Degree

LundiMardi

Hey all,

I was thinking of starting a degree in Psychology in September, just wondering if anyone here is study in Psychology or has studied in it. Would you recommend it etc?

I don't know whether i want to dive straight into the degree or start off and do a diploma for a year or not first I think i'd find it more interesting than most other subjects, but it's hard for me to stay focused so i may be in over my head here:v:

snorlax

the degree in tcd is quite good, or so iv heard, iv a few friends doing it and they seem to really enjoy it. here's a link to better explain what subjects you'll be doing. http://www.tcd.ie/Psychology/jf.html for your subjects

by the way the library in tcd is pretty good, as are the online journals, also psychology has alot of international and mature students so they'res a good mixture on the course. im in third year Occupational therapy, but iv shared some of my lectures with the psychology students so i can discuss those subjects with you if you want me to:). im also currently studying health psychology which is actually really interesting.

p.pete

I'm considering a degree in psychology also. I'll be a mature student, so it means I'll be starting from scratch at 27, which is quite scary. I'm cheered by your comment snorlax, regarding the mix of people in the class - the thought of being the only mature student amongst a group of 17/18 year olds was playing on my mind.

It'll be tough leaving my well paid job and signing myself over to debt (most likely) but I'm bored and think there's better things I could be doing with myself. Once I have the degree sorted, hopefully a simple matter of three years living poorly and working hard, I'd hope to do a post grad. in either educational or organisational/work psychology. I'm interested in things such as what makes some people excel and what holds others back, what factors can be changed to improve things.

Anyway, my UCAS for is in as of last Friday so we'll see what happens. Hopefully there's a college who'll take me

John

p.pete wrote:

I'm considering a degree in psychology also. I'll be a mature student, so it means I'll be starting from scratch at 27, which is quite scary. I'm cheered by your comment snorlax, regarding the mix of people in the class - the thought of being the only mature student amongst a group of 17/18 year olds was playing on my mind.

It'll be tough leaving my well paid job and signing myself over to debt (most likely) but I'm bored and think there's better things I could be doing with myself. Once I have the degree sorted, hopefully a simple matter of three years living poorly and working hard, I'd hope to do a post grad. in either educational or organisational/work psychology. I'm interested in things such as what makes some people excel and what holds others back, what factors can be changed to improve things.

Anyway, my UCAS for is in as of last Friday so we'll see what happens. Hopefully there's a college who'll take me

From what I can tell about most pyschology courses (I've taken classes with each of the current psych classes in TCD and my girlfriend had similar stories from Maynooth) is that it attracts a lot of mature students. I'd say a good 5-10% depending on the year.

p.pete

Cheers John2, it's courses in England and Wales I've applied for so presumably it'll be much the same. It'd be nice if a university took me on based on my application but I'm expecting to have to attend interview so I guess I can add it to my list of questions to ask

Hairdo

I studied spanish and psychology in NUIG but because I studied it with another subject I now have to do a conversion course in psychology before I can even get a masters and the only conversion course that seems to be suitable for me is with the Open University!

So, what I would recommend to you is not to take a course that is attached to another subject. If you want to study psychology take something more specifically aimed at acquiring your masters in whatever area you are most interested. Having said that the straight psychology degree in NUIG is quite good and Dr. Hughes, i think, is acting head of department this year. He was also the head of the Psychological Society of Ireland last year. He's also a very good teacher and nice guy. The atmosphere around Galway is great too, so all in all it's a good package.

LundiMardi

Thanks for the responce guys, and John2 for the pm, i tried to reply but my internet was acting up at the time!!!

I think i know what i'm going to do....

I'm hopefully going to start a DIPLOMA in psychology next month, it's for one year and it's only one night a week.. At the end of it, i'll have a diploma, and i'll have an idea of whether or not to go ahead and study full time for a degree as a mature student.. If i don't, then at least i'll still have a diploma, which would halp me gain access to other courses as a mature student..

sound like a plan?

LundiMardi

John2 wrote:

From what I can tell about most pyschology courses (I've taken classes with each of the current psych classes in TCD and my girlfriend had similar stories from Maynooth) is that it attracts a lot of mature students. I'd say a good 5-10% depending on the year.

that's weird, i read on the psychology TCD page that they only have 7 places for mature students.. maybe that's just TCD though.

snorlax

it would be worth your while checking the other colleges like UCD and seeing what they offer too before picking a course as i think they're course is 3 years which may or may not suit you better. what subjects does the diploma offer? i m wondering becuse psychology can sometimes be one of those things that takes a while to get into, eg sometimes it can appear like gibberish until you get into it and it all comes togther eg there's lots of theorists and theories to learn and some areas of psychology will probably interest you more then others. eg it's only in 3rd year in tcd where you can opt to take your own choosen subjects so it allows you to specialise to a certain degree. psychology can sometimes seem abstract at first until you get into it.
i found reading journal articles pretty good for getting into the subject, and my particular favorite areas were child development, social psychology and of course health psychology, but of course everyones different so don't just take my word for it, if i we're to be honest i say i didn't really appreciate the intro to psych course at at the time when i was doing it.

anyway good luck whatever you decide to do and maybe someone who has done the diploma course wil post up here.

