Psychology - where to apply?

[EducatedElephant]

DS is struggling to narrow to 5.

Pretty sure on
Bath
Loughborough
Warwick

also likes
Manchester
Nottingham
York

Predicted grades AAA (or A* AA)
GCSEs 6-8s

Any thoughts or insights into any of the above welcomed please….

What do you base this on?
It ranks #97 out of 118 possible places to study.
OP's kid has excellent grades. I don't think they are looking far beyond the top 10 and rightly so.

If he is interested in a career in Clinical Psychology I would recommend looking at a course where they offer a placement year. The placements offered by local NHS trusts enable them to build up experience in the profession which means they are more likely to get an assistant psychologist or research assistant post after their undergrad (these are very competitive jobs), and would therefore stand a better chance getting into the D Clin Psych (also very competitive).

You basically need to get a First if you want to get onto the PhD track, anywhere.

Was a teacher, and several of my students went there for BSc, MSc and one did a doctorate. All were very positive about it. Those who’d done BSc at another uni and then went on to do a masters or doctorate at ARU compared it positively with their previous unis/ courses.

This isn't true, although it helps for some courses (the clin psy courses all have slightly different criteria for entry). My dd and I have been stalking trainee clinical psychologists on LinkedIn and they don't all have firsts by any means. They also come from a whole range of undergrad unis, including post 92. The one thing they all have in common is 3-5 years of relevant experience between undergrad and the clinical psychology doctorate.

I'm guessing that's because the school/college you taught at is close to Anglia Ruskin ... there's no other reason people would flock there. It's also relaxed on grades but that isn't relevant to OP's son.

Nope, nowhere near. Apart from league tables/ snob value, what do you base your low opinion on?

There is literally no reason apart from geographical location or low grades why anyone would recommend AR specifically out of all 118 options to study Psychology.

It also has nothing in common with the unis OPs son is considering - the rest of them are all highly respected unis with entry grades of about AAA or higher. Anglia Ruskin ask for

• 112-96 UCAS Tariff points. 96 points equates to CCC.
• 3 GCSEs at grade C, or grade 4, or above, including English and Maths.

The chances of someone predicted AAA or higher applying to unis asking for CCC is very low, I know this from my previous job. The reasons people would do this are normally financial, they do it so they can stay living at home and avoid accommodation costs.

Snob value, then.

If you like.

The impression I got from the other unis OPs son is considering are that he is aiming high, which is another way to frame it.

I remember being shown a study not that long ago which showed that overall the D Clin Psy courses didn't really care which University the candidates had been to. What was more important was their experience after the undergraduate degree (with at least a 2:1). They need a minimum of 2 years of psychology or research based work to get in, but it often takes longer and many applicants do a masters degree or train as a PWP/MHWP or CBT therapist first.

York is well regarded for Psychology and DD considered it, we were very impressed with the information around course content and if she had decided to do Psychology I think it would hve been there
She is at Notts doing something else and she loves it. Nottingham is a tad "gritty" though and while DD actually liked that aspect of it it may be a bit much for some. Its probably no worse than any other big northern city but DD is well used to Leeds and Manchester and says Notts is worse.

@LoserWinner IME it makes sense to aim for a uni where others will be of a similar level to you – in terms of ability, work ethic, attainment. If you squeezed somehow into Oxford with BBB (highly unlikely I know) you would struggle amid a group of higher-attaining people – no one would dispute that tbh.

Similarly and I know YP who have experienced this, if you are at a uni which accepts lower grades and you have AAA, you may find (other things being equal) that the pace of work and standard expected is not really pushing you and not what you hoped for.

I wouldn't call it snob value. My DC went to or are at non RG unis, but they were suitable for them. A high flyer is probably best to go somewhere where they will be challenged to achieve their best – both by the course and tutors and by their peers.

My son has just started at Sheffield for Psychology which was his insurance as required AAB, early days but enjoying it so far. Offers a placement year and he liked the city and the course. Sheffield is RG if that matters and comes out well student experience surveys and graduate outcomes.

Can they narrow based on other criteria such as ease of travelling to and from home and transporting stuff back and forth each term?
Are you planning on using student storage facilities during holidays when not in halls?
Have they been to any open days? My DC had very positive views on certain unis but discounted after the open day for a variety of reasons.
If they are planning to use for clinical psychology career then placement is extremely beneficial for future career choices and to check this is the route they want to take. Can be a real positive on their CV too.

We have been told this is a recent thing, due to the massive upsurge in popularity of the subject, and told by professors at Birmingham and Bristol, who probably know.

It is something to bear in mind quite strongly.

@KittyMacNitty fair enough - but the trainee psychs we've been following started their training this year/last year, so are also fairly recent. I agree, that it's advisable to aim for first if you can, but I don't think a 2:1 rules you out.

When my daughter was looking a few years ago, we found that the content was much the same everywhere (for accredited courses).

The main differences were in terms of the offer for placements etc. My daughter didn’t want to commit herself to a fourth year, so went for the basic 3 year course and chose on the basis of the place she thought she’d be happiest. We looked at Cardiff, which she liked, but then wrote that off as she decided she wanted a campus university.

She had offers from Exeter, Birmingham, Leeds, Nottingham and Southampton, firmed Exeter, and had Nottingham as her insurance.

She ended up at Exeter and was very happy there.

@Fifthtimelucky how many years ago was this?

We didn't look at the same universities as you in great detail but found the courses offered wildly different (and while some had quite a linear development towards one type of Phd, others had multiple routes).

We looked at Oxford, York, Bristol, Edinburgh & Bath as well as Birmingham, UEA and Manchester

@KittyMacNittyI should probably have said that she went in 2018, so things may well have changed by now, unless it was just coincidence that the places she looked at were so similar.

Given that Bath and L'Boro are on the list - is he sporty? If so then the sports facilities at Nottingham are excellent. My DD is there (reading something else) and is very happy and hasn't found the place gritty at all.

I think things have definitely changed and are still changing. I can't keep up with some of it.

What A levels is he doing? Bath say 2 Sciences preferred but 1 is OK- in practice noone DD knows got an offer from Bath with 1 Science. She didn’t like it anyway so didn’t apply there although had the predicted grades for it.

DS1 loved Nottingham. Beautiful campus. Ds2 loves York. Different subjects though,
York accommodation is expensive if that’s a factor!

@KittyMacNitty I'm sure you're aware, but in case others aren't, there is a difference between a Psychology PhD and the clinical psychology doctorate, which is professional training. As far as I know, there is only one 'fast track' route to the professional ClinPsy and that's jointly run by the universities of Hull and York. It gives top scorers on their undergrad degrees the opportunity to move straight onto the ClinPsy but it's very competitive, as you'd imagine.

Otherwise, all Psychology grads are in the same boat - needing to get the relevant 2/3/4 years plus experience in order to apply to the professional doctorate (if they want to be a clinical psychologist).

As with all other academic subjects, they could also choose to do a PhD, but this won't lead to a career as a psychologist.

My dd is in her fourth year of the MSci Psychology at Nottingham, if anyone has any questions.