If you want to understand our place in the world, then psychology at Essex is for you. We provide one of the most immersive and exciting experiences of studying human thoughts and behaviours in the UK. Our teaching and research focus on innovative solutions to societal challenges, so that you develop the skills and knowledge to make a difference in our world.
Satisfy your curiosity by learning from world-renowned researchers at the cutting edge of psychological science. At Essex, we take a multi-method approach, working beyond traditional boundaries to combine different expertise and share fascinating techniques and intriguing theories. We answer questions such as:
At Essex, you learn psychology from the start. In your first year, your modules address major challenges that society faces today. We embed key skills such as research methods and statistics into topics you are interested in. You are taught topics one-by-one to help you consolidate your knowledge.
You continue to develop these skills during your second year, taking a deeper dive into topics such as brain and behaviour and health psychology. In your final year, you specialise in areas that really interest you. You also have the opportunity to take one or more applied modules across your three years with us, in the areas of health, global challenges, self-improvement, sustainability, the criminal mind and more, developing your knowledge of real-world psychology.
Have a question about applying for this course through Clearing? Join a Q&A with Psychology academics on Tuesday 29 July 2025, 16:00 GMT+1. Book your place.
We offer both a BSc Psychology and a BA Psychology.
The only difference is the award you receive when you graduate: you'll receive either a Bachelor of Science (BSc) or a Bachelor of Arts (BA). The modules you take are the same for both degrees, you will be taught by the same lecturers, and have access to the same facilities.
So what should you choose? It comes down to how you would like to present your degree to future employers or postgraduate programmes.
Because these courses share modules, you can change your mind about which exit award best suits you and your future career plans – simply let our Professional Services colleagues know and they will update your record.
Accredited against the requirements for the Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC) of the British Psychological Society (BPS).
This accreditation signifies that you have obtained a high standard of psychology education, and is a crucial step for several career paths - including becoming a chartered psychologist. Your degree will be recognised by employers as a mark of quality, and ensures the curriculum you study covers the necessary knowledge and skills for professional practice.
Your education extends beyond the university campus. We support you in expanding your education through offering the opportunity to spend a year or a term studying abroad at one of our partner universities. The four-year version of our degree allows you to spend the third year abroad or employed on a placement abroad, while otherwise remaining identical to the three-year course.
Studying abroad allows you to experience other cultures and languages, to broaden your degree socially and academically, and to demonstrate to employers that you are mature, adaptable, and organised.
If you spend a full year abroad you'll only pay 15% of your usual tuition fee to Essex for that year. You won't pay any tuition fees to your host university.
Alternatively, you can spend your third year on a placement year with an external organisation. This is usually focussed around your course, and enables you to learn about a particular sector, company or job role, apply your academic knowledge in a practical working environment, and receive inspiration for future career pathways.
If you complete a placement year you'll only pay 20% of your usual tuition fee to Essex for that year.
Our psychology lecturers include award-winning teachers and prize-winning researchers who are international experts in their own research areas.
Our staff carry out research into diverse areas of psychology. Our departmental mission is to 'Understand our place in the world', meaning that all of our research aims to make meaningful contributions to society. At Essex, our research explores how we think about, interact with, and experience the world, offering fresh insights into the human mind and behaviour from every angle.
This dynamic, multi-perspective approach lets you learn to investigate the full spectrum of psychological experience in meaningful, real-world ways. Our holistic approach also helps tie your knowledge together, as the lenses we employ directly feed into our modules, where you can study how we remember things, what captures our attention, how relationships work, what our emotions do with us, or the impact of culture on ourselves and others.
We are committed to giving you access to state-of-the-art facilities in higher education, housed entirely within our purpose-built psychology building on our Colchester Campus:
A psychology degree - especially one accredited by the British Psychology Society - provides you with the foundations needed to specialise in diverse areas, including clinical and educational psychology.
Many of our psychology graduates choose careers outside traditional psychology fields. The skills you learn during your degree will open doors to careers in market research, human resources, and people-focused careers such as a high-intensity therapist or special educational needs.
Our psychology graduates have progressed in diverse careers across the public, private and third sectors, including working for:
We also work with our University's Student Development Team to help you find out about further work experience, internships, placements, and voluntary opportunities.