LundiMardi

Here's the jist of the diploma...

Diploma in Psychology

The Diploma in Psychology seeks to convey the excitement of psychology as an intellectual human enterprise. The programme is designed for those who wish to gain foundation knowledge in and an appreciation of psychology.

Schedule
1 Evening per week 6.15-9.30pm

Duration
Offered twice yearly, October & February, 1 year part-time

Course Introduction
Psychology is both broad and ambitious. Nourished by biology at its border with the natural sciences and by sociology and anthropology at its border with the social sciences, psychology deals with complex questions about human nature once considered solely the province of literature and philosophy. This revised syllabus contains subjects essential to those seeking to progress in the area academically or career wise or apply the psychology theories to areas of management and business.


Course Aims & Objectives
Overall the aim of the Diploma is to provide a lucid introduction to the area of Psychology. The goals of the Diploma in Psychology are to inspire an appreciation for an empirical approach to human behaviour, to produce intelligent consumers of psychological information and to address psychology’s role in promoting human welfare and solving social problems. This Diploma focuses on what students should retain long after the final class, which can be applied to their own lives and future careers.

During the Diploma it is hoped that students will draw on their own life experiences and that communication will be two way rather than lecture driven. It is intended that classes will be supplemented by videos, and one or two practical experiments. The course will consist of 2 semesters, each containing 10 weeks of lectures.


Course Content
Semester 1

Introduction to Psychology

* The World & History of Psychology
* Diversity in Psychology

Biological Aspects of Psychology

* The Nervous System
* Chemistry of Psychology
* The Immune System

Cognitive Psychology

* Sensation
* Perception
* Learning & Memory
* Consciousness
* Motivation & Emotion
* Language & Cognition

Semester 2

Individual Differences & Development

* Understanding Intelligence
* Exploring Human Development (Infancy, Adolescence, Adulthood)

Psychology of “Play”

* Study of Play: Issues & Methods
* Psychological Issues & Effects of Bullying

Health, Stress & Coping

* Health Psychology & Stress Responses
* Physiology & Psychology of Health & Illness
* Health Compliance & Smoking Cessation

Personality

* The various approaches to Personality
* Assessing Personality
* Are Personality traits inherited?

Psychological Disorders


* Defining & Explaining Disorders
* Treatment of Psychological Disorders
* Community Psychology: From Treatment to Prevention

Social Cognition

* Social Influences on the self
* Social Perception (Attitudes, Prejudices & Stereotypes)
* Social Influences (Conformity, Group Norms, Obedience & Aggression)

Assessment
To achieve the Diploma in Psychology, students will be required to complete an assessment during each semester and an end of term exam (January & May).

snorlax

that sounds like a good breath of subjects and probably a good stepping stone, ...in fact i do a little of play psychology and it's really interesting too , we study it more from an applied sense as we use play as an occupation to help kids with developmental and other disabilities.

anyhow it sounds really interesting and it's probably a good idea to do a diploma before committing to a 3/4 year course and possibly a postgrad course afterwards if your not 100% sure yet.

LundiMardi

snorlax wrote:

it's probably a good idea to do a diploma before committing to a 3/4 year course and possibly a postgrad course afterwards if your not 100% sure yet.

i agree, i hope i'm not too late to apply, the course starts next month, and i would assume it's a popular choice.

John

LundiMardi wrote:

that's weird, i read on the psychology TCD page that they only have 7 places for mature students.. maybe that's just TCD though.

The class only has about 40 people in it so that's a good chunk of mature students.

The diploma sounds like a good start, it would look very nice on your application if you do plan to persue a degree.

p.pete

I'm going down a similar route LundiMardi, I haven't fully decided that I want to throw myself into a degree yet so at the moment I'm taking part-time modules, one evening a week. Before Christmas was a general introduction module, now I'm doing a developmental / child psychology module and then there's a memory psychology module towards the summer.

None of these are areas I'd see myself specialising in but I'm finding them all interesting which is good

Eoghan-psych

John2 wrote:

From what I can tell about most pyschology courses (I've taken classes with each of the current psych classes in TCD and my girlfriend had similar stories from Maynooth) is that it attracts a lot of mature students. I'd say a good 5-10% depending on the year.

That would definitely tally with my experience in Maynooth - there does seem to be a fair few mature students.

