Arden University’s dual-accredited MSc Business Psychology is designed for graduates and industry professionals seeking expertise in occupational psychology. It equips you to meet the growing demand in both public and private sectors for professionals with business psychology skills, giving you the competitive advantage needed to fill industry gaps.
This course covers core areas of business psychology, providing a strong foundation in research, theory, and practice. You will gain the highly sought-after ability to improve business operations at the individual, team, and organisational levels, and to tackle contemporary business issues such as improving employee well-being and performance and managing organisational change. You’ll graduate from the course with the key practitioner skills needed to strategically apply psychology in your current or future roles.
Chartered Occupational Psychologist (BPS accreditation)
The course is accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and fulfils stage one of the two-stage process to becoming a Chartered Occupational Psychologist. Upon completion of the MSc, the second stage involves supervised practice guided by a qualified supervisor. Further details are available on the BPS website.
Certified Business Psychologist (ABP accreditation)
The course is accredited by the Association for Business Psychology (ABP), meaning graduates can leverage the ABP Certified Business Psychologist designation. This certification offers ABP members a pathway to attain 'Business Psychologist' status. More information can be found on the ABP website.
Alternative career pathways
Graduates with business psychology skills are in high demand across various organisations, with opportunities in areas such as employee well-being, leadership development, recruitment and selection, consultancy, and, with appropriate training, psychometric test administration and interpretation. Our programme equips you with a versatile skill set that opens doors to a wide range of career prospects.
Our School of Psychology consists of practitioners and academics with awards, publications, and industry experience spanning consultancy, coaching, well-being, knowledge transfer, neurodiversity, and assessment design and delivery. This means you’ll gain unique insights into both the academic and practitioner aspects of business psychology. We also collaborate with external practitioners, including occupational and coaching psychologists and consultants to align the programme with contemporary standards and practices.
Within each module, you will explore the business world to develop a critical understanding of organisational issues, ethical considerations, and future research directions. We'll delve into contemporary psychology trends in the workplace, covering assessments, development, leadership, and organisational culture.
You'll learn essential practitioner skills, such as the consultancy cycle, report writing, and finding relevant information. We’ll highlight the importance of psychological assessments, which facilitate objective comparisons, identify training needs, and support individual and organisational growth – crucial in today's business landscape focused on talent attraction, management, and diversity.
Just some of the fascinating modules you’ll study on this course include:
Examine unique coaching theories and models, including challenges and ethical considerations. Gain practical insights through optional coaching activities, providing a taste of coaching’s benefits and the opportunity to be a ‘coach for a day’ under guided supervision.
Explore effective leadership and the role of business psychologists in developing strategic leaders who foster engaged and motivated teams. Topics include the impact of evolving work environments, promoting inclusive workplace cultures, and managing diverse global teams.
Consider the business case for employee well-being, addressing common workplace concerns like stress and physical inactivity. Gain current knowledge on approaches and factors related to workplace well-being and interventions targeting well-being at individual, team, leadership, and organisational levels.
Arden is for winners. Nobody will beg you to sit down and start working on your career, if you don’t do it yourself! At Arden, if you have an honest interest for what you learn and you want to reach out for more, you will be welcomed, helped, and advised. But to do that, you must be determined.
Alongside the extensive support available to all students studying with Arden, our MSc Business Psychology course features its own personalised support system to help you succeed with your studies.
We go above and beyond to provide you with the resources and opportunities you’ll need to study with confidence and take pride in your personal development. Take a look at the support resources you’ll have access to as an Arden psychology student:
Unlike on more traditional degrees, you won’t be sitting any exams on this course. Instead, a range of authentic assessments have been designed to help you apply your learning to real-world scenarios in business psychology and the organisational challenges you might face in your future role. Our practice-driven assessments include:
- Consultancy reports
- Presentations
- Case studies
- Intervention design
- A Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental (PESTLE) analysis
- Empirical research project
The course culminates in an independent research project where you’ll investigate a key business psychology issue, building skills for your future career. You’ll be guided by experienced occupational and business psychologists throughout the project.
At Arden University we consider applications on a case by case basis. If you have significant work experience, have qualifications you have gained elsewhere, or a degree or qualification that isn't a clear pathway to this degree - we are more than happy to discuss your application.
