Curious about studying Psychologyat Anglia Ruskin University? We've gathered all the key details—entry requirements, modules, fees, and more. Hear from real students by checking out reviews, or take the next step by booking an open day to explore it for yourself.
Bachelor of Science (with Honours) - BSc (Hons)
Cambridge Campus
Full Time
Sep 2027
3 Year
Explore the way we think and understand human behaviour with our BPS accredited Psychology degree. Our degrees are accredited by the British Psychological Society and delivered in our world-class Science Centre with dedicated Psychology labs. Engage in ‘Live Briefs’, designed, developed, and run in cooperation with local employers, giving you exposure to ‘real life’ problem-solving within your course. We offer support with the cost of living, and Psychology courses deliver compressed teaching across three days of the week, freeing your time for work experience. Psychology affects everything we do. You’re curious about people’s thoughts, feelings and behaviour – and that’s what sits at the heart of our BPS accredited Psychology degree.We’ll encourage you to keep asking questions, to develop the scientific, analytical and research skills you need to become a psychologist. Together, we’ll explore the different facets of psychology including applied, social and clinical psychology, cognitive neuroscience and biological psychology. By studying BSc (Hons) Psychology at ARU, you’ll immerse yourself in the science of mind and behaviour – and take the first step towards a career as a chartered psychologist.Our BSc (Hons) Psychology degree will give you a sound understanding of the main principles of psychology. But we know you’ll find particular areas that you’re fascinated by. All psychologists do. So, right from Year 1, our optional modules give you the freedom to explore your own interests in more depth.You’ll learn from expert tutors who are actively engaged in research work in their specialist field. And you can take advantage of our specialist facilities too, including laboratories for measuring electrical activity in the brain, eye movement, psychoneuroimmunology, emotions and communication, psychometrics, and much more.
All psychologists share basic skills in understanding, designing, reporting and communicating research and this module aims to give students a grounding in these skills. As a science, Psychology is driven by the empirical analysis of human behaviour. To do so, we start with a question of interest, formulate hypotheses to test, design, and implement a study to collect data to be analysed. If numerical data from human participants is collected and used to draw conclusions as to how and why people think and behave, we need to understand how to apply statistical analyses to data in order to draw valid and reliable inferences. In the first half of this module, students will be introduced to the principles that guide research methodology to understand human behaviours and psychological phenomena.
This module provides specialists and non-specialists in psychology with a psychological perspective on various issues of everyday life. During the module, we look at a number of topical issues in order to demonstrate how psychology can provide insight into people's behaviour, and how we benefit from a scientific psychological approach.
Here you will be introduced to clinical and health psychology. You will examine the way in which these disciplines apply psychological knowledge to an understanding of health and illness, and the interventions which can be used to improve health or relieve the symptoms of illness. You will also examine how concepts of health have changed over time, how we define and classify mental ill-health, and the different models that psychologists have used to understand the causes of mental ill-health.
The Anglia Language Programme module allows you to study a foreign language as part of your course. You have the option to take two language modules in place of options on your course in certain years. Choose from the following languages: Chinese (Mandarin), French, German, Italian, Japanese, or Spanish. In order to experience the learning of a new language, you must select one that you have not learned before.
Here you will gain an overview of the theoretical, philosophical and historical foundations that underpin the discipline of psychology, You will then learn and analyse the current model used to understand mind and behaviour, specifically cognitive psychology and cognitive neuroscience. You will start by exploring the history of psychology and the theoretical foundations of psychology by looking at a number of key areas: Behaviourism: focus on behaviour; Psychoanalysis: focus on the unconscious; Humanistic psychology: focus on the person; Biological Psychology: focus on the physical. You will then focus on the final key area: cognitive psychology and cognitive neuroscience. Our experience of the world is an interpretation based on many cognitive processes being carried out by the brain.
Here you will be introduced to social psychology, developmental psychology and individual differences. You will discover cover topics in social cognition, attribution and group processes, the foundations that make up social psychology and also how language and cognitive and emotional development affect developmental psychology. You will focus on how to apply your learning to the real world, allowing you to observe how social groups form and function, as well as applying psychological theories to real issues and global challenges using a problem-based learning approach.
