Undergraduate Course

BSc Psychology with Cognitive Neuroscience

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Overview

The details

Course: Psychology with Cognitive Neuroscience

UCAS code: C808

Start date: October 2019

Study mode: Full-time

Duration: 3 years

Location: Colchester Campus

Based in: Psychology

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.

Professional accreditation

Accredited against the requirements for the Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC) of the British Psychological Society (BPS).

Why we're great.

91% of our students are in professional employment or postgraduate study within six months of graduating from Essex (DLHE 2016).
You have unparalleled access to research equipment such as EEG, TMS and eye tracking.
Our outstanding purpose-built teaching and research facilities include specialist labs.

THE Awards 2018 - Winner University of the Year

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 BPS accreditation 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 the University’s Employability and Careers Centre to help you find out about further work experience, internships, placements, and voluntary opportunities.

Entry requirements

Clearing entry requirements

Specific entry requirements for this course in Clearing are not published here but for most of our degree courses you will need to hold a Level 3 qualification. If you are interested in applying and have already received your results, use our Clearing application form to apply for 2019 entry and find out if you are eligible. You will be asked to provide details of your qualifications and grades.

English language requirements

English language requirements for applicants whose first language is not English: IELTS 6.0 overall. Different requirements apply for second year entry, and specified component grades are also required for applicants who require a Tier 4 visa to study in the UK.

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.

See full list of modules

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.

View Discovering Psychology: The Science Behind Human Behaviour on our Module Directory

Research Methods in 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.

View Research Methods in Psychology on our Module Directory

Statistics for Psychologists

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

View Statistics for Psychologists on our Module Directory

Preparing for University Psychology

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

View Preparing for University Psychology on our Module Directory

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.

View Introduction to Personal Development and Employability on our Module Directory

Applied Psychology

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.

View Applied Psychology on our Module Directory

Statistics for Psychologists, 2nd Year

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.

View Statistics for Psychologists, 2nd Year on our Module Directory

Brain and Behaviour

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.

View Brain and Behaviour on our Module Directory

Seeing and Hearing

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.

View Seeing and Hearing on our Module Directory

Developmental Psychology

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.

View Developmental Psychology on our Module Directory

Social 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.

View Social Psychology on our Module Directory

Personality and Individual Differences

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

Memory Attention and Language

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.

View Memory Attention and Language on our Module Directory

Enhancing employability and career planning

View Enhancing employability and career planning on our Module Directory

Psychology Project

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.

View Psychology Project on our Module Directory

The Neuroscience of Human Nature

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.

View The Neuroscience of Human Nature on our Module Directory

Advanced employability skills and career progression

View Advanced employability skills and career progression on our Module Directory

Consciousness and the bodily self (optional)

The questions surrounding consciousness and self-awareness have always fascinated humans, giving rise to significant cultural constructs and spiritual endeavours. Recent neuroscientific methods have begun to provide important insights into different brain/mind states, and the components that make up our sense of self. This hands-on module will give you the chance to get involved in experimental methods for testing and manipulating awareness and self-recognition, and will give you a solid understanding of the concepts of consciousness and the bodily self.

View Consciousness and the bodily self (optional) on our Module Directory

Intelligent Behaviour (optional)

In this module you will investigate the various theories intended to account for intelligent behaviour in humans, animals and machines. We will survey human intelligent behaviour in the form of the cognitive processes proposed for reasoning, solving problems, and making judgments, along with theories of individual differences in human intelligence from the perspective of cognitive psychology: why are some people better at reasoning and problem solving than others? We will look at attempts to make computers behave in intelligent ways and attempts to understand animal intelligence and see whether parallels can be drawn with humans.

View Intelligent Behaviour (optional) on our Module Directory

Culture and Psychology (optional)

Examine how culture shapes cognition, perception, motivation, and emotion in this advanced module on culture and psychology. You will learn about culture and health, cross-cultural difference in ideas of the self, personality, interpersonal behaviour, and group processes, and will discuss how culture impacts individuals, and interpersonal and intergroup processes.

View Culture and Psychology (optional) on our Module Directory

Animal Behaviour (optional)

Be introduced to the key concepts of animal behaviour from an ethological and comparative cognition viewpoint. By taking a critical look at published work and research and identifying the frameworks that underlie animal behaviour, you will become familiar with aspects such as the evolution of behaviour and the cognitive capabilities of different species.

View Animal Behaviour (optional) on our Module Directory

The Social Voice (optional)

How does our voice communicate information about us as individuals, our intentions, our motivations, our emotions? In this interdisciplinary module, using research from both social and cognitive psychology and social and cognitive neuroscience, and by conducting your own research, you will explore the power of the ‘social voice’. Covering everything from basic anatomy and physiology of voice production, to the cerebral process underlying production and perception, you’ll gain a critical understanding of the major areas of research within the field of the ‘social voice’.

View The Social Voice (optional) on our Module Directory

Placement

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/EU fee

£9,250

International fee

£16,980

Fees will increase for each academic year of study.

Home and EU fee information

International fee information

What's next

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.

2019 Open Days (Colchester Campus)

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Find out more

How to apply during Clearing

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. There’s no need to call us to apply; just do it all online.

Find out more about Clearing

Interviews

We don’t interview all applicants during Clearing, however, we will only make offers for the following course after a successful interview:

BA Multimedia Journalism
BSc Nursing (Adult)
BSc Nursing (Mental Health)
BA Social Work

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.

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Home to over 13,000 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.

How to get to Colchester Campus

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