Archaeology/Psychology

Archaeology and psychology are disciplines that approach human behaviour from very different angles, one reaching back through the material record of the past, the other investigating the workings of the mind in the present, but their combination opens up distinctive and rewarding questions about what it means to be human. Archaeology is the study of how people in the past interacted with their world through their objects, sites, monuments and landscapes. Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behaviour, drawing on experimental, cognitive and social approaches to understand how individuals think, feel and act.

Together, they give you analytical tools that span deep time and lived experience.

At the University of Glasgow, this four-year programme develops substantial expertise in both disciplines. You will engage with the methods of field archaeology, including excavation, survey and material analysis, as well as the interpretive frameworks through which archaeologists understand past societies. In psychology, you will study perception, cognition, social behaviour, development and research methods, gaining a grounded understanding of how the discipline works scientifically.

A year abroad forms part of the programme, giving you the opportunity to pursue archaeological or psychological study at an international partner institution and broaden your intellectual perspective.

Graduates from this combined programme enter careers in archaeology and heritage, including fieldwork, cultural resource management, museums and academic research. The psychological dimension of the degree is equally valuable, opening pathways into research, human factors, user experience, education, social services and health-related roles. Many graduates pursue postgraduate study in one or both disciplines, and the combination of empirical scientific training with humanistic interpretation of evidence is a distinctive credential in an increasingly interdisciplinary research landscape.