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Psychology with Counselling

BSc (Hons)

Summary

Study level

Undergraduate

Award

Degree

Full time

3 years

Part time

3 years+

Location

Birmingham, Leeds, London, Manchester or Online

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Faculty of Social Sciences and Technology

What makes Arden University special?

Education for everyone, everywhere

Whether you're constrained by location, cost, time, or other life commitments, we're passionate about giving you access to higher education that fits into your busy, modern life.

You decide how and where to study

We offer a wide range of flexible undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in both our online and blended study modes.

Full support both online and on-site

We're also proud to offer non-standard entry, meaning your work experience and previous qualifications are taken into account when assessing your application.

Strong focus on employability

You will gain in-depth subject knowledge and transferable skills that employers from a huge range of industries will value. Many of our courses at Arden are also accredited by leading professional bodies in the UK.

Course Overview

Our BSc (Hons) Psychology with Counselling has been designed for those who want to study a degree in psychology and wish to work in counselling after graduation. It gives you eligibility to enrol on the British Psychological Society’s independent route to training as a counselling psychologist, and can support applications for a Doctorate in Counselling Psychology or other counselling/wellbeing related qualifications.

Counselling is an area of psychology that takes a person-centred approach, assisting individuals to explore their experiences and develop strategies for tackling maladaptive thoughts and behaviours. Counsellors work in a wide range of professional settings including; in-house for profit and non-profit organisations, government departments, and in private practice. On your counselling degree you’ll study the main psychology curriculum areas such as social, cognitive, biological, and developmental psychology and research methods. Alongside this, you will also have the opportunity to take counselling specific modules including; Counselling Psychology, Core Counselling Skills, Health and Psychological Well-being, Psychological Assessment and Managing the Therapeutic Process.

Studying this specialised undergraduate counselling course with Arden will provide you with multiple future career and study options. You’ll have access to modern, digital learning tools as you study and you’ll also have full support from our dedicated academic team, who are internationally respected industry practitioners, published authors and PhD holders in the field of psychology.

Accreditation and Memberships

BPS Accredited

Graduates achieving a 2.2 on this course are eligible for the Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC) conferred by the British Psychological Society (BPS).

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Professional accreditation

This course is accredited by the British Psychological Society, the representative body for professional psychologists in the UK.

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Course details and modules

On the course you’ll study subject modules that have been created specifically to help you gain career focused skills in professional counselling. Your studies will culminate with choosing an area of counselling practice on which to focus and produce your own research project at the end of your final year. By the time you graduate, you’ll have the confidence and ability to apply your knowledge of psychology to a range of exciting career paths and further learning opportunities.

Throughout the course you’ll have one-to-one support from your lecturers and academic skills tutors, as well as frequent invitations to online coffee mornings with your fellow students and staff and personal academic tutor support sessions. You’ll also be able to start developing industry links and networks by attending sessions with guest speakers from a wealth of areas, including the fire service, policing and the NHS. Above all, our academic team, who come from a range of professional and cultural backgrounds, will help you learn through real-world context, helping you understand how your new skills are best applied in practice.

Academic Experience

On this course, you'll be taught by a range of psychology experts. Many of our academics are research active and have published in academic journals, presented at national and international conferences, and authored book chapters on applied psychology. We also have former and continuing practitioners within the team whose expertise centres on the application of psychology in real-life contexts, such as organisational, educational, prison, health care, and clinical settings. As a whole, the team is highly active in the professional psychology community by running workshops and taking part in charitable events for organisations such as MIND.

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.

Bettina Finna

BSc (Hons) Psychology

Modules

You have 3-9 years to complete this course, which means you can take up to 3 years to complete each level. Most of our students, however, aim to complete the course within 3 to 6 years.

Level 4

Introduction to Studying Psychology (20 credits)
Social Psychology (20 credits)
Exploring Research in Psychology (20 credits)
Developmental Psychology (20 credits)
Biological Psychology (20 credits)
Cognitive Psychology (20 credits)

Level 5

Qualitative Research Methods (20 credits)
Quantitative Research Methods (20 credits)
Positive Psychology (20 credits)
Personality and Intelligence (20 credits)
Approaches to Counselling Psychology (20 credits)
Core Counselling Skills (20 credits)

Level 6

Health and Psychological Well-being (20 credits)
Psychological Assessment and Formulation (20 credits)
Counselling Psychology, Mental Health and Illness (20 credits)
Managing the Therapeutic Process (20 credits)
Counselling Research Project (40 credits)

How do we assess you?

Assessments

Unlike on more traditional degree courses, you don’t need to sit through exams on the BSc (Hons) Psychology with Counselling degree. Your assessments have been designed to help you apply your learning to real-word scenarios. This means you’ll be better prepared to apply the skills you’ve gained on the course to your professional role after graduation.

