PhD Creative Writing in Durham United Kingdom | Durham University

Durham's Creative Writing PhD program typically follows a 50:50 split between a creative portfolio and a critical dissertation, though this balance can be adjusted based on individual project needs or research developments. Over three years of supervision, candidates will develop a cohesive creative work in their chosen genre alongside a rigorous academic dissertation. The creative component varies by student, while the critical analysis may examine any author(s), literary aspect(s), or theoretical works, ideally informed by - though not centered on - the student's own creative process. These elements should form an integrated, mutually reinforcing thesis to be defended during the viva voce examination. Our Creative Writing faculty specialize in diverse 19th-21st century literatures, including English-language traditions and translations, welcoming projects across poetry, fiction (including experimental forms), nonfiction, life-writing, and hybrid genres. Faculty publications explore themes like identity, affect theory, feminist poetics, activist literature, musicality in verse, performative forms, racial subjectivity, hip hop studies, and innovative textual practices. Housed within the English Department (which maintains approximately 75 PhD candidates), our program benefits from an outstanding research environment - 90% of departmental research was rated world-leading or internationally excellent in REF 2014, and we consistently rank top in national teaching assessments. Departmental expertise spans classical reception studies, medieval to postmodern literatures, including specialized focus areas like Romantic aesthetics, Victorian/Edwardian transitions, and contemporary hermeneutics.