6 Reasons: Kickstart Your Occupational Psychologist Career

What does it take to be an Occupational Psychologist? Firstly, you must be interested in people, fascinated by the way they behave when they get together and why. Secondly, you need a drive to help individuals, teams and businesses push themselves further, be happier and achieve their goals.

Your future as a professional psychologist is calling you. Here are six reasons why you should choose our course to help you get there.

1. It’s a distance learning course

Online, in a word. Our Occupational and Organisational Psychology MSc gives you all the flexibility you need. It doesn’t matter where you live – you won’t have to travel because you can study from home, in the office or even in your local café.

Unlike many similar courses, you won’t have to come to campus at all – there are no evening or weekend classes or week-long placements. Few Masters in this subject let you study 100% online. Ours gives you that freedom, letting you choose your hours of study, the pace at which you work.

If you are unable to make any live sessions, you can watch recordings later at a time that suits you, as well as access course material on our e-learning portal 24/7. You just need to find around 15 hours a week to set aside for study. Even paying for the course is flexible, with module-by-module payments to spread the cost.

Our innovative carousel model of delivery means you can also take breaks from your learning, if you really need to. All of this means you don’t have to take a sabbatical from your job, book Fridays off, disrupt your work commitments or sacrifice your social life. The course is all about wellbeing and we’ve designed it with that in mind.

2. Accreditation means you’re on course for a career in psychology

This Masters course is accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS) as Stage 1 Training, the qualification you need to take a step closer to becoming a Chartered Occupational Psychologist.

When accompanied by the BPS Graduate Basis for Chartership (GBC), you will then be ready for the final step of your professional development – Stage 2 Training, a minimum two-year stint in occupational practice.

Even if you don’t choose to complete the chartered training route, a BPS accredited degree in Occupational and Organisational Psychology will stand you in excellent stead in any career where an understanding of people and the way organisations function comes into play.

3. It’s open to people from a range of backgrounds

Some students on the course, like you, will be working towards a career as a Chartered Occupational Psychologist. Others will already have careers in all kinds of organisations, be it in consultancy, training, HR, customer relations and other organisational business management roles.

You’ll be encouraged to share your experiences and learn from other people in group tasks, discussions and more. Northumbria’s Neill Thompson, a senior lecturer on the course, explains:

“Students join the course with different levels of work and life experience, all of which will help them to provide valuable, unique insights. We want students to be prepared to share their existing knowledge as well as what they are learning throughout their study, while constantly reflecting on how this relates to their real-life experiences. We encourage a collaborative environment, where we share and learn from one another and find, this way, students gain an even better understanding.”

4. Our academics have real-world experience

Our Occupational and Organisational Psychology course is delivered by experts in their field who combine years of research with hands-on practice. Their business psychology experience ensures your learning is at the cutting edge of the discipline. Their research, applied principles and methods include areas such as:

Social and Occupational Psychology in the workplace
Workplace bullying and its multi-level impact
Employee selection approaches
Human factors in healthcare
Career development and employability

Working with our academic staff, you’ll be encouraged to undertake your own research and to draw your own conclusions as you critically evaluate the evidence you have gathered. These are skills which will help you to thrive in your role as an Occupational Psychologist or any other path you may wish to follow in the future.

5. You’ll cover the key areas of Occupational Psychology defined by the BPS

Some students coming to this course with the ambition to take up a career in Occupational Psychology will likely already have graduated with a BPS accredited Psychology degree at undergraduate level. Others will have achieved GBC status by taking a postgraduate degree, such as our Psychology MSc Conversion Course.

Whichever route you follow, the programme syllabus ticks all the boxes required by the BPS for the Chartered Occupational Psychology specialism:

Learning, training and development
Leadership, engagement and motivation
Wellbeing and work
Work design, organisational change and development
Psychological assessments

Do not worry if you don’t have a degree that makes you eligible for GBC status before starting this specialist MSc. It is possible to gain one after graduation by taking a more general conversion course, like ours. This will allow you to jump onto the chartered training route, no matter what your background.

6. Our degree modules are designed with employability in mind

Each of the modules that makes up Northumbria University’s Occupational and Organisational Psychology MSc is designed to combine theory and research with real-world practical knowledge you can apply in your chosen profession.

“The Organisation” module, for instance, looks at contemporary case studies, examining the kind of ethical and professional issues you may encounter in practice. You’ll explore leadership and team working, organisational culture, change and development, and how these impact groups and individuals. In each of our other modules, you will reflect upon the theories you learn and be encouraged to apply them to real world scenarios, developing an appreciation of the psychological approaches that can impact people’s working lives. Your critical thinking will be tested, as well as your ability to apply the correct evidence-based psychological principles in organisational settings. These are skills that will be directly relevant to your future employment as a Chartered Occupational Psychologist.

Take the next step with Northumbria University

We want to help you to get the best possible start to your career in Occupational Psychology. Choose our online BPS accredited Occupational and Organisational Psychology MSc and create new opportunities with Northumbria University. Learn more about the course here.