The Essex website uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site you are consenting to their use. Please visit our cookie policy to find out which cookies we use and why. View cookie policy.

University of Essex homepage Course Finder Psychology
Subject

Psychology

Impatient to understand your place in the world?

Psychology
Undergraduate Masters Research

Psychology impacts on every aspect of human behaviour.

Across the globe, people are confronted daily with new technologies, unfamiliar cultures, and ongoing challenges that affect all facets of how we live. Studying psychology at Essex allows you to embark on a journey into the thoughts, feelings, and actions of those individuals.

You will learn from internationally recognised experts, on diverse topics including brain and behaviour, child development and ageing, relationships and sexuality, personality and perception, culture and identity, memory, emotion and psychopathology. We will also help you develop important skills to think critically, analyse evidence, build complex arguments, and communicate effectively with others.

Learning isn’t just about sitting in a classroom. At Essex, we pride ourselves on providing a research-led education with award-winning lecturers who are also world leaders in their research fields. As an undergraduate student, you can get real research experience by working alongside researchers through our Research Experience Scheme (RES). During a RES placement, you can gain experience developing all kinds of skills used by researchers from all areas of psychology, including experiment set-up and design, literature reviews, recruiting and testing participants, and even coding and data analysis.

A degree in psychology prepares you for a wide range of career pathways. While many students go on to become trained psychologists, counsellors and therapists, others pursue fulfilling careers in education, forensic sciences, data analysis, health, marketing, advertising, public policy, organisational development and human resources.

Our department is proud of the multicultural mosaic that makes up our community. Our staff and students come from over 40 countries around the world, bringing their own unique perspectives and experiences, which enrich our teaching, learning, and research.

Why study here?
  • We are 21st in the UK for overall student satisfaction for Psychology (National Student Survey 2022).
  • 90% of our Department of Psychology graduates are in employment or further study (Graduate Outcomes 2023).
  • We are committed to diversity, inclusion, representation, and providing students with a curriculum that reflects the complexity of human behaviour world-wide.

Looking to start in 2024?

Photo of Kyra Deasy
"After graduating I volunteered with Circles, a charity aiming to reduce the instances of sexual abuse and assisting those impacted in their recovery. The range of theories I studied at Essex gave me strong underpinning knowledge which I instantly put into practice in this role. I then began working at HMP Winchester facilitating offenders’ engagement with learning programmes, setting goals and supporting their progression in this rehabilitative step. The social focus of my Essex degree has been instrumental in both my choosing this career path and my success. I will be undertaking an MSc in order to train to be a forensic psychologist with the hope of continuing to instigate positive change."
Kyra Deasy BSc Psychology, 2020
A woman wearing a blue EEG cap looking directly at the camera. A second person standing on the right of the shot is adjusting some sensors attached to her face, one above her left eyebrow and the other just underneath the same eye.

Engage with our cutting-edge research

A profile shot of a student, facing the right side of the shot, wearing a large black EEG cap which covers the head and chin.

Help us develop a better understanding of the mind - take part in our EEG research

In the centre of the photo is a computer screen showing two computer-generated figures in white on a black background. To the right of the photo is a student sitting with their back to the camera. On the left, mostly out of shot, is a second person pointing at the screen with their left hand and index finger.

Work alongside researchers and academics in our bespoke psychology labs

Professor Silke Paulmann from the Department of Psychology is sitting in the middle of the shot with a plastic model of the human brain which is partially taken apart. A student is sitting either side of her, looking at something she is pointing at on the model.

Learn alongside our amazing lecturers

A student wearing an EEG cap is sitting in front of a large computer monitor. A second student is standing next to them, injecting some gel in to one of the cap sensors. Professor Silke Paulmann from the Department of Psychology is standing in the background, next to a second computer, watching them.

Work with other students in our Centre for Brain Science

A graduate at graduation in robes, smiling at the camera holding their certificate. The graduate is outside, with a few other graduates in robes behind her.
Apply now through Clearing

Let's talk about your potential. To begin your studies this year, you can apply to Essex now through Clearing by filling out one simple application form.

