Penn offers a variety of creative writing and journalistic opportunities for undergraduates, including creative writing courses, student publications, and workshops.
Students can pursue a concentration in creative writing as part of the english major, as well as outside of classes through programming at the Kelly Writers House or extracurricular activities. As Julia Bloch, director of the Creative Writing Program at Penn said: “Calling all writers: there’s a place for you here!”
The Creative Writing Program, housed within the English Department, is staffed by award-winning writers and offers more than 60 workshops annually, as well as various programs in contemporary writing. Course offerings within the program include: Media, Platform, Experience; Gender, Sexuality, and Literature Seminar; and Writing the Self: Life-Writing, Fiction, Representation. The creative writing concentration also offers for-credit apprenticeships and independent study courses.
Jamie-Lee Josselyn, associate director for recruitment in the Creative Writing Program, told Penn Today that she wants wants prospective students “to know that in coming to Penn, you gain not just some of the best creative writing opportunities in the country, but friends and lifelong collaborators and mentors too.”
A key hub for the Creative Writing Program is the Kelly Writers House. This space offers creative writing students and anyone interested in literature a chance to explore interactive webcasts — which will run from September to November — from Modpo. This free online course introduces students to various topics such as contemporary writing, poetry, journalism, and experimental verse.
Bloch also noted other opportunities that the program offers.
“We had some fantastic events last year that brought students in touch with writers creating some of the most exciting work out there. We hosted YA novelist Candice Iloh and poet Ross Gay; we convened panels on writing and democracy, on breaking into publishing, on getting your MFA and launching your writing career,” Bloch said.
The Kelly Writers House also offers open-mic nights, poem and narrative readings, and literary discussions by published authors, and conversations with journalists — the first of these events beginning on August 23 for the 2025-26 school year.
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As for more journalistic opportunities, there are many publications at Penn including 34th Street Magazine, The Daily Pennsylvanian, The WALK, and Penn Appétit.
34th Street offers a weekly newsletter, highlights on music, arts, and film. The DP offers a range of departments from news writing and reporting to opinion writing and multimedia activities, such as podcasts, videos, and galleries.
“The defining aspect of my experience [at Penn] was the DP” said Chase Sutton, former DP Multimedia Editor. “If you’re looking as a person interested in journalism and wondering, ‘Should I pursue Penn?’ I think yes, even though we don’t have a journalism school, the DP was my major, and it just provides you with such practical experience that I don’t even think a journalism program can provide you with.”
Penn also has a minor in journalistic writing, which has workshops in journalism and creative non-fiction such as journalistic writing in Science, Technology, Society; The Art of Editing; and Graphic Nonfiction.
