Course information

Length

1 year full-time

Scholarship information

Funding available

Course overview

The skills of storytelling are timeless. Tackle the creative, analytical and professional sides of script writing for film, television and radio on this industry-accredited MA.

This course is accredited by ScreenSkills.

  • With myriad new media platforms, there are more opportunities to create content than ever before. And all these require a script and a story. But how do you get your work to industry-standard and in front of the right people? 

The questions we explore

  • The main question you have to ask yourself for this MA programme is: do I really need to be a writer more than anything else? That’s quite brutal, but script writing is a tough profession. You’re totally exposed as a creative person, it’s you and the page and the tradition in which you’re working, and that can be a liberating but also uncomfortable place to be. 

The processes we use

  • The programme is not about learning how to be a writer; it’s about developing and pushing forward your own writing projects as far and as fast as you can in 12 months. You’ll be developing your own voice, learning how to critique the work of others, and getting to grips with marketing your projects. You’ll also be making industry contacts so you can pitch for employment in an extremely competitive industry. 
  • You’ll cover every aspect of the writing process from getting ideas, maintaining productive writing practices and developing characters and storylines, to presenting your work to an industry standard and pitching your ideas. Writing is a lonely business – that’s why the community of writers that the programme gives you is such a creative advantage.

The approach we take

  • This is an MA that really focuses on you as the student. There are lectures, but most of the time you’ll be working one-to-one with a writing tutor or within small group workshops.
  • We keep the course small deliberately. In this way, we know your individual work and you know other students’ work through the weekly feedback process. We also believe you don’t know who you are until you’re relating to another person, and ultimately this is what scriptwriting is about: making that connection.

Why study MA Script Writing at Goldsmiths

  • Focus on further developing your own feature film or TV project in a workshop-based environment limited to twelve students, ensuring intensive engagement.
  • Study on one of the few MA Scriptwriting programmes accredited by ScreenSkills.
  • Gain industry exposure from multiple angles. Attend lectures given by industry professionals, and have your scripts read by professional actors at a Script Showcase, attended by agents and other industry professionals.
  • Be supported in finding industry contacts and mentors who can encourage and support your development as a scriptwriter.
  • Develop script editing and script development skills.
  • Study within Goldsmiths’ Department of Media, Communications and Cultural Studies, and hone your craft in a critical, stimulating, and interdisciplinary creative environment.
  • The Department of Media, Communications and Cultural Studies has been ranked 2nd in the UK for 'world-leading or internationally excellent' research (Research Excellence Framework, 2021) and 12th in the world (2nd in the UK) in the 2022 QS World Rankings for communication and media studies.

Contact the department

If you have specific questions about the degree, contact Philip Palmer.

What you'll study

Overview

A core course is designed to give you the skills and understanding required to develop your treatment for a feature film or equivalent television or radio script. The course is taught mostly with workshops, in which you present and discuss your own work with other students in a supportive environment. There are also class exercises, lectures, screenings, master classes, seminars and individual tutorials.

Starting in the Spring Term, the course then develops your treatment into a second draft feature script (or its equivalent).

Over the course of the year, you will be able to pick from a selection of option modules.

Compulsory Modules

Module title Credits
Scriptwriting 90 credits
Reflection Essay 15 credits

You'll also choose between one of the following two options:

Module title Credits
Short Form Script 30 credits
or
Adaptation and Script Editing 30 credits

Option modules

You'll also take 45 credits of option modules from a list provided annually by the Department of Media, Communications and Cultural Studies.

Assessment

You are assessed on your portfolio, which consists of your long-form treatment and second draft feature script or equivalent, your 4,000-word Reflection essay on this script, linked to issues in Media and Culture and a radio script adapted from a source text. In addition, depending on your options, your portfolio could also include a 10-12 page short script or script-editing proposal and coverage. Other modules are assessed by 5-6,000-word essays.

Download the programme specification.

Please note that due to staff research commitments not all of these modules may be available every year.

