manchester creative writing phd

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PhD Creative Writing / Application and selection

Year of entry: 2024

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How to apply

Apply online

Please ensure you include all  required supporting documents at the time of submission, as incomplete applications may not be considered. 

Application Deadlines 

For consideration in internal funding competitions, you must submit your completed application by  12 January 2024. 

If you are applying for or have secured external funding (for example, from an employer or government) or are self–funding, you must submit your application before the below deadlines to be considered. You will not be able to apply after these dates have passed. 

• For September 2024 entry:  30 June 2024 
• For January 2025 entry:  30 September 2024 

Advice to applicants

Before you start your application, you should: 

• Develop your own research proposal and project title. 
• Find a supervisor by browsing our academics’ profiles, and reach out directly to discuss if they are interested in supporting your research. 
• Consider how you plan on funding your research and discuss this with your supervisor.

When you submit your application, you must include each of the below required documents: 

• A 1,500 word PhD research proposal
• Copies of the academic transcript and certificate from both your Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees. If your Master’s degree is pending, please provide an interim transcript. 
• An up to date academic CV, detailing your education and qualifications; employment history; publications; and any other relevant information. 
• You must nominate two academic referees (including one from your most recent institution). Your referees will be contacted directly via the Referee Portal following submission of your application form. You may wish to contact your referees to request they submit your reference in a reasonable timeframe as this forms part of the review process. 
• International applicants must additionally provide English Language evidence (e.g IELTS). 
• After you submit your application, we will request writing sample. This should be a creative piece (for example, 2 chapters of prose; 3 – 4 pieces of poetry).

Interview requirements

As part of the offer making process applicants will be required to undertake an interview assessment. This may be in the form of an in–person interview, or video call. 

 The interview is designed to assess your knowledge and understanding of the broad topic area, the viability of your proposed research and its intellectual contribution, alongside the fit of your project with the supervisory team. You also may be asked to identify and address any potential ethical considerations in relation to your proposed research, and discuss how best to progress your ideas in line with University of Manchester ethics guidance.

The interview panel will consist at minimum of your primary supervisor and an independent interviewer. 

Re-applications

If you applied in the previous year and your application was not successful, you may apply again. Your application will be considered against the standard programme entry criteria for that year of entry. 

In your new application you should demonstrate how your application has improved. We may draw upon all information from your previous applications or any previous registrations at the University as a student when assessing your suitability for your chosen programme. 

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Creative Writing

Entry requirements.

• A Bachelors (Honours) degree at 2:1 level or above (or its international equivalent) in a related subject; and
• A UK Master's degree with an overall Distinction classification (or its international equivalent) in a related subject
• Any strong relevant professional experience will be considered on a case by case basis.

Months of entry

January, September

Course content

Our PhD Creative Writing programme gives you the opportunity to work on a significant piece of creative writing while developing your research skills.

You will benefit from creative supervision by an experienced poet or fiction writer and draw on the range of expertise within the University to find a supervisor for your critical element.

There are two elements to the programme. The first is a creative element that can be a novel or a collection of short stories of up to 100,000 words, or a book-length collection of poetry of up to 60 poems.

The PhD also has a critical element, which is a piece of literary or cultural criticism of 30,000 to 50,000 words maximum.

Qualification, course duration and attendance options

• Campus-based learning is available for this qualification

Course contact details

School of Arts, Languages and Cultures

Meet the people that make up our English Literature and Creative Writing department.

