Creative Writing and English Literature
Discover your research degree study options, including areas of expertise for our academic supervisors.
Why you should join us
Our research degrees will help you advance or change your career, deepen your expertise, and expand your research and practical skills.
Our research areas
Discover our areas of expertise and browse our experts. We encourage you to discuss your research ideas with us – even if your topic is not listed.
Doctoral students working on English literature, creative writing and screen studies are attached to dedicated research groups where they work alongside our academic staff.
Our research groups in the Department of English are:
- The Long-Nineteenth Century Network: Looking back at nineteenth-century literature, culture and art to help us understand our present and future in Manchester and beyond.
- Screen Studies Network: A vibrant research community dedicated to screen-based disciplines including film studies, media studies and screenwriting.
- Poetry An area of international excellence that focuses on modern and contemporary poetry.
- Manchester Centre for Gothic Studies: Studying the history and cultural significance of the Gothic aesthetic, from its eighteenth-century British origins through to its contemporary global manifestations.
- Centre for Migration and Postcolonial Studies: Exploring the impact of postcolonialism and migration on the literary and cultural landscape — now and in the future.
- Centre for Place Writing: Exploring the relationship between writing and place to examine major contemporary issues including the climate emergency, urban regeneration and mass migration.
- Manchester Games Centre: Our research emphasises the role of digital and analogue games in social change, and focuses on making games as a creative methodology.
We also have strong expertise in medical humanities, trauma and memory, and in modern and contemporary prose fiction.
Qualifications you can study
You can do a research degree on campus or remotely through distance learning. Choose from one of these programmes:
- PhD English — three years full-time, six years part-time
Find out about the research degrees we offer.
Start dates
Most of our postgraduate researchers enrol in October. You can also join us in January and April.
Application information
Entry requirements
To apply, you’ll need a first or 2.1 honours degree, or an equivalent qualification.
International postgraduate researchers must have strong English language skills.
We welcome applicants from non-standard backgrounds. We’ll take subject knowledge, professional experience, publications, or other relevant achievements into consideration.
Find out more about our standard entry requirements.
Scholarships, fees and funding
Contact information
Contact us
About this subject
For an initial discussion, contact Dr Andrew Moor, the research degrees co-ordinator for creative writing and English literature at a.moor@mmu.ac.uk
General admissions
For further information on the application process, contact the admissions team at pgradmissions@mmu.ac.uk