BA (Hons) Philosophy and Creative Writing

Key information

Typical offer:
Entry requirements
Fees: See below
Full details
UCAS code: V5W1
Institute code: H36
Study abroad option
Work placement option
Find out more

Entry requirements

The University of Hertfordshire is committed to welcoming students with a wide range of qualifications and levels of experience. The entry requirements listed on the course pages provide a guide to the minimum level of qualifications needed to study each course. However, we have a flexible approach to admissions and each application will be considered on an individual basis.

UCAS points A Level BTEC Access Course Tariff IB requirement
112-120 BBC-BBB DMM-DDM Overall merit profile in 45 credits at Level 3 112-120 points

Additional requirements

GCSE: Grade 4/C in English Language and Mathematics
All students from non-majority English speaking countries require proof of English language proficiency, equivalent to an overall IELTS score of 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each band.
If you do not have the required IELTS or equivalent for direct entry on to your degree programme, our Pre-sessional English and International Foundation courses can help you to achieve this level.
For more details on the University of Hertfordshire's entry requirements, please visit our Undergraduate Entry Requirements page.
Find out more about International Entry Requirements.

UCAS points A Level BTEC Access Course Tariff IB requirement
112-120 BBC-BBB DMM-DDM Overall merit profile in 45 credits at Level 3 112-120 points

Additional requirements

GCSE: Grade 4/C in English Language and Mathematics
All students from non-majority English speaking countries require proof of English language proficiency, equivalent to an overall IELTS score of 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each band.
If you do not have the required IELTS or equivalent for direct entry on to your degree programme, our Pre-sessional English and International Foundation courses can help you to achieve this level.
For more details on the University of Hertfordshire's entry requirements, please visit our Undergraduate Entry Requirements page.
Find out more about International Entry Requirements.

UCAS points	A Level	BTEC	Access Course Tariff	IB requirement
112-120	BBC-BBB	DMM-DDM	Overall merit profile in 45 credits at Level 3	112-120 points

UCAS points	A Level	BTEC	Access Course Tariff	IB requirement
112-120	BBC-BBB	DMM-DDM	Overall merit profile in 45 credits at Level 3	112-120 points

Why choose this course?

Your Philosophy lecturers are all active researchers
Be taught by award-winning poets, fiction and non-fiction writers
Home of the British Wittgenstein Society

We give you:

A flexible programme of study, allowing you to concentrate on areas you find especially interesting
An exceptional academic team, conducting internationally renowned research
Stimulating, innovative courses that allow you to make rewarding connections between two disciplines
CV-building potential through work placements and extra-curricular activities

What's the course about?

Philosophy explores and confronts the assumptions that frame the way we think, act and see the world around us. Creative writing offers a way for you to do this by exploring new perspectives on familiar themes, expanding your imaginative capacities, and finding ways to articulate ideas in novel and illuminating ways.

On our BA Philosophy and Creative Writing degree, you will be introduced to a range of literary texts, genres and practical approaches to writing, and you will learn how to formulate your own philosophical arguments, to arrive at your own conclusions.

In your first year, you will embark on becoming a writer, including writing for the screen, whilst exploring central philosophical questions, such as whether anything can give meaning to life, and whether our striving to achieve anything of significance is ultimately futile, even ridiculous. The philosophy of film and literature module addresses the assumption that anything is possible in fiction and considers the extent to which that is true.

All our Philosophy lecturers are active researchers, so you’ll share the excitement of doing original work in a supportive and highly-rated academic community. Our Creative Writing team are published and practicing novelists, poets and dramatists and you will gain a clear, theoretical understanding of the discipline, as well as practical skills that will shape your ability to express yourself.

In your second year as a writer, you’ll turn your attention to writing for the stage and consider poetry as well as prose writing. In Philosophy, you’ll choose from a variety of topics, which includes a module on the nature of art, expression and representation (in literary as well as visual art), and modules on influential texts in philosophy, such as Plato’s Republic, which is written in dialogue form.

Our Creative Writing students can choose a work experience module, Literature at Work, which explores English in the classroom and aspects of the literary heritage industry. The module is centred around a six-week work placement where you’ll gain valuable transferable skills. Our students have worked as school classroom assistants, in publishing houses or attractions such as London’s Charles Dickens Museum and Dr Johnson’s House.

Work placement/study abroad option: Between your second and final year, you’ll have the option to study abroad or do a work placement for up to a year. Not only will this give you an amazing experience to talk about but will also give your CV a boost. If you’d rather go straight to your final year, that’s absolutely fine too.

The final year allows for even more opportunity to tailor your degree to reflect your own interests. In Creative Writing, you will embark on your own project, either on poetry, prose or script writing, whilst in Philosophy, you’ll choose from a variety of modules, including modules on feminist philosophy, the nature of language and meaning, and a module on Nietzsche, who is well-known for his literary style.

Your main campus is College Lane

This is where the creative arts, science and health-related subjects are based. This means you’ll share the campus with future nurses, scientists, artists and more. You can use the common rooms to relax with friends, work out in the 24-hour gym or have a drink in our on-campus pub or cafes. We also have restaurants for you to eat in or grab something on the go. Our Learning Resources Centres are open 24/7, which means you can study whenever suits you best. Want to pop over to the other campus? You can take the free shuttle bus or walk there in just 15 minutes.

What will I study?

Creative writing offers a supportive, tight-knit community in which to develop your skills as a writer, whatever your level and goals, and is primarily taught through writing workshops. Our philosophy students benefit from being part of a lively and active academic community. You’ll learn through formal courses and extracurricular seminars, while our small group teaching helps you to find your feet in the academic environment. There are plenty of opportunities to discuss critical issues with staff and fellow students, including an optional residential weekend each year.