Head of English, American Studies and Creative Writing

• Prof. Ian Scott - Professor of American Film and History

Head of English Literature

• Prof. David Matthews  - Professor of Medieval and Medievalism Studies

Staff 

• Dr Lubaaba Al-Azami, Lecturer in Shakespeare and Early Modern Literature.
• Prof. David Alderson  - Professor in English Literature
• Dr Jason Allen-Paisant  - Senior Lecturer in Critical Theory and Creative Writing
• Dr Naomi Baker - Senior Lecturer in Renaissance Literature
• Dr Anke Bernau - Senior Lecturer in Medieval Literature and Culture
• Dr Howard Booth - Senior Lecturer in English Literature
• Dr Luke Brown - Lecturer in Creative Writing
• Prof. Daniela Caselli - Professor of Modern Literature
• Dr Maria Christou - Lecturer in Modern and Contemporary Literature
• Mr Horatio Clare  - Lecturer in Creative Writing
• Dr Clara Dawson  - Senior Lecturer in Victorian Literature
• Prof. Jerome De Groot - Professor of English Literature and Culture
• Dr Noelle Dückmann Gallagher - Senior Lecturer in 18th Century Literature and Culture
• Dr Gareth Gavin  - Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing
• Ms Vona Groarke - Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing
• Dr Ingrid Hanson - Lecturer in English Literature
• Prof. Ben Harker - Professor in 20th Century Literature
• Prof. Liam Harte - Professor of Irish Literature
• Mr Jonathan Hourigan - Lecturer in Screenwriting
• Ms Frances Leviston - Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing
• Prof. John McAuliffe - Professor of Modern Literature and Creative Writing and Director of Creative Manchester
• Prof. Ian McGuire - Professor in Creative Writing
• Dr James Metcalf -  Lecturer in Eighteenth-Century English Literature
• Dr Kaye Mitchell - Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Literature and co-director of the Centre for New Writing
• Dr Ben Nichols - Lecturer in Gender And Sexuality Studies
• Dr James Paz - Senior Lecturer in Early Medieval Literature
• Mr Tim Price - Senior Lecturer in Screenwriting
• Dr Alan Rawes - Senior Lecturer in Romanticism
• Dr Gillian Redfern, Lecturer in Medieval English
• Dr John Roache - Lecturer in Modern and Contemporary Literatures in English
• Prof. Michael Sanders - Professor in 19th Century Writing
• Prof. Michael Schmidt - Professor of Creative Writing
• Dr Fred Schurink  - Senior Lecturer in Early Modern Literature
• Prof. Kamila Shamsie - Professor of Creative Writing
• Dr Robert Spencer  - Senior Lecturer in Postcolonial Literature and Culture
• Prof. Jacqueline Stacey - Professor of Media and Cultural Studies
• Dr Joanna Taylor - Lecturer in Nineteenth-Century Literature and Digital Humanities
• Ms Beth Underdown - Lecturer in Creative Writing
• Dr Anastasia Valassopoulos - Senior Lecturer in World Literatures
• Dr Chris Vardy, Lecturer in English Literature
• Dr Sundhya Walther - Lecturer in World Literatures in English
• Prof. Jeanette Winterson - Professor of Creative Writing

Honorary and Associate staff

• Dr Burcu Alkan - Honorary Research Fellow
• Dr Letizia Alterno - Honorary Research Fellow
• Dr Iain Bailey - Honorary Research Fellow
• Dr William Hutchings - Honorary Research Fellow
• Maxine Peake - Honorary Professor of Literature and Performance
• Dr Alexander Rumble - Honorary Research Fellow

Emeritus staff

• Prof. Laura Doan  - Professor of Cultural History and Sexuality Studies
• Prof. Patricia Duncker - Emeritus Professor of Contemporary Writing
• Prof. Hal Gladfelder  - Professor of English and Comparative Literature
• Prof. Gale Owen-Crocker - Emeritus Professor of Anglo-Saxon Culture
• Prof. Jacqueline Pearson - Emeritus Professor of English Literature
• Prof. Janet Wolff - Emeritus Professor of Cultural Sociology

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• Undergraduate Courses
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• Research Degrees in English and Creative Writing
• Centre for Creative Writing, English Literature and Linguistics
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• Place Writing

Department of English » Research » Research Degrees in English and Creative Writing

Research Degrees

The Department of English is engaged in a dynamic expansion of its postgraduate programmes.

