BSc Psychologie

Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behaviour. Our professional body, the British Psychological Society (BPS), describes Psychology as being "about understanding what makes people tick and how this understanding can help us address many of the problems and issues in society today."

Our programme is accredited by the BPS, and as such you will cover topics from the seven key areas in Psychology, building understanding and critical insight throughout your degree programme. These areas are:

Biological Psychology – Biological basis of behaviour: neuroscience, genetics, animal behaviour Cognitive Psychology – Mental processes underlying thinking, memory, language and learning Conceptual & Historical Issues – Considers where the discipline has come from, where it’s going, and the big unanswered questions of Psychology Developmental Psychology – How we grow and develop, from conception to old age Individual Differences – How we differ from one another in terms of traits, abilities and motivations Research Methods – How we collect and analyse data to further understanding the mind and behaviour Social Psychology – How we perceive ourselves and others, interact as groups and the influences of culture and society

Psychology Degree Highlights

Our BPS accredited programme is delivered by research leaders with a commitment to both student support and delivering an innovative and interactive educational experience.

Professional Accreditations

• Successful completion of an accredited undergraduate programme confers eligibility for Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC) with the British Psychological Society (BPS).
• We invest in our students by providing free Student Membership of the BPS throughout their undergraduate degree programme. As such a graduate of Queen's will automatically become a Graduate Member of the BPS with GBC providing the final year thesis module is passed and at least a 2.2-degree classification is achieved. This allows the use of the title MBPsS after your name for as long as you remain a member of the BPS.

Career Development

• Our students can choose either a year-long paid professional placement or a placement module in their final year. Recent students have secured placements with IBM, PWC, Praxis, NI Civil Service, a range of local schools, Simon Community among many others. We support our students to find a placement that works for them through our dedicated Placement and Employability support team who are on hand before, during and after placements.
• Working together with colleagues in the University's careers team we prepare students both for placement and their future careers with a programme of guest speakers and practical skills workshops including CV writing, writing a personal statement and interview skills. Our aim is to enable our students to go on to further study or graduate employment in the workforce.

World-Class Facilities

• We have invested to enhance facilities for students within the School to include a refurbished teaching and learning area where you will take weekly practical classes in your first two years. These state of the art facilities, which are only available to Psychology students, can also be used for private and group work outside class times.
• Students can get involved in our research programmes from early on and as such will become familiar with many of our high-tech research facilities such as our animal behaviour lab, brain stimulation lab, the virtual reality and motion-capture technology in our Science in Motion lab located in the Queens Sport building, our eye-tracking devices, our child development observation lab, and a large psychology test library amongst other facilities.
• For breaks between classes, there is a Psychology student social space with kitchen facilities as well as a separate student quiet room.

Internationally Renowned Experts

• Our research is grouped around a number of themes including Development and Cognition; Social Psychology; Health Welfare and Clinical Psychology; and Perception and Action.
• We’re at the forefront of groundbreaking research which you’ll find embedded throughout our teaching.
• We are particularly proud of the impact of our research on informing policymakers, developing industry partnerships and ultimately touching on the lives of thousands of individuals.
• The most recent Research Excellence Framework (REF 2014) placed the School among the UK’s top 20 Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience departments in terms of both research intensity and research impact.

Student Experience

• Our commitment to student experience begins before you join us on campus with a series of pre-induction welcome activities. These will provide you with important information about your course as well as an opportunity for you to meet your peers and smooth your transition into University life. You will later participate in a range of on-campus induction events, all aimed at building connections with your peers, academic staff, and the School more widely. During this time, you will meet the staff who will be important during your first year including your Year Head, Personal Tutor and Advisor of Studies.
• Beyond this, we hold social mixer events for each year group at the start of every year and we run a programme of social events which in recent years have included an on-campus zoo day, staff-student Christmas quiz, student photography competition, Easter treasure hunt and a staff-student running club. We also facilitate a number of student-led social groups including 21+ (for those who have had a break in their studies before coming to University) and our international student group. We run a peer mentoring scheme where first-years are assigned to second and third-year mentors and our student society PsychSoc is also very active.
• All of this is overseen by our Psychology Student Support Officer who is available for help and support.
• Your feedback is an important part of ensuring you have the best student experience possible and we provide numerous opportunities for students to voice their opinions throughout the academic year via town-hall meetings and student voice committees. These help us build an even better student experience.

Queen's University Belfast is one of the leading universities in the UK and Ireland with a distinguished heritage and history.

Founded in 1845 as Queen's College Belfast, we became an independent university in 1908. The University is a member of the Russell Group of UK research-intensive universities, combining excellence in research and education with a student-centred ethos.

Queen’s campus is at the heart of Belfast in Northern Ireland which has the lowest cost of living in the UK (Mercer Cost of Living City Ranking 2021) making it a more affordable option for students.

A World-Class Education and Student Experience

Queen’s offers a world-class education that prepares our students for leadership and citizenship in a global society.

Our inspiring alumni comprises outstanding scholars, Nobel Prize winners - such as Seamus Heaney and David Trimble - and influential leaders who are making an impact in Northern Ireland and across the globe.

Programmes are focused on preparing students for future employment. Students not only learn the core academic material from the staff at the forefront of their discipline but also learn how to put it into practice through practical workshops and hands-on sessions, ensuring that upon graduation, students are ready to step up as the next generation of industry leaders.

A Global and Inclusive University Community

Queen’s is attracting global talent to Belfast.

We currently have staff and students from over 80 countries, helping to create a multicultural and vibrant campus. They are joining a university that is committed to attracting, retaining, and developing the best global talent within an environment that enables them to realise their full potential.

An innovative, welcoming, and inclusive place to work and study, Queen’s is a leader in gender equality and diversity and currently holds a prestigious Athena Swan Silver Award. The University also holds 14 School Awards comprising 3 Gold, 6 Silver and 5 Bronze.

Research That Shapes Worlds

Queen’s University Belfast is globally connected and networked with leading universities across the world.

We continue to drive forward research to shape worlds, focusing on five key areas. Ensuring a healthy living for all through developing solutions and treatments for diseases; helping to deliver a transformative and sustainable economy for future generations; leading to securely connected intelligence and AI and the data revolution. We are at the forefront of delivering future-focused human-environment relations; and will continue our strong history of expertise in conflict resolution and building inclusive and cohesive communities.

Ranked 24 in the UK for Research Power

We are forward thinkers and will continue to direct and shape research to help support a workable environment and society.

88% of our research has been assessed as world-leading and internationally excellent, 99% of our research environment was assessed as world-leading or internationally excellent and we are ranked 24th in the UK for Research Power (REF 2021/ Times Higher Education).

Northern Ireland's Legendary Beauty

Queen’s University is situated in Belfast, the capital city of Northern Ireland.

In a city with innovation at its heart, technological advances infiltrate every sector helping to build our competitiveness on the global stage. Belfast is in the world’s top 10 Digital Economies of the Future - the only UK city outside London to be listed (Financial Times’ fDi Intelligence, 2018) and was voted one of the top 15 friendliest cities in Europe (Condé Nast Traveller, Readers' Choice Awards 2021).

It is one of Europe's most hip, vibrant and affordable cities, lauded for its energy, and rich in culture and history. Queen's stunning campus is within Belfast's Queen's Quarter, with cafés, bars, restaurants, superb shopping, and entertainment venues (Complete University Guide 2022).