Level 4

Module	Credits	Compulsory/optional
The Writer's Art: an Introduction to Creative Writing	15 Credits	Compulsory
This introductory module fires students' creativity, equipping them with knowledge of important literary strategies and techniques. To be successful creative writers, students need to be sensitive readers and critics, interested in devices other writers use to achieve particular literary effects. Set texts will be used as starting points for thinking about these issues alongside key craft elements e.g. plot, character, setting, voice, imagery, language and dramatic action. Weekly writing exercises are designed to help students practice these elements in their own writing.
Journeys and Quests: Adventures in Literature	15 Credits	Compulsory
From ancient Greek poems about mythic heroes, to the search for the Holy Grail, and recent stories about returning home, the quest narrative has been central to literary texts across time-periods and cultures. They have been used in reactionary and revolutionary formats. This module is interested in the narrative traditions, conventions and motifs of the quest, and we will pay close attention to literary form and content. We will also think how certain narratives are recycled and re-used by writers and filmmakers. We will move from ancient texts such as Homer's epic The Odyssey to more contemporary re-writings of this story, such as Margaret Atwood's The Penelopiad (2005). Students are asked to think about how adaptations of both the form and specific narratives engage with current social, political and cultural debates around identity, heroism and the notion of 'home'.
Mind, Knowledge and Reality	15 Credits	Compulsory
Sometimes we misperceive the world. Sometimes, whilst asleep, we take ourselves to be doing things which we are not in fact doing. And, furthermore, there is no evidence we could bring to bear which would eliminate the possibility that an evil demon is continually deceiving us about how the world is. To what extent does all of this undermine our claims to know anything? What is the link between reality and the way we perceive it? Can we at least know that we have a mind, if not a body? What is the relationship between the mind and the body? What is the relationship between mind and body and being a person? What does it take the remain the same person over a lifetime? Indeed, how can anything undergo change and yet remain the same thing?
The Meaning of Life	15 Credits	Compulsory
Does anything give meaning to life? Does the fact that we will die render our striving to achieve anything of significance ultimately futile, even ridiculous? Would God's existence or non-existence have any bearing on an answer to this question? Does it even make sense to ask about the meaningfulness of our lives? Might we better approach the meaning of life through thinking about what it would take for activities within a lifetime to have meaning?
Philosophy of Fiction	15 Credits	Compulsory
Fiction is philosophically interesting in many ways. How do we establish what is true in a fiction? Can the impossible happen in fiction? How, if at all, do we manage to engage with fictions that we take to be metaphysically or morally problematic (such as H.G.Wells' The Time Machine or Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita)? How do we make sense of interactive fiction, where it appears that we take on the role of a fictional character? In what sense can fiction explore not only how things actually are but how things could have been? Is there a difference between what can be represented in film and what can be represented in literature? We tackle these questions by engaging with various vehicles for fiction (film, literature, videogames, etc.) to see how they fit within a philosophical framework for thinking about them.
Sci-fi, Philosophy, and Religion	15 Credits	Compulsory
Science fiction helps us to imagine the impossible and to reimagine the possibilities of our own world. As a genre, it has always been linked to philosophy and religious thought, raising profound questions about what it means to be human, what kind of societies we want to live in, how to think about the relationship of mind and world, how to relate to nature, and much more. Through readings of science fiction literature and film from the 19th to the 21st century, this course covers a wide range of philosophical ideas from ethics, philosophy of religion, political philosophy, and metaphysics. Students gain an appreciation of philosophical and theological ideas, the relationship between philosophy, theology and literature, and the process of textual interpretation.
Reason and Persuasion	15 Credits	Optional
We live in a world of persuasion. Advertisers would persuade us to buy their products while politicians press their policies on us. In personal life too, others want us to see things their way. We, of course, want others (colleagues, friends and family) to agree with us, to be persuaded by our arguments. Rhetoric is the art of persuasive speech and writing. It has been studied both for academic interest and for its practical, business and legal usefulness since ancient times. This module will explore the reasons why some persuasive efforts work while others do not. It will develop your ability to judge when you ought to be persuaded by the arguments of others and to present your own views in a way that increases their persuasive force.
Religion and the Contemporary World	15 Credits	Optional
In this module, we look at the place of religion in the contemporary world, chiefly the intersection of religion the political. We consider the way in which religious traditions engage with important contemporary controversies about such issues as gender, sexuality, the media, war and peace and the environment. In exploring these controversies, we examine questions such as: How do Christianity and Islam interact with politics in different parts of the world? How accurate are media representations of religious groups and their beliefs? Does religion promote war or prohibit it? Is religious environmentalism possible? Students gain religious literacy and a critically and methodologically informed way of thinking about religion in the contemporary world.
Genre Fiction: Building Worlds	15 Credits	Optional
Building compelling and convincing worlds is important in all fiction, but particularly crucial in writing genre fiction. When writing genre (or popular) fiction, writers must be critically aware of both the history of the genre and current trends in publishing to make their own narratives distinctive and ultimately sell-able. This module examines popular genres (such as fantasy, crime, sci-fi or romance), considering their history and future. Key questions of craft and motivation will be asked: how do contemporary writers play against the classics? How do you write a piece that fits in a genre and yet avoids cliché? How much can you diverge from the expected in genre fiction? What steps can be taken to build a complex world for your piece? Is plotting for genre fiction different than plotting for literary fiction? Authors studied may include E.L. James, Ursula Le Guin, Louise Fitzhugh, J.R.R. Tolkien, or Akwaeke Ezemi.
Writing for the screen	15 Credits	Optional
Writing for screen is an intensive 12 week course designed to introduce students to drama at level 4. Students will be introduced to all the elements of dramatic writing - dramatic action, narrative, structure, plotting and writing perfect scene hooks. Students will work practically in class, receiving weekly feedback on their work and developing their script to completion. Students will be able to edit and develop their final film towards completion as they workshop their scripts in the final 4 weeks of the module. Students will develop the skill of analysing the theory of screen writing and study short films, breaking them down for structure, narrative and plot. Students will learn how to understand their own practical method and be able to reflect upon their creative decision making. They will study craft texts and develop their skills in critical analysis. All students will complete the course having written a 10 minute short film displaying an understanding of all of the elements of dramatic writing.
Identity and Contemporary Writing	15 Credits	Optional
This creative and critical module explores a range of contemporary poetry and prose about identity. Broadly, the module examines material written in the late-twentieth and twenty-first-century about identity positions, from race and gender, to sexuality, dis/ability, class and so on. We will consider, both creatively and critically, how one writes about one's own life, whether marginal or otherwise. You will think about these concerns as both creative writers and literary scholars: you will be analysing poetry and prose as well as writing in these forms on a fortnightly basis. Each critical week, exploring a topic, theme or author, will be followed by a creative week, where you put into practice the things you've learned. In all, this module helps develop you as both a writer and a scholar of contemporary literature. Writers studied may include: Emily Berry, Danez Smith, Justin Torres, Mary Jean Chan, Andrew McMillan, Claudia Rankine, and others.
Social and Political Philosophy	15 Credits	Optional
How should our society function and what implications does this have for the individual? How should goods (e.g. property, services, rights, liberties, power) be distributed in society? On what basis can some people claim ownership of property? What is exploitation and how might it be addressed? What is equality? On what basis can someone 'in authority' tell me what (or what not) to do? And if I don't do as they say, on what basis can I be punished for it? What is a legitimate way to protest against a state? What are rights? Do all humans have rights or are some to be excluded? What are our obligations to future generations, to non-human animals, and to the environment in general?
Ethics	15 Credits	Optional
Can you be harmed by something without ever experiencing it as a harm? Is what we experience all that should matter to us? What should we value? What is an ethical dilemma and is there a good way to resolve them? Can you be held morally responsible for something which is to some extent not within your control? To what extent should you be held morally responsible for anything? What are we even doing when we make ethical claims?

