Education and English and Creative Writing

Education and English with creative writing is a combination that prepares you both as a scholarly and creative engager with language and literature and as someone with a serious understanding of how learning and education work. Education as a discipline examines the theories and practices of teaching and learning, the policy frameworks that shape schooling, and the social and developmental contexts in which education takes place. English with creative writing develops your ability to read and interpret literary texts with critical intelligence while also cultivating your own creative writing voice and craft.

The combination is particularly powerful for those who wish to teach, since it grounds the content of English teaching in genuine scholarly and creative engagement.

At the University of Strathclyde, this four-year full-time programme takes an innovative, modern, and collaborative approach to English and creative writing, giving you a comprehensive understanding of English literature as a core basis for creative work, with the opportunity to work alongside award-winning scholars and creative writers. The education component grounds your literary and creative development in an understanding of how people learn, how curriculum is designed, and what effective teaching looks like. You will engage with the theory of education, the psychology of learning, and the practical dimensions of schooling, developing the broader professional awareness that a career in education requires.

Graduates of education and English with creative writing programmes are particularly well placed for careers in secondary school English teaching, where the combination of literary knowledge, creative practice, and educational understanding is directly applicable. Teaching in Scotland follows a distinct route, and the Strathclyde programme provides excellent preparation for the subsequent professional teacher training that leads to registration with the General Teaching Council for Scotland. Beyond school teaching, graduates pursue careers in educational publishing, literacy organisations, library services, community education, adult learning, arts education, and writing for young audiences.

Postgraduate study in education, creative writing, or English literature is available for those who wish to specialise further.