Creative Writing · Washington
Creative Writing colleges in Washington
CampusPin lists 59 U.S. colleges in Washington that offer Creative Writing programs. Compare tuition, acceptance rate, and enrollment in the table below, every figure links back to the institution's official IPEDS data.
Creative Writing is a craft-focused major where you produce original fiction, poetry, and other literary work in workshops, suited to writers who want to build a publishable body of work.
Schools in Washington that offer Creative Writing
Antioch University-Seattle
Seattle, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$15,452
Acceptance
55%
Enrollment
800
Bastyr University
Kenmore, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$15,452
Acceptance
88%
Enrollment
760
Bellevue College
Bellevue, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,305
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
6,901
Bellingham Technical College
Bellingham, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,226
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
1,523
Big Bend Community College
Moses Lake, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,909
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
1,281
Cascadia College
Bothell, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,914
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
970
Central Washington University
Ellensburg, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$9,192
Acceptance
90%
Enrollment
8,568
City University of Seattle
Seattle, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$14,589
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
1,881
Clark College
Vancouver, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,632
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
4,699
Clover Park Technical College
Lakewood, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$6,634
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
2,417
Columbia Basin College
Pasco, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$6,194
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
4,226
Eastern Washington University
Cheney, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$8,353
Acceptance
92%
Enrollment
10,012
Edmonds College
Lynnwood, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,669
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
3,354
Everett Community College
Everett, WA · Community College · Public
Tuition
$4,301
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
4,378
Gonzaga University
Spokane, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$53,500
Acceptance
76%
Enrollment
7,241
Grays Harbor College
Aberdeen, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,751
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
1,058
Green River College
Auburn, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,580
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
4,573
Heritage University
Toppenish, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$19,920
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
834
Highline College
Des Moines, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,623
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
3,487
Lake Washington Institute of Technology
Kirkland, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$5,156
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
2,179
Lower Columbia College
Longview, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,346
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
1,743
North Seattle College
Seattle, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$5,058
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
2,792
Northwest College of Art & Design
Tacoma, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$18,100
Acceptance
76%
Enrollment
150
Northwest University
Kirkland, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$36,035
Acceptance
88%
Enrollment
962
Olympic College
Bremerton, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,197
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
3,263
Pacific Lutheran University
Tacoma, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$50,964
Acceptance
81%
Enrollment
2,694
Pacific Northwest Christian College
Kennewick, WA · Community College · Private
Tuition
$11,350
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
129
Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences
Yakima, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$15,452
Acceptance
89%
Enrollment
2,064
Peninsula College
Port Angeles, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,586
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
1,139
Perry Technical Institute
Yakima, WA · Community College · Private
Tuition
$15,452
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
2,281
Pierce College District
Lakewood, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,686
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
4,487
Pima Medical Institute-Renton
Renton, WA · Community College · Private
Tuition
$15,452
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
400
Renton Technical College
Renton, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$6,723
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
1,539
Saint Martin's University
Lacey, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$44,210
Acceptance
76%
Enrollment
1,492
Seattle Central College
Seattle, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,865
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
3,879
Seattle Pacific University
Seattle, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$38,814
Acceptance
91%
Enrollment
2,650
Seattle University
Seattle, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$54,285
Acceptance
76%
Enrollment
7,162
Shoreline Community College
Shoreline, WA · Community College · Public
Tuition
$4,388
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
3,109
Skagit Valley College
Mount Vernon, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$5,620
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
2,581
South Puget Sound Community College
Olympia, WA · Community College · Public
Tuition
$5,103
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
2,692
South Seattle College
Seattle, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,865
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
1,495
Spokane Community College
Spokane, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,057
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
4,114
Spokane Falls Community College
Spokane, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,058
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
2,881
Tacoma Community College
Tacoma, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$4,920
Acceptance
100%
Enrollment
4,248
The Evergreen State College
Olympia, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$8,999
Acceptance
97%
Enrollment
2,254
The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology
Seattle, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$15,452
Acceptance
84%
Enrollment
820
University of Puget Sound
Tacoma, WA · University · Private
Tuition
$59,900
Acceptance
76%
Enrollment
1,913
University of Washington-Bothell Campus
Bothell, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$12,559
Acceptance
92%
Enrollment
5,230
University of Washington-Seattle Campus
Seattle, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$12,643
Acceptance
43%
Enrollment
67,801
University of Washington-Tacoma Campus
Tacoma, WA · University · Public
Tuition
$12,817
Acceptance
83%
Enrollment
3,991
Creative Writing programs in Washington: by the numbers
A quick comparison of the 50 schools (of 59 total) listed above, drawn from each institution's published IPEDS data.
Schools listed
59
Public / private
33 / 17
Universities / 2-year
44 / 6
Cities represented
30
In-state tuition range
$4,057–$59,900
Median in-state tuition
$6,414
Lowest published in-state tuition
Spokane Community College
$4,057
Most selective
University of Washington-Seattle Campus
43% acceptance
Largest by enrollment
University of Washington-Seattle Campus
67,801 students
Figures reflect the schools currently listed and each institution's most recent reported data. Verify current tuition and admissions details with the school before applying.
What you'll study in a Creative Writing program
- Multi-genre writing workshops in fiction, poetry, and nonfiction
- Craft of fiction (scene, point of view, structure, dialogue)
- Poetry craft (line, meter, image, and form)
- Creative nonfiction and the personal essay
- Revision and manuscript critique methods
- Editorial skills and manuscript preparation for submission
- Wide craft-focused reading across literary traditions
- Screenwriting or scriptwriting foundations
- Senior capstone portfolio or thesis manuscript
Where a Creative Writing degree can lead
- Author and Novelist
- Screenwriter
- Copywriter
- Editor
- Content Writer
- Grant Writer
Typical pay: Early-career wages vary by employer, region, and experience (BLS, 2024 writers and authors median $72,270).
Creative Writing centers on making original work rather than only studying it. You write your own short stories, poems, novels, essays, scripts, and other forms, then bring drafts to a workshop where classmates and an instructor read closely and give structured feedback you use to revise. Coursework moves between the craft of a given genre (how point of view, line, scene, and image actually work on the page) and wide reading that shows you how published writers solve the same problems. You also pick up editorial and revision skills and learn how finished manuscripts are submitted, pitched, and prepared for publication. This is what distinguishes it from a general English or Literature degree: an English program is built around literary analysis, theory, and scholarly argument, while Creative Writing is built around generating, critiquing, and polishing your own manuscripts.
Most programs award a bachelor's degree, often as a track or concentration inside an English or writing department, and the entry-level writing and editing roles tied to this field generally expect a bachelor's. The defining requirements are word-based rather than clinical: sustained writing workshops across genres, a craft and literature reading load, and a capstone senior portfolio or thesis manuscript that you draft and revise across one or two semesters, sometimes with a public reading. No license is required to write or edit, though some specialized writing roles may ask for separate certification that you should verify with the employer or program. Graduates work in book and magazine publishing, marketing and content teams, communications and grant-writing offices, screen and game studios, journalism, teaching, and freelance authorship, and many pair the degree with a graduate writing program when they aim toward authorship or college-level teaching.
In federal data for the closely related occupation of writers and authors, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a 2024 median wage of $72,270 and projects employment to grow about 3.6% from 2024 to 2034; a bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education for that occupation. National figures are occupation-wide medians across all experience levels, not starting wages or graduate outcomes.
Creative Writing in other states
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