Level 5

Module	Credits	Compulsory/optional
Poetry, Prose and Publishing	15 Credits	Compulsory
This module will introduce you to the world of literary magazine and anthology publishing, considering both print and online publications. In groups, you will work towards planning your own publications and developing your editorial skills. Key questions of craft and motivation will be asked: what are the attributes of a successful publication? What useful selection criteria might an editor employ? Publications studied might include Poetry Magazine, Granta, Ambit and the Paris Review. You will also spend around half the course producing and workshopping your own creative work (prose or poetry), and learning to identify suitable outlets for publication.
Real Stories Well Told	15 Credits	Compulsory
This module aims to develop understanding of how close reading of non-fiction, including forms such as travel and history writing, biography and memoir, can help develop students' own creative writing abilities within these genres. It aims to explore the nature of the self, its presentation in text, and the depiction of other lives, with the aim of helping students adopt different narrative structures and styles in their own work. The module explores the notion of place and voice in non-fiction writing and aims to give an understanding of how research informs practice. Students will be encouraged to develop an understanding and practice of the range of styles found within the various types of non-fiction writing, as well as gain an understanding of the current creative non-fiction market.
Themes in Plato's Republic	15 Credits	Optional
If you could get away with morally unjust behaviour, why should you act morally? What would an 'ideal society' be like? What is the relationship between justice in the individual, and justice in society? This course investigates several major themes in Plato's philosophy. After an introduction to the importance of Socrates and the nature of Socratic enquiry, we shall focus predominantly upon the Republic - one of the most important texts in the history of western thought - in which the above questions are central. The course will aim to show connections between Plato's metaphysics and theory of knowledge, and his ethics, political thought and philosophy of art and literature. Students will develop their skills in reading, assessing and advancing arguments.
The Right and The Good	15 Credits	Optional
Is happiness the only thing of value? According to Utilitarianism, my moral duty is to promote happiness. What do we mean by "happiness"? If our moral duty is to promote happiness does this mean that we are justified in adopting any means, including killing, that might promote happiness? Kant is one philosopher who considers that we should value human beings in their own right and this introduces constraints on what we are morally justified in doing. We have duties to assist and also not to harm other human beings. We study these two theories by looking at Mill's 'Utilitarianism' and Kant's 'Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals'. Application of these theories to moral dilemmas chosen by students will form the topic of the presentation. For example, is it ever morally right to use violence or terrorism in the pursuit of peace? Should we ever assist anyone to commit suicide?
Philosophy of Mind	15 Credits	Optional
What are mental states? How do they relate to human actions? What is consciousness? Is there a real difference between the mental and the physical? This course explores philosophical approaches to understanding the nature of mind which range from dualism to strong forms of materialism. Students will be trained in the use of relevant terminology and will develop their skills in reading, assessing and advancing arguments. Students will be assessed on their knowledge and understanding of at least two approaches/issues in the philosophy of mind, their use of relevant terminology and their ability to produce structured arguments, which anticipate possible replies, in the form of essays.
Knowledge and Discovery	15 Credits	Optional
What kind of justification is required to be able to say not just that we believe something but that we know it? Must we be able to cite reasons for believing something before we can be said to know it, or is it enough for those beliefs to have been generated in a reliable way? Must knowledge rest on a foundation that is immune from error, or are beliefs justified by being part of a network of mutually supporting beliefs? We shall discuss the extent to which the particular observations we make give us reason to believe (or disbelieve) general claims about the world and, further, what counts as a good explanation for why that thing has happened. We shall consider not just beliefs about those things we can see with our own eyes but whether there is any reason to believe in those things which we cannot observe directly (e.g., the very small and the very distant).
Philosophy of Art	15 Credits	Optional
We go to museums, read novels, listen to music, talk about art. But what is art? In this module, we survey the main theories of art throughout history, observing as we go along, that while each theory has added to our understanding of art, it has not defined it once and for all. At the end of the survey, we shall ask whether a comprehensive definition is possible, or even necessary to our understanding of art. The survey will take us through passages from authors such as Plato, Aristotle, Tolstoy, Hume, Kant, Collingwood, Wittgenstein, Danto, Dickie and Wollheim. We will ask ourselves: Is art is a matter of personal taste or are there intersubjective criteria in the determination of art? Where is the boundary between art and craft? How is art related to morality? Is Tracy Emin's My Bed art; if so, is it good art? What makes anything art?
Metaphysics	15 Credits	Optional
Metaphysics asks the most general questions about the most fundamental features of the world. How should we understand space, time and causation? Does time flow? Does the future already exist? Is space a substance? Is it possible for me to do something now so as to affect what happened in the past? What are things and what does it take for them to persist over time? What is it for things to have properties, such as being red? What are properties? Do they exist in the same way that the things that have them do? What else exists? Does reality extend beyond what is actual?
