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• Undergraduate study:
• Courses
• Order a prospectus
• How to apply
• Information for applicants
• Why choose Kingston University
• Disability and mental health support
• Accommodation
• Undergraduate fees
• Fees, funding and payments
• Access, participation and inclusion

Applied Psychology: Theory and Practice

• Module code: PS5009
• Year: 2018/9
• Level: 5
• Credits: 30
• Pre-requisites: None
• Co-requisites: Level 4 Psychology or equivalent

Summary

Applied Psychology: Theory and Practice is a level 5 option module that provides students with the opportunity to develop an understanding of what is involved in becoming a professional psychologist within the UK. This will include the practice and methods of the main areas of psychology such as forensic, counselling, health, educational, clinical, sports and occupational psychology.  The module will give students the experience of taking either a careers in psychology pathway including a small research project, or a work based learning in psychology pathway, including a work placement.

Aims

• To introduce students to the nature and history of the main areas of professional psychology and the pathways towards, and requirements of, qualification as a professional psychologist.
• To equip students with a critical appreciation of how skills and knowledge acquired in a psychology degree may be useful and relevant to the workplace.
• To assist students to reflect on their own transferable skills to enhance their opportunities for future employability.
• In addition there is an opportunity to specialise in one of two components in the module, namely careers in psychology or work based learning. There is a further separate aim for each of the two separate pathways;

• Careers in Psychology

  • To provide students with an understanding of the application of psychology in real world settings and in-depth examples of different vocational pathways for psychology- related careers.

  Work based learning in psychology.

  • To provide students with experience of work within an organisation that will enhance their employability and provide an opportunity to develop the skills that will be expected by graduate employers. 

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate a clear understanding of the theory and practice used in the main areas of professional psychology and the pathways to qualification as a professional psychologist.
• Give an account of the skills necessary for working in an applied psychology setting.
• Recognise any employability-related skills they may personally need to develop further in order to achieve personal career goals
• Demonstrate competence in a professional work environment or undertake a research project on a pathway to a psychology-related career.

Curriculum content

Topics covered will include:

• Careers in psychology. Routes to charter ship
• How research informs work practice
• Well being at work
• Self-reflection and personal development
• Ethics in psychology
• Health and safety in the workplace
• Individualised content as appropriate to the work placement setting and the focus of the student's placement/mini project
• Academic skills including critical thinking, academic writing and presentation skills

In addition the content will be outlined for each pathway, below.

Careers in psychology.

Students will learn about a wide range of careers in psychology including the practice and methods of qualifications in the main areas of the profession. Applications of psychology will examine in more detail a selection of substantive areas in which a practitioner would be involved as a psychologist.  Guest speakers will be invited to talk to students about a range of careers in psychology.

Work based learning in psychology.

Placements will be used as a basis for the work placements on this module. A limited number of placements will be provided by the module team. In addition some students may already be working in a business or organisation which is willing to offer them a placement, or may be able to find their own placement in a voluntary group or local business. It is important that the organisation can support the student to meet the criteria of the module

Students are encouraged to meet the module leader to discuss their placement plans further. A CRB check will be needed for any student working with children

Teaching and learning strategy

The module will be taught over 22 weeks, with a structured series of three hour lectures for all of the students in TB1 which explore what is involved in becoming a professional psychologist within the U.K, academic skills and reflective writing. These interactive lectures, which may be led by academic staff or relevant practitioners, will provide the students with the opportunity to discuss the ideas raised in the lecture, and develop their reflective writing and academic skills. Typically, core material will be presented in the first part of the lecture, followed by practical exercises and/or discussions related to the core material or reading in the second part. These interactive lectures will also provide a space for tutors to offer advice to students about their portfolios. Students will be expected to read widely to facilitate discussion and to engage fully in the session.

 In Teaching Block 2 there will be two separate pathways through the module allowing the students to specialise in either careers in psychology, or work based learning in psychology. All students will have four one hour interactive lectures in TB2 will allow students to reflect on their learning during the module, consider their own career plans and goals as a reflective thinker, and receive feed-forward feedback on their portfolio writing.

