Psychology/Social & Public Policy

Psychology and social and public policy is a combination that connects the scientific understanding of individual minds and behaviour with the study of the collective structures, policies and institutions through which societies attempt to address human needs. Psychology is the scientific study of how people think, act, react and interact, and how that understanding can inform both individual support and broader societal responses to challenges in health, education, welfare and community life. Social and public policy examines the design, implementation and evaluation of the policies and services that governments and other institutions deploy to address inequality, poverty, health, housing, education and social care.

At the University of Glasgow, this four-year full-time programme develops your scientific training in psychology alongside a rigorous grounding in social and public policy analysis. You will develop skills in experimental design and statistical analysis in psychology while also engaging with the conceptual and empirical tools used to analyse how policies are made, who benefits from them and what their consequences are. A year abroad gives you the opportunity to study in a different country, engaging with different national approaches to both psychology and social policy and broadening your comparative perspective.

A typical entry tariff of 216 points reflects the level of analytical preparation and academic aptitude the programme demands.

The combination of psychological and policy knowledge is particularly valuable in careers that sit at the intersection of evidence and practice. Graduates pursue roles in government and local authority policy teams, social research organisations, health and social care commissioning, third-sector advocacy and programme evaluation, as well as in clinical and counselling psychology settings for those who go on to postgraduate professional training. The scientific rigour of the psychology training combined with the policy analysis skills developed through the social policy component makes graduates well equipped for research roles in think tanks, public health organisations and academic institutions.

Postgraduate study in psychology, social policy, public health or social research is a natural next step for those wishing to specialise.