MA Creative Writing: Playwriting

We anticipate that many of the graduates of this course will go on to forge successful careers as professional playwrights. Other typical career paths following graduation include writer, director, actor, producer, literary development and script editing, theatre administration and marketing, positions in the scriptwriting industry, and teaching.

Career Prospects

Graduates of in-house playwriting courses at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse and Octagon Theatre Bolton have gone to work as leading professional playwrights and work in other roles in the theatre, writing and arts industries. The Royal Exchange Theatre runs the UK's biggest playwriting award, The Bruntwood Prize, which has begun the careers of many emerging playwrights, while the Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse runs the Everyword Festival of new writing, and the Octagon Theatre Bolton has twice been awarded the Writers Guild Award for the Encouragement of New Writing. A number of graduates of the undergraduate Playwriting module at the University of Salford have gone on to professional experience and work as playwrights, writers, theatre producers, directors, actors, in theatre administration, for the BBC and in teaching.

Alumni Profile

The undergraduate Playwriting module at the University of Salford has quickly led to alumni success - Kate Warburton completed the undergraduate Playwriting module at the University of Salford and fought off undergraduate and postgraduate competition to become one of the seven finalists for the BBC Future Talent Award; Matt Britton, Damian Healy, Sheryl Cunliffe, Somayya Mirza, Sophie Moss and Adam Whittaker were the six winners of the “Write by the Quays” talent search with BBC Writersroom North; Damian Healy and Jonathan McHugh secured places on the Octagon Theatre Bolton’s mini-Incubate young writers attachment programme; James French and Andrew Forsyth secured placements at the Royal Exchange Theatre and Andrew has gone on to work professionally in theatre administration. Alumni of Royal Exchange, Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse and Octagon courses and awards include many of the UK's leading professional playwrights such as Lizzie Nunnery (Susan Smith Blackburn Award finalist), Janice Okoh (Bruntwood Prize winner), Ben Musgrave (Brian Way Award finalist), Duncan Macmillan (BBC; Paines Plough), Vivienne Franzmann (George Devine Award, Royal Court Theatre). It is anticipated alumni of the MA in Creative Writing: Playwriting will go on to forge successful careers in the theatre, writing and arts industries.

Industry Links

50% of the course will be taught by and at three of the UK’s leading theatres – the Royal Exchange Theatre Manchester, Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse and Octagon Theatre Bolton. Over the duration of the course, you will therefore have the opportunity to spend a significant amount of time at all three theatres and will learn from staff based at all three theatres. You will also have the opportunity to work with other industry guests over the duration of the course. The course is also supported by The Playwriting Network whose members include the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Contact Theate Manchester and BBC Writersroom North.

Further Study

PhD Creative Writing