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Psychologists conduct experiments to study our perceptions, decisions, prejudices, motivations, friendships and memory. But how do the brain and the body affect these processes? Where in the brain do they occur? And how are they represented? Psychologists and cognitive neuroscientists aim to map how brain and behaviour are related.
This contemporary area of psychology investigates areas ranging from vision, hearing and touch to the mechanisms underlying language, action, attention, emotion and social processes. Our Centre for Brain Science allows you to discover the neurophysiological processes that take place in our bodies and brains.
We give you the freedom and facilities to study and experiment, explore and research the human mind. You cover core areas in psychology and cognitive neuroscience including:
Brain and behaviour
Methods in cognitive neuroscience
Applied psychology
Language, memory and perception
Developmental psychology
We provide one of the most immersive and exciting experience of studying the human mind in the UK. You learn from our researchers, and can work together in the same space via our Research Experience Scheme (RES) which gives you the opportunity to work one-on-one with a psychologist as their research assistant.
Why we're great.
91% of our psychology students are in employment or further study (Graduate Outcomes 2020).
You have unparalleled access to research equipment such as EEG, TMS and eye tracking.
Ranked among the top 250 psychology departments in the QS World University Rankings by Subject (2020).
Study abroad
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
Placement year
You can also undertake a placement year in which you gain relevant work experience within an external business, giving you a competitive edge in the graduate job market and providing you with key contacts within the industry. You will be responsible for finding your placement, but with support and guidance provided by both your department and our Employability and Careers Centre.
If you complete a placement year you'll only pay 20% of your usual tuition fee to Essex for that year.
Our expert staff
Our psychology lecturers include award-winning teachers and prize-winning researchers who are international experts in their own research areas.
The Cognitive and Sensory Neuroscience Group research brain function and human behaviour. Recently they have been working on projects on the neural processes underlying language production, how motivations are communicated through tone of voice, and how the brain performs 3D vision. They previously developed the BioAid mobile phone app that turns an iPhone into a biologically inspired hearing aid.
The Cognitive and Developmental Psychology Group work are researching attention, language, decision-making, and memory. Recent projects have investigated the psychology of energy reduction, the enhancement of human memory through technology, and improvements in the usability and design of transport maps.
The Social and Health Psychology Group work on motivations, needs, intercultural contact, and sexual attraction. Recent projects include the impacts of living and studying abroad, and how personal relative deprivation is linked to problem gambling.
Specialist facilities
We are committed to giving you access to state-of-the-art facilities in higher education, including our Centre for Brain Science, housed entirely within our purpose-built psychology building on our Colchester Campus:
Dedicated laboratories including a virtual reality suite and an observation suite
Specialist areas to study visual and auditory perception, developmental psychology and social psychology
Study the development of perceptual and cognitive abilities in infants in our Babylab
Our multimillion pound Centre for Brain Science (CBS) allows staff to investigate brain activity, and to measure eye movements and other physiological responses
Your future
Psychology now influences an increasing range of fields, from working with clinical disorders, to managing education and training. Today, it is widely used in industry, sport and employment to improve performance, as well as affecting legal and health matters.
Our students go on to follow diverse career paths. Our degree helps many to pursue careers as clinical, forensic, educational, or occupational psychologists. Others work in related fields such as special educational needs, social work, or mental health care. However, many graduates pursue successful careers further afield, working in areas like management, human resources, financial services, the media, information technology, and market research.
For example, some of our recent graduates have gone on to work for a wide range of high-profile companies including:
East of England Strategic Health Authority
The Crown Prosecution Service
M&G Investments
NHS Suffolk
Accenture
The BBC
We also work with our University's Student Development Team to help you find out about further work experience, internships, placements, and voluntary opportunities.
“After graduating from Essex I secured a job as a fleet reporting analyst at Bridgestone UK, which involves using different sources to extract and manipulate data to suit stakeholders’ requirements. I really enjoy establishing trends and seeing decisions being implemented based on data. I also enjoy working with the different stakeholders to find solutions. I am highly numerate in my current job and also have extensive computer skills; these are skills I acquired from studying at Essex. In the future I plan to move into data insights and analytics, which stems from my psychology degree, where I hope to use data-driven solutions to inform policy and forecasting.”
Samuel Webb, BSc Psychology with Cognitive Neuroscience, 2018
Entry requirements
UK entry requirements
GCSE: Mathematics C/4
A-levels: BBB
BTEC: DDD, depending on subject studied - advice on acceptability can be provided.
