The Professional Writing MA is designed for those who want to turn their love of words and writing into a dynamic and fulfilling career. It will give you the skills, motivation, networks and connections to work across a wide variety of industries – in publishing, journalism, public relations, advertising, as literary agents, copywriters and copyeditors. It will also allow you to explore the history and future of writing and the writing industries from a variety of perspectives, and to develop your own interests and specialisms. Professional Writing takes a broad, holistic view of writing, because writing is not just about writing. It is about editing, about working with the words of others and with other languages, it is about the reader, it is about the form into which the words are packaged. It is about essays and tweets, novels and headlines, criticism and advertising, prizes and publicity. As a result, the course brings together the combined expertise of English, Creative Writing, Media, Communication, and Film and Cultural Studies to offer a truly interdisciplinary MA. On the course you'll examine the changing role of professional writing through historical and theoretical debates and examples of contemporary professional practice across languages. From the story of the book to multimedia journalism, your modules will allow you to develop your skills and interests in a range of relevant professional contexts. You'll be taught through seminars, one-to-one and small group tutorials, practical sessions and workshops, together with independent, student-directed study where you'll develop your own project or special topic with the help of an expert mentor. You'll work with academics, practitioners and industry professionals to gain an understanding of vocational issues, practices and concerns, and will build up a network of contacts and connections within your chosen industries. You could also choose to study this course with an extended work placement where you'll have the opportunity to take a placement/internship of 550 hours in a professional work environment, in addition to the taught components of the course. Find out more about the Professional Writing with Extended Work Placement MA .
On the Professional Writing MA you'll take three core modules and either the Professional Writing Project or the MA Dissertation. You can then choose two further 20 credit option modules.
The following modules are indicative of what you'll study on this course.
We aim to offer a wide range of option modules. However, availability may be affected by timetabling, staff availability, or student demand, so preferred choices cannot always be guaranteed.
A minimum of a lower second class honours degree (2:2).
If your first language is not English, you should have an IELTS 6.5 with at least 6.5 in writing and no element below 6.0.
Visit our How to apply page for more information on:
A minimum of a lower second class honours degree (2:2).
If your first language is not English, you should have an IELTS 6.5 with at least 6.5 in writing and no element below 6.0.
Visit our How to apply page for more information on:
Visit our How to apply page for more information on:
Visit our How to apply page for more information on: