What Makes a College One of the Best Colleges for English Majors?
English is taught everywhere, but the strongest programs give students two things at once: rigorous training in reading and literary analysis, and real time in small workshops where their own writing is read closely. The best colleges for English majors and the best colleges for creative writing overlap heavily, because most creative writing programs live inside English departments. Five things separate them.
- Workshop access. At Yale, Northwestern, UCLA, Washington, and Oberlin, students apply to creative writing programs with a writing sample, while at Columbia only the Senior Workshop requires an application.
- Small classes. Princeton workshops average 8 to 10 students, and Williams usually caps introductory workshops at 12.
- A senior thesis or manuscript. Brown honors students complete a book-length manuscript, Yale fiction seniors write 50 to 60 pages, and Chicago’s Intensive Track ends in a BA thesis.
- Literary culture. Student and national magazines, visiting writers, and prizes give students readers beyond the classroom; Michigan’s Hopwood Awards and Emerson’s Ploughshares are two examples.
- A major or a minor. Some colleges offer a full creative writing major, others a concentration inside English, and others only a minor or certificate.
Which Colleges Are Best for English and Creative Writing?
The table below lists the best colleges for creative writing and English with the degree or concentration each one offers, named the way the university names it, and one concrete feature taken from its own pages. Schools are grouped by type and selectivity, and each linked school name leads to our analysis of its acceptance rate or admissions.
| University | Undergraduate degree or concentration | What stands out for undergraduates | Selectivity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johns Hopkins University | Writing Seminars, BA | Founded in 1947, which Hopkins calls the second-oldest creative writing program in the country; every major has a faculty mentor | Most selective |
| Brown University | Literary Arts concentration | Ten courses with at least four workshops in at least two genres; honors students complete a book-length manuscript | Most selective |
| Columbia University | Creative Writing, BA (School of the Arts) | At least 36 points: five workshops, four seminars, and three related courses; only the Senior Workshop requires an application | Most selective |
| Stanford University | English major with a Creative Writing emphasis | A 76-unit major: 36 units of English courses and 40 units of creative writing | Most selective |
| Yale University | English major, Creative Writing Concentration | Admission by application after three workshops; senior fiction projects run 50 to 60 pages | Most selective |
| Harvard University | English concentration (Creative Writing Emphasis from 2027-28) | Workshops admit by application, and students may apply to up to four workshops a term | Most selective |
| Princeton University | Minor in Creative Writing (Lewis Center for the Arts) | Workshops average 8 to 10 students, and 25 to 30 seniors a year do independent creative work one-on-one with faculty | Most selective |
| University of Pennsylvania | English, BA: Creative Writing | At least three creative writing seminars, with readings and events through Kelly Writers House | Most selective |
| Northwestern University | Creative Writing major (Department of English) | Thirteen courses, including a three-quarter advanced sequence in one genre; admission by application with a writing sample | Most selective |
| University of Chicago | Creative Writing major (Standard or Intensive Track) | The Intensive Track is 14 courses and ends in a BA thesis of 15 to 30 pages of prose or 10 to 15 poems | Most selective |
| NYU | Minor in Creative Writing | Selected students apply to master classes, and undergraduates have their own literary journal, West 10th | Most selective |
| University of Iowa | English and Creative Writing, BA | At least 36 semester hours, including Foundations of Creative Writing, at the home of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop | Less selective |
| University of Michigan | English major with the Capstone in Creative Writing | The 2026 Hopwood Awards gave 175 prizes worth $306,660 from a record 1,165 submissions | Highly selective |
| University of Virginia | Poetry Writing and Literary Prose Writing concentrations (English) | Students apply to the concentrations, and advanced workshops require a manuscript submitted to the instructor | Highly selective |
| UNC Chapel Hill | Minor in Creative Writing | Upper-level workshops are by application, and a yearlong senior honors thesis requires a 3.3 GPA | Highly selective |
| UT Austin | Creative Writing Certificate (open to any BA student) | An 18-credit certificate with admission by application and a writing sample | Highly selective |
| UC Berkeley | Creative Writing minor | Five upper-division courses: three in creative writing and two in literature | Highly selective |
| UCLA | Creative Writing minor | Admission by application with a writing sample; the minor ends in a capstone or internship course | Most selective |
| University of Wisconsin-Madison | English, BA, Creative Writing Option | Three workshops before Directed Creative Writing; students can work on The Madison Review | Selective |
| University of Washington | English, BA, Creative Writing Option | Admission by application each quarter with 3 to 5 poems or 5 to 10 pages of prose | Selective |
| Ohio State University | English major, Creative Writing concentration | Placement in advanced workshops is by portfolio, with up to 10 pages per genre | Selective |
| Kenyon College | English major with Emphasis in Creative Writing | Eleven courses; advanced workshops admit by application with a writing sample | Selective |
| Oberlin College | Creative Writing, BA | Students apply to the major, take three upper-level workshops, and finish with a mentored capstone | Selective |
| Middlebury College | English with a Creative Writing Track | Seniors may do an independent writing project, and the college sponsors the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conferences | Highly selective |
| Hamilton College | Creative Writing concentration (Literature and Creative Writing) | Ten courses, including a required Senior Seminar in Creative Writing | Highly selective |
| Wesleyan University | English major, Creative Writing Pathway | Four creative writing courses, at least one at the 300 level, with a creative honors thesis option | Highly selective |
| Swarthmore College | English Literature major with a Creative Writing Emphasis | Three units of creative writing, including Directed Creative Writing Projects; admission depends on written work | Most selective |
| Williams College | English major with Honors in Creative Writing | Introductory workshops are usually capped at 12; honors theses typically run at least 25 pages of poetry or 45 of fiction | Most selective |
| Emerson College | Creative Writing; Writing, Literature and Publishing | The national literary magazine Ploughshares has been based at Emerson since 1989 and runs an undergraduate internship | Selective |
| The New School (Eugene Lang College) | Literary Studies, BA, Writing concentration | Sequenced workshops in two genres, ending in a capstone semester spent writing a longer work | Less selective |
Which Colleges Offer a Full Creative Writing Major?