IB: 30 points or three Higher Level certificates with 555, including Standard Level Mathematics grade 4 or Higher Level Mathematics grade 3.
We are also happy to consider a combination of separate IB Diploma Programmes at both Higher and Standard Level. Exact offer levels will vary depending on the range of subjects being taken at higher and standard level, and the course applied for. Please contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office for more information. Please note that Maths in the IB is not required if you have already achieved GCSE Maths at grade C/4 or above or 4 in IB Middle Years Maths.
From 2021, we will accept grade 4 in either Standard Level Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches or Standard Level Mathematics: Applications and Interpretation.
Access to HE Diploma: 45 Level 3 credits at Merit or above
Flexible offers Eligible applicants that choose us as their firm choice by the relevant deadline will be able to take advantage of a flexible offer. This offer will specify alternative entry requirements than those published here so, if your final grades aren’t what you had hoped for, you could still secure a place with us. Visit our undergraduate application information page for more details.
International & EU entry requirements
We accept a wide range of qualifications from applicants studying in the EU and other countries. Get in touch with any questions you may have about the qualifications we accept. Remember to tell us about the qualifications you have already completed or are currently taking.
Sorry, the entry requirements for the country that you have selected are not available here. Please select
your country page
where you'll find this information.
Other English language qualifications may be acceptable so please contact us for further details. If we accept the English component of an international qualification then it will be included in the information given about the academic levels listed above. Please note that date restrictions may apply to some English language qualifications
If you are an international student requiring a Tier 4 visa to study in the UK please see our immigration webpages for the latest Home Office guidance on English language qualifications.
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.
Additional Notes
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 here.
Structure
Example structure
We offer a flexible course structure with a mixture of compulsory and optional modules chosen from lists. Below is just one example structure from the current academic year of a combination of modules you could take. Your course structure could differ based on the modules you choose.
Our research-led teaching is continually evolving to address the latest challenges and breakthroughs in the field, therefore all modules listed are subject to change. To view the compulsory modules and full list of optional modules currently on offer, please view the programme specification via the link below.
Discovering Psychology: The Science Behind Human Behaviour
From this module you will gain an introduction to some of the various sub-fields that comprise psychology. It will include lectures on topics such as sensation, perception, learning, memory, abnormal psychology, child development, language, personality and social psychology.
This module introduces you to the basic principles of research design, and to a variety of experimental and correlational techniques for studying behaviour. Learn to apply techniques of statistical analysis to data collected from experiments, and write laboratory reports for all the research you carry out, which will form part of your assessment.
The main purpose of this module is to make you a better psychologist by giving you the skills to analyse and present psychological data, and to improve your ability to understand and assess the psychological research that others have carried out. Use the techniques and skills you develop in this module in the Year 1 research methods module (PS114) and throughout all three years of your degree course
This module will help you develop the skills and techniques you will need to get the most from your psychology degree. The module will take place during your first two weeks which means you can start applying your new knowledge and skills almost immediately. You’ll also benefit from an extra revision session at the end of the spring term
Introduction to Personal Development and Employability
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.
Discover how the discipline of psychology informs and shapes five psychological professions: clinical psychology; educational psychology; forensic psychology; occupational psychology; and sports and exercise psychology. In a mixture of lectures and classes, you will evaluate how psychological theories and knowledge gained from research are used in each of these aspects of human behaviour, and how they can be used to solve some of the problems encountered in different areas of life.
Building upon the statistics knowledge gained in your first year this module combines statistics lectures with computer workshops. You will be taught the data analysis skills and underlying principles needed to carry out a range of statistical tests. There are a number of studying formats from group and peer collaboration, observing graduate demonstrations and computer work, which will give you the opportunity to question and analyse the work you have done so far.
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.
This module will introduce you to cognitive psychology and covers major areas such as visual and auditory perception, and visual cognition. Through a series of laboratory sessions you will study the methods, theory and data underpinning our understanding of the processes involved in visual and auditory perception, and visual cognition.
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.
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.
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).
Building on your knowledge from Cognitive Psychology 1, this module covers the major areas of cognitive psychology such as language, memory, and attention. You will develop your understanding of the psychological theories and data related to major areas of cognitive psychology.
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.
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.
