5 reasons to study BSc (Hons) Psychology at Surrey
On our BSc (Hons) Psychology course, you’ll be able to select modules tailored to your interests, access our state-of-the-art facilities, gain professional work experience, learn from a wealth of experts and enhance your employability.
In your third year, you’ll select four modules, exploring topics such as educational psychology, gamified learning, morality and emotions, neurodevelopmental disorders, occupational and organisational psychology, and social and moral development.
Our facilities have recently undergone a £5 million investment, giving you access to the latest equipment, including a six-room virtual reality suite to simulate real-life scenarios, and two observation labs.
Our Professional Training placements give you the opportunity to gain work experience in people-facing environments, with previous students working for the Home Office, the Metropolitan Police, and the National Centre for Young People with Epilepsy.
You’ll be taught by lecturers who are active researchers within their respective fields. These may include Dr Adrian Banks (pictured) an expert in reasoning and decision making.
We'll prepare you for a wide range of careers, with over 98% of our BSc (Hons) Psychology graduates going on to full-time employment or further study.*
1. Select modules tailored to your interests
In your first and second years of our BSc (Hons) Psychology course, you’ll study topics that are fundamental to biological, cognitive, developmental and social psychology, including conceptual and historic issues, personality theory, research methods, and statistics, ensuring you have a solid foundation upon which to build the rest of your degree.
In your third year, you’ll select four modules, exploring topics such as educational psychology, gamified learning, health and clinical psychology, morality and emotions, neurodevelopmental disorders, occupational and organisational psychology, social and moral development, and thought and language. These will allow you to specialise and delve deeper into your areas of interest.
You’ll also get the opportunity to work alongside a supervisor to conduct your own scientific research project.
2. Access state-of-the-art facilities
Our facilities have recently undergone a £5 million investment, giving you access to the latest equipment, including a six-room virtual reality suite to simulate real-life scenarios, and two observation labs. With our equipment you’ll be able to conduct experiments using electroencephalography (EEG), transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). You will also be able to monitor eye tracking and physiological measures such as earlobe temperature, heart rate and galvanic skin response, both in the lab and remotely, using mobile data loggers.
As one of our students, you will get access to 20 bookable project rooms, a breakout space, equipment lockers and a computer lab.
3. Gain professional work experience
Our Professional Training placements give you the opportunity to apply your psychological knowledge to people-facing environments and gain work experience in an area of personal interest. You can choose to work for a range of employers, hospitals and clinics, schools, social survey companies, and personnel and occupational guidance groups, to practise and enhance your skills. Previous placement organisations have included the Home Office, the Metropolitan Police, the National Centre for Young People with Epilepsy, the National Crime Agency, and Volkswagen.
You can also explore your transferrable skills by working in other fields including scientific communications, marketing and data analysis.
“I worked as a clinical intern at Life Works, a private rehabilitation centre specialising in the treatment of addiction, eating disorders and mood disorders. During my placement, I observed hundreds of group therapy sessions with clients, took clinical notes, discussed formulation of treatment for individuals receiving care and observed one-to-one therapy sessions.”
Jonny Beavis, BSc (Hons) Psychology
4. Learn from experts
We have a research-led focus to our teaching, with our course accredited by the British Psychological Society, ensuring everything you learn is up-to-date and relevant to employers. You’ll be taught by lecturers who are active researchers within their respective fields.
These may include Dr Adrian Banks (an expert in reasoning and decision making), Dr Kathrin Cohen Kadosh (an expert on the effects of the gut biome on the brain), Professor Jane Ogden (an expert in eating behaviour and obesity), Dr Harriet Tenenbaum (an expert in the social development of children) and Dr Kayleigh Wyles (an expert on interventions to address marine pollution).
5. Enhance your employability
We'll prepare you for a wide range of careers, with over 98% of our BSc (Hons) Psychology graduates going on to full-time employment or further study.* Typical roles include clinical psychologists, consultants, crime analysts, human resources specialists, market researchers, rehabilitation assistants, social therapists, and wellbeing practitioners.
Our alumni can be found in commercial, charity, private, and public sectors across the UK, with recent graduates working for Forensis, GlaxoSmithKline, Great Ormond Street Hospital, Hays plc, Salesforce, and St George's University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
With the critical thinking, analysis, problem solving, decision making, and communication skills learnt throughout the course, several graduates have sought alternative careers in law, management and teaching. Many students also use this course to apply for further study, including postgraduate research.
Find out more about our BSc (Hons) Psychology course
*Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey 2016-2017