• Creative Writing PhD
• Distance Learning PhD Programmes

Our staff offer supervision in the following closely interrelated areas of expertise:

Literary Periods:

• Renaissance Writing
• Eighteenth-Century - Nineteenth-Century Literature
• 20 th  Century & Contemporary Fiction & Biography
• Contemporary Poetry & Experimental Writing

Specialist Research Areas:

• Children’s Literature
• Contemporary Critical Theory & Culture
• Film & Screen Studies
• Literary Geography and Place Writing
• Gothic Studies (including contemporary gothic and horror cinema/fiction)
• Medical Humanities:, bioethics and dementia
• Postcolonial & Diaspora Studies, Irish Studies, Black British Writing
• Queer / LGBTI Cultures
• Theatre Studies
• Trauma Theory & Memory Studies
• Women’s Writing

Creative Writing:

More about Creative Writing PhD

Before applying for a research degree, applicants should have a preliminary discussion with a member of staff to discuss a proposed research project. To arrange this please contact Dr Andrew Moor , English Research Degrees Coordinator.

For further information on the application process, contact the Faculty Research Degrees Administrator:  [email protected]  - 0161 247 5412

More about research degrees and how to apply  

Research degrees are available to study on-campus or through distance learning.

How to apply for a distance learning PhD

Research Excellence Framework 2014

In the Research Excellence Framework 2014, the English subject group was ranked 30th out of 89 departments in the UK with 78% of our research activities and outputs judged to be world leading (4*) and internationally excellent (3*). The social and cultural impact of our research was rated 8th in the UK, with 100% of our activities in this area judged to be 4* (63.3%) and 3* (36.7%). 

Read more our REF 2014 Results

Centre for Research in English, Languages and Linguistics

On registration, all new research students in English become affiliate members of The Centre for research in English, Languages and Linguistics (CELL), which was established in 2014 as part of the Faculty’s new Humanities Research Centre (HRC).

CELL currently comprises 50 research-active staff and over 25 research students across two sites working in the areas of literary studies, creative writing, film studies and aspects of cultural theory.

Creative Writing, English Literature and Linguistics

Manchester Writing School

Manchester Metropolitan University is home to the Manchester Writing School, one of the most successful literary centres running in the UK today. The School’s Creative Director is Professor Carol Ann Duffy DBE (UK Poet Laureate 2009-2019), and she teaches alongside a team of distinguished practising writers and critics.

More than 60 of our graduates have embarked upon publishing careers, launching first books, with many more achieving publication in journals and magazines, winning writing awards and prizes, and setting up small presses and anthologies. The School has a strong Manchester presence, with links to many of the city’s major cultural and arts organisations, and also a global reach with students and alumni based across the UK and continental Europe, and in the Americas, Africa, Asia and Australasia. The School hosts an ambitious suite of degree programmes and short courses, a vibrant series of public reading events, a leading programme of outreach activities, a major international writing competition and an annual festival of children’s literature.

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Course type

Qualification, university name, full time phd creative writing.

47 degrees at 40 universities in the UK.

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• Course title (A-Z)
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University of Hull

About our programmes English at Hull is friendly, inclusive and supportive, and characterised by the internationally excellent research Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree: £4,712 per year (UK)
• 5 years Part time degree: £2,356 per year (UK)

PhD in Creative Writing and English Literature

Manchester metropolitan university.

RESEARCH CULTURE We are a leading centre for the study of literature and culture. We host a large and vibrant community of renowned Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree: £4,850 per year (UK)
• 6 years Part time degree

English and Creative Writing PhD

University of gloucestershire.

What is History, Religion, Philosophy and Politics A research degree in the Humanities offers a multitude of opportunities, depending on Read more...

• 4 years Full time degree: £5,100 per year (UK)
• 6 years Part time degree: £3,400 per year (UK)

PhD English and Creative Writing

University of roehampton.

Research conducted in the School of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences covers a wide range of diverse and innovative arts practices, Read more...

• 4 years Full time degree: £4,711 per year (UK)
• 7 years Part time degree: £2,356 per year (UK)

PhD Postgraduate Research in Creative Writing

University of east anglia uea.