Discover the neuroscience behind key elements of human nature. These include, understanding the faces and bodies of others, how we copy body language to show empathy and the processes that drive motivation and emotion. You will also investigate autism and schizophrenia which occur when these processes aren’t working effectively.
Advanced employability skills and career progression
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.
This module is concerned with the study of emotional behaviour and experience from a scientific point of view. The emphasis throughout the module is on how emotions arise and are manifest as patterns of bodily response and mental activity. Theories of emotion from psychodynamic, introspective, and constructionist positions will not form a major component of the module, although some of the important insights which these approaches have offered will be considered. You will examine theories of both normal and abnormal emotion. The former will receive the lion's share of our attention, but the case studies on particular emotions (eg sadness) include discussion of their pathological extensions (depression).
Is human sexuality shaped by nature or nurture? Why do men and women differ in their sexuality? What are the consequences of sexual assault? These are just some of the questions you will tackle during this module, which provides an in-depth exploration into the science of human sexuality. You’ll learn to interpret systematic research, and will have the chance to voice your own opinions and insights into this topic.
Develop knowledge gained in the second year module, Brain and Behaviour, and deepen your understanding of how the brain affects behaviour, and the link it has with the workings of the body. You will learn from a range of experts, covering aspects from basic bodily functions to high-order existential concerns, such as psychopharmacology, diet and wellbeing, epigenetics, physical and social pain, and existential neuroscience, to ultimately gain a deep understanding of the way the brain and body interact to control behaviour.
What happens to our psychology as we get older? Explore three major themes in the psychology of ageing: mind, brain, and behaviour in this module, which covers the cognitive, social, and emotional aspects of ageing. You will investigate decision-making in older age, how older adults interact with their social environment, and how emotional processing changes with age, as well as the physiology of ageing, the neurological changes that occur, and how these affect aspects of cognition and emotion.
You will examine the causes of psychopathology from the perspective of different disciplines (genetics, neuroscience, behavioural, and social sciences), with the aim of understanding the potential interplay between biological, psychological, social, and environmental factors. You will learn how to critically distinguish individual differences in behaviour and the different ways of classifying psychopathologies.
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.
Year abroad
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.
Teaching
A typical timetable includes around eight to fourteen one-hour lectures per week with associated classes or laboratories
We combine small and large-group teaching with regular laboratory-based research exercises
Assessment
Your assessment is based on written essays, practical lab reports, and examinations
Fees and funding
Home/UK fee
£9,250
International fee
£19,080
EU students commencing their course in the 2021-22 academic year will be liable for the International fee.
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:
tour our campus and accommodation
find out answers to your questions about our courses, student finance, graduate employability, student support and more
meet our students and staff
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.
Applying
Applications for our full-time undergraduate courses should be made through the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS). Applications are online at: www.ucas.com. Full details on this process can be obtained from the UCAS website in the how to apply section.
Our UK students, and some of our EU and international students, who are still at school or college, can apply through their school. Your school will be able to check and then submit your completed application to UCAS. Our other international applicants (EU or worldwide) or independent applicants in the UK can also apply online through UCAS Apply.
The UCAS code for our University of Essex is ESSEX E70. The individual campus codes for our Loughton and Southend Campuses are 'L' and 'S' respectively.
You can find further information on how to apply, including information on transferring from another university, applying if you are not currently at a school or college, and applying for readmission on our How to apply and entry requirements page.
Applicant Days and interviews
Resident in the UK? If your application is successful, we will invite you to attend one of our applicant days. These run from January to April and give you the chance to explore the campus, meet our students and really get a feel for life as an Essex student.
Some of our courses also hold interviews and if you're invited to one, this will take place during your applicant day. Don't panic, they're nothing to worry about and it's a great way for us to find out more about you and for you to find out more about the course. Some of our interviews are one-to-one with an academic, others are group activities, but we'll send you all the information you need beforehand.
If you're outside the UK and are planning a trip, feel free to email applicantdays@essex.ac.uk so we can help you plan a visit to the University.
Visit Colchester Campus
Home to 15,000 students from more than 130 countries, our Colchester Campus is the largest of our three sites, making us one of the most internationally diverse campuses on the planet - we like to think of ourselves as the world in one place.
The Campus is set within 200 acres of beautiful parkland, located two miles from the historic town centre of Colchester – England's oldest recorded town. 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.
Exhibitions
Our staff travel the world to speak to people about the courses on offer at Essex. Take a look at our list of exhibition dates to see if we’ll be near you in the future.
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 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.
