Occupational Psychology University of Strathclyde

Overview

You'll develop knowledge in psychology and build analytical skills which can be applied in a range of careers, including occupational psychology, management, human resource management, recruitment, health and safety, engineering, the public sector, training and development, organisational change and development consultancy, and policy research.

Key Features

The teaching team draws from academics who are chartered psychologists, practitioners with industry experience, and expertise from a range of disciplines across the University of Strathclyde. 

Strathclyde Business School is home to many staff focused on the application of psychology to work and organisations, and has extensive collaborations with industry, policymakers and practitioners.

The Occupational Psychology program is the only course in Scotland to provide a Stage 1 qualification towards professional membership of the Division of Occupational Psychology with the British Psychological Society. 

Careers

The programme will provide employment opportunities broadly in management, human resource management, recruitment, health and safety, engineering, public sector management (e.g. NHS), training and development, organisational change and development consultancy, and policy research.

As a professional qualification for those eligible for chartership in occupational psychology, the degree offers a range of opportunities to work in academia, as an independent consultant, or in a practitioner or policy advisory role across public, private and third sector organisations.

The degree also provides a pathway to a doctoral degree in psychology, human resource management, organisation studies, work/employment studies, management and other aligned social science and business and management subjects, especially given its emphasis on building graduates' advanced analytical data skills.

• Applying occupational psychology

Occupational psychology is aligned with the work of engineers and designers, ensuring equipment, workspaces and products are suitable for the end user.

The roles available within Scottish Government demonstrate that the knowledge of occupational psychology is crucial to the delivery of public policy in practice. The delivery of devolved services (e.g. Social Security Scotland and employability programmes such as Fair Start Scotland) demands skills associated with occupational psychologists which support people both into work and within work. Examples of these ‘new’ vacancies include:

• user-experience design of social security services/tools
• Scottish Government and Parliament policy research and knowledge exchange
• delivery of vocational rehabilitation and employability support for people with barriers to work