Brain, Body and Mind draws heavily on psychology, neuroscience, individual differences and evolutionary approaches to provide a critical understanding of mind and behaviour. You will explore a range of topics that are critical to understanding the biological and evolutionary theory which supports human and animal behaviour before examining cognitive and individual difference models of the mind and behaviour. You will be challenged to analyse areas of human psychology from the multiple perspectives examined and to show an understanding of the area. module is largely topic based and students will address a key areas of psychology from a variety of perspectives: Current cognitive theory, the biological underpinnings, evolutionary and genetic perspectives, individual differences and clinical issues. Topics will include areas such as: perception, learning, memory, language, problem solving & decision making and consciousness and meta-cognition, intelligence and social cognition.
Here you'll be introduced to diagnosis and formulation in mental health as well as a variety of mental health problems such as anxiety, depression, psychosis, post-traumatic stress disorder and personality disorders. You'll focus on developing your knowledge of the diagnostic criteria for mental health problems, looking at the diagnostic classification systems, and also establishing an understanding of current the view of mental health problems through formulation. You will also be introduced to key theories believed to underpin and maintain mental health problems, including biological, psychological and social factors. You'll be taught the importance of understanding the individual beyond diagnosis, enabling them to understand formulation through applying theories to case studies.
Ruskin Modules are designed to prepare our students for a complex, challenging and changing future. These interdisciplinary modules provide the opportunity to further broaden your perspectives, develop your intellectual flexibility and creativity. You will work with others from different disciplines to enable you to reflect critically on the limitations of a single discipline to solve wider societal concerns. You will be supported to create meaningful connections across disciplines to apply new knowledge to tackle complex problems and key challenges. Ruskin Modules are designed to grow your confidence, seek and maximise opportunities to realise your potential to give you a distinctive edge and enhance your success in the workplace.
Develop your statistical thinking to give you the ability to approach research questions with skill and understanding. You will develop a critical understanding of the principles of data collection and analysis in psychology, and consider the theoretical bases, merits and limitations of various quantitative methods. In lectures, you will focus on theoretical and conceptual ideas underpinning statistics and research design, with an emphasis on understanding the logic behind theses techniques, and he choices that researchers make. This will enable students to know when it is appropriate to use a particular approach, and how to interpret its output. Concepts covered in lectures are brought to life in associated practical sessions, helping you to gain experience using the statistical techniques covered in lectures, using practical and computer-based examples. Designing research, analysing results an interpreting the data are essential skills for a psychologist, and highly valued by employers.
Ruskin Modules are designed to prepare our students for a complex, challenging and changing future. These interdisciplinary modules provide the opportunity to further broaden your perspectives, develop your intellectual flexibility and creativity. You will work with others from different disciplines to enable you to reflect critically on the limitations of a single discipline to solve wider societal concerns. You will be supported to create meaningful connections across disciplines to apply new knowledge to tackle complex problems and key challenges. Ruskin Modules are designed to grow your confidence, seek and maximise opportunities to realise your potential to give you a distinctive edge and enhance your success in the workplace.
Building on your knowledge from 'Self and Society' you will explore the deeper content of this subject, looking at how certain behaviours are shaped through our individual development and through different social contexts. This will challenge you to think across these different subject areas and will present a coherent view of a person, where our social and developmental changes are related to the actual, imagined or implied presence of others. You will learn by focusing on an issue (eg attraction, relationships) and consider each topic issue from an individual, social and developmental view. You will also develop transferable skills through group work and problem-based learning in the practical classes.
We will introduce a variety of developmental disorders including Downs' Syndrome, Williams' Syndrome, dyslexia and autism, and analyse the biological, cognitive and social profiles of each. You will gain an insight in to the main symptoms of each clinical condition and the prognosis for people with these disorders.
You'll learn what it takes to work in the profession of clinical psychology, including an understanding of the historical context, as well as the current political and cultural context of the practice of clinical psychology. Over the course of the module, you will be introduced to the core skills (Assessment, Formulation, Intervention, Evaluation, Communication, Research and Reflection) used by clinical psychologists, and encouraged to critically evaluate their application across a range of settings and with a variety of client groups.
