Television Fiction Writing

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For screenwriters television is where most of the opportunities lie. This award has been developed in close collaboration with the television Industry and wholly with its screenwriting needs in mind. Our students are taught by both academic staff and top TV scriptwriting practitioners. This programme forges an exciting new partnership between industry and education to produce the next generation of television script writers.

Through this Masters, you will gain knowledge and skills essential to succeeding in contemporary television drama. We aim to maximise employment opportunities for our graduates through close exposure to the industry, to some of its most successful practitioners and to their professional practice in action. However, this is more than 'skills only' training. This programme gives you space to reflect critically upon creative processes and dynamics, and upon the realities of producing work for the television industry, to become a flexible and independently minded TV scriptwriter needed for the 21st Century. In other words, our graduates not only know 'how' but also crucially 'why'.

Why choose this programme?
It is housed within Glasgow School for Business and Society, as such, it is in an excellent position to bridge both creative development and business aware skill sets for the TV industries.
The teaching programme has been developed in close collaboration with the television industry, ensuring that a real workplace context and direct market relevance is maintained. As well as input from Shed Productions (New Tricks, Waterloo Road, Footballers Wives), we also benefit from input from the BBC, STV and other independent producers and writers.
It focuses solely on writing for the growing television sector which is a key element of the Scottish, UK and global economies.
Successful students will graduate with both a masters degree and several projects or scripts ready to take to market.
Its learning programme is underpinned by both academic research credibility and cutting edge industry interventions
Competitive, industry-sponsored scholarships are available for this programme.

There are four main strands to this Masters:

Story and Script Techniques (2 modules) - students study story telling and narrative, genre, character and voice, developing their critical and evaluative skills as well as their creative writing talents.

Writing for Existing Long Running TV Drama (2 modules) - students gain understanding of how creative and writing processes work on long running dramas such as soap operas or medical dramas, and then write their own mock storylines and scripts.

Developing and Writing Original TV Drama (2 modules) - students tackle the challenge of creating their own original drama in the context of current commissioning trends.

Researching TV Drama Markets - students will explore the terrain of the TV fiction market, the main channels (home and abroad), commissioning policies and audiences in order to enhance their market readiness.

Programme structure
To achieve the full Masters award you must successfully complete 8 taught modules and an Independent Script Project in which students research and write (with supervision and support) material for an original six-part television drama series.
The full-time programme runs over 12 months. You will take four modules in Trimester 1 (Sept - Dec), and four modules in Trimester B (Jan - May). Following this, you will continue work on your Independent Script Project which is submitted in September.

Candidates must be able to satisfy the general admissions requirements of Glasgow Caledonian University.Applicants should have: * A UK Honours degree 2:2 or equivalent * Creative writing experience * A strong desire to write drama for televisionEnglish LanguageStudents whose first language is not English will normally be required to hold the equivalent of an Academic IELTS test score of 7.0 with no element less than 6.5. English Language Requirements IELTS band: 7 CAE score: (read more) Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) is part of the Cambridge English suite and is targeted at a high level (IETLS 6.5-8.0). It is an international English language exam set at the right level for academic and professional success. Developed by Cambridge English Language Assessment - part of the University of Cambridge - it helps you stand out from the crowd as a high achiever. 60 (Grade C) IMPORTANT NOTE: Since April 2014 the ETS tests (including TOEFL and TOEIC) are no longer accepted for Tier 4 visa applications to the United Kingdom. The university might still accept these tests to admit you to the university, but if you require a Tier 4 visa to enter the UK and begin your degree programme, these tests will not be sufficient to obtain your Visa. The IELTS test is most widely accepted by universities and is also accepted for Tier 4 visas to the UK- learn more.

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Want to improve your English level for admission?

Prepare for the program requirements with English Online by the British Council.

• ✔️ Flexible study schedule
• ✔️ Experienced teachers
• ✔️ Certificate upon completion

📘 Recommended for students with an IELTS level of 6.0 or below.

Enroll in the course

There are sponsored scholarships available for MA TV Fiction Writing from:

* Shed Productions
* MG Alba (must be fluent Gaelic speaker)
* Highlands and Islands Enterprise (must live in Highland and Island region)
* TalkbackThames

The application process for scholarships is separate from the admissions process, although you can do both at the same time. We will be asking all short listed applicants for the programme to come for interview and test, and we'll conduct scholarship interviews on the same day.