"I am a trainee psychological wellbeing practitioner, working with people with mild or moderate anxiety and depression by using evidence-based cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) interventions. I hope to qualify and work towards becoming a CBT therapist or go down the clinical doctorate route. My placement year was one of the most beneficial things I did at Essex. It helped shape my views of mental health services in this country and understand my different options in working in that space. It also helped me understand what life after university would be like. I enjoyed the fact that our lecturers were working on research related to what we were studying. It made the topics more engaging. I particularly enjoyed lectures on relationships, cultural, and positive psychology."
Janelle Chisholm, BSc Psychology, 2020
We currently have places available in Clearing across a range of courses, with most offers at BBC–CCD (112–88 UCAS tariff points) or equivalent. Grade requirements may be lower in some cases, and some courses may also have subject specific requirements. We consider each application individually so get in touch if your grades are below those outlined here. .
English language requirements for applicants whose first language is not English: IELTS 6.0 overall, or specified score in another equivalent test that we accept.
Details of English language requirements, including component scores, and the tests we accept for applicants who require a Student visa (excluding Nationals of Majority English Speaking Countries) can be found here
If we accept the English component of an international qualification it will be included in the academic levels listed above for the relevant countries.
English language shelf-life
Most English language qualifications have a validity period of 5 years. The validity period of Pearson Test of English, TOEFL and CBSE or CISCE English is 2 years.If you require a Student visa to study in the UK please see our immigration webpages for the latest Home Office guidance on English language qualifications.
Pre-sessional English courses
If you do not meet our IELTS requirements then you may be able to complete a pre-sessional English pathway that enables you to start your course without retaking IELTS.
Pending English language qualifications
You don’t need to achieve the required level before making your application, but it will be one of the conditions of your offer.
If you cannot find the qualification that you have achieved or are pending, then please email ugquery@essex.ac.uk .
Requirements for second and final year entry
Different requirements apply for second and final year entry, and specified component grades are also required for applicants who require a visa to study in the UK. Details of English language requirements, including UK Visas and Immigration minimum component scores, and the tests we accept for applicants who require a Student visa (excluding Nationals of Majority English Speaking Countries) can be found here
If you’re an international student, but do not meet the English language or academic requirements for direct admission to this degree, you could prepare and gain entry through a pathway course. Find out more about opportunities available to you at the University of Essex International College
Our research-led teaching is continually evolving to address the latest challenges and breakthroughs in the field. The following modules are based on the current course structure and may change in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.
We understand that deciding where and what to study is a very important decision for you. We'll make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the courses, services and facilities as described on our website and in line with your contract with us. However, if we need to make material changes, for example due to significant disruption, we'll let our applicants and students know as soon as possible.
Components are the blocks of study that make up your course. A component may have a set module which you must study, or a number of modules from which you can choose.
Each component has a status and carries a certain number of credits towards your qualification.
Status | What this means |
Core |
You must take the set module for this component and you must pass. No failure can be permitted. |
Core with Options |
You can choose which module to study from the available options for this component but you must pass. No failure can be permitted. |
Compulsory |
You must take the set module for this component. There may be limited opportunities to continue on the course/be eligible for the qualification if you fail. |
Compulsory with Options |
You can choose which module to study from the available options for this component. There may be limited opportunities to continue on the course/be eligible for the qualification if you fail. |
Optional |
You can choose which module to study from the available options for this component. There may be limited opportunities to continue on the course/be eligible for the qualification if you fail. |
The modules that are available for you to choose for each component will depend on several factors, including which modules you have chosen for other components, which modules you have completed in previous years of your course, and which term the module is taught in.
Modules are the individual units of study for your course. Each module has its own set of learning outcomes and assessment criteria and also carries a certain number of credits.
In most cases you will study one module per component, but in some cases you may need to study more than one module. For example, a 30-credit component may comprise of either one 30-credit module, or two 15-credit modules, depending on the options available.
Modules may be taught at different times of the year and by a different department or school to the one your course is primarily based in. You can find this information from the module code. For example, the module code HR100-4-FY means:
HR | 100 | 4 | FY |
---|---|---|---|
The department or school the module will be taught by. In this example, the module would be taught by the Department of History. |
The module number. |
The UK academic level of the module. A standard undergraduate course will comprise of level 4, 5 and 6 modules - increasing as you progress through the course. A standard postgraduate taught course will comprise of level 7 modules. A postgraduate research degree is a level 8 qualification. |
The term the module will be taught in.
|
COMPONENT 01: CORE
This module will explore questions such as: Is intelligence fixed? Is our memory reliable? How do we learn? By introducing a range of approaches from across psychology, you will address such questions from different perspectives and provide the foundations needed to become a successful Essex student. This module will also begin your training on designing and carrying out psychology experiments, and dealing with the information that those experiments provide.
