MSc Health Psychology

• Stress and developmental influences on health and illness: You will examine the effects of stress on physical health and well-being and on the role of developmental influences on health. This unit links these two aspects together to examine the effects of experience across the lifespan on physical health and wellbeing. This will include an emphasis on child health and development. You will examine these effects from different methodological perspectives including biological processes and epidemiological evidence, and learn specifically about biopsychosocial theory and the underpinning of this theory across health psychology.
• Health-related cognitions, behaviours and beliefs: You will gain an advanced understanding of the factors, motivations and theories underlying a number of health behaviours and conditions, and discovering how this understanding can aid changes in attitudes, perceptions and behaviours to improve lifestyles and practices. Cognitions, behaviours and beliefs at different stages across the lifespan will be considered and evaluated. General theories, models, interventions and methods for assessing intervention success will be covered, and applied to a number of common health behaviours, conditions, and populations.
• Experience of chronic illness and delivery of healthcare: On this unit, you will cover the psychosocial aspects of a range of physical illnesses, with reference to theoretical models. You will explore the role of health psychologists in primary and secondary care, primarily with visiting speakers who are working across different areas of health psychology practice.
• Advanced research methods: The unit covers a range of research methods and tools used for conducting advanced level research, and describes the intricacies of experimental design in such contexts. The unit aims to prepare students for undertaking independent research using advanced research techniques. 
• Digital Methods and Data Skills: This unit aims to equip students with core skills for data-driven social science research. Specifically, this unit will equip students in skills around digital research design, data capture, curation, storage and digital data analysis and will introduce concepts of machine learning and artificial intelligence and discuss legal and ethical issues in social science research. 
• Advanced Quantitative Methods: This unit covers the theoretical background, the performance, and the interpretation of range of statistical techniques intended for analysing data from psychological research. 
• Research project: You'll get to choose from a set of health psychology research projects provided by our core team of health psychology teaching staff. You will then be responsible for providing an in-depth literature review and designing an empirical research project to address the research question. You will be expected to collect and analyse data and will be asked to provide a write up of the project as a dissertation in the format of a journal article. Supervision for the research project will be provided throughout and you will attend project related seminars on relevant topics.

You are required to undertake the equivalent of one week (35 hours) on placement alongside the research project, completed in one stretch or spread out over several weeks, providing an opportunity to apply your acquired knowledge and skills in the workplace. You are required to find your own placement; however, our Careers & Employability Service and your faculty placements office are on hand to support you.

Programme specifications provide definitive records of the University's taught degrees in line with Quality Assurance Agency requirements. Every taught course leading to a BU Award has a programme specification which describes its aims, structure, content and learning outcomes, plus the teaching, learning and assessment methods used.

Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the programme specification, the information is liable to change to take advantage of exciting new approaches to teaching and learning as well as developments in industry. If you have been unable to locate the programme specification for the course you are interested in, it will be available as soon as the latest version is ready. Alternatively please contact us for assistance.

Your application should show evidence of your understanding of the discipline of health psychology and your motivation to study health psychology at Masters level.

We encourage applications from individuals from diverse backgrounds – appropriate background and/or experience could be from a wide range of different settings, including paid or voluntary work with individuals at any age of the lifespan (children through to the elderly), including but not limited to work with people with chronic illness, with informal caregivers, working as a formal caregiver, or in health promotion with healthy populations (e.g. healthy eating, smoking cessation). 

We’ll be selecting the candidates for this course by looking at their applications, however applicants may be invited to interview if they do not have a Psychology degree accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS). Make sure your application really stands out from the crowd, and leave us in no doubt as to why you should be joining BU.

For more information, see full our entry requirements and take a look at our postgraduate ‘how to apply’ pages. 

Please see our website for the application deadlines. You should apply as early as possible to be considered for your course of choice. If you require a student visa, apply for the visa as soon as you have an unconditional offer and receive your CAS. There may be delays in visa processing in your country and you need to be in Bournemouth ready to study for the start of term.

Click the green ‘Apply now’ button to submit your application free of charge online through myHub, our application portal. You will create your own myHub account so that you can track the progress of your application. Don’t forget to save your application as you go; you can return to it at as many times as you want before you submit it. For more information visit our How to apply section.

The normal requirements for embarking upon this degree are:

• ​A Bachelors Honours degree with 2:2 accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS).

• Applicants may be invited to interview if they do not have a Psychology degree accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS). 

• Equivalent undergraduate training or work experience may be acceptable for students with a Psychology degree taken outside of the UK.

​If you lack the formal academic qualifications needed to enter a postgraduate or post-experience degree, there are several alternative routes to follow - some based on experience. Contact the Future Students Enquiry team for more information.

You can find details of the international qualifications we accept, and what level of study they apply to, on our entry requirements for non-UK students' page.

Please see below some examples of the qualifications for entry:

• India: Bachelor’s degree (4 years) from a recognised HE institution with a minimum overall result of 55% 
• Nigeria:  Bachelor's degree from a recognised institution with a minimum classification of 2:2 
• China:  Chinese Bachelor's (Honours) degree from a recognised higher education institution with 65% or above 
• Turkey: Bachelor’s degree (Lisans Diplomasi - four years) with a minimum overall GPA of 2.3/4.0 
• Vietnam:  Bachelor's degree/Bang tot nghiep dai hoc with an average score of 6.5/10, or 2.25/4, or a Master’s degree/Thac si. 

All applications will be subject to a minimum grade and your degree may need to be in a relevant subject area.

Applicants may be invited to interview if they do not have a Psychology degree accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS). 