Our aim is to make learning as accessible as possible by ensuring that you can study in a flexible and convenient way. That's why we keep our requirements simple. All you need is a laptop or desktop PC (we recommend one running the latest version of Windows), and a good internet connection. Through ilearn, our online university campus in the cloud, you'll be able to access your course calendar, support services, learning materials, and our online library containing thousands of ebooks, as well as tools for creating assignments, keeping notes, and collaborating with other students on your course.
Our aim is to make learning as accessible as possible by ensuring that you can join us, wherever you are.
That's why we keep our requirements simple. All you need is a laptop or computer (we recommend one running the latest version of Windows), and a good stable internet connection. With this one tool, you'll be able to access information, advice, support, learning materials and our online library, as well as create assignments, keep notes, and collaborate with other students effectively.
We’ll also support you with getting access to the resources you need, wherever you study from, including assistance with obtaining any software you need to successfully complete the course.
To be eligible for our MSc Business Psychology, you should normally have:
We also offer an internal English test for applicants who are unable to provide the above evidence of English proficiency. More information can be found here.
The Arden University Postgraduate Merit Scholarship offers UK Online Learning students with a 2.1 undergraduate degree or higher £2,000 off our postgraduate tuition fees. You can also apply for up to £12,167 funding from Student Finance England fund your studies.
If you’re an international student, we have a number of Regional Offers that can help you save money on your tuition fees.
When you help a friend or family member to study with Arden through our Refer a Friend programme, both you and the person you refer will receive a £500 Amazon e-voucher or £500 tuition fee credit.
Anthony’s areas of interest include occupational psychology, health psychology and co-creation. Anthony’s PhD explored solutions to sedentary behaviour and physical inactivity in workplace settings. Anthony also has a keen interest in personality and intelligence research, is a qualified psychometrician and has been a recipient of the Psychometrics Forum’s Excellence in Psychometrics Award. Alongside academic research, Anthony has also worked as an independent business psychology consultant helping organisations to develop evidence-based recruitment and selection practices. Passionate about making psychology more accessible, Anthony has written and contributed to books, blogs and magazines within the field of occupational psychology, with his research being featured in publications such as Forbes.
The course will help you develop your existing skills and knowledge in business psychology, alongside the latest theoretical, practical, and emerging advancements in the field. Through this, you’ll gain the expertise needed to successfully apply business psychology across a range of exciting industries.
You’ll graduate from the course with the hands-on business psychology and leadership skills required to effectively bring about positive change in the workplace across individual, team, and organisational levels. Throughout your studies you’ll be provided with the valuable opportunity to:
Employers today recognise the strategic advantage of having employees who are versed in applying psychology in the workplace, meaning you’ll graduate from your MSc Business Psychology degree ready to accelerate your career in the field. A few of the roles you might consider include:
This course is accredited by the the Association for Business Psychology (ABP) and the British Psychological Society (BPS).
The British Psychological Society (BPS) is the representative body for psychology and psychologists in the UK. The society is responsible for the development, promotion, and application of psychology for the public good.
Students obtaining at least a lower second-class honours degree (2:2) in a BPS accredited undergraduate psychology degree will be eligible for the society’s Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC) - the prerequisite requirement to go on to further training as a professional psychologist after graduation.
While you’re studying this course with us, we’ll cover the cost of your student membership with the BPS, which gives you access to a large range of useful resources including access to the British Psychological Society Library, the UK’s leading national resource in psychology.
The Association for Business Psychology (ABP) works to provide information, training, and support for those interested in business psychology, to promote professional excellence, and to demonstrate the effective application and impact of business psychology in the workplace.
During your studies you’ll have free student membership with the ABP, giving you access to a wealth of professional resources, networking opportunities, careers advice, professional recognition and influence, as well as keeping you up-to-date with current trends and developments.
Arden University is a member of the Campaign for Social Science.
The Campaign demonstrates how social science improves public policy, society, and all our lives. It highlights the value of applied social science research and advocates for its greater use in decision-making and in government. It is supported by a coalition of universities, social science societies, and publishers.
As a member, Arden receives access to case studies, research into the value provided by social sciences, and insights into the employability of social science graduates. Through this, you will gain a better understanding of the skills you are learning and their value to employers.
All Arden students will have free access to LinkedIn Learning through the Library Portal. LinkedIn Learning is a video-based online learning platform offering over 16,500 expert-led courses across a wide range of subjects including business, technology, and creative skills.
With LinkedIn Learning, you can: