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BSc (Hons) - Psychology

1st in the UK for student satisfaction (Guardian University Guide 2023)

Do you enjoy investigating and debating ideas? Explore human behaviour and develop valuable graduate skills with our Psychology degree, accredited by the British Psychological Society.

This programme provides an engaging exploration of human behaviour, cognition, advanced research methods, and hands-on experiential problem-based learning.

You will explore human experience across a range of contexts and lifespans, from understanding the biological basis of behaviour to questioning the impact of social media on child development. Part of your degree course will be practical, focusing on research techniques, qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods, data handling and analysis skills, laboratory reports, and communication skills.

Our software and equipment for collecting experimental data includes the Biopac data acquisition system, MindWave Neurosky headsets which are used to study and analyse brainwave patterns, and E-prime software for designing and running psychological experiments.

Lectures and seminars are taught by passionate academics, all of whom are researchers and practitioners, which allows you to benefit from their expertise and cutting-edge research. Our lecturers will get to know you individually to ensure you get the most out of your degree and feel supported throughout. You will also be encouraged to engage in career-enhancing voluntary work.

To help you reach your ideal future career, you will be able to shape your psychology degree to your own interests and ambitions. Your second year, for example, provides an opportunity to undertake an independent piece of work in an area of your choice.

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Accredited by:

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The British Psychological Society

Course Overview

This degree programme is accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and is designed to give you the knowledge and expertise to kickstart a successful career in Psychology. Upon completion of the course, you will also be eligible to apply for Graduate Basis for Chartership (GBC) with the BPS. The skills, knowledge and understanding you gain from the course will therefore help you access a range of rewarding professions within the field of psychology.

You’ll learn through a combination of lectures, seminars, and workshops delivered by our expert academics, and be encouraged to engage in career-enhancing voluntary work, giving you valuable hands-on experience that will allow you to graduate as a confident and knowledgeable practitioner. You will also attend seminars with national and international speakers and engage with real world research projects throughout your degree.

The course offers work experience in a range of areas, including working with young people, in schools, as part of research teams, within different charities, and supporting ex-offenders. We also offer a variety of extracurricular opportunities, such as voluntary research assistant roles, which have led to student publications and conference presentations.

This course is designed to allow you to tailor your degree based on your interests. Our Negotiated Learning allows you to pursue a supervised independent project on any psychological topic of your choice. Current students have explored areas such as clinical and forensic psychology, as well as educational and occupational psychology.

You will therefore be in the ideal position to take the next steps towards a career in clinical, forensic or educational psychology, health education and promotion, counselling, social work, teaching, organisational behaviour, human resources, and prison or probation work.

What’s more, our psychology courses are ranked 1st in the North West and 11th in the UK (Guardian University Guide 2023 Results). We're also 1st in the UK for students satisfied with course, teaching and feedback for psychology (Guardian University Guide 2023 Results).

On this course you will...

  • Study psychology at the University of Cumbria, exploring and applying psychological literature to current issues, contexts and experiences.
  • Be taught and given high-quality support and guidance by our lecturing team, who are active in research and practices.
  • Learn valuable transferrable skills in research, which are highly sought after by employers.
  • Have the opportunity to choose topics and areas that you want to learn more about to tailor your learning experience.
  • Be able to shape your psychology degree experience to your interests and career goals, allowing us to help you to reach your ideal future career.
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Course Structure

What you will learn

On this degree, you will study five key themes within psychology:

The contextualised bio-psychosocial nature of human development and experience
Ethical decision making and professional values
Gathering and analysing evidence using robust, population relevant and ethical research techniques
The pivotal role of academic, professional and graduate skills
Experiential problem-based learning
The following modules will take you through these themes, allowing you to investigate your independent interests in the curriculum.

Year one

In your first year, you will build knowledge in the foundations of psychology as a discipline and develop key skills through lectures, workshops and problem-based learning.

You will build knowledge of the history of the discipline, research methods and analytical techniques and learn about key theories and psychologists.

  • Psychology in Action
    Introduction to a range of theories and models from developmental, cognitive and biological psychology and their application to human contexts.
  • Introduction to Psychological Research Methods
    Introduction to the nature of psychological enquiry and research skills. Exploring quantitative and qualitative research methods, philosophical underpinnings and practical applications.
  • Introduction to Data Analysis
    Introduction to the processes involved in the analysis and interpretation of quantitative and qualitative data.
  • Perspectives in Psychology
    Introduction to a range of perspectives and key debates in psychology that aid in the understanding of individual and social phenomena.
  • Professional and Academic Skills
    Introduction to working with others in a professional setting, employability, and professional practice that includes listening skills and providing constructive feedback.
  • Introduction to Psychopathology
    This module will provide a basis for diagnostic classification systems (e.g. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)), and give an overview of the various different forms of psychopathology. It will outline theoretical frameworks which form the basis for assessment and interventi
Year two

In the second year, you will develop a more in-depth understanding of research, theory, and practice, and develop research and practical skills.

This will include a work experience module, and an opportunity to engage in a negotiated learning project that is individually chosen and tailored to suit your particular interests.

  • Research Methods and Statistics
    Introduction to statistical techniques dealing with more than one independent variable at two or more levels, including within, between, and mixed participant designs.
  • Development, Brain and Cognition
    Explore the potential impact a range of factors have on human development and behaviour.
  • Research Methods in Applied Psychology Settings
    Introduction to a range of research designs used in psychology and applied psychology settings.
  • Work Experience
    The module will give you an opportunity to link your academic study with work experience. This will allow you to enhance your employability and develop your reflective writing skills through writing a report reflecting on your work experience.
  • Negotiated Learning
    This module permits you to independently undertake an agreed piece of work that is relevant to your own interests and/or career plans.
  • Social and Community Psychology
    Study theories of social psychology with the goal of understanding the experiences and behaviours of people within their community.
Year three

In your final year, you will undertake an independent research project that will allow you to explore a topic of interest and pursue your own research question.

You will also be able to further advance your knowledge of psychology and psychological skills.

  • Critical Psychology
    You will engage in a critical debate about the ideological basis of psychological knowledge, methods, and applications.
  • Individual Differences: Abilities, Personalities and measuring differences
    Introduction to the nature of individual differences in human behaviour across a wide spectrum of human development. With a specific focus on ability, personality and the use of Psychological testing to assess difference.
  • Dissertation
    You will pursue an investigation on a topic of your own interest.
  • Psychological Literacy and Careers
    The module will give you an opportunity to apply your psychological knowledge and skills to applied psychology settings. It will invite you to engage in an in-depth exploration of a career within, or allied to, psychology.
  • Counselling and Coaching Psychology
    This module includes the development of basic counselling and coaching skills to complement their developing employability skills and psychological literacy.

Attend an Open Day at Cumbria

An Open Day is your opportunity to explore one of 5 campuses, meet your lecturers, and find out how the University of Cumbria could become your new home.

Take the next step towards achieving your dreams.
A student stands in front of a wall splattered with paint.