Give me the second degree ...

For a while I've been considering another higher level formal qualification.  I like the look of a 2-year part-time MSc Psychology at University of Portsmouth.  I think it will help my teaching.  It's been running for 18 months and is built around busy adult lives.  The last cohort of students numbered 109, including many bankers.

The course is led by Dr Tom Lockhart (who impressed at both webinars I viewed).  He specialises in anxiety, teaches biological and cognitive psychology, is involved in research on fire response with the Fire Service, and is also interested in animal psych.

The course comprises 5 modules.  The first 4 are topic areas, working with a module leader and alongside a tutor (with optional live sessions) coaching a small group.  The 5th is twice the size, being a project chosen by you, working 1:1 (or optionally in a small group) with a supervisor who will help conduct the research and write it up appropriately.  Time commitment is typically 20-25 hr/wk over 10-week trimesters, which is "intense and challenging" but necessary to meet the British Psychological Society's criteria for breadth and depth.  Bonding with the course tutor will be key.  Recommendations for each week are given.

The core curriculum is defined by the BPS but "its excitement comes from the passion of staff specialisms".  Some existing students are currently scrutinising police interview techniques, clinical and environmental, historical profiling, and the ethics of what to study in human psychology.

Peer-working is certainly possible, each week in the learning content via online but asynchronous forums.  Weekly challenge activities include peer-review of mini projects.  Optional live sessions allow a 1-hour/week online meeting with the module tutor.  Email interaction is encouraged, ad hoc.  All reading material is available online; UoP licence agreements allow c.60pp/source to be downloaded and printed.  (I took screenshots of a typical week's schedule which were shared).

The course uses an online experiment builder ("Gorilla"), a freely downloadable statistics analysis package ("JASP"), and connects to professional standards for proficient working as a psychologist.  It includes writing for funding applications, portfolio assessment of individuals, and communication to government and educators.  The degree is fully course-assessed (no exams).

Main differences making this course unique are emphasis on pedagogy for retention and asychnronous working, interactivity with and among students, weekly workshops, and "a wide range of support networks at Portsmouth" if you've been out of academia for a while or need help with wellbeing, employability (for up to 5yr), a student adviser team for pastoral care (assignment extensions, etc.), and a personal tutor for the duration.  Access to the physical Portsmouth campus is equivalent to any physically-attending student.

Entry does not require experience of psychology, but requires "level 6" educational status (e.g. a 2ii bachelor's degree).  ​Accreditation by BPS from a course such as this is essential for a career in forensic, clinical, or education psychology.  Derived research skills are extremely transferable, particularly critical evaluation via statistical methods, and the active progression of a project (not just compliance with third-party instructions).