Studying psychology at university

I am looking to study psychology at university (have been looking for unis, am considering Bath, UCL, Cambridge (depending on my predicted grades), Kent, and Northampton) but am unsure of whether a single psychology course or joint course would be more beneficial in the long run. Also, is conducting your own research something that is required for all psychology courses? (Because I am not too keen on research)

Reply 1

University of Kent

Official Rep

Original post by Kk_07

Hi @Kk_07 ,

It is great to hear you are thinking about Psychology! I am a bit biased because I love the subject very much - I just finished my undergraduate and I am hoping to do a masters at Kent too this September!

What is the reason you would like to study Psychology? Everyone has their unique reasons and even if you aren't sure that is totally fine - when I started to study it, I chose it because it was the only thing I liked at A-level and did not dread going to that class! Once I actually started the degree it started to get interesting and now I cant see myself doing anything else.

One thing I love about psychology is that there are so many options with it. Like you mentioned you are not too keen on research but there are many typical routes you can go down and atypical routes. For example you could end up enjoying clinical psychology or end up enjoying moral psychology. So I would say looking for a course that allows you to experience a variety of types of Psychology is important, even opportunities that you can take up beyond the classroom would be ideal. For example, I did a placement year with the NHS in a clinical setting by doing a placement year at the University of Kent (https://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/2528/psychology-placement-year#:~:text=If%20you%20choose%20an%20undergraduate,that%20will%20enhance%20your%20employability. - apologies for the funky looking link!). You also get the opportunity in your first year to pick 2 wild modules which are any modules from any schools in Kent e.g. philosophy or evolution related!

So, whilst a joint degree might combine a couple of interests you have, a normal psychology degree doesn't restrict you to just Psychology, you can still learn about other topics that interest you.

For most final year projects you are required to either analyse existing data or conduct and analyse your own (that you do in a group) but I do know that they are changing things up slightly at Kent so that students who want less research heavy final projects will get that option. I am not sure exactly what this is but you are welcome to come to our open days and ask us about this. Have you been to an applicant or open day before?

We have one on the 6th July which you can book using this link: https://www.kent.ac.uk/events/event/65542/canterbury-undergraduate-open-day-4

I would also suggest visiting other universities open days and keep in mind what you are looking for when choosing a university. After all, you will be there for the next few years and may even stay on for further study or decide to start your career in that location!

If you are not able to visit us or want to chat to us sooner, join us on our undergraduate virtual open event on the 19th June: https://www.kent.ac.uk/whats-on/event/67803/undergraduate-virtual-open-event-5. If you scroll down you will see that there will be subject specific talks so this would be your chance to have your questions answered and hear more about what studying Psychology is like at Kent from the comfort of your own home!

I hope this helps and I am more than happy to answer any questions you have. These include questions like campus life, Psychology specific questions about the uni, course, teaching etc!

Alia
University of Kent Student Rep (final year BSc Psychology)