Which Psychology course is best for becoming a therapist?
I’m an international student from Nepal and I really want to study Psychology in the UK. I’m currently in the 3rd year of a 5-year Law degree but I’ve realised it isn’t the right path for me, and I want to switch completely to Psychology.
Reply 1
I’m an international student from Nepal and I really want to study Psychology in the UK. I’m currently in the 3rd year of a 5-year Law degree but I’ve realised it isn’t the right path for me, and I want to switch completely to Psychology.
Honestly it doesn't make too much of a difference, to become a therapist you need more than just an undergraduate, so id look into exactly what field you want to go into eg psychiatry or psychology and see the process for it prior to deciding, for instance if you wanted to become a psychiatrist you would need a medical degree first as that includes prescribing, they also all include hefty placement periods that can be low pay to no pay, so ensure you have the means to support ourself before endeavouring on this journey
I’m an international student from Nepal and I really want to study Psychology in the UK. I’m currently in the 3rd year of a 5-year Law degree but I’ve realised it isn’t the right path for me, and I want to switch completely to Psychology.
Hi there!
I'll link a couple pages of the Prospects website which can give you a good idea of what's needed for careers in this area in the UK:
3.
Clinical psychologist job profile (although you could also look at counselling psychologist or other psychologist specialties)
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BSc Psychology - For a psychology undergraduate degree where you will cover all the core areas, plus have the chance to choose four optional modules in third year.
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BSc Psychology and Counselling - For a psychology undergraduate degree combined with the subject of counselling. You will cover all the core areas of psychology plus learn about counselling and psychotherapeutic approaches and develop your counselling skills.
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BSc Counselling and Psychotherapy: Professional Practice - You will learn about a range of counselling and psychotherapeutic approaches, theories and personal and professional development. In your third year you will take part in a supervised professional practice placement (although there is the option to transfer to BSc Counselling and Psychotherapy: Theoretical Studies at the end of second year if you wished to focus on research and not complete the professional placement). This course meets the training requirements for professional registration with the British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP) and you could also progress to individual BACP accreditation if you wished in future. If you wanted a more direct route to just practicing counselling and psychotherapy without the psychology side of it, this course would be ideal - although many continue into further study or develop their specialist interests further.
All our psychology degrees are BPS accredited - meaning they have been approved by the British Psychological Society. This is important as this is the first step to becoming a chartered psychologist and working your way up the ladder for a career in psychology.
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For a link to the Career's section of the BPS website click here - they have loads of useful info and resources to understand how it all works 😊
We also have some related postgraduate options to continue onto if you wished...
...for psychology, meaning you have completed an undergraduate degree in psychology (or other related health/social care subjects), you could look at:
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Also MSc courses in Forensic Psychology and the Psychology of Coercive Control if you were interested in pursuing these specialisms/areas of psychology further.
...for counselling and psychotherapy we do also offer a postgraduate course, although this option is not available for students who require a student visa so I'm not sure this would be an option for yourself. Have linked anyway so you can check it out.
Hopefully that can all give you an idea of some options and an understanding of how it works if you check out each course page 😊
I will mention too that if you were to complete your law degree this may make it possible for you to complete a psychology conversion course for one year at masters level which would allow you to proceed with psychology career route, without having to complete another three year undergraduate degree. Some similar masters courses may also accept a law degree so this could be something to look into.
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Here's a link (sorry, another link!) to the Prospects page for psychology conversion course information which can explain how it all works.
I appreciate that's all quite a bit of reading but hopefully it can give you some help exploring your options ☺️ I study psychology myself and absolutely love it, it's a really broad subject with lots of option for variability. I hope you manage to find something that suits you 😄
Becky
University of Salford Student Rep
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