Developmental Psychopathology

Program Overview

---

Developmental Psychopathology

The MSc in Developmental Psychopathology will build on your interest in developmental psychology and neurodevelopmental diversity.

Start Dates

• September 2025

Degree Type

• MSc

Course Length

• 1 year full-time

Location

• Durham City

Programme Code

• C8K009

Course Details

The aim of the MSc Developmental Psychopathology is to provide advanced research training for those interested in pursuing careers in the field of research, developmental psychology, neurodiversity, and clinical or educational psychology.

The subject-specific and generic postgraduate training, provided by the course, enables you to develop the knowledge, skills, and understanding required of a professional conducting research in neurodiversity, clinical, child development or other fields.

Research training forms a key focus of the MSc course. In addition to providing training in basic research, the course aims to integrate research perspectives from the fields of developmental psychology, neurodiversity, clinical, and educational psychology. This distinctive emphasis is reflected in the learning outcomes, structure, and assessment of the course.

Course Structure

Year 1 Modules

Core Modules:

• Advanced Developmental Psychology Review: teaches the skills to create and deliver literature reviews as well as providing analysis of key topics in the field of developmental psychology, including research skills, data handling, writing styles, and methods of presentation.
• Critical Research Practice: is fundamental to learning and provides the knowledge and skills required to design, conduct, and communicate research in psychology, ensuring it is conducted ethically. This module also teaches the analytical skills needed to evaluate research findings.
• Research Design in Child and Clinical Psychology: provides an introduction to the methods and design used in child and clinical psychology and offers practical training in the transferable skills relevant for professional and personal development.
• Current Issues in Developmental Psychology and Psychopathology: provides in-depth knowledge of current theoretical stances and methodological issues within the fields of developmental psychology and neurodiversity. The aim is for you to gain a broad understanding of typical development and then consider different development pathways.
• Statistics for Psychology and the Behavioural Sciences: teaches the core statistical methods that are commonly used across psychology and the behavioural sciences, as well as developing your confidence in identifying and applying appropriate statistical techniques. This module will also develop your ability for statistical programming.
• Advanced Statistics for Psychology and the Behavioural Sciences: likewise provide an understanding of a set of advanced statistical methods that are used across psychology and the behavioural sciences and enable you to identify and apply appropriate statistical techniques.
• Dissertation: The Dissertation enables you to design, implement, analyse, and finally discuss an empirical project relevant to your field of study, giving you the opportunity to apply the theoretical knowledge you have acquired and to gain experience of collaborating with other researchers and undertaking research and project management. The Department provides excellent support and opportunities for conducting a significant piece of independent research.

Learning

The course is delivered predominantly through a mixture of lectures, seminars, and workshop classes. Lectures provide key information on particular topics in the area of typical and atypical development. Seminars are held in order for smaller group teaching to take place, with focused discussion on specific topics. Finally, practical and workshop classes allow students to gain direct experience, particularly 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.

Assessment

The course is divided into three parts. One third, comprising three modules, is of subject-specific topics related to developmental psychology and developmental psychopathology (with a specific focus on neurodevelopmental conditions). A further three modules focus on research skills, such as critical thinking abilities and statistical knowledge, that are necessary to understand developmental psychology and developmental psychopathology. The final third of the programme is the dissertation module, which reflects the culmination of learning and practical endeavours from throughout the course via the production of an independent and original body of research material. This is performed under supervision with a member of staff, with meetings varying in duration and frequency throughout the year as a function of the needs of the research project and the student.

Entry Requirements

We typically require a 2:1 Bachelor (Honours) degree that covers the following content:

• Statistics (Candidates with limited statistics background may be interested in our MA in Research Methods (Developmental Psychology) programme.)
• Research methods
• A good range of psychology content, e.g., Experimental psychology, Developmental psychology, Biological psychology, Cognitive psychology

The majority of relevant modules should be at 2:1 grade or better.

If you are an international student who does not meet the requirements for direct entry to this degree, you may be eligible to take a pre-Masters pathway course at the Durham University International Study Centre.

Alternative Qualifications

• Other UK qualifications
• EU qualifications
• International qualifications

International students who do not meet direct entry requirements for this degree might have the option to complete an International Foundation Year. Home students who do not meet our direct entry requirements, may be eligible for our Foundation Programme which offers multidisciplinary programmes to prepare you for a range of specified degree programmes.

English language requirements

Country-specific information

Fees and Funding

Full-Time Fees

Tuition fees Home students | £14,500 per year
---|---
EU students | £32,500 per year
Island students | £14,500 per year
International students | £32,500 per year

The tuition fees shown are for one complete academic year of study and are set according to the academic year of entry. Fees will be subject to an annual inflationary increase and are expected to rise throughout the programme of study. The fee listed above is for the first year of the course only.

Scholarships and Bursaries

We are committed to supporting the best students irrespective of financial circumstances and are delighted to offer a range of funding opportunities.

Career Opportunities

Psychology

Our Masters qualifications provide the essential skills and understanding to progress to research at a higher academic level or to launch a professional career.

Our students enter the workplace with knowledge relevant to careers in psychology but also with the transferable skills in analysis and problem-solving that are valued by employers.

Such skills are highly sought after in a range of professions and our postgraduates have progressed to roles that include consultants, advisors, human resources professionals, talent managers, business analysts, market researchers, public relations professionals, marketeers, administrators, managers, civil servants, coaches, trainers, and teachers.

In addition, the broad nature of the Department means that some of our postgraduates also qualify for careers in clinical and healthcare settings.

Department Information

Psychology

Our Department provides world-class teaching and research into understanding the mind and human behaviours. We investigate the processes that bring about the thoughts, feelings, and motivations that lie behind our actions.

