Health and wellbeing have never before been so prominent in the ways we seek to evaluate and assess human experience. This course is designed particularly for students already qualified at Level 5 in a subject such as counselling, health and social care, or social and community work, and it explores health and wellbeing from the perspectives offered by psychology.
You’ll consider how psychological theory and research provide an understanding of health and wellbeing as situated and experienced in multiple social, political and economic contexts. You’ll also discover how psychology is applied within professional settings, through practices such as health psychology, counselling psychology and clinical psychology, to address health and wellbeing challenges.
The core ethos of the programme is to develop critical thinkers who will bring these perspectives to their current practice or intended profession. We’ll support you to develop the skills needed to work effectively within evidence-based practice frameworks that draw on research evidence, clinician expertise, and client perspectives and values. Your research skills will be developed through an independent project on a topic of your choice, as you learn how psychological interventions and therapies are designed, delivered and evaluated.
The course offers graduates career prospects in services providing support for, and promotion of, mental and physical health in a broad range of settings including health, education and social care in the NHS and charitable sectors. Completion of this degree will also provide you with a firm foundation for progression to further postgraduate or professional study, such as our MSc Psychology conversion course, or a research degree.
With teaching focused on the use of case studies and practical examples, you will learn to apply research evidence and critical thinking to issues in health and wellbeing. Sometimes working alongside students from other psychology programmes, you will develop skills of collaborative and independent learning. Assessment tasks relate to real world problems and stimulate critical thinking, creativity, and active learning.
Graduates from the course wishing to train as professional psychologists will be able to apply for our MSc Psychology programme, a conversion course which allows graduates to achieve the Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC) with the British Psychological Society. GBC accredited students may go on to train as professional psychologists, for example by completing our MSc Health Psychology, or a Doctorate in Counselling Psychology or Clinical Psychology.
Level 5 qualification in a relevant subject (e.g. counselling, health & social care, early childhood studies, social and community work), or evidence of achievement equivalent to the first two years of a degree.
International students require IELTS 6.0 overall with no less than 5.5 in any component, or equivalent.
Here's an example of the types of modules you'll study (the contents and structure of the course are reviewed occasionally, but it is unlikely that there will be significant change).
Module information is not available for this programme.
| Start date | Location | UCAS code |
Fee (UK) per year |
Fee (international) per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2023 | Francis Close Hall, Cheltenham | C848 | £9,250 | £15,450 |
| Sep 2024 | Francis Close Hall, Cheltenham | C848 | TBC | TBC |
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International students can benefit from a range of scholarships and bursaries across many undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. |
Find out more | |||
Graduates from this course can go on to work in:
Several lecturers on this course also work within the NHS as practitioner psychologists and researchers. There are also strong links with local charitable organisations in the fields of mental health, wellbeing, and health psychology.
You’ll benefit from learning with a group of highly skilled, qualified, enthusiastic staff who have a passion for health, wellbeing, and of course psychology more broadly.
The course extends your knowledge of psychology as applied to health and wellbeing, broadening the perspectives you will bring to your current practice or intended profession.
The independent project and a choice of option modules enable you to shape the programme towards your interests and needs.
You’ll benefit from access to a range of facilities used in the delivery of psychology programmes including interview suites and a VR lab.
Delivering the best possible learning experience through cutting-edge technology and strong practical elements. You’ll work closely with expert lecturers and other students in the seminar room, the laboratory and the field.
I’m interested in understanding why people experience psychological distress and the factors which maintain these difficulties. My early work focussed on the role of intrusive imagery and safety-seeking behaviours in maintaining anxiety. I also explored the efficacy of cognitive-behavioural and mindfulness-based approaches for treating anxiety and depression.
I’m passionate about exploring ways to promote the effective implementation of evidence-based cognitive-behavioural therapies within routine practice. More recently my work has examined the impact of stigma on individuals living with long term physical and mental health difficulties.
Dr Kate Muse, Senior Lecturer in Psychology
Twitter: @drkatemuse
My main research interests involve examining why and how we trust experts, judge risks, and seek information on contempary scientific issues. Much of my previous research has focused on vaccine hesitancy around the antenatal pertussis vaccine and the COVID-19 vaccination programme. In recent research, I examine the global differences in risk-perception, response-efficacy and fatalistic (i.e. doom) beliefs related to climate change. I also have a passion for meta-science (the study of how science is conducted) and how changing the way we as academics conduct research can aid public understanding of our work.
Dr Richard Clarke, Quantitative Research Psychologist, Lecturer in Psychology
Twitter: @RichClarkePsy
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