Advise on Masters Degree's please!!!

Hi, I am just wondering if anyone can help me to understand what steps I need to take.

I wish to study psychology at University with the future aim of becoming a qualified forensic psychologist. Therefore I know that's both a degree and masters degree is needed.

However can you complete a degree and then decide to do an extra year for the masters degree or do you need to complete a uni course called a masters (4 years) from the start?

Hope that makes sense and would really appreciate some advice!

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Reply 1

Jamess8300

You can still apply for a masters degree regardless of whether you decide to do it from the start of the degree or at the end. It is a seperate program from your undergraduate degree and you will be able to apply to undertake the masters degree.

Reply 2

RHobbs

Original post by Jamess8300

Thanks very much! :smile:

Reply 3

jelly1000

Original post by RHobbs

You can definitley do the Masters year seperately from the undergraduate degree however to do it seperately you won't get student finance.

Reply 4

Juichiro

Original post by RHobbs

There is no funding for a Masters so you will have to pay it yourself. You might also need to do a PhD (which ai't funded too).

Reply 5

Aristotle's' Disciple

Original post by Juichiro

There is no funding for a Masters so you will have to pay it yourself. You might also need to do a PhD (which ai't funded too).

Starting the year after next student finance will be funding Masters, so that won't be a problem.

Reply 6

RHobbs

Original post by Aristotle's' Disciple

Starting the year after next student finance will be funding Masters, so that won't be a problem.

Ah great! Thanks very much

Reply 7

jelly1000

Original post by RHobbs

Ah great! Thanks very much

Afraid its not as simple as there will be funding for masters- nothing is set in stone yet aside from it will be a maximum of £10,000 and they are specifically for under 30s

Reply 8

Klix88

Original post by Aristotle's' Disciple

Starting the year after next student finance will be funding Masters, so that won't be a problem.

I wouldn't go that far. Before the election, there were plans for a maximum £10,000 Masters student loan. That won't cover tuition fees + living costs for the majority of Masters courses. I think the majority of Masters students will still need to find several thousand pounds from other sources - even if the loan goes ahead.

Reply 9

Aristotle's' Disciple

Original post by Klix88

Ah right, well at least it's less of a problem, nothing saving whilst going through OP's undergraduate can't solve, or a part time job.

Reply 10

coco75

Original post by Aristotle's' Disciple

Ah right, well at least it's less of a problem, nothing saving whilst going through OP's undergraduate can't solve, or a part time job.

Am going on Psychology Master studies this September and it costs....really. But it's worth doing it!

Reply 11

Juichiro

Original post by Aristotle's' Disciple

Starting the year after next student finance will be funding Masters, so that won't be a problem.

That's not a fact. :wink:

1.
1. It was a policy of the previous government.
2.The guys who started it are not in the government anymore.
3. The government is said to give a response on the matter 12 weeks after the 29th May

Check your facts from the primary source, disciple.

Original post by RHobbs

Ah great! Thanks very much

See my response to his unsubstantiated claim. Anyway, most masters cost about 6K-7K so you only would have 4K-3K for living costs and in the South it might not be enough.

Original post by jelly1000

Afraid its not as simple as there will be funding for masters- nothing is set in stone yet aside from it will be a maximum of £10,000 and they are specifically for under 30s

This in addition to my response.

Original post by Klix88

Which is still in the air. We won't hear a definitive answer until the end of August.

Reply 12

Klix88

Original post by Aristotle's' Disciple

Ah right, well at least it's less of a problem, nothing saving whilst going through OP's undergraduate can't solve, or a part time job.

I'm afraid undergraduate finances aren't that generous. Many (possibly most) undergrads will find that their Student Finance isn't enough to cover their basic costs (rent, bills, food, transport). Many will need part-time jobs just to stay afloat whilst they study. Very few people will have the opportunity to save money - especially several thousand pounds - as a full-time undergraduate.

Reply 13

Aristotle's' Disciple

Original post by Klix88

I'm a full time undergraduate and if I hadn't made money through other means I'd certainly manage to save enough. The key is to not go out drinking every night, rent somewhere cheap and cook. :wink:

Reply 14

Juichiro

Original post by Aristotle's' Disciple

I'm a full time undergraduate and if I hadn't made money through other means I'd certainly manage to save enough. The key is to not go out drinking every night, rent somewhere cheap and cook. :wink:

You are funny. I would love to see what budget you show us given a student with living costs in a Southern city. Fact is SFE pays you the same no matter where you study (apart from London) so it is logical that given the wide differences in living costs, given the same money, some will breeze and some will struggle.

Reply 15

Aristotle's' Disciple

Original post by Juichiro

Then don't be stupid and study somewhere north? Not sure what point you're trying to make? Where do you study out of curiosity?

Reply 16

Aristotle's' Disciple

Original post by Juichiro

That's not a fact. :wink:

Fair enough.

Reply 17

jelly1000

Original post by Aristotle's' Disciple

I'm a full time undergraduate and if I hadn't made money through other means I'd certainly manage to save enough. The key is to not go out drinking every night, rent somewhere cheap and cook. :wink:

If you get a generous student finance package then yes providing your sensible you can save some of it. However if you only get the minimum of £3,600 a year even if you went up North and rented somewhere really cheap you still wouldn't have enough money to save once rent and food had been bought.

Reply 18

lrn93

There aren't any combined bachelors + masters around for psychology/ forensic psych (as far as I know). So you'll need to do a BPS accredited undergrad degree and then do a separate accredited forensic psychology MSc, if you do want to work as a qualified/ chartered forensic psychologist. The BPS website has a list of all accredited courses so thats the best place to look to see what university's offer accredited courses! An MSc counts as stage 1 of training, but there's also stage 2 training you need to complete before you can be registered!

Also, really think about getting work experience as early on as you can! I'm looking to start a forensic psychology MSc in september and a lot of uni's are looking for experience as well as an accredited bachelors degree, I wish i'd done some sooner!

Sorry for the long answer, I hope i've helped in some way haha! :smile:

Reply 19

Aristotle's' Disciple

Original post by jelly1000

My rent at Warwick comes to just over £2000, I suppose if you're in the unfortunate position where you aren't being provided a sufficient amount and your parents aren't willing or can't contribute also it's a different matter.