View Understanding our place in the world on our Module Directory
COMPONENT 02: CORE
New-borns are totally dependent on others. They are unable to move or sit up; they cannot reach out and pick up an object; their vision is poor; they cannot even express simple emotions. By the end of the developmental process, some 20 years later, humans have become the most psychologically complex things we know. How does this happen? This module will introduce you to how humans grow and develop in the world. The principal approaches to the study of human development will be discussed, with a particular focus on how infants take their first "psychological steps" in the social world. You will also develop the research and analysis skills that are needed to answer different questions about how humans grow in the world.
COMPONENT 03: CORE
In this module you will discover answers to fundamental questions in the science of emotion: What are emotions and why do we have them? Is it possible to elicit specific emotions in people and measure them? How good are we at sensing how someone else is feeling? Why are some people more emotional than others? You'll untangle the complexities involved in studying human emotion by: exploring a variety of research methods and measurements, applying critical thinking to psychological concepts, and mastering the data analysis techniques that allow psychologists to draw conclusions about our experience of emotion.
COMPONENT 04: CORE
In this module, you'll study the internal mental processes that go on inside our brain that form the basis of our thoughts. We'll answer questions such as: what do visual illusions tell us about how we perceive the world? Are we really able to multi-task? How do we understand and produce speech, and is this different if you speak more than one language? You will learn the skills that psychologists use to conduct research to answer these questions, as well as core theories and knowledge about key topics in this area.
COMPONENT 05: CORE
Do you behave differently when you are alone than with others? How do people interact with individuals? How do they behave in groups? How do people explain the social world and how do they explain the behaviour of others? What makes people attribute human characteristics to animals and inanimate objects? This module will examine how humans live in and interact with the social world. These questions will be explored, using social psychology theories, survey methods and research skills.
COMPONENT 06: CORE
How does your brain decide between good and bad? What is the neural basis of moral reasoning? What is the biological basis of anger and aggression? Can we explain psychopathy in terms of differences in brain structure and function? What can neuroscience tell us about whether people should be held accountable for their actions? These are the kinds of the questions that we will investigate in this module, which aims to understand the neural basis of (anti) social behaviour. These questions will be addressed by building knowledge and understanding whilst also developing the skills that psychologists use to research these aspects of human behaviour.
COMPONENT 08: COMPULSORY
It’s important to plan your career. This is the one of three modules that will make sure you are career ready when you leave university. You will decide on your career aspirations and goals, plan how you will achieve them and identify the resources available to help you.
View Introduction to Personal Development and Employability on our Module Directory
COMPONENT 01: CORE
This module builds upon your statistics provision in the first year and will provide you with a thorough understanding of how and when to use different basic statistical tests. Theoretical and practical implications will be provided through statistics lectures while computer workshops will introduce you to using statistical software.
COMPONENT 02: CORE
Explore classical and contemporary themes of child development such as prenatal and perceptual development, early language acquisition, and cognitive and social development, whilst examining the research methods and designs employed in Developmental Psychology.
COMPONENT 03: CORE
Through exploring and addressing a range of theories and research on how people think and behave, you will gain a clear understanding of the topics social psychologists are interested in and their approaches to studying them.
COMPONENT 04: CORE
The brain is an extremely complex organ, and there is much that we still have to learn about its processes and functions. This module will detail the psychological mechanisms that underlie human behaviour and highlight the possibility that even our deepest thoughts and feelings arise from electrical and chemical activity in our brains.
COMPONENT 05: CORE
An in-depth look into cognitive, trait and biological theories and approaches to personality, individual differences and intelligence. This module will also give you the opportunity to cover and debate contemporary topics in individual intelligence (such as how individual differences explain behaviours, feelings and thinking).
View Personality and Individual Differences on our Module Directory
COMPONENT 06: CORE
This module combines the areas of medical and health psychology to explore the biological, psychological and social processes implicated in the development of ill health.