Eoghan-psych

A few things need to be kept in mind by anyone thinking of doing a degree in psychology. Those with a psychology background will be used to the reaction to "I'm doing psychology" [typically "so what am I thinking" and the like], which is caused by people not fully understanding what's involved in a psychology degree.

Things a psychology degree *isn't*:
1. You won't be studying psychic phenomena.
2. You won't be reading minds.
3. There is no Derren Brown module.
4. You will not become Cracker.
5. At no point will you have visions [at least not in lectures - what you do in your spare time is between you and the Gardai].
6. The course will not involve clinical practice.
7. You will not be a qualified counsellor at the end of it.
I'm sure there are more, which others might fill in.

Things a psych degree *does* involve:
1. Statistics.
2. Statistics.
3. Some statistics.
4. Advanced statistics.
[The stats aspect is more applied than maths-based, but you are expected to get your head round the concepts, if not the equations, involved].
5. Research methods - you will be expected to understand various research methodologies to a reasonably high level.
6. Technical writing - you will be expected to write reports, essays etc. in a very clear, defined way with a good command of technical language and terminology.
7. Challenging norms - you will be exposed to information generally not 'acceptable' or 'polite' in normal company. Examples would be such things as geriatric psychosexual problems, non-heterosexuality, the psychological aspects of religious belief etc.
8. 'Distressing' material - you will be exposed to information which can be distressing for some people. Examples include in-depth study of, say, terminal neurological conditions in children or fairly graphic descriptions of child abuse and its effects.
9. Biology. This can be the biggest issue - during a psych degree you *will* be learning that the brain is the root of psychology. The 'mind body problem' simply isn't. You will be learning that, in essence, the mind is to brain as digestion is to the digestive system.
10. Research project - you will be expected to carry out semi-independent piece of genuine research [not of the leaving-cert, demonstration type stuff]. Depending on your area of interest, and the staff members available, this will either be fun and exciting or tedious and unpleasant.

There are more, which others might wish to fill in.

Basically, a psychology degree is quite different to other areas of study in that it is the scientific study of *you*. Many people are attracted to this area for the wrong reasons, or because of misunderstandings.

It is hard, it does take a lot of work, and you *will* have to do things you have no interest in. It is, however, entirely worth it.

If nothing else, having a psych degree gives a definite kudos boost in a way that "I did geography" just doesn't. That may or may not be a good thing, but it's the way things are.
Eoghan

LundiMardi

^^^ excellent post thanks!

dr zoidberg

Eoghan-psych wrote:

...

Just to add:
-No Sigmund Freud modules either. No dream analysis etc.
You will have to put up with people assuming that's what psychology is, even when you tell them otherwise:mad: . Psychology is a science as much as any other, it's based on proper and stringently-controlled research.

Eoghan-psych

dr zoidberg wrote:

Just to add:
-No Sigmund Freud modules either. No dream analysis etc.

Ah yes, slipped my mind. Freud is decidedly absent from undergrad teaching, except in the context of history.

John

Eoghan-psych wrote:

Ah yes, slipped my mind.

Freudian-slipped your mind?

LundiMardi

Well, good news, i've been given a place in the Diploma course, bad news is i have to figure out how to pay the 1800 euro fee:eek:

But looking forward to it none the less, it will be good to get myself an education.

John

LundiMardi wrote:

bad news is i have to figure out how to pay the 1800 euro fee:eek:

Pimp Frankie to lonely older women. Good luck with it though. I hope it leaves you wanting more.

Vangelis

I'm thinking of studying psychology too - some day.
But what kind of person is best fit for that subject, if any specific person at all?

Eoghan-psych

Vangelis wrote:

I'm thinking of studying psychology too - some day.
But what kind of person is best fit for that subject, if any specific person at all?

One must distinguish between "fit for the subject" and "fit for the course".

Psychology under the Irish university system is a very difficult field to get into [>500 points, except in the private institutions which is, IMHO, quite telling]. That means not only *getting in* is difficult, but that the course itself is tailored to that level of student [distinct from the actual nature of the material]. Students are expected to work at a level appropriate to this, so even getting in throught the 'back door' of general Arts or Science and competing for a small number of places isn't any great deal easier.

There's always the 'nuclear option' of going to the UK, where places are *much* easier come by [unfortunately so, in many cases]. Someone who just misses out on a place in, say, UCD would *shine* on many courses in the UK [purely because of the numbers - UK unis tend to have a far greater number of places, so the spread of ability is larger]. This is also down to the Leaving Cert. Love it or hate it, it *is* a fairly thorough system. A first year psych student in Ireland has just come of a guaranteed two years of higher level maths [looking at points, this is all but inevitable] and an extensive history of language training [English, Irish and a third language in the case of the NUIs], not to mention a science background as well. A similar student in the UK might have Drama, History, and 'General Studies'. It shows - I'm marking stuff for first years here and the writing wouldn't pass for Junior Cert English on some.

