Should I study psychology at Cardiff or Bristol????

I was wondering if anyone could help me to make a decision between Cardiff and Bristol. Overall I prefer Cardiff 's modules and it has a placement year, however Bristol has a better reputation. To add I can get a contextual offer from both!

Hey! To be honest, even without anyone making any suggestions, it sounds like you're mentally leaning towards Cardiff and the only thing holding you back is Bristol's rep which to be honest, Cardiff has too! They are both Russel Group Universities so on that level, Cardiff's rep is just as good as Bristol's. I wouldn't want you going to Bristol and then later regretting it because it lacks the modules and placement that Cardiff has. Just remember any University will give you a degree no matter its reputation, so try to prioritise being happy there! The fact that you can get contextuals in both is really useful though, if you have enough space in your 5 application slots, I would put them both down. If not, I think Cardiff Uni is the one for you. Good luck!

I was wondering if anyone could help me to make a decision between Cardiff and Bristol. Overall I prefer Cardiff 's modules and it has a placement year, however Bristol has a better reputation. To add I can get a contextual offer from both!

Hey there,

I'm actually currently a psychology student at Cardiff doing placement year! So if you had any questions you wanted to ask me around that side of things, I'm happy to chat about 🙂

But yes, the above comments have summarised it perfectly! I hope you end up choosing the course you're happy with.

heyy I got an offer from Cardiff for the samee exact course! i just wanted to ask- what is the placement year like? also ive been dying to find out more about the research facilities at Cardiff from a student!! how are theyy?

Hey Durv! Congratulations, first of all, that's amazing!
Placement year is going really well for me. I really enjoy it - its quite a nice break away from worrying about assignments and studying. I'm currently doing a clinical placement, and it's really helped reinforce what I want to do in the future.
There's loads of research happening in Cardiff! We have a building dedicated to neuroimaging and another one dedicated to developmental psychology research. I don't think I am able to summarise the breadth of research we do here so I'll provide a link here so you can know more about it
In terms of what you can get involved in as a student, there's loads! You're able to participate as a participant for a lot of studies. There are also loads of summer internship opportunities in psychological research at the university, which are paid! I did one of these last summer and it was a brilliant opportunity.
In placement year you have the opportunity to do research placements as well as clinical placements. There are opportunities to do research in Cardiff, but also other parts of the UK and at international universities!
Let me know if you had any other questions
~ Fatiha, Cardiff University Student Rep

I’ve got an offer for the same course as well! Was wondering if we get paid during the placement year? And also how much support the uni offers during the placement year? Also, even tho my course is with professional placement, can I still decide later on to not do the placement year?

Hey! To be honest, even without anyone making any suggestions, it sounds like you're mentally leaning towards Cardiff and the only thing holding you back is Bristol's rep which to be honest, Cardiff has too! They are both Russel Group Universities so on that level, Cardiff's rep is just as good as Bristol's. I wouldn't want you going to Bristol and then later regretting it because it lacks the modules and placement that Cardiff has. Just remember any University will give you a degree no matter its reputation, so try to prioritise being happy there! The fact that you can get contextuals in both is really useful though, if you have enough space in your 5 application slots, I would put them both down. If not, I think Cardiff Uni is the one for you. Good luck!

I would disagree, Bristol is signifcantly better regarded than cardiff. Bristol is arguably as prestigeous as places like edinburgh, manchester, exeter etc. Cardiff does not have the same claim

Hey there,
I'm actually currently a psychology student at Cardiff doing placement year! So if you had any questions you wanted to ask me around that side of things, I'm happy to chat about 🙂
But yes, the above comments have summarised it perfectly! I hope you end up choosing the course you're happy with.

Hi Fatiha,
I have an offer from Cardiff to study Psychology (3 year, course C800). If I decide after I start that I'd like to do a professional placement year, is it easy enough to effectively transfer from the C800 course to the C810 course and undertake a placement in year 3?
Thanks.

Hi there! Congrats on your offer
Yes, absolutely. The course is really flexible with that. Every student gets access to support for placement applications, interviews etc and the contact list of placements in year 2. You only really transfer to the placement year course if you get an offer for a placement, which admin will then sort for you as soon as you inform them. So, no pressure to choose either one or change course up until that point
~ Fatiha, Cardiff University Student Rep

Hi Fathia,
thanks for your reply, that's good to know!
Looks like you're enjoying the course - I hope the rest of your placement year and final year go well!
Best wishes.