Creative Writing Minor

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Program Overview

Are you looking to branch out from your chosen field and learn how to write creatively? Whether you love poetry, fiction, memoir, personal essays, literary journalism, screenplays, graphic novels, comics or some wild new combination of genres, our Creative Writing Minor emphasizes diversity of texts and methods and offers you the freedom to discover your unique literary voice. You will work closely with actively publishing and award-winning faculty, and participate in the strong student writing community here at UTSC English.
 
Beyond the classroom, you can attend regular reading events, work with our Writer-in-Residence, attend weekly meetings of our creative writing club, enter contests, and get published in the arts journal Scarborough Fair.
 
Complementary Programs: You can combine our Minor with a huge range of programs in the Humanities, Social Sciences, and the Sciences.

Check out future career opportunities and skills acquired from completing this program:

1. Competencies & Skills

  • Produce your own original pieces with confidence
  • Gain tools of critique and constructive feedback
  • Adjust style, syntax, grammar and vocabulary to rhetorical context
  • Identify, examine, and debate strategies and techniques of excellent writers
  • Understand and experiment with genre, form, and hybrid modes
  • Develop critical thinking
  • Engage in creative problem solving

2. Careers for Graduates

  • Author/Writer/Artist in Creative Industries
  • Journalist/Editor/Drama Critic/Film Critic
  • Account Manager in Advertising Companies
  • Social Media Manager
  • Foreign Service Officer in Government
  • Public Relations Specialist
  • Planner in Think-Tanks
  • Technical Writer in Software Developers
  • Communications Assistant in School Systems

3. Further Education

  • Creative Writing and other Master of Fine Arts (MFA) Programs
  • English
  • Journalism
  • Education
  • Library and Information Science
  • Publishing
  • Law School
  • Public Relations
  • Marketing

Program Pathway

Year 1
CHOOSE YOUR COURSES WISELY
DEVELOP YOUR ACADEMIC & RESEARCH SKILLS
APPLY THEORY TO PRACTICE
BECOME AN ENGAGED CITIZEN (LOCALLY & GLOBALLY)
PLAN FOR YOUR FUTURE CAREER
Year 2
CHOOSE YOUR COURSES WISELY

DEVELOP YOUR ACADEMIC & RESEARCH SKILLS

APPLY THEORY TO PRACTICE

  • Participate in SELF by volunteering in their events or running for an executive position.
  • Get involved in relevant opportunities on and/or off campus.

BECOME AN ENGAGED CITIZEN (LOCALLY & GLOBALLY)

  • Make sure you don’t miss out on the incredible creative writing community and events hosted outside of class!
  • Check CLNx (>Jobs & Recruitment) to search for Work Study or volunteer positions on campus to gain experience and to get involved.

PLAN FOR YOUR FUTURE CAREER

  • Gain experience by applying for a summer, part-time or Work Study position via CLNx (>Jobs & Recruitment).
  • Considering grad school? Speak to professors and advisors early so you are on track.
  • Explore careers through the AA&CC’s Job Shadowing and In The Field programs.
Year 3

CHOOSE YOUR COURSES WISELY

DEVELOP YOUR ACADEMIC & RESEARCH SKILLS
APPLY THEORY TO PRACTICE
BECOME AN ENGAGED CITIZEN (LOCALLY & GLOBALLY)
PLAN FOR YOUR FUTURE CAREER
Year 4 or Final Year
CHOOSE YOUR COURSES WISELY
  • Consider taking ENGD95H3 to focus on writing as a profession.
  • Ensure you have fulfilled your breadth requirements.
  • Use Degree Explorer to ensure you are on track to graduate.
  • Register your “Intent to Graduate” on ACORN by the deadline.
DEVELOP YOUR ACADEMIC & RESEARCH SKILLS
  • Apply for an Academic Travel Fund through Department of Student Life (DSL) to research, present at a conference, or engage with the international academic community.
APPLY THEORY TO PRACTICE
  • Attend the Summer & Full-Time Job Fair in January to meet with potential employers looking to hire students for relevant summer and full-time positions.
BECOME AN ENGAGED CITIZEN (LOCALLY & GLOBALLY)
  • Participate in the AA&CC’s Partners in Leadership program to learn and network with an alumni mentor about transitioning to work or further education.
PLAN FOR YOUR FUTURE CAREER
  • Connect with the Writer-in-Residence and your professors about a career involving writing.
  • Attend the AA&CC’s Get Hired job search conference in April/May.
  • Attend a Jobs for Grads orientation for a job search “crash course” and for access to full-time job listings.

Contacts

Did You Know

Our teaching faculty in Creative Writing are all active and award winning writers themselves.