Only some selective universities award a degree named for creative writing. Johns Hopkins awards a BA in the Writing Seminars, a program founded in 1947 that Hopkins calls “the second-oldest creative writing program in the United States” (Johns Hopkins Writing Seminars). Columbia’s School of the Arts awards a BA in Creative Writing that requires at least 36 points, including five workshops and four seminars (Columbia School of the Arts). Northwestern’s Creative Writing major is 13 courses, including a three-quarter advanced sequence in one genre, and admits students by application with a writing sample (Northwestern University).
Chicago offers a Creative Writing major with a Standard Track of 11 courses and an Intensive Track of 14 that ends in a BA thesis (University of Chicago), and Brown’s Literary Arts concentration requires at least four workshops in two genres (Brown University). Among liberal arts colleges, Oberlin offers a Creative Writing BA that students apply to after prerequisites, with three upper-level workshops and a mentored capstone (Oberlin College).
Which Colleges Teach Creative Writing Inside the English Major?
Most selective universities teach creative writing as a concentration, emphasis, or track inside English. Yale’s Creative Writing Concentration admits English majors by application after three workshops, and senior fiction projects are expected to run 50 to 60 pages (Yale English). Stanford’s English major with a Creative Writing emphasis is 76 units, split between 36 units of English and 40 of creative writing, Penn requires three creative writing seminars, and Harvard’s workshops admit students by application.
Princeton offers creative writing as a minor through the Lewis Center for the Arts, where workshops average 8 to 10 students and 25 to 30 seniors a year work one-on-one with faculty on independent creative projects (Princeton Lewis Center for the Arts). At Williams, introductory workshops are usually capped at 12, and an honors creative thesis typically runs at least 25 pages of poetry or 45 pages of fiction (Williams College).
Which Public Universities Are Best for English and Creative Writing?
The University of Iowa offers a BA in English and Creative Writing of at least 36 semester hours, and its catalog notes that the Iowa Writers’ Workshop is “annually noted as the top graduate program in the country” (University of Iowa). Michigan’s Hopwood Awards gave 175 prizes worth $306,660 in 2026, from a record 1,165 submissions (University of Michigan), and English majors can apply for its Capstone in Creative Writing.
Several public universities run selective creative writing programs inside English. Virginia’s poetry and literary prose concentrations admit by application, UNC’s upper-level workshops are by application, UT Austin offers an 18-credit certificate by application, and Washington admits students to its Creative Writing Option each quarter. UCLA’s minor admits by application with a writing sample of at least 10 pages of prose or 7 to 10 poems (UCLA English), and Wisconsin English majors can work on The Madison Review.
Which Liberal Arts Colleges Are Best for Creative Writing?
Liberal arts colleges offer small workshops and long traditions. Kenyon’s English major with an emphasis in creative writing admits students to advanced workshops by application, Middlebury sponsors the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conferences, and Hamilton requires a Senior Seminar in Creative Writing of its concentrators. Wesleyan’s Creative Writing Pathway includes a creative honors thesis option, and Swarthmore admits students to its creative writing emphasis based on their written work. Our guide to liberal arts colleges versus research universities covers the trade-offs between the two settings.
Emerson College, which admits a larger share of applicants, offers creative writing and a writing, literature, and publishing program, and it has been home to the national literary magazine Ploughshares since 1989 (Ploughshares).
What Can You Do With an English or Creative Writing Degree?