English language requirements

If English is not your first language, you will need to provide evidence that you understand English to a satisfactory level. English language requirements for this course are normally:

IELTS 6.5 (Academic) with a minimum of 5.5 in all components, or equivalent.

View further information about our English language requirements.

Bournemouth University International College offers a number of pre-sessional English and preparatory programmes to prepare international students for postgraduate study at BU. Admission to the degree is guaranteed on successful completion of your course to the required level. 

As an MSc Health Psychology graduate, you will be prepared to undertake further training for a variety of roles, working in contexts such as the NHS (hospital and community), the private/independent health care sector (nursing homes and private hospitals), education, and academic research. Potential careers include:

• Health Psychologist
• Public Health Researcher
• Assistant Psychologist
• Lecturer in Health Psychology
• PhD study

If you want to continue your studies after achieving your MSc, you can look into our range of doctoral programmes.

What’s included in your tuition fee?

Your tuition fee covers expenses associated with your course including tuition materials, access to facilities, mandatory field trips and the following:

• Materials for laboratory and mandatory field-based teaching activity..
• Support for finding placements (UK or abroad) and fieldwork, and non-financial support whilst on placement.
• A range of student services – advisors, help desks, counsellors, placement support and careers service.
• The Library – access to a wide range of electronic resources (databases, e-journals and e-books), print and multimedia collections, subject librarians and study spaces.
• Access to Brightspace, our virtual learning environment, which offers a responsive and personalised learning experience with powerful learning analytics capabilities, integrated social media and advanced video features.
• IT labs (some open 24/7), wireless network, AV equipment to borrow.
• Disability and additional learning support according to individual circumstances.
• The BU Language Centre to help you develop/improve foreign or English language skills.
• 24 hours a day, 365 days a year security team.
• Loan of lab coats and safety glasses.

• Free software download to your personal device of Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus while you are studying, as well as access to applications provided on AppsAnywhere, subject to licensing and compatibility restrictions.
   

We are committed to offering you value for money and ensuring there are no hidden costs while you are studying with us, therefore we have listed below any additional costs you may incur that are not covered by your tuition fee:

• Laptops, tablets and mobile devices and any software used on personal devices. Access to a personal computer is strongly recommended for your study. If you are experiencing financial difficulty, visit our website for information regarding hardship funds.
• Textbooks, general stationery and other supplies. Our award-winning library is stocked with a large range of textbooks and online resources, free of charge. The Students’ Union shops stock a wide range of stationery supplies on both campuses.
• Accommodation and living costs. Please visit our website for more information. 
• Travel costs, for optional field trips, outdoor wear and footwear for mandatory and optional field trips (if applicable).
• Travel costs to and from your placement (both in the UK and overseas) if this is part of your course of study. Placement year funding information can be found on our website.
• Expenses relating to placement or research projects e.g. travel etc. up to a maximum of £200 per student.
• SportBU membership.

While all aspects of the programme, including required field trips, are included in the fee, additional, optional or extra curricula activities may be available for which a student contribution is required.

If you need to repeat one or more units during the course of your studies (with or without attendance) the pricing will be pro-rata of the full-time fee.

Financial help available from BU

We offer a range of scholarships and bursaries to eligible students who are beginning their studies at BU. Please visit www.bournemouth.ac.uk/funding for details on living costs, budgeting and paying your tuition fees.

International (not Rep. of Ireland) students need to pay a non-refundable deposit to secure their place on a postgraduate course. For September 2024 and January 2025 entry, a £5,000 deposit is required. You will need to pay your deposit by the date stated in your offer letter. The remainder of your fee will be payable on registration/enrolment. There are two exceptions to the non-refundable rule on the deposit:

• You fail to meet the academic or English requirements of your offer
• You are refused a visa to enter the UK, provided the reason for the refusal is not a fraudulent application.

We offer a range of scholarships to students who are beginning their studies at BU. Our website also provides details on living costs, budgeting and paying your tuition fees.

Emily has expertise in conducting qualitative research with individuals with chronic illness and their families, which utilises person-centred communication skills. Emily's research focuses on the impact of chronic illness (particularly cancer and asthma) on quality of life in both patients and their partners/ families, and the development of interventions to improve quality of life in these conditions, including web-based interventions. 

Professor Appleton's research interests are based in human eating behaviour, with particular focus on the optimisation of human health and well-being in the normal population. Katherine's research includes aspects of: healthy eating and the use of different strategies to promote fruit and vegetable consumption; appetite and weight control, primarily with the aim of understanding and improving weight gain and weight management; nutrition and under-nutrition, and their effects on health, well-being and cognitive performance; taste and consumption; eating style, including dieting, restrained eating and emotional eating and the effects of these behaviours on health and well-being; and includes aspects of physical activity, physical fitness and energy expenditure, and the importance of energy balance.

Professor Jan Wiener, based in the Department of Psychology, is a co-leader of the Ageing and Dementia Research Centre at Bournemouth University and leads the Key Transferable Skills unit. His research interests focus on navigation and wayfinding in typical and elderly populations and those with degenerative disorders, using behavioural experiments, virtual reality techniques and eye-tracking.

Dr Bernhard Angele leads the Advanced Statistics unit. His research interests centre on reading, language processing and the allocation of attention during these processes, using eye-tracking to investigate these. 

Dr Julie Kirkby is the Framework Leader who oversees all MSc programmes at Bournemouth University.

Her research interests fall within developmental and cognitive psychology, focusing on the development of reading and language processing in typical populations and those with specific difficulties like developmental dyslexia.