(BA) Bachelor of Arts
Creative Writing (Including Foundation Year)
Current
University of Essex
University of Essex
Essex Pathways
Colchester Campus
Honours Degree
Full-time
English
BA W808
08/05/2024
Details
Professional accreditation
None
Admission criteria
UK and EU applicants:
All applications for degree courses with a foundation year (Year Zero) will be considered individually, whether you:
- think you might not have the grades to enter the first year of a degree course;
- have non-traditional qualifications or experience (e.g. you haven’t studied A-levels or a BTEC);
- are returning to university after some time away from education; or
- are looking for more support during the transition into university study.
Standard offer: Our standard offer is 72 UCAS tariff points from at least two full A-levels, or equivalent.
Examples of the above tariff may include:
- A-levels: DDD
- BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma: MMP
- T-levels: Pass with E in core
If you are unsure whether you meet the entry criteria, please get in touch for advice.
Mature applicants and non-traditional academic backgrounds:
We welcome applications from mature students (over 21) and students with non-traditional academic backgrounds (might not have gone on from school to take level 3 qualifications). We will consider your educational and employment history, along with your personal statement and reference, to gain a rounded view of your suitability for the course.
International applicants:
Essex Pathways Department is unable to accept applications from international students. Foundation pathways for international students are available at the University of Essex International College and are delivered and awarded by Kaplan, in partnership with the University of Essex. Successful completion will enable you to progress to the relevant degree course at the University of Essex.
IELTS (International English Language Testing System) code
English language requirements for applicants whose first language is not English: IELTS 5.5 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in each component, or specified score in another equivalent test that we accept.
Details of English language requirements, including component scores, and the tests we accept for applicants who require a Student visa (excluding Nationals of Majority English Speaking Countries) can be found here
If we accept the English component of an international qualification it will be included in the academic levels listed above for the relevant countries.
English language shelf-life
Most English language qualifications have a validity period of 5 years. The validity period of Pearson Test of English, TOEFL and CBSE or CISCE English is 2 years.
If you require a Student visa to study in the UK please see our immigration webpages for the latest Home Office guidance on English language qualifications.
Pre-sessional English courses
If you do not meet our IELTS requirements then you may be able to complete a pre-sessional English pathway that enables you to start your course without retaking IELTS.
Pending English language qualifications
You don’t need to achieve the required level before making your application, but it will be one of the conditions of your offer.
If you cannot find the qualification that you have achieved or are pending, then please email ugquery@essex.ac.uk.
Additional Notes
If you’re an international student, but do not meet the English language or academic requirements for direct admission to this degree, you could prepare and gain entry through a pathway course. Find out more about opportunities available to you at the University of Essex International College
Course qualifiers
A course qualifier is a bracketed addition to your course title to denote a specialisation or pathway that you have achieved via the completion of specific modules during your course. The
specific module requirements for each qualifier title are noted below. Eligibility for any selected qualifier will be determined by the department and confirmed by the final year Board of
Examiners. If the required modules are not successfully completed, your course title will remain as described above without any bracketed addition. Selection of a course qualifier is
optional and student can register preferences or opt-out via Online Module Enrolment (eNROL).
None
Rules of assessment
Rules of assessment are the rules, principles and frameworks which the University uses to calculate your course progression and final results.
Additional notes
None
External examiners
Dr Eleanor Perry
Lecturer in Creative Writing (Poetry)
University of Kent
External Examiners provide an independent overview of our courses, offering their expertise and help towards our continual improvement of course content, teaching, learning, and assessment.
External Examiners are normally academics from other higher education institutions, but may be from the industry, business or the profession as appropriate for the course.
They comment on how well courses align with national standards, and on how well the teaching, learning and assessment methods allow students to develop and demonstrate the relevant knowledge and skills needed to achieve their awards.
External Examiners who are responsible for awards are key members of Boards of Examiners. These boards make decisions about student progression within their course and about whether students can receive their final award.
Programme aims
To offer a varied, flexible and distinctive curriculum focused on the study of Creative Writing in the context of the study of literature.
To enable students to exercise their own choices in creative composition across a range of genres.
To enable students to understand the methodology necessary for undertaking a close analysis of a text passage or film extract.
Acquire the critical terminology to identify and name the literary devices at work in a text.
Work in a small group to prepare a presentation that demonstrates the skills involved in the close reading of an unseen text.
Appreciate the relationship between the written and the spoken language.
To acquaint students with a range of theoretical and comparative frameworks.