Philosophies of Religion	15 Credits	Optional
This module focuses on the philosophies of religion that arise from the analytic (Anglo-American), European, and Asian (especially Buddhist) traditions. Its primary focus is a body of philosophical texts on religion by classic thinkers from these diverse traditions. Through these writings, you will be invited to consider how such different philosophical perspectives approach a series of questions they have in common, questions such as: What role do happiness and suffering play in religious thinking and practice? What is the relevance of the body and of embodiment to religion? What role is played by experience in religious faith and practice? How do reason and faith relate to each other? What goal is served by religious language? Is there such a thing as a distinctively philosophical approach to religion, given the differences between these diverse traditions?
Writing for the Stage	15 Credits	Optional
Building on critical and practical skills developed at Level Four, this module continues the study of genre but also investigates writing as a collaborative process. Focusing on stage drama, we will analyse a selection of twentieth century and contemporary works. Theme-based workshops will explore character, dialogue, the world of the play, action, plot, narrative, and audience. We explore how the playwright evokes the 'World of the Play' through creation of the imaginary place, aspects of setting, music and props. Students will be expected to work collaboratively to workshop their own dramatic writing with a view to completing a short dramatic text and the final sessions will be spent in revising and preparing work for the final assessment.
Language and Imagination: The Art of the Poem	15 Credits	Optional
Building on previous work, this module will develop your knowledge and understanding of poetic craft and technique including voice, sound, patterns and shape, rhyme and rhythm, imagery and metaphor. You will develop your own creative writing through the use of exercises and create your own portfolio of poetry. You will be asked to practise reading and thinking about poems of many different styles and periods, for example, sonnets, villanelles and free verse. You will consider ways in which the material presentation of poetry is significant. For example, you might examine poetry that exists somewhere other than a printed page: written on a wall, as a film, as a performance, etc.
Logic and Philosophy	15 Credits	Optional
Logic and philosophy have been intimately connected since ancient times. Logic provides some conceptual tools which can be very helpful in clarifying ideas and developing convincing arguments. But, as you will see in the module, the ideas and arguments which can be expressed depend on which system of logic is adopted. In learning elements of various systems of logic, we will consider the philosophical issues raised by them. Which ideas can be expressed in logic? Might we lose something in translation when expressing ideas in a logical language rather than in English? Are there any sentences which are neither true nor false? To what extent can logic help in deciding what we should believe in? Many of these issues are at the cutting edge of contemporary philosophy.
Employability Skills	15 Credits	Optional
Producing graduates who are highly employable is a key aim of the University of Hertfordshire. This module aims to help you bridge gaps between your specialist academic studies and the world of graduate employment. As well as allowing you to reflect on and further develop your employability skills we will explore the changing nature of employers' needs. Using case studies, we will consider a range of issues (legal, gender, equality) that can arise in recruitment and the workplace. The module will also focus on career planning and job searching, as well as recruitment and selection processes including the work of assessment centres and psychometric testing. Overall the intention is that you will be able to develop your job-market awareness and identify and explore potential career pathways. The module is worth 15 credits and may be chosen in place of a 15-credit subject module at Level 5, or as an additional module at Level 6, alongside 120 credits of modules in your subject(s).
The Short Story Workshop	15 Credits	Optional
"For sale, baby shoes, never worn." (very short story attributed to Ernest Hemingway).From flash-fiction to weird fiction, and from historical fiction to dirty realism, this module will deepen and expand the critical and creative study of the short story begun at Level 4. Key questions of craft and motivation will be asked: How does the content of a story relate to its form? What makes a successful anti-hero or -heroine? How do you build suspense? When does a short story become a flash fiction? We will read some of the best short stories from the UK, the US and around the world, and you will develop your own creative writing by working towards a portfolio of short fiction. Authors studied may include Lydia Davis, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Chris Adrian, Sarah Hall, James Baldwin, Stephen King, Raymond Carver, Katherine Mansfield, Miranda July, Angela Carter, Jhumpa Lahiri and William Trevor.
Philosophy of Love and Sex	15 Credits	Optional
Philosophers have considered the nature of love and sex for centuries, challenging us to question our assumptions about some of the most fundamental human experiences. What does it mean to love? What is the relationship between love and philosophy? Can getting dumped make us better philosophers? What is the role of sex and desire in love? What is sexual desire and how does it relate to sexual arousal? What is a sexual perversion? How should we understand pornography? This course will explore love and sex through a variety of kinds of philosophical and fictional works and will introduce students to different philosophical methodologies.