I should point out that the actual graduates are of the same standard - they just tend to have a far greater number of 2:2s and worse.

I'm not trumpeting heading over to the UK, but having moved over here to do a postgrad one of my pet topics is comparing the two systems.

Vangelis

Eoghan, I'm not sure I understand your message, if there is a message in your message.

Is Ireland-psychology better than UK-psychology or..?

Having different subjects from second level than the typical Irish that you mention doesn't mean you will fail or get poor results on a psychology course. You don't need to know relativity to study psychology for instance. I don't really understand what you are saying. Your post is a bit...incohesive.

John

Vangelis wrote:

Eoghan, I'm not sure I understand your message, if there is a message in your message.

Is Ireland-psychology better than UK-psychology or..?

Having different subjects from second level than the typical Irish that you mention doesn't mean you will fail or get poor results on a psychology course. You don't need to know relativity to study psychology for instance. I don't really understand what you are saying. Your post is a bit...incohesive.

You don't need to know relativity (yet, I'm sure someone will link it up at some stage) but you do need to have a decent level of maths as psychology is HEAVILY stats based. It's a science and going into it with no science background at all (all Irish students will have maths and most will have one or two more science subjects) is asking for trouble.

Eoghan-psych

Vangelis wrote:

Ireland-psychology better than UK-psychology or..?

My point was that someone who misses out on a place in Ireland because of a place shortage [there wouldn't be a noticeable difference between someone who got 5 or 10 points outside the ~500 cutoff] should have no problem getting a place in the UK, because of the greater number of places.

A side effect of the greater availability is that the ability spread is much greater - few if any people will get onto a course in Ireland without having the academic capacity for it, whereas that is not the case in the UK. This means that the resulting graduates will have a different breakdown in marks - far more pass/2:2s than from an Irish group.

Final marks are directly comparable - a first from an Irish course [real courses - BPS accredited] is of the same standard as a first from a UK BPS accredited course. The learning curve is somewhat steeper for UK students though - Irish ones have a great deal of the skills from the Leaving

p.pete

So not that the college courses are better or worse in the UK but that there's more places available. Also, not to get into which is better or worse, you'll have received a different education from the Leaving Cert as opposed to the A-Levels.

I've gotten 2 course offers from my application to UCAS so far

Eoghan-psych

p.pete wrote:

So not that the college courses are better or worse in the UK but that there's more places available. Also, not to get into which is better or worse, you'll have received a different education from the Leaving Cert as opposed to the A-Levels.

Presactly.

There are differences in course quality, but as long as the course is BPS accredited [or in the case of Irish course, *was* BPS accredited] they're of a similar standard - though the material may be slightly different, particular in the final year.

kjbsrah

p.pete wrote:

Cheers John2, it's courses in England and Wales I've applied for so presumably it'll be much the same. It'd be nice if a university took me on based on my application but I'm expecting to have to attend interview so I guess I can add it to my list of questions to ask

Hi p.pete,

I'm currently studying for a degree in Psychology in TVU in London. I'm a mature student and when i applied to do the course i simply went along to the university on one of the open days, filled in some forms and was offered a place - all within 2 weeks, with a view to start the following week. Its the best thing i've ever done and i would highly recommend it. Best of luck with your application.

eth0_

LundiMardi wrote:

I'm hopefully going to start a DIPLOMA in psychology next month, it's for one year and it's only one night a week.. i'll still have a diploma, which would halp me gain access to other courses as a mature student..

sound like a plan?

Would this diploma be with an accredited college/university?
A few years ago I was considering doing a diploma with Dorset college until I found out they award their own diplomas/certs, rendering their courses pretty much useless. Unless your diploma is from a FETAC or NUI etc accredited institution, it isn't worth the paper it's written on, is unlikely to help you to gain entrance into a degree, and certainly won't exempt you from the first year of a degree.

Also, 1800 euro for one year is ridiculous.

If I were you i'd start off with the open university and see if you actually like psychology, because the endless statistics does get tedious.

And to all the people here thinking of studying psychology: Only do it if you are 100% sure you want a career as a psychologist. It's extremely hard to get onto a postgraduate program in Ireland. There are barely any places. There's a massive training bottleneck. Yes, you see jobs for clinical psychologists starting on 40k, but there are very few people in Ireland that can get the qualifications needed without going to the UK to do postgrad study.

I've another year and a half left of my psych degree that i'm doing with the open university and chances are i'll go to the UK to do neuropsychology or will try and get into graduate entry medicine here in Ireland.