Workload for a English Student

So I am currently in year 12 and thinking of applying to Cambridge uni for English Lit next year. However I was thinking about the workload and I have come across a dilemma,
When I am at university I want to use that time to develop my creative portfolio (writing: poems, novels, plays) however I am concerned that if I went to Cambridge I would not have enough free time to do this in.
So to any current Cambridge students - what is our typical workload and how does this compare to other universities?

Reply 1

WobblyCat

Hi! I'm not a cambridge student but I did get an interview and am now at the university of exeter in second year. I got offers from everywhere else and the reason I ended up going for exeter specifically is because creative writing modules are available on every year of the course! So there is an optional module in second term for creative writing where you write a short poetry anthology and a short story, and you can develop this further in second year by choosing either a short story module or a poetry module- you can even do creative writing instead of a dissertation in third year! Exeter also just has wayy more flexibility in the course than other unis, so you don't have to spend all of first year studying the 'classics' and canon literature- I managed to cover the canon, theory (feminism, sexuality, language, ideology etc), film, poetry and creative writing in my first year and absolutely loved the variety. There is also a creative writing society with regular socials and weekly writing workshops where you can share your work and improve your skills/get feedback from others, as well as spoken word events (slam poetry, music etc).

I get that Cambridge has the prestige and reputation that almost nowhere else can offer but if you're passionate about creative writing and also want a really flexible course with the freedom to explore new things then I would definitely recommend exeter. Let me know if you want to know anything else!

Reply 2

koi koy

Original post by ZoelikesEnglish

I'm currently at Cambridge doing English and I would say that while creative writing is not part of the degree there is certainly enough time to pursue it should you wish. I do a lot of theatre and rowing as well as my degree. Generally you'll have one 2000 to 3000 word essay a week. English students have relatively few contact hours (only 6 of mine are compulsory) so you can easily block out time for writing. There's a big scene for student written drama as well as societies for other sorts of writing.
The real question to ask is if you want creative writing to be part of your degree. Plenty of universities offer great creative writing courses; my friend loves it at Warwick. I quite like pursuing creative things seperate to my degree so I don't have to worry about assessment when I'm writing but obviously it's up to you. Hope this helps!