Overview

By the end of The Playwriting course offered at The University of Manchester, you will have developed at least one full-length stage play, a collection of one-act dramas, a full-length festival play and at least one play that adapts elements of a classic text to engage with a contemporary context.

You will study a diverse range of new and historical works, including historical plays that have brought about innovations in dramatic form and structure, as well as new writing staged in Britain and further afield in recent years.

In the second semester, you'll turn to industry-oriented study, focusing on developing new pieces for festival contexts, and on the skills and resiliencies needed to sustain a living in playwriting.

There will be an industry day based at our studio theatre on campus, with talks from directors, agents, producers, publishers, literary officers and writers.

Career opportunities

The course aims to prepare students for a successful career in playwriting and writing for performance.

You will graduate with a strong sense of your emerging signature as a writer, and also with an ability to write across a range of genres and contexts and in response to specific commissions.

The industry focus of the programme ensures that you will be equipped with the practical know-how to manage your career as a writer, and the ability to pitch your own initiatives, as well as work both as an individual writer and collaboratively with others.

Additional possible career trajectories include work as literary officers and agents, and within publishing, art journalism, dramaturgy and producing.

Programme Structure

Courses included:

Dissertation (Playwriting)

Playwriting: Forms

Playwriting: Structures

The Festival Play

Plays, Politics and Power: The Working Playwright

Key information

Duration

Full-time
- 12 months

Start dates & application deadlines

Starting 2026-09-29 00:00:00
- Apply before 2026-08-28 00:00:00

Language

English

TOEFL^® IBT

100

Schedule TOEFL®

IELTS

7

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Credits

180 alternative credits

Delivered

On Campus

Campus Location

Manchester, United Kingdom

Disciplines

Creative Writing View 191 other Masters in Creative Writing in United Kingdom

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Academic requirements

GPA

Upper Second Class

English requirements

TOEFL^® IBT

100

Schedule TOEFL®

IELTS

7

Prepare for Your English Test

Cathoven AI IELTS Preparation

Learn your IELTS Score

AI-powered IELTS feedback. Clear, actionable, and tailored to boost your writing & speaking score. No credit card or upfront payment required.

Trusted by 300k learners
98 accuracy using real exam data
4.9/5 student rating

Other requirements

General requirements

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

Tuition Fees

Tuition fees are shown in and the most likely applicable fee is shown based on your nationality.

International Applies to you

Applies to you

Non-residents

28500 GBP / year

≈ 28500 GBP / year
Domestic Applies to you

Applies to you

Citizens or residents

14000 GBP / year

≈ 14000 GBP / year

Living costs

Manchester

United Kingdom

645 - 1197 GBP / month

The living costs include the total expenses per month, covering accommodation, public transportation, utilities (electricity, internet), books and groceries.

Funding

Win a €10000 Scholarship! Deadline: 30 June 2020

Embark on your journey with the Studyportals Scholarship! We're giving away a total of 20,000 euros to help you achieve your dream of studying abroad.

Win a €10000 Scholarship! Deadline: 30 June 2020

Embark on your journey with the Studyportals Scholarship! We're giving away a total of 20,000 euros to help you achieve your dream of studying abroad.

In order for us to give you accurate scholarship information, we ask that you please confirm a few details and create an account with us.

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Scholarships Information

Below you will find Master's scholarship opportunities for Playwriting.

Available Scholarships

You are eligible to apply for these scholarships but a selection process will still be applied by the provider.

On this page

About

Overview

Career opportunities

Programme Structure

Key information

Duration

Start dates & application deadlines

Language

Prepare for Your English Test

Credits

Delivered

Campus Location

Disciplines

What students do after studying

Academic requirements

English requirements

Prepare for Your English Test

Other requirements

General requirements

Tuition Fees

International Applies to you

Domestic Applies to you

Living costs

Manchester

Funding

Scholarships Information

Available Scholarships

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