The Department of Psychology provides a world-class teaching and research environment for postgraduates who are interested in understanding more about the thoughts, feelings, and motivations that lie behind actions and human behaviours and the processes that trigger them.

Our academic team are leading experts in their specialisms and provide outstanding supervision for postgraduate learning and research in key areas of psychology including Developmental Science, Cognitive Neuroscience, and Quantitative Social Psychology.

Our range of taught Masters qualifications offer the opportunity to focus on a specific aspect of psychology be it biological, cognitive, social, developmental or neuroscience-related and to learn key approaches to the discipline including statistical training. For those who are interested in pursuing their own research interests we offer the MA/MSc by Research which offers a direct route to the PhD.

All postgraduate taught courses include a postgraduate dissertation in a chosen subject, supported by a member of staff with expertise in that area. Students also have access to state-of-the-art technical, clinical, and experimental facilities to support learning and research.

In the Department, we are proud to have passionate and committed teachers, who love their subjects and want to share that passion. We encourage collaborative working on new ideas so that together we can make new discoveries about human behaviour.

Facilities

Facilities in the Department are outstanding. They provide state-of-the-art support for postgraduate work in understanding mind and behaviour through high precision experimental methods and ecologically valid controlled environments.

Postgraduate students have access to dedicated laboratory space equipped with opportunities for training in eye-movement recording, motion capture, and psychophysics.

Other specialist facilities include transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), electroencephalography (EEG), functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and a number of laboratories.

The Department of Psychology is located close to many academic departments and University services, and is within walking distance of Durham’s historic centre, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Program Outline

---

Degree Overview:

---

Objectives:

• Provide advanced research training for those interested in careers in research, developmental psychology, neurodiversity, and clinical or educational psychology.
• Equip students with the knowledge, skills, and understanding required to conduct professional research in neurodiversity, clinical, child development, or other fields.
• Integrate research perspectives from the fields of developmental psychology, neurodiversity, clinical and educational psychology.

---

Description:

The MSc in Developmental Psychopathology focuses on advanced research training for students interested in careers related to research, developmental psychology, neurodiversity, and clinical or educational psychology. The program provides subject-specific and generic postgraduate training, enabling students to develop research skills, knowledge, and understanding required for professional research in various fields. The curriculum emphasizes research training, integrating research perspectives from developmental psychology, neurodiversity, clinical, and educational psychology. This unique focus is reflected in the learning outcomes, structure, and assessment of the course.

---

Outline:

---

Program Content:

• Core Modules:
• Advanced Developmental Psychology Review: Teaches skills in creating and delivering literature reviews, analyzing key topics in developmental psychology, research skills, data handling, writing styles, and presentation methods.
• Critical Research Practice: Provides the knowledge and skills required to design, conduct, and communicate research in psychology, ensuring ethical research practices and developing analytical skills to evaluate research findings.
• Research Design in Child and Clinical Psychology: Introduces the methods and design used in child and clinical psychology, offering practical training in transferable skills for professional and personal development.
• Current Issues in Developmental Psychology and Psychopathology: Provides in-depth knowledge of current theoretical stances and methodological issues within the fields of developmental psychology and neurodiversity, fostering a broad understanding of typical development and various development pathways.
• Statistics for Psychology and the Behavioural Sciences: Teaches core statistical methods used in psychology and the behavioral sciences, developing confidence in identifying and applying appropriate statistical techniques and proficiency in statistical programming.
• Advanced Statistics for Psychology and the Behavioural Sciences: Provides a deeper understanding of advanced statistical methods used in psychology and the behavioral sciences, enabling students to identify and apply appropriate statistical techniques.
• The Dissertation: Enables students to design, implement, analyze, and discuss an empirical research project relevant to their field of study, applying theoretical knowledge and gaining experience in collaboration, research, and project management.
• Program Structure:
• One-year full-time program.
• Summer term dedicated to dissertation-related activities.
• Approximately 12 hours of lectures, tutorials, and seminars per week.
• Independent study is crucial, requiring self-directed learning and prior knowledge of the topic area.
• Individual Modules:
• Each module is worth 20 credits.
• Assessments vary by module and include essays, presentations, research papers, and dissertation.
• The dissertation is worth 60 credits and requires independent research and writing under the supervision of a staff member.

---

Teaching:

• Teaching methods: Lectures, seminars, and workshop classes.
• Balance of activities: Varies by module.
• Lectures: Provide key information on specific topics in typical and atypical development.
• Seminars: Smaller group teaching with focused discussions on specific topics.
• Workshops: Offer direct experience, particularly in using statistical tools.
• Faculty: Leading experts in their specialisms, providing outstanding supervision for postgraduate learning and research.

---

Careers:

• Career opportunities:
• Consultants
• Advisors
• Human resources professionals
• Talent managers
• Business analysts
• Market researchers
• Public relations professionals
• Marketeers
• Administrators
• Managers
• Civil servants
• Coaches
• Trainers
• Teachers
• Clinical and healthcare settings
• Skills developed:
• Analysis
• Problem-solving
• Transferable skills
• Knowledge relevant to careers in psychology

---

Other:

• The program is designed for students with a 2:1 in Psychology or Psychology-related subject.
• International students without the required qualifications may be eligible for a pre-Masters pathway course at the Durham University International Study Centre.
• The Department of Psychology provides state-of-the-art technical, clinical, and experimental facilities to support postgraduate work.
• The Department of Psychology is located near many academic departments and University services and within walking distance of Durham’s historic city center, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

---

Full Time Fees

---

Tuition fees

Home students £13,600 per year EU students £29,900 per year Island students £13,600 per year International students £29,900 per year The tuition fees shown are for one complete academic year of full time study, are set according to the academic year of entry, and remain the same throughout the duration of the programme for that cohort (unless otherwise stated).