Creative Writing MFA

Some of our departmental graduates have achieved notable successes, having published short stories and novels which were started as part of their degree and attracted good literary agents, for example:

• Oyinkan Braithwaite's novel, My Sister the Serial Killer, reviewed by The New Yorker and BBC Radio 4's Open Book and Front Row, has won the Crime and Thriller book of the year at the British Book Awards; Oyinkan is the first black woman to do so.
• Grainne Murphy has recently signed a two-book deal with Legend Press. Her debut novel, Where the Edge Is, was published in September 2020, with The Ghostlights published in 2021.
• Ben Halls' debut The Quarry was book of the day in The Guardian in March 2020.
• Amy Clarke has signed a two-book deal. Like Clockwork is a psychological suspense novel about a true-crime podcast host who is obsessively trying to solve the decades-old cold case of a notorious Minnesotan serial killer whose victims were each one year younger than the last. It was published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, with a second book to follow.
• A story Seraphina Madsen wrote for the MA Critical Challenges module was published in the UK's pre-eminent literary journal, The White Review, and secured her an agent and a book deal.
• Stevan Alcock is another MA student whose debut novel – workshopped on our MA – was published by 4th Estate.
• Hannah Vincent is a former MFA student with novels out with Myriad Editions and Salt.
• Myriad Editions also run a writing competition each year aimed at finding new writers, with MFA student Karly Stilling winning in 2015. This year the award was won by another current Kingston student, Sylvia Carr. Former MA (now PhD student) Joseph Pierson was a recent runner up.
• Julia Lewis is a former MFA student and experimental poet who has gone on to publish a wide range of work. She also rewrote MA tutor James Miller's novel Lost Boys as a collection of experimental poetry.
• Stefan Mohamed won the Dylan Thomas Prize and has gone to have a successful career as a writer of YA fiction.
• MA student Vicky Newham signed a two book deal for her crime series. Vicky is on the Daggers longlist for the best crime novel by a first-time author.
• Faiqa Mansab published her debut novel This House of Clay and Water in Pakistan and India to great acclaim and it has been optioned by the talented Sheherzade Sheikh for screen adaptation.
• Other successes include Susie Lynes and Lauren Forry.
• Other former students have gone on to work in editorial posts in the publishing industry.

All successful applicants who take up their place with us in September will be entered into our competition to have a consultation with Annabel White, an agent at top London literary agency Curtis Brown.

So make sure the creative work you submit with your application is your very best – it might win you a meeting with a literary agent.

When not attending timetabled sessions, you will be expected to continue learning independently through self-study. This typically involves reading and analysing articles, regulations, policy documents and key texts, documenting individual projects and preparing coursework assignments.

Your independent learning is supported by a range of excellent facilities including online resources, the library and CANVAS, the University's online virtual learning platform.

At Kingston University, we know that postgraduate students have particular needs and therefore we have a range of support available to help you during your time here.

A course is made up of modules, and each module is worth a number of credits. You must pass a given number of credits in order to achieve the award you registered on, for example 360 credits for a typical undergraduate course or 180 credits for a typical postgraduate course. The number of credits you need for your award is detailed in the programme specification which you can access from the link at the bottom of this page.

One credit equates to 10 hours of study. Therefore 180 credits across a year (typical for a postgraduate course) would equate to 1,800 notional hours. These hours are split into scheduled and guided. On this course, the percentage of that time that will be scheduled learning and teaching activities is shown below. The remainder is made up of guided independent study.

• 7% scheduled learning and teaching

The exact balance between scheduled learning and teaching and guided independent study will be informed by the modules you take.

Your course will primarily be delivered in person. It may include delivery of some activities online, either in real time or recorded.

Assessment typically comprises exams (e.g. test or exam), practical (e.g. presentations, performance) and coursework (e.g. essays, reports, self-assessment, portfolios, dissertation).

The approximate percentage for how you will be assessed on this course is as follows, though depends to some extent on the optional modules you choose:

• Year 1: Coursework 100%

The MFA dissertation is a 45,000-word creative project plus a 4,500-word critical essay.

We aim to provide feedback on assessments within 20 working days.

The Inspire the Future Scholarship offers a 40% reduction in fees for taught masters or postgraduate diploma courses with September start dates. 20 scholarships are available for progressing Kingston University graduates.

For more information on how to apply for this scholarship, visit the Inspire the Future Scholarship page.

International postgraduate students could receive up to £5,000 towards tuition in their first year of study.

For more information on how to apply for these scholarships, visit the International Scholarship page.

If you are a Kingston University undergraduate student progressing to a postgraduate degree (taught or research), you could get a 15% reduction in tuition fees.

For more information on how to apply for this scholarship, visit the Postgraduate Progression Scholarship page.

Kingston University offers a 10% discount on full and part-time postgraduate degree course tuition fees to our alumni. 

For more information on how to apply for this discount, visit our alumni discount page.

Our libraries have an extensive collection of books and journals, as well as open-access computers and laptops available to rent. However, you may want to buy your own computer or personal copies of key textbooks. Textbooks may range from £50 to £250 per year. And a personal computer can range from £100 to £3,000 depending on your course requirements.

While most coursework is submitted online, some modules may require printed copies. You may want to allocate up to £100 per year for hard-copies of your coursework. It’s worth noting that 3D printing is never compulsory. So if you choose to use our 3D printers, you’ll need to pay for the material. This ranges from 3p per gram to 40p per gram.

Kingston University will pay for all compulsory field trips. Fees for optional trips can range from £30 to £350 per trip.

Your tuition fees don’t cover travel costs. To save on travel costs, you can use our intersite bus service. This route links the campuses and halls of residence with local train stations - Surbiton, Kingston upon Thames, and Norbiton.