Level 6

Module	Credits	Compulsory/optional
Year Abroad	0 Credits	Compulsory
A Study Abroad year is an optional additional year that increases the length of the Honours degree award to a four-year full-time degree. The additional year comprises an agreed programme of study in a partner institution abroad with whom the University of Hertfordshire has an institutional agreement. The programme of study will support, supplement and extend the more usual three-year programme. Success in the third year will be recognised in the title of the award, but does not carry additional credit towards the Honours programme. A student would normally confirm the intention to study abroad during the first ten weeks of study at Level 5. This will enable a place to be negotiated at a host institution and the Study Programme and learning contract to be arranged and agreed.
The Humanities Placement Year	0 Credits	Compulsory
The Placement Year provides you with the opportunity to set your academic studies in a broader context and to utilise the intellectual skills you have gained through your degree in the work place. You will also strengthen your time management, organisational and communication skills as well as develop employability skills. You will gain experience of applying for jobs and of working within a commercial, business or professional environment prior to graduating thus increasing employability skills such as teamwork, communication skills and commercial awareness. You will gain experience in a field that is often a destination for Humanities students such as PR, marketing, management and research. You will have developed valuable industry skills and experience as well as being able to apply many of the intellectual skills you have learnt through your degree to a real world situation.
Placement with Study Abroad	0 Credits	Compulsory
Students on this unique module will have the opportunity to undertake both a semester at a partner university and to undertake a semester of placement, thus both improving their cultural awareness and employability. Students who have been on the Placement Year and Study Abroad Year, both normally undertaken after level 5 and before entering the final year, have reported high levels of satisfaction with both and many have said the Placement or Study Abroad year was one of the highlights of their university career. The Placement Year is offered by only a handful of universities offering Humanities subjects, so this module is a fantastic opportunity for students to explore both aspects of Study Abroad and Placement both here and abroad.
Tell It Slant: Writing and Reality	15 Credits	Compulsory
'Write what you know' is often the first instruction given to new writers of fiction. But just how may we do so, and how far may we go? This module examines the aspects, strategies and approaches as well as the ethical quandaries that come from writing fiction 'from reality' from the world and the lives around us. What exactly is the line between fact and fiction and how can they feed one another creatively? What happens when a writer crosses the line, and who decides? Authors studied may include Marcel Proust, Annie Ernaux, JM Coetzee, Rachel Cusk, Marguerite Duras, Awaeke Emezi, Ayad Akhtar, Toni Morrison, Karl Ove Knausgaard, Sheila Heti and Ocean Vuong among others.
Contemporary Moral Philosophy P	15 Credits	Optional
What should be the primary focus of ethics? Should we focus on actions or on the character of agents? Students will study different approaches to these questions embodied in contemporary discussions of Kantian Ethics, Consequentialism and Virtue Ethics. This discussion will raise issues such as, do we arrive at moral evaluations by applying principles to particular cases or are moral evaluations more a matter of, for example, a virtuous person's perception of a particular case? What is the relationship between the moral evaluations that we make and the reasons that we give for those evaluations? What are our moral theories based on: shared beliefs about rightness, our moral intuitions, our common sense intuitions about the virtues?
Aristotle P	15 Credits	Optional
Is there a method to philosophy? Are we rational animals? Do all living things have a purpose? What is the good life or is there more than one? Is ethics primarily concerned with virtue? These questions, which are still of relevance today, will be explored by an examination of Aristotle's central works.
Philosophy of Language	15 Credits	Optional
Marks, sounds and gestures can all have meaning. But what is it for them to have meaning and how do they manage to have it? Is the meaning of my words to be analysed in terms of my intentions to communicate with another or the conventions I subscribe to when using words? In what way is meaning related to truth and my being warranted in asserting what I say? What other things can we do with words than state truths? How should we understand metaphorical uses of language? How do names and descriptions in particular manage to pick out objects in the world? Are some things I say true solely in virtue of the meanings of the words I use? Is there anything that fixes what it is that I do mean when I use words, or is meaning, to some extent, indeterminate? Can a study of language tell us anything about reality?
Philosophy of Psychology	15 Credits	Optional
'Blindsighters' can judge with around 90% accuracy whether experimenters are showing them either a cross or a circle, and are able to discriminate colours, despite being completely blind due to a form of brain damage. The job of philosophers of psychology is to settle what this phenomenon, and related ones, means for the nature of the mind. Does it show that blindsighters 'see' colours etc., unconsciously? That would suggest mere perception is insufficient for consciousness, and we must then investigate what must be added to make a percept conscious. Or does blindsight simply demonstrate that there is a completely blind 'visual information system' in humans, operating alongside normal conscious vision? And would that mean conscious vision plays only a secondary role in daily life (is our behaviour somewhat more 'automatic' than we believe)? This module investigates key psychological phenomena and examines philosophical theories as to their significance for the human mind.
Political Philosophy	15 Credits	Optional
'Politics' and 'policy' both come from polis, the Greek word for 'city', but which more broadly means something like 'the community to which one belongs, in which one has rights and to which one has obligations'. What makes a community? Can any group of people be one? What does it mean to belong to one? Can membership of a community be part of your identity in any deep sense? How can obligations and rights arise from membership of a community? Is such membership always voluntary? These questions arise with special force in connection with citizenship and the state, but they are implicit in any kind of community membership that entails rights, obligations and impinges on your sense of self.
Religion and Modern Thought	15 Credits	Optional
Do we live in a 'secular' or 'post-secular' age? What are the prospects for religious and spiritual belief and practice today? Inspired by the work of Charles Taylor, this module traces the 'conditions of belief' from the sixteenth century to the present day. It explores the significance of a shift from a 'God-saturated' world to one in which faith is, often even for the believer, one human possibility amongst others. In tracing the origins of the modern 'secular' worldview, you will explore such topics as: the Reformation and the rise of the 'Protestant ethic'; the Enlightenment critique of religion; scientific and historico-critical challenges to scriptural authority; and the impacts of liberalism, fundamentalism, feminism and religious diversity on religious belief and practice in the west. You will consider the 'secularisation hypothesis' and its critics, and the question of what the options might be for responsible religious belief and practice today.
Kierkegaard, Philosophy and Religion	15 Credits	Optional
What makes a human life worthwhile? What does it really mean to live 'aesthetically', 'ethically' or 'religiously'? What are the roles of faith, hope and love in all this? And how is genuine ethical or religious insight best communicated? The Danish thinker Kierkegaard explored these questions through a series of texts many of which were published under a variety of bizarre pseudonyms. This module investigates some of Kierkegaard's most important writings. After an introduction to the pseudonyms and the importance of 'indirect communication', it explores in detail aspects of what Kierkegaard called the aesthetic, ethical and religious ways of living. Each is presented as an attempt to address what makes a human life valuable, and the question of the roles of faith, hope and love are never far from our concerns. The module also considers Kierkegaard's influence upon later thought – both in philosophy and beyond.
Creative Writing Project Poetry	30 Credits	Optional
