Screenwriting

Entry requirements

Applicants are expected to demonstrate a clear and passionate commitment to the medium of screenwriting together with their intent to extend their knowledge in this subject matter. Detail of prior experience and/or study are required to indicate a clear desire to write for film, television and radio and to successfully complete this programme of study.

An applicant will be considered for admission if they have already achieved an educational level equivalent to an honours degree. It is preferable that you have a previous degree, but it is not essential. We also accept students based on their writing talent and the work they submit during their application.

Educational level may be demonstrated by:

• Honours degree (named above);
• Possession of equivalent qualifications;
• Prior experiential learning, the outcome of which can be demonstrated to be equivalent to formal qualifications otherwise required;
• Or a combination of formal qualifications and experiential learning which, taken together, can be demonstrated to be equivalent to formal qualifications otherwise required.

APEL (Accreditation of Prior Learning)

Applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered in exceptional cases. The course team will consider each application that demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by:

• Related academic or work experience
• The quality of the personal statement
• A strong academic or other professional reference
• OR a combination of these factors

Each application will be considered on its own merit but we cannot guarantee an offer in each case.

Months of entry

September

Course content

MA Screenwriting is an industry-focused screenwriting course that develops writers and script editors for the film, television and radio industries.

What can you expect?

MA Screenwriting introduces you to the foundations of contemporary scriptwriting practice in a theoretical context. You’ll develop research methodologies that will become the foundation for future practice and analysis. The course offers you the opportunity to study feature film, television and radio narrative, the development of a script from a short story and research, which lays the foundation for your major project. You will also complete a collaborative unit that reflects your specialist interests in scriptwriting and related topics, whilst engaging with the need to understand and communicate with the industry you wish to work in. In the last term of the course, you’ll undertake a major project that allows you to focus on a specialist area of interest that you identified during your previous study. You will write several drafts of an original screenplay for film or TV or a TV pilot episode(s) with format documents. In addition, you’ll engage in peer-to-peer review and the writing of reader reports.

About London College of Communication

The communications sector is evolving fast. Through our world-leading community of teaching, research and industry partnerships, we enable our students to develop the critical, creative and technical excellence needed to succeed and to discover new possibilities and practices. Our Design, Media and Screen Schools produce experts and award-winners across virtual reality, journalism, photography, television and sound, graphic communication, games, design management – and more. The London College of Communication experience is all about learning by doing. Our students get their hands dirty and develop their skills through the exploration of our facilities and technical spaces. Students work on live briefs and commissions, with everything from independent start-ups and charities in Southwark, through to major global companies. Student designers, makers and innovators have worked with Nike, Penguin, the EU Commission, Colgate, Plan International, the National Trust, Nokia and Royal Mail, to name a few.

Information for international students

All classes are conducted in English. If English is not your first language, we strongly recommend you let us know your English language test score in your application. If you have booked a test or are awaiting your results, please indicate this in your application. When asked to upload a CV as part of your application, please include any information about your English test score.

• IELTS 7.0 (or equivalent) is required, with a minimum of 6.0 in each of the four skills.
• If your first language is not English, you can check you have achieved the correct IELTS level in English on the Language Requirements page.

Fees and funding

Learn more by visiting our funding page.