Creative Studies

BAAS Concentration in Creative Studies

About the concentration in Creative Studies

By studying the transformative creations of others in the social, cultural, and historical contexts in which they were produced, you can nurture your own creative expression and develop a deeper understanding of the creative process in action. A concentration in Creative Studies combines experiential and applied humanities through the study of the creative arts, expanding your ability to critically analyze, compare and evaluate the meanings and significance of creativity as expressed across a variety of media. In this degree concentration, you engage in individual and collaborative creative writing and explore a range of creative accomplishments in fields including literature, music, cinema studies, theater, and other arts.

The concentration in Creative Studies prepares you to:

Understand how text conveys meaning across a variety of literary genres and styles
Use innovation, flexibility, and collaboration to cultivate a creative writing practice
Create, revise, and edit original writing in multiple literary genres, including poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and screenwriting
Understand how artistic practices and traditions are produced, transformed, and re-contextualized over time and space
Analyze works of art (visual, musical, cinematic, theatrical, and literary) with attention to their historical and cultural context, paying particular attention to their intersections with gender, politics, religion, and history

Courses

Students in the Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences degree will choose a concentration to tailor their undergraduate education to specific personal and professional goals. Courses within each concentration may be taken in any order unless prerequisites are specified.

Students must complete foundational courses for the Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences degree. In addition, students in this concentration focus their studies by completing a total of 12 courses (12 c.u.*):

6 Creative Studies courses distributed as follows: 4 Creative Writing courses and 2 Digital Culture courses
6 Advisor approved electives, of which you can transfer in 3 courses. Courses can be chosen from APOP 3400, PROW 3010, and SDEI 2600 courses or any DIGC, CRWR, or ENLT courses with the BBCS attribute. For other course options, consult with your advisor.

Course options

Creative Writing

Select 4 course units:

Digital Strategies

Select 2 course units:

*This course may not be offered every academic year. Check the course page or our course guide to see when upcoming terms are added.

Courses are subject to change.

*Academic credit is defined by the University of Pennsylvania as a course unit (c.u.). A course unit (c.u.) is a general measure of academic work over a period of time, typically a term (semester or summer). A c.u. (or a fraction of a c.u.) represents different types of academic work across different types of academic programs and is the basic unit of progress toward a degree. One c.u. is usually converted to a four-semester-hour course.

Certificate related to Creative Studies

See your advisor to explore earning the Certificate in Creative Writing along with your degree. Note that this certificate is not earned automatically upon completing your degree; your advisor will help ensure that your academic plan meets the requirements of this certificate.

Careers related to Creative Studies

The skills acquired in the Creative Studies concentration are applicable to a wide variety of communications-related fields as well as the creative arts. Career options include:

Advertising and promotions manager
Public relations and fundraising professional
Editor
Author and journalist
Educator and librarian
Museum administrator

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