We are a top tier, research-led university and are committed to making a substantial impact on the global challenges facing society. Our Read more...

• 6 years Part time degree: £2,356 per year (UK)

Creative and Critical Writing PhD

Bangor university.

If you take this Creative and Critical Writing PhD or MPhil course you will experience One-to-one teaching and supervision by Read more...

• 2 years Full time degree: £4,712 per year (UK)

Creative Writing PhD

Bath spa university.

The PhD in Creative Writing combines a proposed manuscript (e.g. novel, short story collection, poems, playscript, narrative non-fiction, Read more...

• 24 months Full time degree: £7,325 per year (UK)

Aberystwyth University

PhD Creative Writing The English Department provides an excellent environment for postgraduate study, research, and creative work. The Read more...

Text, Practice and Research - PhD

University of kent.

This programme addresses one of our main aims at Kent, which is to enable research students to take risks and use cross-disciplinary Read more...

PhD Theatre Studies (Playwriting)

University of essex.

Theatre and Drama in the Department of Literature, Film and Theatre Studies is led by a vibrant group of playwrights and theatre Read more...

• 4 years Full time degree: £9,375 per year (UK)

Creative Writing PhD, MPhil

University of leicester.

PhD study in the area of Creative Writing is offered by the School of English at Leicester and this means becoming part of an exciting and Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree: £4,786 per year (UK)
• 6 years Part time degree: £2,393 per year (UK)

Creative Writing MPhil, PhD

Newcastle university.

Our MPhil, PhD in Creative Writing offers you the opportunity to develop a substantial, original piece of creative work and a related Read more...

• 36 months Full time degree: £4,712 per year (UK)
• 72 months Part time degree: £2,356 per year (UK)

University of Plymouth

Plymouth’s PhD in Creative Writing is one of the longest running in the UK, going back to the late 1990s. Our MA, and PhD students have had Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree: £4,500 per year (UK)
• 4 years Part time degree: £3,030 per year (UK)

PhD/ MPhil/ MRes Creative Writing

University of strathclyde.

As well as the popular MLitt in Creative Writing, we also offer a research-led Creative Writing route, which may suit those who wish to Read more...

University of Surrey

Why choose this programme We belong to the interdisciplinary School of Literature and Languages, which has research-active staff in Read more...

• 4 years Full time degree: £4,712 per year (UK)
• 8 years Part time degree: £2,356 per year (UK)

Contemporary Writing PhD

Brunel university london.

Research profile From modernist and post-war women's writing to Caribbean and migrant fiction, our research interests span a wide range of Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree

University of West London

A PhD in Creative Writing gives you the opportunity to develop an original piece of writing (for example a novel, play, screenplay, radio Read more...

• 4 years Full time degree: £3,995 per year (UK)
• 6 years Part time degree: £2,000 per year (UK)

Journalism, Communication & Creative Writing PhDs and MPhils

University of portsmouth.

If you're ready to take your expertise in Journalism, Communication and Creative Writing into a postgraduate research degree, Portsmouth is Read more...

Drama and Theatre Studies Practice-Based PhD (through Playwriting or Performance)

University of birmingham.

Our Drama and Theatre Studies Practice-Based programme allows academic research to be conducted through practical experimentation. It also Read more...

• 3 years Distance without attendance degree: £2,389 per year (UK)
• 3 years Full time degree: £4,778 per year (UK)

Creative Writing, PhD

Swansea university.

Swansea’s Creative Writing research programme offers a choice from a spectrum of skills and a research dialogue across genres, including Read more...

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Universities:.

• Cardiff University
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• University of Buckingham
• The University of Edinburgh
• University of Aberdeen
• King's College London, University of London
• University of Sussex
• University of Lincoln
• Anglia Ruskin University
• University of Manchester
• Keele University
• University of York
• University of Liverpool
• Lancaster University
• University of Hertfordshire
• University of Bristol
• Leeds Beckett University
• Goldsmiths, University of London
• University of Exeter
• University of Derby

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