MSc Psychosocial Interventions

Course Overview

This course is designed for those interested in developing skills and knowledge for the assessment and solution-focused management of people with certain physical and mental health conditions.

It will be of particular relevance to people with a background in the social sciences, mental health or nursing.

A background in psychology is desirable as you will have a strong foundation in mental health problems and research methods, but it is not essential.

It is also suitable for practitioners in health, mental health and the forensic equivalent (including all aspects of health and justice) who are currently working with people benefitting from such interventions. There is also clear potential for applicants to be multi-disciplinary and to come from public or private settings.

We offer flexible study modes and, after passing the relevant number of modules, you can choose to step off the programme to gain awards of PGCert and PGDip, or continue to the full MSc respectively.

You can study this course over three years and dedicate the third year to completing your dissertation.

What will this course cover?

Psychosocial interventions relate to an individual's psychological development and how this development interacts with a social environment. Generally psychosocial interventions cover psychological interventions (for example classified into behavioural, cognitive, humanistic, motivational etc) and social approaches (for example focusing the work on families or wider social networks such a local communities). Students on the MSc, therefore, are exposed to the underlying principles and frameworks of interventions such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Family Intervention Skills, Motivational Enhancement Skills, Positive Psychology (Skills & Interventions) etc.

Evidence also suggests that these interventions can be successfully utilised with other long-term conditions such as diabetes, coronary heart disease and epilepsy.

This unique programme forms a broader subject base than other postgraduate programmes in this field, encapsulating psychosocial interventions with all forms of mental health and the application of interventions to physical health issues.

We will provide you with the skills to critically understand the principle concepts, theories and effectiveness of psychosocial interventions within various organisations.

You will learn about various clinical approaches, allowing problem-solving and critical reflection in order to develop creative solutions when dealing with complex clinical and social issues.

Attendance and Personal Study

You will be expected to attend 20 days per year at the University and allocate time each week for self-directed study.

What are my career prospects

On successful completion of this programme, you will have gained a strong understanding of the principle concepts, theories and effectiveness of psychosocial interventions.

This course will also give you the requisite foundation skills and conceptual understanding required for the engagement, assessment, and formulation of the needs of people who experience particular conditions including their significant social environment.

You will also be able to critically reflect and problem-solve to develop and apply creative solutions when dealing with certain clinical issues.

Throughout the course, you will be introduced to, and explore, the skills and frameworks for the delivery of specific interventions.