PCA&D Launches New BFA in Creative Writing – Where Writers Grow Among Artists

Lancaster’s downtown art & design college adds a writing degree designed to prepare graduates for careers across publishing, media, marketing, and beyond.

Pennsylvania College of Art & Design (PCA&D) has announced a new Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Creative Writing, a program built for students who want to develop as writers while working shoulder-to-shoulder alongside a community of visual artists.

In a world shaped by digital media, marketing, entertainment and technology, strong writers are in demand across industries that need people who can communicate ideas clearly and tell compelling stories. The new BFA prepares graduates for careers as copywriters, editors, publishing assistants, content managers, grant writers, screenwriters, and independent authors – while giving them the freedom to shape the degree around their own creative goals.

That flexibility is central to the program’s design. Students build a foundation in fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry, then tailor their studies toward the genres and forms that excite them – from screenwriting and game scripts to graphic novels, worldbuilding, and children’s books. Small class sizes, a low faculty-to-student ratio, and studio electives let writers work like any studio artist, collaborating across disciplines and producing a senior capstone entirely their own.

“Writers today have to move fluidly between genres, styles, and audiences, and that flexibility is exactly what this program builds,” said Caitlin Downs, Chair of Creative Writing and Director of Writing Programs at PCA&D. “Studying among painters, illustrators and filmmakers pushes our writers to think visually and collaboratively. They leave here not just as strong writers, but as adaptable creative professionals ready for real career paths.”

Downs knows the choice firsthand. Recruited by PCA&D at her Lower Dauphin high school years ago, she was torn between art and English – and ultimately built her own interdisciplinary path before earning an MFA in Creative Writing. Today, as a visual poet working in erasure and book art, she brings that cross-disciplinary spirit to the program.

Throughout the program, students sharpen their craft across a wide range of writing styles – from close reading and manuscript editing to professional and audience-focused communication. Before graduating, every student completes an internship and a capstone project designed to launch them into a writing career.

Downs plans to launch an in-house student literary magazine and publishing arm, giving PCA&D writers a real platform to share their work from day one.

The BFA in Creative Writing is now accepting applications. Prospective students can learn more or begin an application at pcad.edu/creative-writing.