Clinical Psychology

A career in Clinical Psychology is seen by many as the pinnacle within the discipline.  Even a cursory inspection of the Careers Bulletin of the British Psychological Society shows the constant demand for people within this field.  This is the first step towards such a career. Upon graduation you may work as an Assistant Clinical Psychologists or Research Assistant and following further training you could lead work in health and social care settings, including hospitals, as part of a mental health team or within Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).  At a time when mental health and well being are increasingly of interest to the whole community our course is designed to help you to maximise your chances of pursuing a career in this area. 

Taught in world class learning facilities (QS World Rankings) by enthusiastic, research active staff many of whom work within the field our goal is to help you to fulfil your potential.  As part of the course fee we provide you with Student Membership of the British Psychological Society, which ensures you are aware of the career prospects available to you and receive other benefits including the monthly magazine ‘The Psychologist’.

The course is based in the School of Psychology in the purpose built Darwin Building.  This provides you with specialist teaching and research facilities that ensures that you learn not only the theoretical skills required of a Clinical Psychologist but also develop the practical application of these through a range of different laboratories: notably the Clinical and Health Psychology Suite (CHPS), our Brain Imaging Laboratory (BiL), the Developmental Cognitive Neuropsychology Laboratory (DCN).  You may also use the Child Observation Suite (COS) or the Cognitive Psychology Complex (CPC) which includes eye-tracking, virtual reality and face-recognition labs.

LEARNING ENVIRONMENT AND ASSESSMENT

A 3 year degree qualification typically comprises 360 credits and each 20 credit (a standard module) equates to 200 hours of study, which comprises of a mixture of lectures, seminars, tutorials, practical sessions and independent study. Independent study is an important aspect of your degree course. The exact combination of study time will be detailed within your module descriptors, and will depend on your option choices.

The three year degree programme involves a mixture of lectures, seminars/workshops and laboratory classes (all of which can be experienced at one of our Applicant Days) and is delivered by staff who are often Chartered Members (C. Psychol) of the British Psychological Society meaning that they have developed the highest, recognised understanding of their area and continue to practice within their Chartered field.

Where possible the assignments that you complete have been designed to replicate the tasks that you might undertake after graduation when working within Clinical Psychology or applying your psychological knowledge in a range of other employment situations.  We assess your skills and knowledge through a range of coursework and some examinations designed to permit you to demonstrate the understanding you have gained from the course.

Year 1

The first year of the course provides a broad understanding of the core elements of psychology alongside optional modules that permit you to explore not only Clinical Psychology but to study other areas from our wide range of courses.  This permits you to explore new interests, or consolidate existing ones.

Compulsory Modules

• Methods and Practice of Psychological Inquiry
• Introduction to Developmental and Social Psychology
• Introduction to Psychobiology and Cognition
• Current Topics in Psychology I
• Current Topics in Psychology I

Plus two from the following options

• Clinical Perspectives on Psychological Disorders
• Brain and Behaviour
• Baby Minds: Psychology of Infant Development
• Topics in Forensic & Criminological Psychology
• Psychology of the Media

Year 2

Year 2 provides you with the core curriculum of the British Psychological Society through the compulsory modules and develops your understanding of Clinical Psychology alongside this core material.  The Clinical module provides you with a breadth of content related to clinical psychology and is the basis for the final year, where two thirds of your degree will be within Clinical Psychology.  Alongside your compulsory modules in the second year you choose a specialist module from one of our other routes to provide not only flexibility in your final year degree route but also to ensure a wider appreciated of psychology

Compulsory Modules

• Clinical Psychology
• Psychological Research 1: Design and Quantitative Methods
• Psychological Research 2: Qualitative Methods
• Social & Developmental Psychology
• Cognitive and Physiological Psychology
• Individual Differences

Plus one from the following options

• Neurocognitive Development & Disorders
• Topics and Techniques in Neuroscience
• Forensic Psychology
• Applying Psychology

Placement Year

At the end of Year 2 you may choose to spend a year on placement to develop your work place skills and enhance your employment prospects.  Alternatively you may take a placement over the summer between Year 2 and 3 as one of your final year modules.

Year 3

For your final year your study two compulsory modules in Clinical Psychology developing both your theoretical understanding of the area and the application of clinical skills across a range of settings.  Alongside these modules you complete an independent piece of research: your final year project.  Additionally you chose two further options from our range of courses that enable you to develop the further skills and interests that meet your own career aspirations and requirements.

Compulsory Modules

• Application of Clinical Psychology: Practice, Clinical Research & Service Delivery
• Cognitive Behaviour Assessment and Treatment Planning in Clinical Psychology
• Clinical Psychology Project

Optional Modules (students take two of the following)

• Neuropsychological Disorders & Techniques OR Brain Treatments & Behaviours
• Advanced Developmental Psychopathology OR Applying Psychology in an Educational Setting
• Violent & Sexual Offending OR Crime, Impacts and Consequences
• Contemporary Issues in Social Psychology OR Interpersonal & Organisational Psychology

Our typical offer is 112-128 UCAS points.  We do, however, operate a flexible admissions policy and treat each applicant as an individual so we will consider your educational achievements, predicted (or achieved) grades, alongside relevant work experience and your personal statement.  We welcome applications not only from applicants with traditional backgrounds, but also those returning to education or looking for a career change.

BTEC Extended Diploma: Distinction, Merit, Merit
BTEC Diploma: Distinction*, Distinction*
Pass Access Course: 112-128 UCAS Points
International Baccalaureate: Pass Diploma with 112-128 UCAS points from Higher Level Subjects
IELTS: 6.0 with no sub score lower than 5.5
GCSE: 5 at Grade 4 (C) including Maths and English (or equivalent qualifications to GCSE)

Opportunities

UCLan offers one of the largest paid, Undergraduate Research Intern Scheme (URIS) in UK universities.  This permits you to work, on cutting edge research projects, with staff over the summer.  This competitive scheme develops not only your understanding of material from your course, but will frequently lead to conference papers, peer-reviewed journal articles and in some cases trips to present the work overseas.

Our International Travel Bursary scheme has been utilised by many students to visit locations overseas either for personal development or to enhance their learning.  In recent years students have visited the Dementia Village in Holland, climbed Kilimanjaro, assessed the Cognitive abilities of climbers at the Mount Everest basecamp, or visited Kenya, Italy, and the USA.

Eramus+ and visiting the Department of Psychology (part of the School of Sciences) at our campus in Cyprus are also options for students on this course.

Progression routes

Whilst most students will continue to study Clinical Psychology for the three years of the course, inherent in our course design is a flexibility that enables you to, should you wish, transfer to our other Psychology courses (Psychology, Forensic Psychology, Neuropsychology, The Psychology of Child Development).  This ensures that as your goals, aspirations and interests develop that you graduate with the degree you need upon graduation which may not necessarily be the one you thought you needed when you first applied for the course.

Upon graduation many students are expected to progress to either our MSc in Applied Clinical Psychology or to work within the field to enhance their application for a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology (DClin) to pursue Chartered Psychology status  The job prospects, however, for psychology graduates in general are excellent with people entering a wide range of careers either directly or indirectly related to psychology: education, business, industry, NHS and related health providers.