Creative Writing

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Total Degrees
Awarded in 2017

6,715

growing 0%

Median In-State
Public Tuition

$7,368

growing 3.31%

Median Out-of-State
Private Tuition

$35,878

growing 1.24%

Average Wage

$74,346

growing 4.35%

People in Workforce

1.49M

growing 1.84%

Average Employee Age

43.7

declining 0.298%

About

The locations with the highest concentration of Creative Writing degree recipients are , New York, NY, and South Hooksett, NH. The locations with a relatively high number of Creative Writing degree recipients are Culver City, CA, Montpelier, VT, and Yonkers, NY. 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 Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts Development have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Creative Writing.

Tuition costs for Creative Writing majors are, on average, $7,368 for in-state public colleges, and $35,878 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 (225 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above (3,604 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 (3,604 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

$7,368

Median In-State Public

$35,878

Median Out of State Private

Southern New Hampshire University has the most Creative Writing degree recipients, with 333 degrees awarded in 2017.

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 and Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts Development have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Creative Writing, with 61% and 40.3%, respectively.

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 $74,346 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 Miscellaneous durable goods merchant wholesalers.

Wages

Yearly Income for Common Jobs

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

$74,346

Average Wage in Workforce

± $1,725

4.35%

1 Year Growth

± 3.11%

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 Editors, Technical writers, 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 Surgeons, Electrical & electronics engineers, and Physicians.

Occupations by Share

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

1.49M

2018 Workforce

± 29,774

1.84%

1 Year Growth

± 2.8%

The number of English graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 1.84%, from 1.46M in 2017 to 1.49M in 2018.

The largest single share of English graduates go on to work as Elementary & middle school teachers (9.2%). 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 Miscellaneous durable goods merchant wholesalers, Labor unions, and Management of companies & enterprises.

Industries by Share

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

1.49M

2018 Workforce

± 29,774

1.84%

1 Year Growth

± 2.8%

The number of English graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 1.84%, from 1.46M in 2017 to 1.49M in 2018.

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 on those who earn a degree in English in the US. The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in English is 43.7, and the most common degree type these workers hold is a Bachelors Degree. Female employees are more likely to hold English degrees, and White students earn the majority (4,458) of the degrees.

Workforce Age

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

43.7

Average Age in 2018

± 0.268 Years

0.298%

1 Year Change

± 0.878%

This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in English. The most common ages of employees with this major are 35 and 48 years old, which represent 3.02% and 2.94% 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 (66.9%)

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
4,458 degrees awarded
Unknown
684 degrees awarded
Hispanic or Latino
555 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
1,560 degrees awarded
White Male
726 degrees awarded
Unknown Female
220 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
21,665 degree recipients
India
16,919 degree recipients
Korea
11,189 degree recipients

High Relative Number of Students

Japan
7.39 times more than expected
Spain
6.23 times more than expected
Sweden
4.17 times more than expected

There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Japan that hold English degrees (7.39 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 (21,665 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 Learning Strategies, Reading Comprehension, and Instructing.

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 Learning Strategies is very distinctive for majors, but the Reading Comprehension, Writing, and Instructing are the three most important skills for people in the field.

Radar Distribution

Bar Chart

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