To enable students to think critically about their own creative writing.
To provide the knowledge and skills (creative development, critical inquiry and argument, imaginative understanding, written and spoken communication and presentation) to stand students in good stead for more specialised creative and academic study, as well as enhancing their graduate careers.
Learning outcomes and learning, teaching and assessment methods
On successful completion of the programme a graduate should demonstrate knowledge and skills as follows:
A: Knowledge and understanding
A1: A range of literature, from the early modern period to present-day, including knowledge of a variety of genres (poetry, fiction, and drama) and national literatures
A2: A range of approaches to creative writing as practiced across a range of genres
A3: Some major figures in the field, and the major literary tendencies or movements covered by the degree scheme
A4: The relationship between literature and culture and an awareness of the writer's role in creating cultural change
A5: The key approaches to creative work
A6: The basic methods of critical analysis and research
A7: The basic functions of audience and marketplace as constraints on writing
A8: Specialised study in the final year in areas students have identified as being of particular interest
Learning methods
1-8 are acquired through lectures, classes, workshops and continuously assessed coursework (with regular feedback, both oral and written, from tutors and peers).
Classes focus on textual examples, and give emphasis to student discussion and/ or presentation, preparing their argumentative skills for formal assessment.
Workshops focus on writing exercises, oral presentation and peer review.
In Year 3 options will focus on specific approaches to writing including genre specialisms, enabling students to pursue more individual interests.
In addition, students are expected to extend and enhance the knowledge and understanding of writing they acquire from classes by independent research(6).
Assessment methods
Formal assessment of students' skills, knowledge and understanding (1-8) takes place through coursework essays, writing assignments, portfolios, group projects, critical commentaries and unseen written examinations.
B: Intellectual and cognitive skills
B1: Show an ability to engage in the practice of creative composition and critical writing
B2: Show an ability to reflect critically on their own work and that of others
B3: Read complex texts and comment cogently on them
B4: Reason critically and argue coherently
B5: Make and account for connections between texts and their contexts
Learning methods
Intellectual and cognitive skills are initiated through lectures, classes and workshops in Year I and II, as well as one-to-one tutorials where appropriate.
The seminar- based work of Year III, like that of Years I and II, encourages critical discussion arising from the analysis and interpretation of set texts and student writing with an emphasis on being able to reason cogently, argue coherently and present one's own viewpoint persuasively.
Year III students are guided towards the acquisition of a reflective understanding of their own writing, and the critical positions they and others employ.
This is done through in situ feedback (formally and informally, as appropriate) in oral and written presentations, group based critical discussions and the analysis and interpretation of texts and student writing.
Assessment methods
Assessment is by coursework essays, writing assignments, portfolios, group projects, critical commentaries and unseen written examinations.
C: Practical skills
C1: A vocabulary and a critical and analytical terminology for the analysis of writing
C2: An ability to write in a variety of styles and genres
C3: A capacity for working independently and under guidance
C4: Critical analysis of their own work to develop creative writing skills through a number of drafts
C5: The use of accepted conventions of presenting manuscripts, references and bibliographies
C6: The utilisation in creative writing of a knowledge of literary and generic conventions
C7: An effective style or range of styles to convey a range of responses as readers of literary texts
Learning methods
Practical writing skills are developed through practice in workshops, group activities and the development of writing skills through peer review and reflective practice and research.
Assessment methods
Assessment is by coursework essays, writing assignments, portfolios, group projects, critical commentaries and unseen written examinations.
Students can apply to be assessed on an Independent Creative Writing Project in the third year in lieu of a taught module.
There is a presentation element to the project which constitutes of 20% of the final mark.
This could include a portfolio of creative work.
D: Key skills
D1: Clear, focused, relevant and effective written expression and oral communication
D2: Use appropriate IT to research and present materials.
D3: Basic numeracy as part of the employability aspects of the degree
D4: Management of projects and timetables. Finding, understanding, organising and creatively processing information.
D5: Ability to "read" an argument in seminar discussion; ability to engage in "workshopping"; ability to engage in collaborative writing and editing activities ability to respond effectively; ability to work in a variety of group contexts.
D6: Receptivity to feedback in class and in the form of written comments on coursework and oral communications.
Learning methods
The six relevant key skills are implicit throughout the degree, and are supported in their development by seminar work, feedback on essays, and key skills packages.
Assessment methods
Key skills are assessed through coursework and dissertations and through the participation mark (D5).