Creative Writing

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Total Degrees
Awarded in 2019

6,714

growing 2.85%

Median In-State
Public Tuition

$7,440

growing 3.7%

Median Out-of-State
Private Tuition

$37,800

growing 3.85%

Average Wage

$75,096

growing 1.01%

People in Workforce

1.48M

declining 0.408%

Average Employee Age

43.8

growing 0.44%

About

The locations with the highest concentration of Creative Writing degree recipients are New York, NY, South Hooksett, NH, and Boston, MA. The locations with a relatively high number of Creative Writing degree recipients are Montpelier, VT, Yonkers, NY, and Culver City, CA. The most common degree awarded to students studying Creative Writing is a bachelors degree.

English Rhetoric & Composition

Institutions

Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Creative Writing and the types of students that study this field. Southern New Hampshire University awards the most degrees in Creative Writing in the US, but Vermont College of Fine Arts and Warren Wilson College have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Creative Writing.

Tuition costs for Creative Writing majors are, on average, $7,440 for in-state public colleges, and $37,800 for out of state private colleges.

The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Creative Writing programs are Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above institutions (238 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above (3,819 completions).

Institutions

Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Creative Writing

The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Creative Writing, is Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above (3,819 completions).

The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Creative Writing programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

$7,440

Median In-State Public

$37,800

Median Out of State Private

Southern New Hampshire University has the most Creative Writing degree recipients, with 408 degrees awarded in 2019.

The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Creative Writing.

Specialized Colleges

Highest Concentration Institution

Out of all institutions that offer Creative Writing programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, Vermont College of Fine Arts has the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Creative Writing, with 54%.

Degrees Awarded by County

Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Creative Writing

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Creative Writing by year.

Growth in Awarded Degrees

Counties with the Fastest Growing Number of Degrees Awarded

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest growth in degrees awarded for Creative Writing.

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ English graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.

The average salary for English majors is $75,096 and the most common occupations are Elementary & middle school teachers, Postsecondary teachers, and Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers.

The industry that employs the most English majors is Elementary & secondary schools, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Wholesale electronic markets & agents & brokers.

Wages

Yearly Income for Common Jobs

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

$75,096

Average Wage in Workforce

± $1,690

1.01%

1 Year Growth

± 3.2%

This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for English majors.

Highest Paying Locations

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

Highest Paying Pumas

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States colored by the average salary of English majors.

Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that English majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

Occupations

Most Common

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

The most common occupations English majors, by number of employees, are Elementary & middle school teachers, Postsecondary teachers, and Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers.

Most Specialized

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

Compared to other majors, there are an unusually high number of English majors working as Proofreaders & copy markers, Editors, and Writers & authors.

Highest Paid

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

The highest paid occupations by median income for English majors are Computer and information research scientists, Physicians, and Chief executives & legislators.

Occupations by Share

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

1.48M

2019 Workforce

± 29,716

0.408%

1 Year Growth

± 2.85%

The number of English graduates in the workforce has been declining at a rate of 0.408%, from 1.49M in 2018 to 1.48M in 2019.

The largest single share of English graduates go on to work as Elementary & middle school teachers (6.2%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in English by share of the total number of graduates.

Industries

Most Common

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

The most common industries that employ English majors, by number of employees, are Elementary & secondary schools, Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, and Legal services.

Highest Paid

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

The highest paying industries of English majors, by average wage, are Wholesale electronic markets & agents & brokers, Electric lighting & electrical equipment manufacturing, & other electrical component manufacturing, n.e.c., and Communications, & audio & video equipment manufacturing.

Industries by Share

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

1.48M

2019 Workforce

± 29,716

0.408%

1 Year Growth

± 2.85%

The number of English graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 0.408%, from 1.49M in 2018 to 1.48M in 2019.

The industry which employs the most English graduates by share is Elementary & secondary schools, followed by Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges. This visualization shows the industries that hire those who major in English.

Specialty Locations

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

PUMAS with a relatively high number of English majors

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States where there are a relatively high population of English majors.

Diversity

Demographic information for those who earn a degree in English in the United States.

The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in English is 43.8.

The most common degree type these workers hold is a Bachelors Degree. Female employees are more likely to hold English degrees, and White students are the most common race/ethnicty group awarded degrees in English (4,530 students).

Workforce Age

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

43.8

Average Age in 2019

± 0.27 Years

0.44%

1 Year Change

± 0.866%

This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in English. The most common ages of employees with this major are 33 and 48 years old, which represent 2.99% and 2.83% of the population, respectively.

Degrees Awarded

The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Creative Writing are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and < 1 Year Postsecondary Certificate.

Workforce Degrees

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

The most common degree types held by the working population in English are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Professional degree.

Gender Imbalance for Common Institutions

Female (67.9%)

Most Common Gender with a Degree in this Field

This chart shows the granted degrees by gender at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Creative Writing.

Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

Most Common Race or Ethnicity

White
4,530 degrees awarded
Hispanic or Latino
615 degrees awarded
Unknown
409 degrees awarded

This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Creative Writing for each race & ethnicity. White students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.

Race & Ethnicity by Gender

Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Gender Combination

White Female
1,576 degrees awarded
White Male
654 degrees awarded
Hispanic or Latino Female
221 degrees awarded

This chart illustrates the differences by gender for each race & ethnicity of Bachelors Degree recipients in Creative Writing. White Female students, who earn most of the degrees in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and gender.

Global Diversity

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Creative Writing is from the 2 Digit Course English.

Most Common Countries of Origin

China
18,810 degree recipients
India
14,008 degree recipients
Korea
10,590 degree recipients

High Relative Number of Students

Kazakhstan
5.78 times more than expected
Japan
5.49 times more than expected
Syria
4.88 times more than expected

There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Kazakhstan that hold English degrees (5.78 times more than expected), and the most common country of origin by total numbers for non-US students earning a degree in this field is China (18,810 degree recipients).

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Creative Writing field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Creative Writing majors need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Creative Writing majors need more than the average amount of Writing, Persuasion, and Reading Comprehension.

These two visualizations, one a radial chart and one a bar chart, show the same information, a rating of how necessary the following skills are for Creative Writing majors. Toggle between "value" and "RCA" to see the absolute rating of that skill (value) and the revealed comparative advantage (RCA), or how much greater or lesser that skill's rating is than the average. The longer the bar or the closer the line comes to the circumference of the circle, the more important that skill is. The importance of Writing is very distinctive for majors, but the Reading Comprehension, Writing, and Active Listening are the three most important skills for people in the field.