The Creative Writing Project module is the culmination of your three years of study of the subject. Over two semesters, you will meet in fortnightly intensive three hour workshops to develop and hone your writing. The workshops will, where possible, be genre specific and all workshops will be led by professional writers. Workshops will also cover how to work as a writer professionally, including how to submit your work to competitions, agents, publishers, producers, etc. You will devise, plan and produce an extended piece of creative writing in a genre of particular personal interest. You will finish the module having a substantial piece of writing you can either submit professionally or continue working on after graduation. The module is also an excellent preparation for pursuing an MA in Creative Writing.
Creative Writing Project Prose	30 Credits	Optional
The Creative Writing Project module is the culmination of your three years of study of the subject. Over two semesters, you will meet in fortnightly intensive three hour workshops to develop and hone your writing. The workshops will, where possible, be genre specific and all workshops will be led by professional writers. Workshops will also cover how to work as a writer professionally, including how to submit your work to competitions, agents, publishers, producers, etc. You will devise, plan and produce an extended piece of creative writing in a genre of particular personal interest. You will finish the module having a substantial piece of writing you can either submit professionally or continue working on after graduation. The module is also an excellent preparation for pursuing an MA in Creative Writing.
Creative Writing Project Script	30 Credits	Optional
The Creative Writing Project module is the culmination of your three years of study of the subject. Over two semesters, you will meet in fortnightly intensive three hour workshops to develop and hone your writing. The workshops will, where possible, be genre specific and all workshops will be led by professional writers. Workshops will also cover how to work as a writer professionally, including how to submit your work to competitions, agents, publishers, producers, etc. You will devise, plan and produce an extended piece of creative writing in a genre of particular personal interest. You will finish the module having a substantial piece of writing you can either submit professionally or continue working on after graduation. The module is also an excellent preparation for pursuing an MA in Creative Writing.
Wittgenstein: Meaning and Forms of Life	15 Credits	Optional
Ludwig Wittgenstein is one of the greatest philosophers of the twentieth century. Much of today's philosophical thinking has been inspired by or has developed in response to his work. His first published work - the Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus - provides, for some, an inspiration for powerful anti-metaphysical programmes. For others, it offers refined tools for doing metaphysics in a new, more fertile way. He himself came to reject aspects of his early work. How his approach evolved can only be fully understood by considering his early programme in the light of his second great masterpiece, Philosophical Investigations. This module does just that by introducing important aspects of Wittgenstein's philosophy in their historical and ideological contexts. The module will explore a range of topics such as: the nature of language and thought and their relations to reality; meaning and use; understanding and intentionality; following a rule; the possibility of a private language; the nature of philosophy.
Writing Serial Drama	15 Credits	Optional
This is an intensive 12 week module created to enable you to create and write your own pitch and pilot episode for a serial drama. You will learn the craft skills required to create compelling serial drama or comedy and create a pitch document suitable to send to production companies. You will watch episodes and read screenplays from current successful serials, analysing the technique required to create a successful drama series. You will workshop your ideas and pilot scripts under the guidance your module leader. You may write anything from a Netflix serial, continuing BBC Drama or online comedy series for your final submission.
Writing for Popular Fiction Markets	15 Credits	Optional
The module will explore a selection of different popular fiction genres (for example romance, historical, crime, fantasy, horror) looking at examples which illustrate the development of their specific market. The examples will be taken from book texts but also film and television in the various genres covered. You will learn how an analysis of the features and narratives used in these can be used to inform writing practice. Practice at writing for popular genres will be central to the module's syllabus which will practice and consider self and peer review within the delimited markets and genre tropes. Each genre discussed will be given a designated two week block with the block providing a combination of knowledge presentation, practice, reflection and work-shopping. You will be encouraged to contextualise your own work within the popular genres that we consider and gain awareness of its commercial positioning and opportunity. Authors whose work we explore typically may include Agatha Christie, Margaret Atwood, HG Wells, Audrey Niffeneger and Bram Stoker, TV shows may include Dexter, Game of Thrones and Poldark, and Films may include Doctor Zhivago, The Prestige, Blade Runner and Let the Right One In. Please note that all of these titles are indicative and subject to regular updating.
Nietzsche Then and Now	15 Credits	Optional
Nietzsche famously claimed that 'God is dead'. But what does he mean by this? What ramifications would the 'death of God' have for morality and human flourishing? What would a 'Nietzschean' view of self and world look like? And what religious responses to Nietzsche's challenge are possible? With these questions in mind, this module investigates key aspects of Nietzsche's thought and his legacy. Typically, after an introduction to his styles of philosophizing, the 'hermeneutics of suspicion', and his 'moral perfectionism', we shall focus upon his influential critique of morality. We shall investigate his account of ressentiment, guilt and 'bad conscience', alongside central Nietzschean ideas such as the will to power, eternal recurrence and 'self-overcoming'. We'll also consider some ways in which his legacy has been carried through in later thinkers, and we will examine possible critical responses to his worldview.
Bullshit, Lying, and Other Forms of Bad Language	15 Credits	Optional
There are many philosophically interesting ways in which our language use might in some ways be said to be 'bad'. Swearing, particularly in the form of insults, is an obvious example. But we might also use bad language in the sense of not caring in the appropriate way about what we are saying or use language in various ways whilst intending to deceive, or whilst being insincere, or at least whilst knowing what you have said is, strictly speaking, false. Or we might use language in a way which leaves our conversational partner unable to interpret us. To understand these uses of 'bad' language, we need to understand some philosophical theories of meaning. What is it in general for various marks, sounds and gestures to have meaning? And how does this help us to understand how we might then use language in various 'bad' ways?
Philosophy of Music	15 Credits	Optional
There are many ways in which philosophical reflection on music can illuminate and enrich our understanding and enjoyment of it. What is a musical work and how does it relate to its performances? What is the aesthetic significance of improvisation and of mistakes during performance? How should we understand the notions of authenticity and appropriation in music? What is it for music to be expressive and how does this relate to the emotions? What is it for music to be sublime or for a performance to be virtuosic? What kind of action is singing a song? How should we understand the relationship between films and their musical soundtracks? And how might that differ from the music and singing found in music videos, musicals and opera?
Philosophy of Race and Gender	15 Credits	Optional
In the last half-century, critical debates about race and gender have raised questions about the central topics and assumptions of philosophy. For example, these debates have brought an emphasis on embodiment and social roles that challenge the relevance of the ideal types (ideal reasoner, ideal observer, etc.) of traditional epistemology. These ideas are now debated in mainstream epistemology and philosophy of mind. Other questions about ethics, social justice, objectivity, authority and power have also become urgent. Students on this module examine the contribution of race and gender theory to philosophy and critically consider the challenges that considerations of race and gender pose the theory and practice of philosophy.
Philosophy Short Project	15 Credits	Optional
You will have the opportunity to develop your research skills through the largely independent study of a particular topic in philosophy of your choice, which must be approved by your supervisor. You will receive guidance from your supervisor in the form of suggestions about reading and about the structure and development of the project. Supervisors also provide critical feedback on material that is submitted. No conditions are placed on the choice of topic, so long as it falls within the general discipline of philosophy, and a member of the philosophy staff has the relevant expertise to provide the appropriate supervision. If you intend to pursue a project you must identify your area of interest and discuss it with the module leader before the start of semester B.

