English and Creative Writing | Student Stories

Rebecca Moore, from Cardiff, put her passion for reading to good use on the MA Gothic Studies.

I was first attracted to the MA Gothic Studies by the range of subject matter. The module choices were all really appealing. The course was also very flexible and the tutorials were after work. I could also study it part-time over 2 years, which was great as I had a full-time job. It felt fantastic to go back to studying 10 years after my first degree and I really enjoyed the reading.

Even though my first degree wasn’t in English literature (it was in history), I found that I soon got up to speed with literary theory by means of the ‘Researching Literature’ module. I found the assignments set in this module really helped with all my other assignments and they were invaluable in helping me practically with my dissertation.

Although the subject matter was right up my street, with many of my favourite books being on the reading list, the outstanding feature was the sheer quality of the teaching. The teaching staff were not only extremely helpful and approachable, but their depth of knowledge was incredible. They were all top academics and have great reputations within their field. Their recent publications helped to inform my own work and it was great to get the latest theories straight from the source.

I really enjoyed the discussions we had. The teaching was in small, lively groups and it was good to learn from other students as well.

Although it was hard work, I really enjoyed writing my dissertation. I got lots of help and support from my supervisor and Glamorgan’s Learning Resource Centre provided a very quick service in producing much-needed texts on very short time-scales.

Texts I really enjoyed reading included The King’s General, The Italian, Frankenstein, Dracula, Affinity and Wise Children. My dissertation was on the work of Daphne du Maurier and I had a really great time at the du Maurier festival in Fowey.