Education Studies - Psychology
Entry requirements
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About this course
Are you interested in why people think and learn in different ways? Would you like to know more about the workings of the mind and how that may impact a person’s potential to learn?
The BA Education Studies – Psychology is an ideal qualification if you are fascinated by the psychological aspects of the learning process and want to keep your career options open. You will also be eligible to receive professional accreditation from the British Psychological Society.
From the philosophical foundations of schooling to the political implications of policy, education is a vast field that has multiple avenues to approach a seemingly straightforward subject. Our degree goes far beyond any classroom and considers education, people and their relationship to the ever-changing world.
The curriculum draws on research carried out in the Department to keep the course content relevant and up to date. The breadth of modules allows you to create your own pathway through the course. As well as the psychology pathway, we offer pathways in sociology and geography, or you can choose to focus purely on education studies.
This BA will prepare you for a career in many different areas, both in the education sector and further afield. It can provide the first step towards a career as a teacher or researcher, and supports roles in publishing, policy making, the voluntary and public sectors, as well as many more.
Modules
Year 1
Core modules:
Introduction to Psychological Research begins to look at the key research methods and statistical techniques used in psychology, from the design of psychological study to data collection and analysis.
Contemporary Issues and Evidence in Education introduces you to a range of contemporary issues in education and the nature and scope of the supporting evidence. With a range of guest speakers from across the Department you will gain a grounding in a variety of issues at stake.
Foundations of Psychology in Education serves as a basis for a scientific understanding of psychological principles, processes and theories in education.
You will also study an Introduction to Psychological Research focusing on a particular area of psychology. You can choose between two areas, either Cognitive and Biological or Developmental and Social.
Examples of optional modules:
Disability and Educational Needs: What’s so ‘Special’ about SEND?
Historical and Philosophical Ideas of Education
International and Comparative Education.
Year 2
Core modules:
Educational Research Methods will help you understand the purposes and implications of educational research. You will develop a critical appreciation of the different ways in which research can be carried out in education, and how to assess the quality of educational research.
Social and Developmental Psychology develops a broad knowledge and understanding of research and theory in some of the key areas of developmental psychology such as language, play and friendships. It also covers key areas of social psychology, such as studies of groups, group processes and intergroup relations.
Cognitive and Biological Psychology explores different approaches to cognitive and biological psychology, with particular emphasis on visual neuroscience and visual cognition. It covers areas such as memory, decision-making and attention as well as perception of colour, form, motion and depth.
Advanced Psychological Research develops your experimental design and statistics knowledge to fulfil the requirements for a BPS-recognised degree in Psychology. In this module you will discuss psychological research in a tutorial context and develop skills in studying classic papers in psychology.
Examples of optional modules:
Cultural Identity, Interculturality and Education
Learning and Development in Childhood
Higher Education: Issues of Exclusion and Inclusion
Constructions of Childhood
Assessing Education
Learning Lives
Disability and Education Needs: Impairment, Empowerment and Education.
Year 3 (Year 4 if undertaking a placement or year abroad)
Core modules:
Dissertation: Disciplinary Contexts of Education - you will undertake an extended, independent piece of research with an appropriate educational focus. The dissertation is an opportunity to bring together the skills, knowledge and understanding gained on the course into one in-depth piece of work.
Differential and Clinical Psychology develops your knowledge and understanding of theory and research in differential psychology, the study of psychological differences and similarities between people and understanding of theory and research in atypical and clinical psychology.
Psychology Project draws on the skills and knowledge developed through the course. You will work as a pair or a small group to carry out an investigation in psychology. You will formulate a research question, investigate and analyse the issue and interpret the results before writing up an individual 4,500-word project report.
Examples of optional modules:
Education in a Global Age
Digital Society Theory and Practice
The Science of Learning
Education, Mental Health and Wellbeing
Understanding the Arts in Education
The Social Life of Education
Digital Society Theory and Practice
Evidence and Educational Policy.
Assessment methods
We promote diverse and creative forms of assessment so whilst many modules are assessed by essays, other modules may include portfolios, blogs, presentations or posters.
The 12,000-word dissertation is worth one-third of your final-year marks. As part of the process you will also submit a research proposal and sample chapter for feedback.
The Uni
College allocation pending
Durham City
School of Education
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Education
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
Psychology (non-specific)
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Education
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
When you look at employment stats, bear in mind that a lot of students are already working in education when they take this type of course and are studying to help their career development. This means they already have jobs when they start their course, and a lot of graduates continue to study, whilst working, when they complete their courses. If your course is focused on nursery or early years education, a lot of these graduates go into nursery work or classroom or education assistant jobs; these jobs are not currently classed as 'graduate level' in the stats (although they may well be in the future as classifications catch up with changes in the way we work), and many graduates who enter these roles say that a degree was necessary.
Psychology (non-specific)
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
20 years ago, this was a specialist degree for would-be psychologists but now it is the model of a modern, flexible degree subject. One of the UK's fastest-growing subject at degree level, and the second most popular subject overall (it recently overtook business studies), one in 23 of all graduates last year had psychology degrees. As you'd expect with figures like that, jobs in psychology itself are incredibly competitive, so to stand a chance of securing one, you need to get a postgraduate qualification (probably a doctorate in most fields, especially clinical psychology) and some relevant work experience. But even though there are so many psychology graduates — far more than there are jobs in psychology, and over 13,800 in total last year — this degree has a lower unemployment rate than average because its grads are so flexible and well-regarded by business and other industries across the economy. Everywhere there are good jobs in the UK economy, you'll find psychology graduates - and it's hardly surprising as the course helps you gain a mix of good people skills and excellent number and data handling skills. A psychology degree ticks most employers' boxes — but we'd suggest you don't drop your maths modules.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Education
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£24k
£26k
£32k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
Psychology (non-specific)
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£21k
£27k
£31k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):
We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.
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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).
This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.
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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.
You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
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Graduate field commentary:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
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