Study abroad

An opportunity for an amazing experience, which will help make you stand out from the crowd. With more and more companies working internationally, experience of living in another country can make a great impression on future employers.

This course offers you the opportunity to enhance your study and CV with a sandwich year abroad. The University has partnerships with over 150 universities around the world, including the USA, Canada, Asia, Africa, Australia, South America and closer to home in Europe.

If you study abroad between your second and third year of study, you’ll pay no tuition fee to the partner university and no tuition fee to us either. We’ll ask you to make your decision in your second year, so there is plenty of time to think about it.

Find out more about Study abroad opportunities

Please note Erasmus+ funding is only available until May 2023. For students starting their course in September 2022 and wishing to study abroad in 2023-24 or 2024-25, please refer to the Turing Scheme.
Work placement

Graduate with invaluable work experience alongside your degree and stand out from the crowd.

This course offers you the opportunity to enhance your study and CV with a work placement sandwich year. It’s a chance to explore career possibilities, make valuable contacts and gain sought after professional skills.

Our dedicated Careers and Employment team are here to help guide you through the process.

If you take up a work placement between your second and third year of study, at the University of Hertfordshire you’ll pay no tuition fee for this year. We’ll ask you to make your decision in your second year, so there is plenty of time to think about it.

Find out more about work placements

'I certainly developed professionalism and employability through studying Philosophy, primarily through the methods of rational and logical problem solving. I acquired a skill that is useful in whatever field one works in. However, it is enterprise that I most notably improved on while at Herts. I had never really considered starting a businesses or working for myself, but while studying Philosophy (particularly my Masters by Research and my undergraduate dissertation) I realised I was learning self-management and combining this with my new proficiency at problem solving sent me down a new path. Since leaving Herts I have set up multiple small business which are growing healthily. This individuality has really helped me find out what I want to do in life.'

Rob Baggs

BA(Hons) Philosophy, MA(Res) in Philosophy

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Alumni Stories

Jenny Vu

Meet Jenny Vu who gained valuable transferable skills for her future career. She is currently a Teaching Assistant at a secondary school.

