Developmental Psychopathology

Overview

Research training forms a key focus of the Developmental Psychopathology course offered by Durham University. In addition to providing training in basic research, the course aims to integrate research perspectives from clinical and educational psychology. This distinctive emphasis is reflected in the learning outcomes, structure and assessment of the course.

Course Structure

Teaching is generally organised into a number of 10 week course units involving 2 to 3 hours of lectures, seminars and workshops. Each 10 week unit is assessed by means of formative and summative assessments. The summative assessments count towards the final degree outcome. For the course as a whole, the assessments include examinations, written assignments, oral presentations and the dissertation. 

The Developmental Psychopathology MSc course offered by Durham University is delivered predominantly through a mixture of lectures, seminars and workshop classes. Lectures provide key information on a particular topic, such as ‘autism spectrum disorder’ or ‘developing interventions’. Seminars are held in order for smaller group teaching to take place, with focused discussion on specific topics. Finally, practical workshop classes allow students to gain direct experience, particularly in Applied Statistics and in how to use statistical tools.

The balance of this type of activity varies as a function of the module. This is a one year course, with students having a summer term to work on their dissertation related activities. Students typically attend approximately 12 hours a week comprising lectures, tutorials and seminars. Outside timetabled contact hours, students are also expected to undertake their own independent study to prepare for their classes and broaden their subject knowledge, as well as completing their dissertation. Independent study is a key element to the course, with complex factors raised in lectures that do assume some prior knowledge of the topic area.