Psychology conversion courses

Amusicum

Hi there,

I want to do a psychology conversion postgraduate and am considering options both in Ireland and the UK at the moment. I have narrowed it down to the HDip in Psychology in UCD and the MSc in Experimental Psychology in the University of Sussex, and am going to apply for both in any case.

My original degree is in music (BMus - first class honours) and this year I am completing a postgrad Diploma/MA in Psychosocial studies in Birkbeck, University of London. My aim is to do both or either of a PHd in Psychology (my idea for a topic is an exploration of the links between innate artistic creativity and mental illness) and/or a professional doctorate in clinical psychology. I realise that the research PhD topic could be incorporated into the research part of the clinical psychology course too. Ideally, I would like to do the research PhD in the UK (in Cambridge or oxford), as these universities possess such good resources for research, and it would be such a great experience.

There are various positives and negatives for doing either the HDip in UCD or the MSc in Sussex. UCD has a very good psychology department (it has been recommended to me by a clinical psychologist) and has the benefit of running a world-renowned clinical psychology programme, which would give me a great insight into the profession. The course is spread over two academic years, as opposed to one intensive year in the Sussex MSc, so might give me a better amount of time to come to terms with everything psychology throws at me! I think I would feel more at home studying in Ireland, although I've only just moved to the UK now, so don't really know exactly how I feel yet! Also, I think there is a good neuropsychology department in UCD (the main lecturer herself studied psychology in Cambridge, trained as a clinical psychologist and also did a part time research PhD), which could be valuable. However, if I plan to do my research PhD/clinical psychology in the UK, would it be better to do the Masters in the UK (although I know that psychology qualifications both in Ireland and the UK are jointly accredited).

I have heard that the University of Sussex has a good reputation and it does feature regularly on the top universities in the world listings. However, I feel I don't know enough about the course yet to know how good it is. If anybody knows anything about the course or the reputation of the Sussex psychology department, it would be great to know! It does look like there is some interesting research going on in the department, but the only drawback is that there is no clinical psychology doctorate in the University. I was looking at the staff qualifications and only one of the people delivering the 'clinical psychology' module was actually trained as a clinical psychologist. The others had clinically relevant research PhDs but no actual clinical psychology qualification. The course is an intensive 12 months, where you drive right through the summer. I'm not sure if this is a positive or a negative... can you really explore all the basics of psychology in 12 as opposed to 18 months? I'm not sure.

I know it is difficult to get onto a psychology conversion Masters, so I am going to apply for both. I have a lot of voluntary work experience, having volunteered with Art Relief International this summer (client groups including Burmese refugees, victims of human trafficking, children with cerebral palsy and hill tribe populations) and I am currently seeking volunteering opportunities in London!

Any advice about the particulars of these two courses would be greatly appreciated!!!

BriansBrain

Hey, I would be very interested to know what you chose and what the course was like in the end, as I am contemplating the same choice as you were.

Any advice from others would be great; how much of a pressure cooker is a conversion course?