CPW Home | Program | Faculty | Courses | Declaring your English major
Whether you want to write a novel, a poem, a technical document, a marketing proposal, a feature news story, or a blog, UWaterloo English's Creative and Professional Writing (CPW) major will give you the tools you need to realize your writing ambitions. This unique degree provides you with instruction and practice in a variety of writing fields, allowing you to pursue or combine a broad range of writing-focussed careers. Your development as a writer will be given a solid foundation in the department's other offerings in literature, language, and rhetoric.
Degree Options
Students can pursue their Creative and Professional Writing major via a four-year honours degree, a four-year general degree, or a three-year general degree. See the Creative and Professional Writing Program page for more information on the degrees and their requirements.
Elements of the degree
Your Creative and Profession Writing degree will develop your knowledge and skills in two key areas:
Creative Writing
Your CPW degree will give you the opportunity to practice writing in a broad range of creative genres, including fiction, poetry, screenplays, literary nonfiction, and drama. You'll deepen your skill in the areas you already have an interest in and develop new skills and interests in other areas of creative writing.
Professional Writing
Your CPW degree will also give you practice in professional communication, allowing you develop skills in business communication, technical communication, writing for the media, editing, copywriting, and information and digital design. The dual focus on creative and professional communication will give you more flexibility as you pursue your career ambitions.
Co-op
You can enrich your Creative and Professional Writing degree through co-op experiences. UWaterloo has the world’s largest co-op program. In their study terms, English co-op students can pursue their interests and develop their skills; on their co-op terms, they can gain employment experience that will make them stand out in the job market.
Want more information?
Contact our undergraduate administrator, Jenny Conroy, or our undergraduate chair, Victoria Lamont. The English undergraduate office is located in Hagey Hall room 222.
See the Creative Writing posts on the our department's blog, Words in Place, for news on UWaterloo English faculty and students who have published creative works and on writing events held in the department.