• Travel and Visas  
• Accommodation Guarantee

Support for students from under-represented backgrounds

The University offers a range of support for students from backgrounds and communities currently under-represented in higher education.

• Financial support packages for UK  undergraduate  and  taught master's  students from low-income households.
• Tailored support for specific communities , eg care-experienced students, estranged students, commuter students, and disabled students.
• 93% Club  is a student-led society focusing on social mobility and improving university experiences for state-school students.

Top tips from our students

Students from the School of Languages, Arts and Cultures provide insights on their experiences at The University of Manchester.

• Guide to University Essentials
• Preparing to study in the UK as international student  
• From Barista to Campus Ambassador: Exploring part-time jobs at University
• Top tips for making the most out of your course: socially and academically  

Returning students

Welcome back! To help you settle into your return to Manchester, we have put everything you need to know here.

Find out more

Academic Phrasebank

• GENERAL LANGUAGE FUNCTIONS
• Being cautious
• Being critical
• Classifying and listing
• Compare and contrast
• Defining terms
• Describing trends
• Describing quantities
• Explaining causality
• Giving examples
• Signalling transition
• Writing about the past

The Academic Phrasebank is a general resource for academic writers. It aims to provide you with examples of some of the phraseological ‘nuts and bolts’ of writing organised according to the main sections of a research paper or dissertation (see the top menu ). Other phrases are listed under the more general communicative functions of academic writing (see the menu on the left). The resource should be particularly useful for writers who need to report their research work. The phrases, and the headings under which they are listed, can be used simply to assist you in thinking about the content and organisation of your own writing, or the phrases can be incorporated into your writing where this is appropriate. In most cases, a certain amount of creativity and adaptation will be necessary when a phrase is used. The items in the Academic Phrasebank are mostly content neutral and generic in nature; in using them, therefore, you are not stealing other people’s ideas and this does not constitute plagiarism. For some of the entries, specific content words have been included for illustrative purposes, and these should be substituted when the phrases are used. The resource was designed primarily for academic and scientific writers who are non-native speakers of English. However, native speaker writers may still find much of the material helpful. In fact, recent data suggest that the majority of users are native speakers of English. More about  Academic Phrasebank .

This site was created by  John Morley .  

Academic Phrasebank is the Intellectual Property of the University of Manchester.

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The University of Manchester

Centre for New Writing

Championing contemporary fiction, poetry and creative writing since 2007.

The Centre for New Writing teaches people how to write novels, short stories, poems, plays and screenplays. We help students to read as a writer reads, offer seminars on form and theory, and on contemporary publishing.    With our help, undergraduates can find a fresh, clear voice and an understanding of structure. MA students can hone their skills to the point of submission for publication or of producing professional work for stage, television and film. And PhD students can combine a substantial piece of creative work with critical research in such a way that they can be considered for teaching or academic posts.   We work with talented, committed students whatever the style or genre. The question we ask: Does this work in its own terms? How might it work better?   We pride ourselves on giving students detailed individual feedback to students in writing and face-to-face and bring the biggest names in contemporary literature to teach our students. Our teaching staff includes established, award-winning writers such as Jeanette Winterson, Vona Groarke, Kamila Shamsie , John McAuliffe, and Kaye Mitchell.   Instruction in workshops is practical, hands-on and based on the tutor’s experience as a working novelist, poet or industry professional. Our seminars encourage students to develop their skills as readers and critics and an understanding of the contemporary literary landscape.   In 2006-2007 Martin Amis joined as Iconic Professor of Creative Writing. Colm Toibin took that role for 2011-2012. Since 2013, Jeanette Winterson has filled that role. We have recently been joined by Emma Clarke and Tim Price in our new screenwriting modules.    We also publish online for The Manchester Review, which highlights the best of international writing, publishing both well-known, established writers and new, relatively unknown poets and prose-writers. Our students are active in the Manchester literary scene; No Matter , a bi-monthly reading series, is organised by two of our current PhD students.

Find out more about the people involved with the Centre for New Writing. 

Read the latest news from the Centre for New Writing.

The Manchester Review

Fiction, poetry, reviews, public debate, visual art and video, all online from the Centre of New Writing.

Find out more about the Centre for New Writing at The University of Manchester.

Alternatively, use our A–Z index

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BA English Literature with Creative Writing

Develop your writing skills alongside the study of literature past and present.

• Typical A-level offer : AAA including specific subjects
• Typical contextual A-level offer : ABB including specific subjects
• Refugee/care-experienced offer : ABC including specific subjects
• Typical International Baccalaureate offer : 36 points overall with 6,6,6 at HL including specific subjects

Full entry requirements How to apply

Discover if Manchester is right for you with an online or in-person meeting.

Tuition fees for home students commencing their studies in September 2025 will be £9,250 per annum. Tuition fees for international students will be £26,500 per annum. For general information please see the undergraduate finance pages.

Policy on additional costs

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).