Apply now

Psychology courses in Clearing for 2023

1 - 6 of 20 results

Courses (20)

Now in clearing

BA Psychology

Study mode:

Full-Time

Campus:

Colchester Campus

Course options:

Study Abroad

Placement Year

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 the human mind in the UK.

Now in clearing

BSc Psychology

Study mode:

Full-Time

Campus:

Colchester Campus

Course options:

Study Abroad

Placement Year

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 the human mind in the UK.

Now in clearing

BA Psychodynamic Practice

Study mode:

Full-Time

Campus:

Colchester Campus

Course options:

Study Abroad

Are you fascinated by relationships and personality development, or intrigued by people’s behaviour? What causes you to act as you do and what can lead to emotional or psychological difficulties? Do you want to learn about and develop ways of helping those who are in need? Laying the foundations for a career in a caring profession, whether education, health or social care our course will give you a solid basis in psychodynamic thinking, child and adult development, and the dynamics of therapeutic interventions in organisations.

Now in clearing

BSc Sport and Exercise Psychology

Study mode:

Full-Time

Campus:

Colchester Campus

Course options:

Study Abroad

Placement Year

This course is subject to approval by the British Psychological Society (BPS). How are an individual’s actions shaped by their thoughts and feelings? What role does psychology play in improving sports performance? How can psychology help to shape exercise behaviours? Our BSc Sports and Exercise Psychology course is dedicated to one of the fastest developing areas of psychology.

Now in clearing

BA Psychology (Including Foundation Year)

Study mode:

Full-Time

Campus:

Colchester Campus

Our BA Psychology (including foundation Year) will be suitable for you if your academic qualifications do not yet meet our entrance requirements for the three-year version of this course and you want a programme that increases your subject knowledge as well as improves your academic skills to support your academic performance. This four-year course includes a foundation year (Year Zero), followed by a further three years of study.

Now in clearing

BA Economics with Psychology

Study mode:

Full-Time

Campus:

Colchester Campus

Course options:

Study Abroad

Placement Year

Economics at Essex explores how economics relates to the real world and asks the difficult questions. How do people get in debt? Why do people choose to get a mortgage rather than rent? Why did the economic crisis affect the UK more than the US? Explore the driving forces behind human behaviour.

We provide a stimulating and vibrant research environment that allows both our students and staff to shape the future of our expanding research-intensive department.

It’s an exciting time to be studying human behaviour. Across the globe, people are confronted daily with new technologies, unfamiliar cultures, and ongoing challenges that affect all facets of how we live. Studying psychology at Essex allows you to embark on a journey into the thoughts, feelings, and actions of those individuals.

Further study in our Department of Psychology gives you the freedom and the facilities to study, experiment, explore and research why we think, feel and act the way we do. You will learn from and work alongside internationally recognised experts, on advanced psychological topics including the neurocognition of language, brain and behaviour, child development, culture, identity, research methods and statistics.

At Essex, we pride ourselves on providing a research-led education with award-winning lecturers  who are also world leaders in their research fields. As well as your research project, you can work alongside researchers through our Research Experience Scheme (RES).  During a RES placement, you can gain experience developing all kinds of skills used by researchers from all areas of psychology, including experiment set-up and design, literature reviews, recruiting and testing participants, coding and data analysis.

Career opportunities expand much further than becoming a psychologist, prospects also include working in research, education, forensic sciences, data analysis, health, marketing, advertising, public policy, organisational development and human resources.

