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Original poster

Pyschology Degee with OU

40 replies

laney7 · 02/03/2008 20:03

I would really like to start a Pyschology degree with the OU to become an occupational pyschologist. I already have a degee, achieved many many moons ago. I have a 3 year old, work part time (need to keep working part time) and an understanding DH am I mad?

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dustystar · 14/03/2008 16:01

I have just finished my psychology MSC with the OU. they are really helpful so if you give them a call they should be able to guide you to the right courses for you.

Niecie · 14/03/2008 16:41

I'm doing the OU MSc! i've never met anybody else on MN who is doing it or has done it in the past. Just coming to the end of my second 30 point course so a long way to go.

The only thing about going down the OU route as opposed to going to a 'normal' university is that they don't get you placements. A lot of psych. courses have placements, a lot more practical/lab work and connections to get you some experience in the holidays and I have really missed that.

I don't have any relevant experinence just a great deal of interest and I don't know how I am going to persuade anybody to take me on a professional course at the mo. I am doing the OU MSc to keep my hand in with studying and also to give me a tiny extra plus point on my CV but really I still need the experience and it is a worry. I am putting off thinking about it properly until DS2 starts school in September and then really I need to make some decisions (when I have a bit more time).

dustystar · 14/03/2008 16:42

What courses are you doing?

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Walnutshell · 14/03/2008 16:46

How the the experience component work?

Niecie · 14/03/2008 17:02

I did D820 Challenge of Social Science last year. This year I am doing Damaged Brains and Neural Networks. I am hoping to do Introduction to Research next as I keep reading how universities are looking for people trained in research so I am hoping to get some brownie points for that too.

After that I don't know either a child development one or Brain and Behaviour or Identity in Question - any of them in fact! I'd also like to ethnography and discourse analysis but then I would have way too many points and I would be very very old when I had finished.

What courses did you do? Would you recommend them, dustystar?

Niecie · 14/03/2008 17:13

Walnutshell, it isn't enough to have the academic qualifications to train as a psychologist you have to show you have some relevant work experience before they will take you on a course.

It can be paid or voluntary and it seems in most cases it helps to have worked with a qualified psychologist in some way.

dustystar · 14/03/2008 17:16

I did challenge of the social sciences first. then Child development in families and society, then the science of brain and behaviour and lastly ethnography. I really enjoyed all of them. The 2 60 point courses were really hard work though. I felt that they lumped too much course work too close together for the child development course. The brain and behaviour one was better as the TMAs were more evenly distributed but lots of biology etc which I enjoyed but found quite hard going on occasion.

I had wanted to do discourse analysis but timing was wrong so i did ethnography instead which was interesting and a breeze compared to the previous 2 courses.

Walnutshell · 14/03/2008 17:16

Are psychologists generally open to having trainees on work experience? Is that something you would seek out from the NHS?

Niecie · 14/03/2008 17:35

Walnutshell, I think that is the big problem. The NHS do employ graduate trainees but you have to have experience to get the experience. It is a bit of nightmare really.

I don't know if you have read this

It is quite useful on what you need to do to qualify.

Walnutshell · 15/03/2008 15:51

Hmm, that's just the sort of thing that worries me, Niecie. I really can't bear to go through all the study and be unable to apply it at this stage in my life. Although I'm sure I'd enjoy it for it's own sake, still got to pay the bills!

Thanks for the link, will read now.

Hope you sort your work experience out.

Walnutshell · 15/03/2008 16:08

Well, that was a very interesting read, thanks.

I have a few Q's which if anyone can answer, I'd be grateful:

Obviously you can't 'sit in' on sessions with a practiscing psych so what does form does work experience actually take?
Is this a field where an OU conversion course would be deemed 'lesser' than a traditional degree?

-After the OU conversion, I understand you move onto the postgrad training - is this all full time? There doesn't seem to be anything offered by the OU... in fact nothing for 'counselling psych' in my locality - - stumbling block!

Ah well, if you don't ask...

Niecie · 15/03/2008 18:52

Hi Walnut, Some good questions there, some of which I would like answers to myself.

Don't know what I am going to do about work experience tbh. I have considered becoming a teaching assistant and then becoming an ed psych which I am quite interested in. I don't want to go down the whole training as a teacher route because I don't feel time is on my side any more.

Originally I thought I would do occupational psych. because a lot of courses I looked at for that just required you to have work experience generally rather than specific to the course. I can do that! However, it doesn't actually interested me as a subject, I have decided. I'm not into psychometric testing, management training and handling stress in the work place and all that kind of thing.

What I really find interesting is health psychology but that is a new field and a lot of the jobs overlap with clinical psychology and are hard to find.

No idea about what relevant experience entails, I'm afraid. I suppose if you can't sit in with patients then maybe you can sit in on case meetings. Maybe somebody else can help.

You can do the professional courses part time. Most universities seem to offer one year full time and 2 years part time for the academic side of it. The practical experience bit takes as long as it takes to do the necessary hours I suppose.

Niecie · 15/03/2008 18:53

I have a question too.

Do you have to be a clinical psych. to be a CBT therapist/counsellor. I was reading that the gov't want more of them but I wasn't sure if you had to go down the whole clinical training route to do it. That could be quite interesting.

Original poster

laney7 · 15/03/2008 19:36

Hi - Sorry haven't been back for a while. Thanks for the advice Halster, and tandos for the encouragment. Walnutshell I would really like to do the full degree - I know I could do post grad - but full degree appeals to my sense of achievememt somehow.Good Luck to you. I know the course won't be easy, I already work in an employment related field so I am hoping this will help with a career change. I also want this degree for me. Career change or not its something I want to do.

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Walnutshell · 15/03/2008 20:55

Hello laney7, I totally understand why you want to do the full degree - I'd love to do that and really good luck to you in that and the subsequent training.

At the moment I'm feeling a bit knocked back because it doesn't look feasible for me to undertake the professional qual after the conversion course unless I relocate somewhere (having just relocated last year, I don't think so!)

Interested to know if anyone has an answer to Niecie's CBT q.

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