This module will provide an overview of current approaches in cognitive neuroscience, including neuroimaging, electrophysiology, cortical stimulation and lesion-deficit techniques and their application for solving important theoretical debates in the literature. Key areas covered include executive function and the frontal lobes, visual object processing and conceptual knowledge, memory and forgetting, and distributed vs modular models of cognition.
This module enables students to develop a critical awareness of issues and debates surrounding health, illness, treatment, and disability. Standard clinical and medical models are seen as only one of several competing ways of making sense of health, illness and disability in contemporary society.
The Internet is an essential part of 21st century living. This module will look at psychological explanations of being online and will approach questions such as do we behave differently online? And, how is the Internet used to initiate and maintain relationships? This will include theoretical explanations of how people communicate online, including research that looks at positive attributes of Internet use (e.g. developing relationships) and negative outcomes of Internet use (eg 'addiction' or ?trolling?).
Emotions are arguably of central importance to all aspects of human life. Behaviours such as caring for young, pursuing goals, avoiding danger, defending resources, and maintaining relationships are unimaginable (in humans at least) without the mediating and motivating effects of emotions. Even rationality and reasoning may depend on emotion according to some researchers.
This module provides a broad overview of forensic and prison psychology. Forensic psychology focuses on theory and research surrounding issues in the criminal justice system, such as false confessions and jury decision-making. Prison forensic psychology focuses on the specific application of psychological theory and research methodology to the prison environment. For example, prisons contain many vulnerable individuals and the module addresses ways in which psychological theory can be applied to evaluating and then reducing the risks that these individuals face.
This module introduces students to a range of social psychological approaches to the study of inter-group conflict, hatred and oppression. It covers both individual and social factors which promote and sustain hostile relations, negative attitudes, and/or violence between ethnic, national, religious or cultural groups.
The human lifespan varies in how it develops, depending on the experiences a person goes through, for example how childhood experiences affect later development. Here you'll discuss and explore the different approached to human development, comparing and applying these to different case studies. You will look at approaches like Erikson's psychosocial theory, theories of ageing and biopsychosocial, along with different domains of human development like cognitive, social, emotional, and moral development.
This module provides an introduction to some of the main methods of psychological interventions used by clinical, counselling and health psychologists in therapeutically helping people. These interventions are used to assist people in strengthening their capacity to manage and cope with their lives, and help work through some emotional difficulties.
Your major project gives you the opportunity to develop your own research project, from initial planning through to conducting and collecting your data and then analysing the results. You will evaluate your research, carry out an in-depth literature review of that area, formulate hypotheses based on that review and design a study to test these, whilst at all times making sure that you maintain an ethical approach. This project also gives you the opportunity to explore a topic that you really enjoy in psychology at a much deeper level.
Apply the knowledge and training that you have accrued through your degree to a work-place setting by using the principles of organisational psychology. In undertaking this module, students will be introduced to theories and research of organisational psychology and explore the central aspects of how psychological theory and skills are applicable in real-life employment settings. In doing so you will be required to complete 35 hours of either voluntary or paid work experience in a role where you can apply psychological knowledge and other degree-related skills (research, report writing, data entry and analysis).
Draw on research from social, health, and developmental psychology as well as examples from sociology this module explores key elements of what it means to be sexual beings. You will address issues related to what gender identity and sexual orientations are and how they develop over the lifespan, what society considers 'normal' sexual practices and relationship behaviours, how sex can be viewed as a commodity (eg, pornography and prostitution), and conduct an exploration of issues regarding sexual health and human fertility.
This module will explore what stress is, how stress can affect us and how stress can managed. The module will be a mix of theory, applied psychology and practical work. The concept of stress will be explored along with the neurobiology of stress and the measurement of stress. The module will encourage a critical evaluation of the empirical literature on stress management. There will be a strong practical focus in the module and students will get hands on experience of methods discussed in the module (for example, running a stress reduction session or measuring the physiological response to stress).
This module will explore the latest psychological and neuroscientific research that addresses the question: How does the brain create your sense of self? Students will learn about recent ground-breaking research demonstrating how links between the body and the brain provide the fundamental underpinnings of self.
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Winner: Facilities
