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Creative Critical Writing MPhil/PhD

London, Bloomsbury

This is the programme information for 2025 entry

If you require details of the previous year's programme, Creative Critical Writing MPhil/PhD (2024), click here

UK students International students

Study mode

UK tuition fees (2025/26)

£6,215

£3,105

Overseas tuition fees (2025/26)

£29,800

£14,900

Duration

3 calendar years

5 calendar years

Programme starts

October 2025

February 2026

May 2026

Applications accepted

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis but should be submitted at least three months prior to your preferred start date.

Apply for this course

Entry requirements

A minimum of an upper second-class UK Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard and usually Master's degree with Merit in a relevant field. In the first instance, candidates should establish a dialogue with a potential supervisor before making a formal application. Admission is normally dependent on the submission of a detailed research project proposal.

The English language level for this programme is: Level 4

UCL Pre-Master's and Pre-sessional English courses are for international students who are aiming to study for a postgraduate degree at UCL. The courses will develop your academic English and academic skills required to succeed at postgraduate level.

Further information can be found on our English language requirements page.

Equivalent qualifications

Country-specific information, including details of when UCL representatives are visiting your part of the world, can be obtained from the International Students website.

International applicants can find out the equivalent qualification for their country by selecting from the list below. Please note that the equivalency will correspond to the broad UK degree classification stated on this page (e.g. upper second-class). Where a specific overall percentage is required in the UK qualification, the international equivalency will be higher than that stated below. Please contact Graduate Admissions should you require further advice.

About this degree

Research students can specialise in any aspect of arts and humanities research for which suitable supervision is available. Potential supervisors' disciplinary perspectives are drawn from language departments including the School of European Languages, Culture & Society, the School of Slavonic & East European Studies, Greek & Latin, Hebrew & Jewish Studies, from the CMII Comparative Literature programmes, Film and Gender Studies, Health Humanities, and from other disciplines and departments across UCL, including expertise in the Slade School of Fine Art, the School of Creative and Cultural Industries, and the Creative Arts and Humanities programmes based at UCL East. Creative critical researchers of all disciplines meet through ARIEL: UCL’s Centre for Creative Practice Research based at the Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS).

Who this course is for

This programme is for applicants with a background or interest in creative critical research. It is suitable for both recent Masters graduates as well as early or mid-career professionals. This MPhil/PhD is for applicants who want to do multi-disciplinary research, who may have completed post-graduate training or study and want to develop an advanced critical analysis in a specific research area.

Read about what it takes to become a UCL graduate research student

What this course will give you

The Creative Critical Writing programme draws on the collective expertise of specialists in UCL Arts & Humanities. We are especially interested in innovative research methods and in proposals that articulate and examine new developments in the intersection of critical thinking and artistic practice. SELCS-CMII offers two Creative Critical Research-Degree Routes: Creative Critical Writing is for students wishing to conduct a creative critical programme of research resulting in a written Thesis, and Creative Critical Inquiry (Practice-Related) is for students wishing to conduct a creative critical programme of research based on and resulting in other creative practices than writing. Training programmes are designed on an individual basis by the student's supervisory team, and generally involve participation in activities offered by the department of the primary supervisor. Students also take advantage of training provided by the UCL Doctoral School and our departmental research student seminars.

Students on the Creative Critical Writing programme are expected to produce a critical analysis and interpretation of an artistic, cultural or literary work or phenomenon. While the definition of these terms is deliberately open-ended, prospective candidates are asked to note that this is not a degree in Creative Writing and it is not expected that doctoral theses on this programme will take the form of a novel, poetry collection or play. The programme aims to foster work that combines critical acumen with an attentiveness to narrative style and figuration. We take inspiration from writer-thinkers such as Roland Barthes, Walter Benjamin, Kate Briggs, Anne Carson, Hélène Cixous, Teju Cole, Jacques Derrida, Saidiya Hartman, Susan Howe, and Maggie Nelson, among others.

Find out how your research could have an impact

The foundation of your career

PhD students may go on to academic careers in higher education or careers in research, in publishing or in creative writing and other creative industries. Graduates should be well placed to use their language, writing, creative thinking, and communication skills in a range of different fields and industries such as translation, consultancy, teaching, marketing, international NGO’s, charities, the arts and heritage.

Recent research degree graduates from SELCS-CMII, have also gone on to work in sectors such as: health and social care; policy and government; accountancy and financial services, teaching and other educational activities.*

*Graduate Outcomes Survey carried out by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), looking at the destinations of UK and EU graduates in the 2017 - 2022 cohorts.

Employability

Skills acquired as a result of taking this programme include: ability to conduct research in library archives and electronic archives; ability to synthesise and summarise large amounts of information; ability to use evidence in order to construct a convincing argument; ability to produce and reflect on creative practices and research methods; acquisition of sensitivity to the cultural register of texts and other creative practices; ability to plan workloads efficiently and meet deadlines.

Doctoral students develop a range of skills that are invaluable in academia and in numerous other fields where PhD holders are prized for their skills in communication, critical analysis, creative practices, management of projects and intercultural mediation.

Networking

Supervision and mentorship is available from world-leading researchers with international and national contacts and collaborations across policy, government, cultural institutions, academia and industry. With 83% of SELCS-CMII research activity being graded 4* ‘world leading’ and 3* ‘internationally excellent’ in the REF 2021.

There are many opportunities for networking whilst undertaking this programme, with cultural institutions such as the British Museum, research organisations such as the British Library and cultural organisations, such as the Cervantes Institute or the Goethe Institute. Research hubs at UCL (IAS or the SAS) also offer networking opportunities.

Students are strongly encouraged to attend and give papers at conferences, establishing contacts with academics and also peers working in their field.

