MSc Health Psychology
Status
Validated
Tuition Fees
Fees CalculatorEntry Requirements
Admission to this course is through gaining an honours degree that confers Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC, previously known as GBR) with the British Psychological Society (BPS).
This would usually be of class 2:2 or above in Psychology.
It is not essential to have studied health psychology at undergraduate level to apply for this course.
International applicants should check eligibility for GBC with the BPS. For more information visit www.bps.org.uk.
The course welcomes international applicants and requires an English level of IELTS 6.5 or equivalent.
Visit our psychology clinic website.
Accreditations
The MSc in Health psychology allows you to study an exciting and growing branch of psychology that applies psychological theory and research to health and illness related behaviours, beliefs and attitudes.
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About this Course
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Learning, Teaching and Assessment
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Work Experience and Employment Prospects
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Additional Information
About MSc Health Psychology
Essential Information
Health psychologists’ interests are very much in line with government health priorities and include the promotion of positive health behaviours in adults and children, reducing obesity, binge drinking, smoking and stress, and increasing psychological wellbeing. Opportunities for qualified health psychologists are expected to increase substantially.
The route to Chartered Health Psychologist status is through the attainment of an accredited MSc in Health Psychology (Stage One training) followed by supervised professional practice (Stage Two training). This programme has been granted accreditation status by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and provides students with the knowledge and skills required for Stage One training. The course is delivered by Chartered Health Psychologists with many years of specialist teaching, research and clinical experience in different areas of health psychology. Specialist practitioners contribute a contemporary perspective as guest lecturers.
We aim to provide students with access to clinical populations to collect psychological data in order to complete an applied dissertation. This is possible through our links with local NHS trusts and local healthcare providers. In addition, the University of South Wales has recently invested in a new psychology clinic which provides clinical and therapeutic services. Suitable students will be able to benefit from in-house research opportunities and supervised voluntary experience.
What you will study
The modules for this award include:
- Contexts and Perspectives in Health Psychology
- Healthcare in Professional Settings and Applications of Health Psychology
- Health-Related Cognitions and Behaviour
- Stress, Health and Illness
- A Lifespan Perspective on Health
- Research Methods in Health Psychology
- Dissertation
Learning, Teaching and Assessment for MSc Health Psychology
Learning and Teaching methods
Teaching will include lectures, seminars and workshops, some of which will be student-led.
Assessment methods
There will be a variety of assessment activities such as examinations, essays, case study analysis, poster presentations and the design of a health promotion campaign.
Work Experience and Employment Prospects for MSc Health Psychology
Employability
Health psychologists may practise in any health context, including hospitals, outpatient and community settings, as well as in academic health research units and university departments. Their work may involve developing and testing interventions, implementing healthy behaviour with individuals or groups using evidence-based methods such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), or conducting and evaluating effective health promotion campaigns. The BPS states that there has been a considerable growth in interest in the practice areas of health psychologists in recent years.
Accreditations
This programme has been granted accreditation status by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and provides students with the knowledge and skills required for Stage One training.
Additional Information for MSc Health Psychology
Testimonial text
Completing the MSc Health Psychology course gave me the career head start I needed. The Health Psychology teaching team’s close connections with local health services gave me the opportunity to conduct independent research with a clinical sample and gave me a valuable insight into the complexities of conducting research in the real world. This experience helped me acquire the position as a Psychology Assistant Practitioner; the knowledge and skills learnt are continually supporting me to develop as a professional.
Monwara Ali,
MSc Health Psychology
Facilities
As a student in the School of Psychology, you’ll have access to the latest learning technologies, facilities and equipment, including excellent designated facilities.
These include observation and interview rooms equipped with two-way mirror, CCTV and audio and allow research and interview practice sessions to be conducted and recorded onto DVD. We also have a custom-built air-conditioned PC laboratory which provides access to specialist software for running psychology experiments and conducting careers guidance interviews. More specialist equipment is also available in our cognitive suite and more details about this are given below.
Cognitive suite
The cognitive psychology suite houses specialist psychology equipment. This includes eye tracking equipment which is capable of studying the eye movements of individuals whilst they complete cognitive tasks. The suite includes EEG (electroencephalogram) and ECG (electrocardiogram) facilities for recording electrical activity in the heart and scalp. There is also a driving simulator which is currently being used by postgraduate students to complete a study which examines the effects of stressors on driving performance.
Psychology clinic facility (PAWB Wales)
As well as our excellent dedicated teaching facilities, the School of Psychology offers a wide range of psychological services to the general public. These are offered through our new PAWB Wales clinic facility and include play therapy, behaviour analysis, health and sport psychology interventions. The clinic activities support our wide range of postgraduate opportunities and undergraduate students can also get involved in some of the clinic’s work.
For more information about PAWB Wales, please visit:
www.glam.ac.uk/pawb