As you work through your course modules you’ll have the chance to compete a range of useful assessment methods such as; individual reports, case study analyses, role-play, group presentations and reflective and personal independent assignments devised in consultation with your course module leader. Your assessments will have an emphasis upon personal discovery, the application of theory to practice and innovative thinking.

We’ve made sure the assessments that you undertake on the course are fun, engaging, and give you key transferable skills that employers today are looking for. You’ll only sit one exam on this course, to fulfil your research methods requirements; all other assessments have been designed to give you the tools and skills you’ll need in your career.

Role-play sessions are an important feature on this course and have been designed to give you the unique opportunity to practice real-life professional counselling situations in a safe environment. These sessions will be guided by your course lecturer and will give you the opportunity to evaluate your decisions with supportive feedback from your peers and our academic staff.

Study options

This course is available to study through Arden’s blended learning study mode at our campuses in London Ealing, London Stratford, London Holborn, Manchester, Birmingham, and Leeds.

The course is also available to students via online learning. This gives you the convenience of being able to study from anywhere in the UK or worldwide, providing you with the same high standards of teaching but with lower tuition fees.

I chose online learning because I do not currently have the capacity to attend classes as my days are full with running my household, my elderly parents’ household and tending to the needs of my 3-year-old. Online studying has been extremely helpful because it provides the flexibility I need in order to study at random times during the day or night.

Cynthia Blow

BSc (Hons) Psychology

Full-time blended learning

How does it work?

When you choose our blended learning study mode, each week you’ll have eight hours of timetabled classes spread over two days at the Arden campus of your choice. This is combined with around 25 hours of independent study, which takes place through ilearn, our university campus in the cloud. ilearn contains all the resources you need to study successfully.

As a blended learning student you’ll also have access to our Library Portal, an extensive digital library with thousands of journal titles, eBooks, and a range of academic and industry databases that you can use to research and gain in-depth information on your area of study. At Arden, all of your course materials are provided free of charge, removing the need for you to buy expensive textbooks to study your degree successfully.

Blended learning is the best option for students who prefer the structure of regular face to face classes with their tutor and fellow classmates, and is particularly suited to students who live within commuting or driving distance of one of our UK campuses.

If you're a student from England who is enrolling on a blended learning course with Arden (based in one of our UK campuses) then you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan and Maintenance Loan to help pay for your living expenses. You can find more information on our fees and funding page. If you're a student from Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland you can find information about obtaining a student loan to cover your costs from your student finance body.

Learn more about blended learning

Part-time online learning

How does it work?

Studying the BSc (Hons) Psychology with Counselling online gives you the ultimate in convenience. You can enrol with Arden from anywhere in the world and study your degree from the comfort of home, without the requirement to attend classes in a physical location.

Our online students study their degree through ilearn, Arden’s university campus in the cloud. ilearn provides everything you need to study at University. It offers an integrated virtual learning experience, including your virtual classroom, lecture theatre, and access to our Library Portal. The portal includes an extensive digital library including thousands of journal titles, eBooks, and academic and industry databases which you can use to research your assignments and projects. All of these materials are provided to you free of charge, and contain all the research information you’ll need to complete your degree with us.

ilearn is also integrated with Zoom, making it easier to chat with your course tutor during your scheduled seminar sessions. You can even integrate our study materials into your Kindle, making it possible to study wherever you have you Kindle handy.

Studying online doesn’t mean studying alone. As well as receiving regular feedback and guidance from your course tutor, you’ll be studying with likeminded students who you can meet with through our Unitu community, and you’ll have access to community message boards to discuss your course and the topics being raised within it. We’ve even set up community boards embedded into each of the course modules so you can have discussions with your tutor and classmates on the topics you’re currently learning.

Online learning students resident in the UK can apply for a Tuition Fee loan to pay for their course. If you cannot attend your course in person because of a disability, you may also be entitled to a Maintenance Loan to cover living expenses. Please find more information on our fees and funding page. If you're a student from Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland you can find information about obtaining a student loan to cover your costs from your student finance body.

Learn more about online learning

Entry requirements

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.

What you need to study with us

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.

Find out more

Eligibility

To be eligible for our BSc (Hons) Psychology with Counselling course, you must have:

Passes at grade C or above in three subjects including mathematics at GCSE level or academic equivalent.
If you do not have a GCSE or equivalent in mathematics you are strongly encouraged to complete an assessment-free module before the start of your course to substitute this.

Applicants may be considered based on a minimum of 12 months of relevant work experience. We’ll ask you for a personal statement that demonstrates your ability to study the course, along with references and evidence of your previous work experience.