COMPONENT 07: CORE
This module explores the basic cognitive processes involved in thinking about the world, interacting with the world, and experiencing the world. Often as users of these processes they just work and the complexity of the underlying operations are hidden; a kind of "user illusion". You will learn about the emerging scientific picture of how these basic processes operate, thereby gaining a better appreciation of the underlying complexity, and a renewed appreciation of the brilliance of these operations. The module will consider examples of human talents; such as bilingualism, as well as human limitations, such as our working memory capacities. The module will cover core areas of cognition as defined by the British Psychological Society such as perception, mental imagery, attention, memory, language, and consciousness. These will be discussed both with reference to laboratory-based experiments, and also how these processes may be disrupted and may breakdown in various conditions, such as dyslexia, amnesia, and other neuropsychological conditions. Finally, the lectures will address how basic cognitive processes apply to complex real-world behaviours.
COMPONENT 09: COMPULSORY
It’s important to plan your career. This is the one of three modules that will make sure you are career ready when you leave university. You will decide on your career aspirations and goals, plan how you will achieve them and identify the resources available to help you.
View Enhancing employability and career planning on our Module Directory
COMPONENT 01: CORE
This module gives you the chance to utilise the statistical and research methodology which you gained during your first two years and apply it to your own original research project. You’ll submit a written report and a supporting poster which will be assessed.
COMPONENT 05: COMPULSORY
It’s important to plan your career. This is the one of three modules that will make sure you are career ready when you leave university. You will decide on your career aspirations and goals, plan how you will achieve them and identify the resources available to help you.
View Advanced employability skills and career progression on our Module Directory
On a placement year you gain relevant work experience within an external business or organisation, giving you a competitive edge in the graduate job market and providing you with key contacts within the industry. The rest of your course remains identical to the three-year degree.
On your year abroad, you have the opportunity to experience other cultures and languages, to broaden your degree socially and academically, and to demonstrate to employers that you are mature, adaptable, and organised. The rest of your course remains identical to the three-year degree.
£9,535 per year
£23,200 per year
Fees will increase for each academic year of study.
Our events are a great way to find out more about studying at Essex. We run a number of Open Days throughout the year which enable you to discover what our campus has to offer. You have the chance to:
Check out our Visit Us pages to find out more information about booking onto one of our events. And if the dates aren’t suitable for you, feel free to book a campus tour here.
Once you’ve checked that we have the right course for you, applying couldn’t be simpler. Fill in our quick and easy Clearing application form with as much detail as you can. We’ll then take a look and get back to you with a decision.
We don’t interview all applicants during Clearing, however, we will only make offers for the following courses after a successful interview:
The interview allows our academics to find out more about you, and in turn you’ll be able to ask us any questions you might have. Further details will be emailed to you if you are shortlisted for interview.
Set within 200 acres of award-winning parkland - Wivenhoe Park and located two miles from the historic city centre of Colchester – England's oldest recorded development. Our Colchester Campus is also easily reached from London and Stansted Airport in under one hour.
If you live too far away to come to Essex (or have a busy lifestyle), no problem. Our 360 degree virtual tours allows you to explore our University from the comfort of your home. Check out our Colchester virtual tour and Southend virtual tour to see accommodation options, facilities and social spaces.
At Essex we pride ourselves on being a welcoming and inclusive student community. We offer a wide range of support to individuals and groups of student members who may have specific requirements, interests or responsibilities.
The University makes every effort to ensure that this information on its programme specification is accurate and up-to-date. Exceptionally it can be necessary to make changes, for example to courses, facilities or fees. Examples of such reasons might include, but are not limited to: strikes, other industrial action, staff illness, severe weather, fire, civil commotion, riot, invasion, terrorist attack or threat of terrorist attack (whether declared or not), natural disaster, restrictions imposed by government or public authorities, epidemic or pandemic disease, failure of public utilities or transport systems or the withdrawal/reduction of funding. Changes to courses may for example consist of variations to the content and method of delivery of programmes, courses and other services, to discontinue programmes, courses and other services and to merge or combine programmes or courses. The University will endeavour to keep such changes to a minimum, and will also keep students informed appropriately by updating our programme specifications. The University would inform and engage with you if your course was to be discontinued, and would provide you with options, where appropriate, in line with our Compensation and Refund Policy.
The full Procedures, Rules and Regulations of the University governing how it operates are set out in the Charter, Statutes and Ordinances and in the University Regulations, Policy and Procedures.
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