Careers in Psychology

The module leader will organize six two-hour lectures focussing on in-depth knowledge of specific vocations suitable for psychology graduates. The sessions will typically provide an outline of the particular speciality, in psychology or a related profession, and will focus on the conceptual underpinnings of the role and available career pathways. These lectures will cover careers that may not have chartered status, but which are still of interest to psychology students. Guest speakers may also support the delivery of these sessions.

 Guest speakers and practitioners may also be invited to speak to students in detail about specific applications of psychology (12 hours).

Work based learning in Psychology

In TB2 students engage in up to three hours of work per teaching week in a setting where

they can deploy and improve skills pertinent to a career informed by a degree in  psychology. (30 hours). Each student will have a nominated member of staff who will oversee their placement, and who will act as a contact with a named supervisor in the workplace. The module leader will also organize four one-hour meetings with all the students enrolled on the module, to share good practice and experience, discuss how the placement is proceeding, advise students on writing their portfolio, and help students reflect on their work and the skills acquired (4 hours).

Breakdown of Teaching and Learning Hours

Assessment strategy

The assessment strategy for this module is designed to enable students to gain a good overview of the theory and practice of applied psychology. It also seeks to enable students to develop their employability related skills and reflective thinking, and to communicate what they have learned in a written portfolio of tasks.

Completing the personal skills appraisal, curriculum vitae and career development plan will enable students to reflect on and recognise any employability skills that they may personally need to develop further. The essay will enable students to demonstrate their understanding of applications of psychology in the real world, and the skills necessary for working in an applied psychology setting.

In the second teaching block the small research project (careers in psychology pathway) and the work placement logbook (work based learning in psychology pathway) will provide an opportunity for students to work on a project and take responsibility for identifying goals, conducting the work program, identify problems, and to communicate this in discussions during the interactive lectures and in the written portfolio.

Assessment 1 (100%) 4000 words

PORTFOLIO OF TASKS INCLUDING;

• PERSONAL SKILLS APPRAISAL (1,000 WORDS)
• AN ESSAY  (1,000 WORDS)

AND EITHER;

• A SMALL RESEARCH PROJECT  INCLUDING UPDATED CV AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT PLAN (CAREERS IN PSYCHOLOGY PATHWAY) (2,000 WORDS)

OR

• WORK PLACEMENT LOGBOOK INCLUDING UPDATED CV AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT PLAN (WORKBASED LEARNING PATHWAY) (2,000 WORDS)

TB2 will Therefore have a different assessment for the two separate pathways through the module; a small research project OR A Work Placement logbook  (2,000 words)

WORK PLACEMENT LOGBOOK

A logbook containing the following subsections; Placement report, diary of placement activities, reflective log. A 500 word report explaining a psychological concept to a lay audience.

CAREERS IN PSYCHOLOGY. SMALL RESEARCH PROJECT.

Students undertaking this pathway will be expected to undertake independent research in order to evaluate various careers in psychology.. At the end of TB2 they will be required to provide a summary of what is entailed in training and working in these different branches of professional psychology.

As well as describing the careers in the chosen field of psychology, the student should include critical points, controversies between different approaches, under-investigated areas and the most relevant ways in which psychologists contributes to society in this field 

Mapping of Learning Outcomes to Assessment Strategy (Indicative)

Elements of Assessment

Achieving a pass

It IS a requirement that the major category of assessment is passed in order to achieve an overall pass for the module

Bibliography core texts

Bayne, R. & Horton, I. (2003). Applied Psychology: Current Issues and New Directions. London: Sage Publications.

Bekerian D.A. & Levey A.B. (2011) Applied psychology: Putting theory into practice (2nd ed.). Oxford: OUP.

Coolican, H. (Ed.). (2011). Applied psychology (2nd ed.). UK: Hodder.

Cottrell, S. (2008). The study skills handbook. (3rd edition). London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Davey G.C. (2012) Applied Psychology. Leicester: BPS (Wiley-Blackwell).

Dinos, S. & Tsakopoulou, M. (2012). Becoming a Psychologist: Is Psychology Really the Career for You? London: BPP Learning Media
Francis, R.D. (2003). Becoming a Psychologist. Palgrave Macmillan.