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Oxford and Experimental Psychology

I'm thinking of applying to do Experimental Pschology at Oxford. However, it says that it's "highly desirable" to have one or more science/maths at A Level. All my other subjects are humanities. Do you think they won't accept me? Shall I take up AS biology pronto? And what's the most easiest science subject for someone that hates science (I got BB at gcse)

Reply 1

Elles

RainbowGlitter

And what's the most easiest science subject for someone that hates science (I got BB at gcse)

Sure it's the right psychology course for you? It's definitely a very sciencey approach at Oxford...

Prospectus Entry

http://www.admissions.ox.ac.uk/courses/exps.shtml

Psychology at Oxford is essentially a scientific discipline, involving the rigorous formulation and testing of ideas. It works through experiments and systematic observation rather than introspection.

But to answer the Q, i found Biology far conceptually easier Chemistry or Physics at AS but there's more rote learning = depends where your strengths lie!

Reply 2

caz1701

Out of the sciences id say biology is the easiest :smile:

chemistry was 2 years of hell for me and most of my friends felt the same way about physics, biology however was mildy entertaining.

xx

Reply 3

dreamqueen

Bear in mind though that if you hate science and only got BB at GCSE the Oxford course might not be right for you

Reply 4

caz1701

dreamqueen

Bear in mind though that if you hate science and only got BB at GCSE the Oxford course might not be right for you

Thats a good point :smile:

although wasnt there a guy in last years prospectus who hadnt taken any sciencey/maths subjects and had coped fairly well, that was just a thought but like the other guys said if your not naturally inclined towards those subjects maybe its not so suited but then again it is only one space on your ucas form.

xx

Reply 5

Cirsium

As said above the Oxford Psych course isn't talking about Freud etc, it's looking at the mechanics and chemical reactions - doing experiments etc - v sciency and it may not be the right course for you.

Reply 6

oxbrit

i am from america and i want to study ep at oxford too
im debating between magdalen and new. which one is better/easier to get into for ep? Or should i do an open app

Reply 7

one_silly_person

RainbowGlitter

I'm thinking of applying to do Experimental Pschology at Oxford.....And what's the most easiest science subject for someone that hates science (I got BB at gcse)

That is the wrong choice for a person who "hates science".
I cannot see you coping with it unless you have a strong interest in science.

This is some of what they do:
http://www.psy.ox.ac.uk/xmodal/default.htm
"Traditionally, the five classic senses of vision, hearing, touch, smell and taste have been studied in isolation by psychological and neuroscientific researchers. However, in the last few years, numerous examples of auditory-visual, visual-tactile, and auditory-tactile perceptual and attentional interactions have been documented. This research has emphatically shown that even early sensory processing within a single sense is modulated by information in and attention towards the other senses.

We are studying the integration of information across the traditional sense modalities (i.e. crossmodal) using a variety of paradigms and techniques, including psychophysics, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), electroencephalography (EEG), and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). This exciting area of research is changing the way we view our five senses, and contributing important new insights to the understanding of the brain."

Decision and Action Laboratory
http://www.psy.ox.ac.uk/rushworth/home/home.htm

"Recent studies on the parietal cortex have been concerned with the spatial organization of movements and the control of attention in relation to movement production when movement plans are changed or updated. Other investigations have been more concerned with the comparative neuroanatomy of the parietal region. The human parietal region is also thought to be critical in number representation and processing.
Movement control may be compromised by neurological injury and disease, for example by a stroke. It is important to understand how and why some patients manage to recover and with time are able to make movements once again. One possibility is that remaining motor association cortex in the healthy hemisphere may mediate aspects of recovery. Recent results suggest that the dorsal premotor cortex may be a particularly important region.
In order to address these research questions we use a variety of methodological approaches including the neuropsychological investigation of the effects of brain lesions, functional neuroimaging with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)."

Reply 8

LatinMachine

^I think that's a little bit unfair - that's graduate stuff :wink:

But as someone already mentioned, you won't be talking about Freud on the course. You'll be designing and carrying out experiments, as well as doing research and writing essays (these will probably be on more biological/cognitive topics). Have a look at the EP bit on the Oxford website, and maybe go to an open day, but if you really hate science that much, it could be the wrong course.
On the other hand, Psych at Uni is far more science-based anyway than the A-Level course, I would imagine you'll be expected to carry out experiments wherever you go. Make sure you know what you're getting into.

Reply 9

one_silly_person

PsychologyJen

^I think that's a little bit unfair - that's graduate stuff

Not really.

It is true that graduates and doctoral candidates spend all their time on that stuff. However, undergrads do study a lot of that material at a lower level of intensity.
After all, this is Oxford, not Liverpool Met.

Oxford and Experimental Psychology

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