Entry requirements

You will be considered for this programme on the basis of your submitted creative work and your interview. If you are not a graduate you may be asked to show that you have the ability to work at postgraduate level.

International qualifications

We accept a wide range of international qualifications. Find out more about the qualifications we accept from around the world.

If English isn’t your first language, you will need an IELTS score (or equivalent English language qualification) of 7.0 with a 7.0 in writing and no element lower than 6.5 to study this programme. If you need assistance with your English language, we offer a range of courses that can help prepare you for postgraduate-level study.

Fees, funding & scholarships

Annual tuition fees

These are the fees for students starting their programme in the 2024/2025 academic year.

  • Home - full-time: £10350
  • International - full-time: £22640

If your fees are not listed here, please check our postgraduate fees guidance or contact the Fees Office, who can also advise you about how to pay your fees.

It’s not currently possible for international students to study part-time under a student visa. If you think you might be eligible to study part-time while being on another visa type, please contact our Admissions Team for more information.

If you are looking to pay your fees please see our guide to making a payment.

Additional costs

In addition to your tuition fees, you'll be responsible for any additional costs associated with your course, such as buying stationery and paying for photocopying. You can find out more about what you need to budget for on our study costs page.

There may also be specific additional costs associated with your programme. This can include things like paying for field trips or specialist materials for your assignments. Please check the programme specification for more information.

Funding opportunities

Find out more about postgraduate fees and explore funding opportunities. If you're applying for funding, you may be subject to an application deadline.

Scholarships

Find out more about funding opportunities on .

BAFTA Scholarships
UK students offered a place on this course are eligible for the BAFTA UK Scholarships Programme.

How to apply

You apply directly to Goldsmiths using our online application system. 

Before submitting your application you’ll need to have:

  • Details of your academic qualifications
  • The email address of your referee who we can request a reference from, or alternatively a copy of your academic reference
  • Copies of your educational transcripts or certificates
  • personal statement – this can either be uploaded as a Word Document or PDF, or completed online. Please see our guidance on writing a postgraduate statement

Please include a portfolio of evidence of your fiction writing abilities in the form of:

  • A short film script, in standard screenplay format, of 10-12 pages in length (please add a brief summary of the rest of the story if the script is longer than 12 pages)

OR

  • The opening 10 pages of a full-length script, in standard screenplay format, together with a summary of the rest of the story.

OR

  • A 10-page short story. (Please note you may be asked to demonstrate your ability to write scripts by submitting scenes to a brief defined by the course convenor if you don’t have a “calling card” script yet written).

AND 

  • Three one-paragraph ideas for short film projects that you might wish to develop further on the programme.
  • Three one-page ideas (single spaced) for feature film and/or TV series projects you might wish to develop further on the programme.

You'll be able to save your progress at any point, and return to your application by logging in using your username/email and password.

When to apply/deadline for application

Applications open in October and will be considered on a rolling basis from the end of February onwards. There is no deadline for applications, however, you are encouraged to apply early to avoid disappointment.

Interviews

Applicants who are considered suitable for the programme based on their application will be shortlisted to attend an interview. Overseas applicants who can’t attend an interview day are interviewed by Skype.

Find out more about applying.

Staff

Student work

At the end of the Summer Term every year MA Scriptwriting students organise and present a showcase for their work.

This consists of the first ten pages of the feature or TV script in a table read with professional actors. Friends, family and industry professionals are invited.

 

 

 

Samples of student work

MA Script Showcase Video Recordings, July 2013

At the end of the first term there is also a table read - Short Film Readings 2013

Alumni from the programme often go onto work together afterwards, as with Screen Rebels.

Careers

MA Script Writing is all about the product. So when you complete this masters, you leave with a whole portfolio of writing, a set of professional skills, a list of industry contacts, and a set of professional friendships through the Goldsmiths Screen School. 

The programme gives you a safe, supportive and stimulating environment to unpack your ideas, get constructive feedback, make mistakes, and find the story you want to tell. In the end though, it’s down to you as an individual to become the writer you want to be.

Find out more about employability at Goldsmiths

 

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