Health Psychology

Entry requirements

You should have a bachelor’s honours degree or international equivalent, typically a 2:1 or above.

To apply for this course you should have an undergraduate degree in psychology. The degree should be recognised by the British Psychological Society as providing Graduate Basis for Chartership (GBC).

We may make an offer based on a lower grade if you can provide evidence of your suitability for the degree.

In your application, you will need to provide a maximum 500 word personal statement which should:

(a) show a clear understanding of health psychology as a subject, why you are interested in studying on this particular course and what skills and interests you hope to develop over the duration of the course.

(b) outline your research experience to date. This could include key research related assignments that you have completed such as your undergraduate dissertation project, or any research posts you have held. Please explain the skills and knowledge you have gained from your research experience that you would bring to the MSc Health Psychology programme.

(c) describe any other practical experience that you have which you feel is relevant to the field of health psychology and what you have learned from this experience.

If your first language is not English but within the last 2 years you completed your degree in the UK you may be exempt from our English language requirements.

Months of entry

September

Course content

Delve into the exciting field of health psychology. Our BPS-accredited course is one of the only master's of its kind to include a compulsory 16-week placement.

Our MSc Health Psychology course is designed to give you a solid grounding in all the main areas of health psychology.

Taking a multidisciplinary approach to the subject, we look at how psychology can be used to help us better understand health and health behaviours. You'll study everything from preventing ill health to managing long-term conditions and developing effective healthcare provision.

You will gain hands-on experience of methods for conducting research in diverse research and healthcare settings before going on to apply those skills during the placement.

We're highly regarded for psychology at the University of Bath. You will work with lecturers with expertise across the spectrum of health psychology subjects, including public health, addictive behaviours, pain, palliative care and digital interventions.

You will leave this course with:

• a thorough knowledge of health psychology approaches, theories and models
• excellent research skills that can be applied to research settings and public health, as well as primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare settings
• the necessary competencies to meet Stage 1 training in health psychology, which enables you to proceed to Stage 2 doctoral-level training and register with the Health & Care Professions Council (HCPC) to become a registered health psychologist if you wish
• valuable work experience from your placement to enhance your CV and help you secure work in this field

Studying this course will prepare you for moving into a wide range of health-related posts, whether you choose to go on to work at a university, within government, the private sector or in a charity.

The skills you gain will act as a solid foundation for going on to undertake a PhD, Stage 2 professional doctorate, further clinical psychology training or work as a research assistant.

Recent graduates of this course have gone on to work in a wide variety of roles, including:

• Project Executive at a national cancer charity
• Public Health Researcher at a local council
• Trainee Health Psychologist
• Research Officer at the Office for National Statistics
• Assistant Psychologist within the NHS
• Doctoral student on a UK doctoral-level counselling course
• Research Assistant at a European university

Many graduates have also gone on to become PhD students at different universities, including the University of Bath.

Fees and funding

View available funding opportunities.