Teaching and learning

Research students undertake relevant induction sessions and can take advantage of the Doctoral Skills Development Programme. PhD students meet regularly in term time with their supervisors and may be offered opportunities to gain valuable teaching experience and participate in reading groups and conferences.

Students are normally required to make a presentation on their plans to the departmental staff in the summer of their first year. All UCL research students have to submit a substantial report and defend their research plans in an Upgrade Exam in order to transfer from MPhil to PhD registration status, normally within 9 to 18 months of first enrolment.

The maximum length of the PhD thesis is 100,000 words. The ideal length of a PhD thesis in Comparative Literature is 80,000 words.

To successfully upgrade to a PhD you are required to submit a piece of writing (this is usually based on one chapter from your thesis and a chapter plan for the remainder). You are also required to present and answer questions about this work to a panel consisting of your subsidiary supervisor and another member of the Faculty who acts as an independent assessor.

PhD students should treat their research programme as a full-time job, which equates roughly to 35 hours per week, or 15 hours for part-time students. Students agree to a timetable of regular meetings with the Principal Supervisor to effectively manage the progression of project aims. This is flexible, at some points it may be necessary to meet more or less often. Full-time students can expect to meet supervisors at least once a month during the academic year, and part-time students every 2 months. If a student has external funding, they should also ensure they meet the Terms & Conditions of the funder.

Research areas and structure

Research environment

Research students are encouraged to participate in research seminars across and outside SELCS-CMII including networks such as the London Intercollegiate Network for Comparative Studies. Students contribute significantly to the research environment through the organisation of annual conferences, and participation in seminars and online journals. Students can access special collections in Modern Languages, Culture and History at UCL and other world-class libraries (the Senate House Library, the British Library, the Warburg Institute) within walking distance of campus. In addition, students will have access to research support in the form of academic skills courses, student-led workshops and reading groups.

In the first instance, candidates should establish a dialogue with a potential supervisor before making a formal application. The length of registration for the research degree programme is usually three years for full-time and five years for part-time. You are required to register initially for the MPhil degree with the expectation of transfer to PhD after successful completion of an upgrade exam 9-12 months after initial registration. Upon successful completion of your approved period of registration you may register as a completing research student (CRS) while you write up and complete your thesis.

In the First Year, you will be required to take part in a mandatory Skills Seminar Programme. You are expected to agree with your supervisor the basic structure of your research project, an appropriate research method and a realistic plan of work. You will produce and submit a detailed outline of your proposed research to your supervisor for their comments and feedback and be given the opportunity to present your research to UCL academic staff and fellow PhD students.

In the Second Year, you will be expected to upgrade from MPhil to a PhD. To successfully upgrade to a PhD, you are required to submit a piece of writing (this is usually based on one chapter from your thesis and a chapter plan for the remainder) in addition to an example of a practice-related research outcome if registered on the practice-related route.

For practice-related projects, the precise weighting of written to practice-led or practice-based submissions is to be agreed with the supervisor, but should be in line with the Learning and Assessment aims of this programme. You are also required to present and answer questions about this work to a panel consisting of your subsidiary supervisor and another member of the Faculty who acts as an independent assessor.

The length of registration for the research degree programme is usually three years for full-time and five years for part-time. You are required to register initially for the MPhil degree with the expectation of transfer to PhD after successful completion of an upgrade exam 9-18 months after initial registration.

Placement

There is no compulsory placement in this programme, but we encourage students to apply to the Yale-UCL exchange programme that offers students the opportunity to pursue their studies for one term at Yale University.

Accessibility

Details of the accessibility of UCL buildings can be obtained from AccessAble. Further information can also be obtained from the UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services team.

Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students

Fee description	Full-time	Part-time
Tuition fees (2025/26)	£6,215	£3,105
Tuition fees (2025/26)	£29,800	£14,900

Additional costs

Additional costs may include expenses such as books, stationery, printing or photocopying, and conference registration fees.

Students receive a free printing allowance each year and pay for any additional printing (see details). You should expect to face additional expenses if you attend external conferences. The cost depends on the location, exchange rates, and the price of travel and accommodation, but this may be between £200 and £500 per event, based on typical events and destinations attended by recent students. Current research students are welcome to apply for SELCS-CMII funding for training workshops or international conferences in advance of the activity. This may be for part or all of the costs and is assessed on a case-by-case basis.

The department strives to keep additional costs low. Books and journal articles are usually available via the UCL library (hard copies or via e-journal subscriptions).

The wealth of departmental seminars / colloquiums / symposiums and student organised work in progress sessions give ample opportunities to present research, receive feedback and participate in discussion.

For students who take part in the Yale-UCL Student Exchange, expenses will be the personal responsibility of the Exchange participant. There are a limited number of Yale-UCL Bursaries available, otherwise participants will need to cover travel and living costs themselves. Further information on additional costs and eligibility can be found online.

UCL’s main teaching locations are in zones 1 (Bloomsbury) and zones 2/3 (UCL East). The cost of a monthly 18+ Oyster travel card for zones 1-2 is £114.50. This price was published by TfL in 2024. For more information on additional costs for prospective students and the cost of living in London, please view our estimated cost of essential expenditure at UCL's cost of living guide.

Funding your studies

Depending on eligibility students can apply for a fully funded LAHP studentship. For information about available funding and scholarships please visit our Funding and Scholarships webpage.

For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.

See all the ways you can fund your studies

Next steps

All applicants must identify and contact potential supervisors before making their application. For more information see our 'Need to Know' page.

Please note that you may submit applications for a maximum of two graduate programmes (or one application for the Law LLM) in any application cycle.

This programme requires two references. Further information regarding references can be found on this Selecting your references page.

Choose your programme

Please read the Application Guidance before proceeding with your application.