Screenwriting
University of Portsmouth
UCAS Code: W810 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
112-120 points to include a minimum of 2 A levels. A relevant subject or experience in English/Creative Writing/Journalism/Media or Film Studies is required.
112-122 Tariff points from the Access to HE Diploma. A relevant subject or experience in English/Creative Writing/Journalism/Media or Film Studies is required.
Cambridge Pre-U score of 46-50. A relevant subject or experience in English/Creative Writing/Journalism/Media or Film Studies is required.
GCSE/National 4/National 5
3 GCSEs at grade C or above to include English/3 GCSEs at grade 4 or above to include English.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
25 points from the IB Diploma, to include 3 Higher Level subjects. A relevant subject or experience in English/Creative Writing/Journalism/Media or Film Studies is required.
Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)
H3,H3,H3,H3,H4-H3,H3,H3,H3,H3
A relevant subject or experience in English/Creative Writing/Journalism/Media or Film Studies is required.
Acceptable when combined with other qualifications.
Acceptable when combined with other qualifications.
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
A relevant subject or experience in English/Creative Writing/Journalism/Media or Film Studies is required.
112-120 Tariff points to include a minimum of 2 Advanced Highers. A relevant subject or experience in English/Creative Writing/Journalism/Media or Film Studies is required.
Acceptable when combined with other qualifications.
T Level
A relevant subject or experience in English/Creative Writing/Journalism/Media or Film Studies is required.
UCAS Tariff
112-120 points to include a minimum of 2 A levels, or equivalent. A relevant subject or experience in English/Creative Writing/Journalism/Media or Film Studies is required.
112-120 points from the Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate including 1 A level, plus the Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate. A relevant subject or experience in English/Creative Writing/Journalism/Media or Film Studies is required.
You may also need to…
Present a portfolio
About this course
This course has alternative study modes. Contact the university to find out how the information below might vary.
**This is a Connected Degree**
Portsmouth is the only University in the UK with the flexibility to choose when to do an optional paid placement or self-employed year. Either take a placement in your third year, or finish your studies first and complete a placement in your fourth year. You can decide if and when to take a placement after you've started your course.
**Overview**
Blend your love of film with your passion for writing on our BA (Hons) Screenwriting degree course.
You’ll explore theories and genres of film and writing through history, study how they might evolve in the future, and experience the craft of filmmaking both as critic and creator. This unique combination will support and prepare you to write short stories, create scripts, and produce screenplays.
From your second year, you'll collaborate more widely and chose modules such as filmmaking, editing, and having your scripts brought to life on the main stage of the New Theatre Royal by fellow performance students.
You'll develop skills on this degree course that will set up for a career in the creative sector, particularly the film industry. Other career paths include journalism, scriptwriting, marketing, public relations and teaching.
**Course highlights**
- Take part in Portsmouth's annual Comic Con for the latest developments in creative writing and literature, popular culture, fan communities, and technology – course lecturers and students are panellists
- Get the opportunity to shadow theatre professionals and have your work performed on stage thanks to our links with Portsmouth's New Theatre Royal and other local theatres
- Deepen your learning from an experienced teaching team of published novelists and journalists, prestigious magazine editors, scriptwriters, academic researchers, and performance poets
- Build your writing portfolio by contributing to our course blog The Eldon Review and hyperlocal news zine Star & Crescent
- Gain valuable professional experience by taking an optional placement
- Experience another culture and way of learning by studying abroad for a year or a single semester
- Boost your lingual abilities by learning a language with our extra-curricular Institute-Wide Language Programme – and earn credits for it
**Careers and opportunities**
Alongside critical awareness and creative ability in film and writing, you'll also develop project management skills applicable to any career path you pursue. Your burgeoning screenwriting skills will enable you to work in other creative media besides film, television, and the stage, such as video games and graphic novels.
You can also continue your studies to postgraduate level or take further teacher training to work in education.
**Graduate areas**
Areas graduates from our Creative Writing courses have worked in include:
- creative writing (prose, poetry, script)
- advertising and marketing
- arts and events management
- local and community broadcasting
- teaching
- stand-up comedy
- travel industry
**Graduate roles**
Roles graduates from our Creative Writing courses have gone onto include:
- novelist
- poet
- playwright
- teacher
- copywriter
- journalist
- theatre manager
- editorial assistant
Modules
Year 1
- Telling Tales
- Tips, Tricks, Techniques
- Writing for The Film and TV Industries
- Film Craft
- Professional Development for Screenwriters
- Screen Debates
- Future Production
There are no optional modules in this year.
Year 2
Core modules
All modules below are worth 20 credits each.
- British Cinema
- World and Transnational Cinema
Optional modules
All modules below are worth 20 credits each except Film, Media and Communication Study Exchange, worth 60 credits.
- Fiction Film-Making
- Screenwriting
- Finding Form - Fiction
- Creative Writing for Film
- Institute-Wide Learning Programme (IWLP)
- Student Enterprise
- Creative Writing and Critical Thinking
- Professional Experience
- Engaged Citizenship Through Interdisciplinary Practice
- Factual Media Production
- Film and Ethics
- Film, Media and Communication Study Exchange (60 credits)
On this course, you can do an optional work placement year between your 2nd and 3rd years to get valuable experience working in the industry. We'll help you secure a work placement that fits your situation and ambitions.
You'll choose from the modules below to complete your work placement.
- Film, Media and Communication Study Abroad - Full Year (120 credits)
- CCI Work Placement - Full Year (40 credits)
- CCI Self-Employed Placement - Full Year (40 credits)
- CCI Placement Plus - Full Year (40 credits)
- Film, Media and Communication Study Abroad - Half Year (First Semester) (60 credits)
- Film, Media and Communication Study Abroad - Half Year (Second Semester) (60 credits)
Year 3
Core modules
For your dissertation, you'll choose one of the following modules. Each are worth 40 credits.
- Dissertation (Creative Writing)
- Dissertation (Film and Media)
You'll also have these core modules, worth 20 credits each:
- Professional Industry Skills
- Self Promotion
Optional modules
All modules below are worth 20 credits each.
- Gender, Sexuality and Cinema
- Advanced Screenwriting
- Media Fan Cultures
- Writing Project (with Publishing)
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
The Uni
University of Portsmouth
Faculty of Creative and Cultural Industries
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Media studies
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
Creative writing
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Media studies
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
Creative writing
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
The jobs market for this subject - which includes creative writing and scriptwriting courses - is not currently one of the strongest, so unemployment rates are currently looking quite high overall, with salaries on the lower side. But nevertheless, most graduates get jobs quickly. Graduates often go into careers as authors and writers and are also found in other roles where the ability to write well is prized, such as journalism, translation, teaching and advertising and in web content. Be aware that freelancing and self-employment is common is common in the arts, as are what is termed 'portfolio careers', having several part-time jobs or commissions at once - although graduates from this subject were a little more likely than many other creative arts graduates to be in conventional full time permanent contracts, so that might be worth bearing in mind.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Media studies
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£16k
£23k
£26k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
Creative writing
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£18k
£22k
£26k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.
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You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
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Graduate field commentary:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
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