Getting GBC and BPS Accreditation with international degree

Hello , I am currently finishing my masters in clinical psychology from a recognised University in India. I previously have completed my bachelors in psychology , my total cgpa was 6.9 . I am in my 3rd semester now and my 2nd semester sgpa was 8.38. I plan to pursue the rest of my career in clinical psychology from UK but I directly want to go for a phd or psyd without going for a double masters. I am aware that international degrees are also at times accredited by BPS. Before applying for GBC membership, I just want to get some clarity on what chances I have interms of getting accepted and placed in NHS as a trainee with my Indian degree. Both of my degrees cover necessary components along with project work ,internships and dissertation. I also plan to get an year of work experience before joining. Would really like some feedback and advice regarding this . Thankyou in advance.

(edited 10 months ago)

Reply 1

Diyadd99

My question is if I do a conversion masters degree in uk for the sake of accredition and then can i start working or get as a trainee psychologist under NHS and then proceed for a doctorate in clinical and or educational psychology. Another question, if I do not do a non accredited masters ( preferably in child psychology) will I be able to work as a child psychologist in UK ? It's important for me to know there will be job opportunities cause I would need it to pay off my humongous studen loans.

Reply 2

bones-mccoy

I would contact the BPS for clarification on whether your bachelors degree is accredited, though I would imagine it's most likely not if acquired from outside of the UK.

In answer to your second question, yes, it is possible to start a doctorate after completing a conversion course but I would really stress the importance of experience as you won't get a place on the doctorate without a good few years of relevant experience.

You also won't be able to practice as a psychologist in the UK without being registered by the HCPC, and you can't do that without completing a professional practice doctorate or equivalent Stage 2 qualification.

(edited 10 months ago)

Reply 3

Lord Asriel

You need to be very, very careful.

I often come across people from India who have been sold a dream of doing a psychology conversion or masters course and going into massive debt, with very little to show for it. Many universities use these as cash cows. They can promise what they want but don't have any obligation to deliver on you getting qualified as a psychologist. GBC is a fairly low bar that many, many people have and you can read about the actual acceptance rates online for getting onto a DClinPsy at the Leeds clearing house for clinical psychology.

Appreciate that this is anecdotal but I have worked as a qualified clinical psychologist for about 15 years have supervised dozens of DClinPsy trainees and have not yet come across one person with an Indian degree getting onto a DClinPsy. In contrast, I have met lots of lots of students from India in exactly your situation who have paid huge amounts to get GBC with high hopes to get onto training without knowing the wider picture and it breaks my heart.