Writers and authors earned a median of $76,910 in May 2025, held 140,300 jobs, and are projected to show little or no change in employment from 2025 to 2035, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Editors earned a median of $77,920 and typically need a bachelor’s degree in English or a related field (BLS). English graduates also go into law, teaching, publishing, marketing, communications, and graduate school. Our guides to the T14 law schools and law school GPA and LSAT medians cover the law school route. Students drawn to reporting can compare our guide to the best journalism schools, and students weighing other humanities majors can compare our guides to the best colleges for history majors and the best colleges for philosophy.
Why Have English Majors Declined?
English bachelor’s degrees fell from 52,401 in 2012-13 to 33,429 in 2021-22, a drop of about 36 percent, and they have fallen every year in between, according to NCES (NCES). In 1970-71, colleges awarded 63,914. For students who still choose the major, a smaller department can mean more access to small seminars and workshops, though the strongest workshops at selective colleges still admit by application.
How Do You Judge an English or Creative Writing Program Beyond the Rankings?
- Check how workshops admit. Ask whether workshops are open, screened by writing sample, or reserved for declared concentrators.
- Count the workshops. A program that guarantees four or five workshops gives students far more feedback than one that offers a single seat a year.
- Read the thesis rules. A senior manuscript or thesis shows whether students finish with a substantial body of work.
- Look at the literary culture. Student magazines, visiting writers, prizes, and internships show where students find readers.
- Keep literature in the mix. The strongest writers read widely, so look for programs that require literature courses alongside workshops.
What Do Admissions Officers Look for in an English or Creative Writing Applicant?
English and creative writing applicants are read alongside other humanities applicants at most universities, and programs that screen by writing sample usually do so after enrollment. What stands out in the application is wide reading, polished writing, and evidence that a student writes on their own.
- Coursework. AP English Language and AP English Literature, plus electives in creative writing where the school offers them.
- Recognition. Awards in the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards give readers an outside measure of quality.
- Summer workshops. Selective programs such as the Iowa Young Writers Studio give students workshop experience before college.
- A body of work. Publication in a student or national literary magazine, or a sustained project such as a school literary journal, shows commitment.
Oriel Admissions builds this record with students who start in 9th or 10th grade: a reading and writing sequence that reaches AP English, one selective summer workshop, and a portfolio of polished work judged by outside readers. Our guide to when a student benefits from a writing coach and our guide to intended major strategy explain how that record fits a declared humanities major.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Best Colleges for English Majors and Creative Writing
There is no single answer, because the best colleges for English majors depend on whether a student wants a full creative writing major, a concentration inside English, or a liberal arts setting. Johns Hopkins, Columbia, Northwestern, and Chicago award degrees in creative writing, while Yale, Stanford, Penn, and Harvard teach it inside English. Michigan, Iowa, and Virginia lead among public universities, and Kenyon, Oberlin, Middlebury, and Williams stand out among liberal arts colleges.
Colleges with full creative writing majors include Johns Hopkins, with its Writing Seminars founded in 1947, Columbia, Northwestern, Chicago, and Oberlin. Brown offers a Literary Arts concentration, Iowa offers a BA in English and Creative Writing, and Michigan runs the Hopwood Awards.
Colleges awarded 33,429 undergraduate degrees in English in 2021-22, down from 52,401 in 2012-13, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. NCES does not report creative writing degrees separately.
At many colleges, yes. Yale, Northwestern, Oberlin, UCLA, and Washington admit students to their creative writing programs by application with a writing sample, and Harvard workshops admit by application. At Columbia, only the Senior Workshop requires an application.
Neither is better in general. A creative writing major or concentration adds workshops and a senior manuscript, while an English major emphasizes reading and analysis. Most strong programs require both literature courses and workshops.
English graduates go into writing, editing, publishing, teaching, law, marketing, and communications. Writers and authors earned a median of 76,910 dollars in May 2025, and editors earned 77,920 dollars, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The Hopwood Awards are writing prizes for University of Michigan students. In 2026 they gave 175 prizes worth 306,660 dollars, from a record 1,165 submissions.
Take AP English Language and AP English Literature, attend a selective summer writing workshop, enter the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, and build a portfolio of polished work. Oriel Admissions plans this sequence with students starting in 9th or 10th grade.
Sources: NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2023, Table 322.10, BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Writers and Authors, BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Editors, Johns Hopkins Writing Seminars, Columbia School of the Arts: Undergraduate Creative Writing, Northwestern University: Creative Writing Major, University of Chicago: Creative Writing Major, Brown University: Literary Arts Concentration, Yale English: Creative Writing Concentration, Princeton Lewis Center for the Arts: Creative Writing, University of Iowa: English and Creative Writing, BA, University of Michigan: 2026 Hopwood Awards, Oberlin College: Creative Writing Major, Williams College English, Ploughshares: About
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