English proficiency

IELTS 6.0 (no less than 5.5 in any element); or TOEFL iBT 80; or equivalent
Alternatively, evidence you have previously studied in English, such as a letter to show that the Medium of Instruction was in English can be accepted.

Course fees and funding

This course is pre-approved for second degree funding for students resident in England. This means that, even if this is your second bachelor’s degree, you may still be eligible for funding from the Student Loans Company (SLC). Find out more here.

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I am a student from

Use the dropdown above to find course fees and funding information for your country. If you can’t find information for your country in the dropdown, visit our International support page.

Meet the faculty

The Faculty of Social Sciences and Technology is currently overseen by Professor Brian Smith, Deputy Provost. Bringing more than three decades of experience, Brian has been awarded the prestigious Higher Education Academy National Teaching Fellow for excellence in developing inspiring and innovative new learning and teaching models in global higher education. This work was core to his PhD to understand learner behaviour and ontological needs in the classroom, blended and online learning. He carries a wealth of experience and has touched a variety of disciplines – including healthcare, psychology, technology, law and engineering, to name a few. He also holds the title of Advance HE Principal Fellow, and Accreditor status for reviewing fellowships. Brian has contributed to several initiatives in his career, some of which has included authoring End point Assessments for Apprenticeships (Institute for Apprenticeships), Micro-credential characteristics (Quality Assurance Agency), TEF 2023 panel member (Office for Students), editor reviewer for journals, and authoring publications such as Creativity: An unsolved enigma.

Professor Brian Smith

Deputy Provost

Career prospects

With a specialised degree in psychology with counselling, you’ll have a qualification that shows your commitment to working in professional practice. The course sets you up with a range of knowledge, skills, and abilities that will allow you to apply your learning confidently in your future career as a counsellor.

Related courses

What will the BSc (Hons) Psychology with Counselling do for me?

Employers who have provided input into this course’s development include counselling psychologists, clinical psychologists, psychology practitioners, the UK fire service, independent consultants, and previous alumni who are now working across many varied professional areas. Because of this input, you’ll find that your course content has been tailored to help you fill current skills gaps in a range of careers and professions worldwide.

With such a wide choice of topics to learn about and different skills to master, you’ll graduate with in-depth knowledge of modern counselling theory and practice, including:

Communicate effectively in challenging situations
Retrieving, comprehending, and using data
Handling primary source material appropriately
Problem solving and abstract and scientific reasoning
Making critical judgements and evaluations
Applying sensitivity to interpersonal factors
Talking and listening approaches in counselling
Responding to feedback

What can I do after Arden University?

After successfully completing your BSc Psychology with Counselling degree, you’ll have acquired a range of specialised skills that will demonstrate your drive and commitment to developing your career as a counsellor.

As well as graduating with the possibility of continuing on to further counselling related qualifications, such as psychotherapy or Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT), this course also gives you eligibility to enrol on the British Psychological Society’s independent route to training as a counselling psychologist, or apply for a Doctorate in Counselling Psychology.

Average Salary for Counselling Psychologist in the UK is £62,042 (sourced from Reed Salary Tracker on 20th November 2023)

As well as roles in counselling, you’ll also graduate with skills that can be applied to a range of future career options including:

Support Worker
Nursing
Mental health professional
Human resource manager
Careers adviser
Journalist
Marketing/advertising
Police officer
Social work

Industry skills

The topics you’ll study on this course have a global focus that is relevant anywhere in the world. Avoiding the Western-centric focus of many undergraduate psychology courses and aligned with the framework of BPS accreditation, which provides a cross-cultural viewpoint, this degree is internationally recognised and will give you experience and knowledge that you can apply in your home country.

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.

Arden’s BSc (Hons) Psychology with Counselling course is accredited by the British Psychological Society. This means that students obtaining at least a lower second-class honours degree (2:2) will be eligible for the society’s Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership - the prerequisite requirement to go on to further training as a professional psychologist after graduation.

You’ll have free membership of the BPS as soon as you enrol with us, which opens up a number of fantastic opportunities and professional resources for you, including:

Access to dozens of industry events each year, including student-focused careers events where you can learn from psychology professionals.
Subscriptions to The Psychologist, the monthly BPS magazine, and Psych-Talk, which is written by psychology students for psychology students – and is also a great way for you to get published.
Access to the online community of BPS members, which helps you to connect with other psychology students across the UK and discuss the latest advances and developments in your field of interest.
The chance to become a student rep and help support your fellow psychology students and spread the word about BPS membership.
Discounts on textbooks and key publications, including 35% off Wiley/Blackwell books (print and e-books) when you sign up for BPS membership.

Campaign for Social Science

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.