Why study here?
  • We have excellent research facilities including well-equipped, purpose-built laboratories in the Centre for Brain Science.
  • You have unparalleled access to state-of-the-art research equipment including eye-tracking, EEG, neurostimulation (TMS, TDCS, TACS), virtual reality, the Babylab and the Human Sexuality Lab. 
  • We are committed to diversity, inclusion, representation, and providing students with a curriculum that reflects the complexity of human behaviour world-wide. 
"Essex was an easy choice for me based on its excellent research... I am now employed as a Treatment Consultant for drug and alcohol rehab, which is a rewarding career helping people to understand their addictions."
Elizabeth Blue MSc Cognitive NeurosciencE
Study a Masters in our Department of Psychology
Choose your own path, whether that’s as a child psychologist, clinical psychologist, or forensic psychologist, continuing onto a research degree, or something that lies entirely outside of the discipline.
Our psychology research
Our research explores three key themes: thinking about the world; interacting with the world; and experiencing the world.
Academic staff in the Department of Psychology
See our department's academic staff, and find out more about their recent work and areas of expertise.
student looking at own reflection
What is Psychosocial and Psychoanalytic Studies?

Impatient to understand human behaviour? Are you fascinated by people and relationships? Check out our psychosocial and psychoanalytic studies degrees.

Learn more

We provide a stimulating and vibrant research environment that allows both our students and staff to successfully shape the future of our expanding research-intensive department.

We give you the freedom and the facilities to study, experiment, explore and research why we think, feel and act the way we do. Psychology is linked to many other fields including biology, linguistics, medicine, sociology and economics. All branches of psychology seek to explain people’s behaviour.

Psychology is not limited to the study of the brain, by exploring the science behind the mind you will gain the skills to build complex arguments, critically analyse evidence and understand how therapy can make a positive impact on people’s lives.

Career opportunities expand much further than becoming a psychologist, prospects also include working in education, forensic sciences, data analysis, health and marketing. 

Why study here?
  • Use state-of-the-art research equipment including eye-tracking, EEG, neurostimulation (TMS, TDCS, TACS), virtual reality, the Babylab and the Human Sexuality Lab.
  • We are 17th in UK for research power in psychology (Times Higher Education research power measure, Research Excellence Framework 2021).
  • We offer a range of PhD studentships and funding opportunities.
A row of old looking library books
Explore our research

Discover cutting edge research from the University of Essex. Browse our site to find relevant publications, projects, groups, centres, postgraduate opportunities for research supervision and wider areas of interest. Simply search our site to find information relating to your subject.

Search our research
Our psychology research
Our research explores three key themes: thinking about the world; interacting with the world; and experiencing the world.
Doctoral training scheme
Proficio is our innovative doctoral training scheme. You get funding to spend on a variety of courses, from research skills to personal development and career management.
Research degrees in the Department of Psychology
Find out more about the postgraduate research degree types in our department, and how to apply.
Student holding books next to the library at Colchester Campus
Want to know more?

Sign-up to learn more about this subject, as well as accommodation, societies, careers support, facilities and more.

Sign-up to emails
Study in our Department of Psychology
Study in a diverse, supportive and stimulating environment. We're a psychology department that goes the extra mile for our students and research.
Research experience scheme and internships
Engage in real-world research! RES gives you the opportunity to work alongside our academics on an ongoing research project.
Facilities for psychology students
We have a range of bespoke labs and facilities for you to use as a student in our Department of Psychology, including our Centre for Brain Science.
This is a photo of a female psychology student smiling and looking at the camera.
Our psychology student blogs

Browse our blogs, vods and podcasts created by students from the Department of Psychology.

Browse our blogs

 

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. However, if we need to make material changes, for example due to significant disruption, or in response to COVID-19, we'll let our applicants and students know as soon as possible.



Life at Essex
What it's like to live at Essex
Open Days
Come see for yourself
CHAT TO US
ASK OUR STUDENTS AND STAFF ANYTHING
WE ARE
ESSEX ARE YOU?
Get a prospectus Get to know Essex
STUDY
Find a course
LIFE
RESEARCH
EXPLORE
CONTACT US
Contact


  • +44 (0) 1206 873333
  • University of Essex
  • Wivenhoe Park
  • Colchester CO4 3SQ

University of Essex - Where change happens

CONNECT WITH US
© 2023 University of Essex. All rights reserved