Read more stories BA (Hons) History and Philosophy

Current job role	Teaching Assistant
Year of graduation	2018
Course of study	BA (Hons) History and Philosophy with Study Abroad Year

University life and experience

Throughout her degree, Jenny learnt a considerable amount of transferable skills and world knowledge to enable to her succeed in her career as a Teaching Assistant. She says that the most useful skills she learnt are how to analyse and correct grammar which have proved invaluable when teaching her students.

Jenny initially chose the University of Hertfordshire as it ‘was close to home but still relatively far enough to move out and learn to live independently.’ She explains how her independence grew as she used her degree to explore the World by taking the opportunity to study abroad for a year. She says, ‘My standout memory from my time at the University was studying abroad for a year. It was probably the best year of my life.’

Future aspirations

Jenny’s study abroad year sparked her passion for travel and in the future, she plans to teach in Asia. However, she says, if she does return to the UK, she would like to teach and promote higher education to young students to inspire future generations and showcase their potential.

Alumni Stories

Eleanor Pilcher

Meet Eleanor Pilcher who since graduating in 2016 has taken the publishing industry by storm. Eleanor currently works as a Marketing Manager at Avon, HarperCollins Publisher.

Read more stories Find out more about this course

Current job role	Marketing Manager
Year of graduation	2016
Course of study	BA (Hons) History and Creative Writing

University experience and employability

Eleanor is a keen writer with great creative ambitions. During her degree she undertook a six-month internship at a literary agency in her final academic year. In 2016, shortly after her studies, Eleanor landed a placement at Penguin before getting a job in publishing recruitment. After developing her skills within the industry and amassing and impressive amount of knowledge and experience, Eleanor began her current role at HarperCollins Publishers.

Eleanor's degree encompassed a broad spectrum of critical, analytical and evaluative skills and helped shape her as a writer. Throughout her studies she had been writing a novel, which she submitted to literary agencies after being encouraged by her tutor to do so. It was Eleanor's passion for writing that uncovered her interest in working for a literary agency. Due to the fantastic lecturers on her course and the invaluable industry networks available to students, Eleanor managed to secure impressive opportunities in her chosen industry that have informed her career.

Sher recognises the impact the University has had on getting her to where she is today. 'For me the advice and feedback I received on both my History essays and Creative Writing finals was incredibly useful to my academic and professional development. I learnt to take criticism and to harness it and also write more because of it.'

Ambitions for the future

Eleanor has established herself in her chosen industry yet still has ambition to continue pursuing new goals. On her hopes for the future, she says: 'I hope to run a marketing department within a publishing company, possibly the one I'm at now. I hope to publish a novel and continue my freelance writing and public speaking on the side.'

View our Alumni profiles

Jenny Vu Eleanor Pilcher

Course fact sheets
BA (Hons) Philosophy	Download

Programme specifications
BA (Hons) Creative Writing	Download
BA (Hons) Philosophy	Download

Additional information
Sandwich placement or study abroad year	Optional
Applications open to international and EU students	Yes
Course length	Full Time, 3 Years Sandwich, 4 Years
Location	University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield

International/EU applicants without pre-settled status in the UK

Apply through our international/EU application portal

Home and EU applicants with pre-settled/settled status in the UK

Apply using the links below:

2024

Start Date	End Date	Link
23/09/2024	31/05/2025	Apply online (Full Time)
23/09/2024	31/05/2025	Apply online (Full Time/Sandwich)
23/09/2024	31/05/2025	Apply online (Full Time/Sandwich)

2025

Start Date	End Date	Link
23/09/2025	31/05/2026	Apply online (Full Time)
23/09/2025	31/05/2026	Apply online (Full Time/Sandwich)
23/09/2025	31/05/2026	Apply online (Full Time/Sandwich)

Fees and funding
Fees 2024
UK Students

Full time
- £9250 for the 2024/2025 academic year
EU Students

Full time
- £15500 for the 2024/2025 academic year
International Students

Full time
- £15500 for the 2024/2025 academic year
*Tuition fees are charged annually. The fees quoted above are for the specified year(s) only. Fees may be higher in future years, for both new and continuing students. Please see the University’s Fees and Finance Policy (and in particular the section headed “When tuition fees change”), for further information about when and by how much the University may increase its fees for future years.

View detailed information about tuition fees

Read more about additional fees in the course fact sheet

Other financial support

Find out more about other financial support available to UK and EU students

Living costs / accommodation

The University of Hertfordshire offers a great choice of student accommodation, on campus or nearby in the local area, to suit every student budget.

View detailed information about our accommodation

Book a campus tour

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BA (Hons) Philosophy and Creative Writing

Key information

Typical offer:

Fees: See below

UCAS code: V5W1

Institute code: H36

Study abroad option

Work placement option

Additional requirements

Additional requirements

Why choose this course?

What's the course about?

Your main campus is College Lane

What will I study?

Check out our student blogs

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Student Blogs

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What I love most about my course

Student Blogs

Alumni Stories

Meet Jenny Vu who gained valuable transferable skills for her future career. She is currently a Teaching Assistant at a secondary school.

University life and experience

Future aspirations

Alumni Stories

Meet Eleanor Pilcher who since graduating in 2016 has taken the publishing industry by storm. Eleanor currently works as a Marketing Manager at Avon, HarperCollins Publisher.

University experience and employability

Ambitions for the future

International/EU applicants without pre-settled status in the UK

Home and EU applicants with pre-settled/settled status in the UK

2024

2025

Fees 2024

UK Students

Full time

EU Students

Full time

International Students

Full time

Other financial support

Living costs / accommodation

Your main campus is College Lane