COURSE OVERVIEW

Enhance your knowledge and skills on our MSc Psychology, which is accredited by the British Psychological Society. Our Masters course is perfect if you have an undergraduate degree, and want to get Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC) with the British Psychological Society – or simply learn more about psychology.

Psychology and the exploration of the mind has been discussed for millennia, although it’s still young as a practice. This course will help you develop the scientific understanding of the different perspectives and theoretical approaches within the core areas of psychology, and the relations between them.

You’ll learn how psychology is influenced by many different factors. Through our modules you’ll see how physiology can influence someone, with the way our bodies react to the chemicals they create, the impact of external influences, like society, how different languages change the way you look at the world, and the importance of childhood development.

You’ll also learn how to design research projects, from the first idea through to how to make it work, explore different research methods, and gain the skills to manage a project ethically and professionally. You’ll design and conduct your own research project, and acquire all the skills required by the British Psychological Society (BPS) to register with them as a graduate member (in order to be eligible to register you will need an overall pass mark of 50% in your degree).

Study under the guidance of research-active lecturers, with a passion for psychology and for helping their students reach their potential.

We welcome all students to this course, whether you have studied some psychology in the past or if you are new to this field. If you have studied some psychology in the past, you may be have to revisit some topics you have covered

CAREERS

A degree in psychology is highly valued by most employers, and our MSc has the added benefit of being accredited by the British Psychological Society.

As a graduate, you’ll be able to apply for Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership with the British Psychological Society.

More broadly, by studying this course you’ll gain an analytical approach to tasks, an understanding of people, and the underlying management skills associated with project work.

Sectors that you could progress into include:

health and social care
marketing and PR
management and human resources
education
public sector work.

With further study you can also continue into clinical psychology settings.

You could even continue your study with us through an MPhil/PhD Psychology.

MODULES & ASSESSMENT

Research in Action: Statistical Thinking

Develop a vital understanding of data collection principles and analysis needed for psychology, whilst considering the theory of various quantitative methods. Psychology requires you to be able to choose the best method for collecting data. With an emphasis on quantitative data analysis, you will cover the theoretical, conceptual, and ethical issues during lectures; with emphasis on the logic behind these techniques, enabling you to see when it’s appropriate to use a particular approach, and how to interpret its output. The ideas covered in your lectures are brought to life by the use of associated practical and computer examples, helping you to grasp the concepts by interacting with data.
Biopsychology

Biopsychology is one of the major paradigms in modern psychology and a good working knowledge is essential to understand many areas of contemporary psychology. For example, understanding drug therapy in clinical psychology, considering why stress can make people ill in health psychology and even why the sensation of falling in love is quite so powerful. Biopsychology will introduce you to the physiological mechanisms that underlie all behaviour and cognition. You will be introduced to the philosophy that underpins biological psychology, and discusses issues such as determinism, reductionism, and free will. You will then focus on capture, communication, and processing of information in the nervous system and look in detail at the mechanics of these processes, like the structure and function of the brain and nervous system, the complex interplay between ‚psychology’ and chemical messages, and also the role that evolution and genetics may play in behaviour and cognition. Finally, you will see how biopsychology has been applied to understanding complex psychology. This module will provide you with a good foundation of knowledge regarding the biology that underpins behaviour and encourages you to think critically about the relationship between biology and behaviour.
Contemporary Social Psychology

Social psychology is the study of how people’s thoughts, feelings and behaviours are influenced by the actual, imagined or implied presence of others. Building on classic social psychology theory and research, you will consider contemporary social psychology, including topics such as racism and the replication of classic social psychology experiments. You will also be exposed to the two forms of social psychology: the ‚mainstream’ American forms of social psychology and the more modern European forms of social psychology that place more emphasis on social and collective processes.
Language and Thought

Explore the key themes, theories, research programmes, and methods to understand processes underlying human language and thinking, within the domains of cognitive psychology and cognitive neuropsychology. You will study human problem solving, reasoning, and decision-making, gaining an appreciation of the different approaches and models, as well as examine contradicting evidence between reasoning in the laboratory and the real world, allowing you to understand how human reasoning differs from idealised accounts provided by theories of logic and probability. You will also explore language, the intact and impaired processes involved in spoken language, as well as reading and spelling in different languages, with a special interest on whether these processes are universal or language specific. You will also examine literacy and associated developmental problems such as dyslexia, bilingualism and related issues in acquiring and maintaining a second language.
Research in Action: Qualitative Methods and Psychology in Practice

Research is key to psychology. Here you will learn the qualitative methods in psychology, looking at the design, collection, and analysis of qualitative data and key aspects of a qualitative approach, such as reflexivity and epistemology. You will analyse qualitative data and use this to formulate research questions. As part of this, you will develop an awareness of the ethical and practical implications of conducting professional research.
Personality, Intelligence and Psychometrics

Designed to enable you to develop an understanding of key contemporary approaches to the study and assessment of personality and intelligence, this module examines the assumptions behind theoretical approaches to personality and intelligence, the nature of personality and intelligence, the theory of psychometrics, the strengths, implications and limitations of different approaches, and the applications of theory. You will link theoretical approaches with assessment, including the development of basic skills in understanding and using psychological tests. As well as acquiring a detailed knowledge of major theories of personality and intelligence, you will develop an awareness of the social and ethical implications of the measurement of individual differences. The module develops students’ skills in problem solving, evaluation and autonomy.
Lifespan Development

Explore human development across the lifespan, from birth to adulthood to old age, including how childhood experiences affect later development. Discuss and compare the different approaches to human development, and apply theories of development to particular case studies. Some of the different approaches to human development to be studied may include: attachment theory, Erikson’s psychosocial theory, theories of aging, and biopyschosocial approaches. You will also look at different domains of human development such as social, emotional, moral, and cognitive development across the lifespan.
Learning, Memory and Perception

Underlying all psychological functioning is the ability to perceive, remember, and alter our behaviour in response to information in the world. These basic psychological processes of perception, memory, and learning were the first areas of study for empirical psychology and here you will examine both the historical development of these areas as well as the current state of knowledge in each area. With an overview of the principles of associative learning, including the principles of operant and respondent conditioning and the distinction between contiguity and contingency in learning, you will also consider how the principles can be applied in practical situations such as the treatment of phobias. The underlying neurophysiological mechanisms of memory, as well as cognitive models of memory, will be presented, as well as disorders of memory associated with brain injury.
Psychology Dissertation

This module requires you to undertake a significant research project in the chosen field of study and to present the results of that research in a thesis prepared to the highest scientific professional standards. The research will normally be based on preparatory work undertaken in the compulsory prerequisite modules: Issues in Scientific Research and Quantitative Research Methods. The topic may be drawn from a variety of sources including: departmental research groups, a lecturer suggested topic, or a professional subject of interest provided that suitable supervision is available. This module is delivered over 15 hours of individual supervision (based on 1 hour per week) and requires 585 hours of student managed learning (535 hours of practical session preparation and 50 hours of preparation for oral presentation) totalling 600 hours of learning activities.

Assessment

The assessment on this course is varied and innovative. You will be assessed via traditional coursework essay and exams, as well as portfolios, case study reports, multiple choice questionnaires, book reviews and, of course, a dissertation.