Applied Clinical Psychology, MSc

The MSc Applied Clinical Psychology is intended to provide a stepping stone towards a rewarding potential career in clinical psychology or mental health and has been designed in collaboration with the Salomons Institute for Applied Psychology at CCCU. The course includes specialised teaching from qualified clinical practitioners and researchers from NHS mental health services and the Salomons Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. This enables you to gain additional knowledge regarding clinical service settings and the role of clinical psychologists, as well as giving you an opportunity to have discussions with clinicians regarding their practice.

You will be fully supported when you join the university to help your transition to higher education go as smooth as possible and to achieve your goals, and you will be allocated a Personal Academic Tutor who will support you throughout your academic studies. They will also signpost you to wider support available from the university including the Learning Skills Hub - Canterbury Christ Church University, Wellbeing support - Canterbury Christ Church University, and the Careers and Enterprise Hub - Canterbury Christ Church University for any additional help you may need. There will also be further opportunities for personal and professional development during personal and academic development weeks. We may also have some social trips (e.g. an escape room game or a visit to the Freud museum in London)!

Before you commence the course, you will be invited to take part in the CCCU Welcome Week Activities and our Psychology Postgraduate Courses Induction Day. This is an excellent opportunity to meet some of the teaching staff and other students on the course in a relaxed environment, to begin to develop a sense of belonging and community, and to learn about the teaching content, timetable, assessments, and resources and support available. You will be sent more information about Welcome Week and the Psychology Induction Day closer to the time.

How is the course delivered?

This course is delivered over 3 Trimesters (please see University dates 2024-25 - Canterbury Christ Church University).

A main priority for us is for you to feel engaged in teaching, therefore interactive learning is embedded into the sessions (e.g., discussions, reflective activities, debates, groupwork etc.). It is not just going to be us reading off powerpoints! We also think diversity and inclusion is really important and so the curriculum includes delivery of teaching beyond Western frameworks. We will encourage you to question the history and context of knowledge, explore debates about diagnostic systems, consider the psychological and sociocultural, as well as biological, factors that may contribute to mental health issues, and to reflect on your own positionality, values, and beliefs.

Full-time students will be required to engage with teaching sessions 2 days per week, whilst part-time students engage 1 day per week. It is planned that all teaching will take place on Thursdays and Fridays (for full-time students), Thursdays (for part-time Year 1 students) and Fridays (for part-time Year 2 students). However, please note that the days of teaching are subject to change. You will be notified in advance if such changes occur. Outside of teaching days, you are recommended to keep an additional 2-3 days dedicated to course related activities, such as: self-directed reading, completing your assessments and building upon your clinical psychological knowledge.

Whilst you are waiting for the course to start you may wonder “what else can I do?”

Why not follow the BPS on social media and read through their website Homepage | BPS. There is a lot of helpful information, training, videos etc. that you may find helpful to prepare you for the course.

You can also keep up-to-date with psychology via our social media channels:

Social Media

• Instagram
• Psychology X / Twitter
• Facebook
• Psychology Blog
• Psychology Society

There's lots of evidence that being in nature helps wellbeing; why not go for a walk and listen to a podcast!

• BBC Radio 4 - All in the Mind - Downloads
• Podcasts - Mad in the UK

 Community

On the social side, the Student Union (CCSU) has a huge range of clubs and societies – all of which have unique social calendars of their own and offer endless opportunities to make lifelong friends and discover new hobbies. And you can always create your own society and cultivate your own community!

CCSU will be hosting their Welcome Fayre on Wednesday 18th September 2024. Make sure you keep checking the CCSU website for further details and how to get involved.

We understand that you may be nervous about your first few weeks on campus but rest assured - you'll be joining a nurturing and supportive environment where diversity, equality and individuality are part of everything we do.

You can find out more about our welcoming community and making friends here.

If you are an International Student joining us then please see our International Student Support pages for further information and guidance.

 

Your welcome and induction will be w/c 16th September 2024 - we look forward to meeting you then!

In the meantime, if you have any queries, please feel free to contact us: pls.postgraduate.professional@canterbury.ac.uk

Please see below some recommended textbooks that you may find helpful in preparing for the course. They are not mandatory but are a good reference point to start with.

Clinical Modules

Core Texts

• Cromby, J., Harper, D. & Reavey, P. (2013). Psychology, mental health and distress. Palgrave Macmillan.
• Davey, G. (2021). Psychopathology: Research, assessment and treatment in clinical psychology (3rd Ed.). Wiley.

Additional reading

• Guidelines and policies | BPS
• Carr, A. & McNulty, M. (2016). The handbook of adult clinical Psychology: An evidence-based approach. (2nd Ed.). Routledge.
• Carr, A. (2016). The handbook of child and adolescent clinical psychology: A contextual approach. (3rd Ed.). Routledge.
• HCPC Standards of Conduct, performance and ethics
• Llewelyn, S. & Murphy, D. (2014). What is clinical psychology? Oxford University Press.
• Critical Psychiatry Network – Scepsis and science, reflection and humanism

Research Modules and Dissertation

• Barker, C., Pistrang, N. & Elliott, R. (2016). Research methods in clinical psychology (3rd Ed.). Wiley.
• Field, A. (2018). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics (5th ed.). Sage Publications.
• Sullivan, C., & Forrester, M.A. (2018). Doing qualitative research in psychology. (2nd Ed.) Sage Publications.

Study Skills

• Katz, L. (2018). Palgrave study skills. Critical thinking and persuasive writing for postgraduates. Palgrave.
• Smyth, T.R. (2004). Palgrave study skills. The principles of writing in psychology. Palgrave.