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Psychology and Anthropology

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About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subjects

Psychology

Physical and biological anthropology

Course details
This British Psychological Society accredited degree explores what it means to be human, including our relationship to other species. You will be taught by staff who are leading researchers in their fields, including those with expertise in both subjects.
In psychology, you will study cognitive, biological, social and developmental perspectives. In anthropology, you will use primarily evolutionary and biological perspectives to inquire into the mind and behaviour of past and present human and primate populations. You will learn how anthropology and psychology provide both complementary and contrasting perspectives, plus the various quantitative and qualitative research methods used in both disciplines.
The interface of anthropology and psychology explicitly integrates intercultural, international and global issues. For example, both subjects address issues of cross-cultural diversity and representation in research.
In the first year, the core modules will give you a broad introduction to key methods, knowledge and theories in anthropology and psychology.
The second year continues to build on project design and research skills, broadens theory and topical knowledge (ensuring British Psychological Society accreditation), and explores the interface between psychology and anthropology.
The third year includes a dissertation that allows a deep exploration of a specific interdisciplinary research area, and the final psychology module required for BPS accreditation.

Course Structure
Year 1
Core modules:
Doing Anthropological Research
Human Evolution and Diversity
Introduction to Psychological Research

Examples of optional modules:
Being Human: An Introduction to the History and Practice of Anthropology
Peoples and Cultures
Health, Illness and Society
Introduction to Psychology.

Year 2
Core modules:
Conceptual Issues in Psychology and Anthropology
Research Project Design
Our Place in Nature
Advanced Psychological Research
Cognitive and Biological Psychology
Social and Developmental Psychology

Examples of optional modules:
Evolution, Variation and Adaptation
Sex, Reproduction and Love
Global Health and Disease
Anthropological Research Methods in Action
Environment, Climate and the Anthropocene.

Year 3
Core modules:
The Dissertation, a substantial research project in an interdisciplinary psychology and anthropology topic of your choice, allows a deep, independently driven exploration of a specific research area.

Differential and Clinical Psychology is the final module required for British Psychological Society accreditation. The module develops knowledge and understanding of theory and research in differential psychology, the study of psychological differences and similarities between people and understanding of theory and research in atypical and clinical psychology.

Examples of optional modules:
Anthropology of Physical Activity for Health
Evolutionary Medicine: Maternal and Infant Health
Evolution of Cooperation
Cultural Evolution of Music
Primates in Peril
Forensic Anthropology
Palaeoanthropology and Palaeoecology
Clinical Neuropsychology
Psychology in the Workplace
The Visual Brain
Criminological Psychology
Reward and Addiction.

Modules

Year 1
Core modules:
Doing Anthropological Research
Human Evolution and Diversity
Introduction to Psychological Research

Examples of optional modules:
Being Human: An Introduction to the History and Practice of Anthropology
Peoples and Cultures
Health, Illness and Society
Introduction to Psychology.

Year 2
Core modules:
Conceptual Issues in Psychology and Anthropology
Research Project Design
Our Place in Nature
Advanced Psychological Research
Cognitive and Biological Psychology
Social and Developmental Psychology

Examples of optional modules:
Evolution, Variation and Adaptation
Sex, Reproduction and Love
Global Health and Disease
Anthropological Research Methods in Action
Environment, Climate and the Anthropocene.

Year 3
Core modules:
The Dissertation
Differential and Clinical Psychology

Examples of optional modules:
Anthropology of Physical Activity for Health
Evolutionary Medicine: Maternal and Infant Health
Evolution of Cooperation
Cultural Evolution of Music
Primates in Peril
Forensic Anthropology
Palaeoanthropology and Palaeoecology
Clinical Neuropsychology
Psychology in the Workplace
The Visual Brain
Criminological Psychology
Reward and Addiction.

Assessment methods

Assessment on the BSc (Hons) Psychology & Anthropology degree varies by module, but may include written examinations, coursework in the form of essays, podcasts, museum displays and outreach activities, practical reports or research projects, and presentations, posters or articles aimed at the general public.

The Uni


Course locations:

College allocation pending

Durham City

Department:

Anthropology

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

74%
Psychology
75%
Physical and biological anthropology

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Psychology (non-specific)

Teaching and learning

83%
Staff make the subject interesting
90%
Staff are good at explaining things
78%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
52%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

68%
Library resources
85%
IT resources
82%
Course specific equipment and facilities
47%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

71%
UK students
29%
International students
19%
Male students
81%
Female students
95%
2:1 or above
2%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
A
A

Anthropology

Teaching and learning

92%
Staff make the subject interesting
86%
Staff are good at explaining things
83%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
74%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

82%
Library resources
92%
IT resources
74%
Course specific equipment and facilities
59%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

79%
UK students
21%
International students
26%
Male students
74%
Female students
88%
2:1 or above
8%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
A
A

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Psychology (non-specific)

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£19,400
high
Average annual salary
94%
low
Employed or in further education
59%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

15%
Business, research and administrative professionals
11%
Teaching and educational professionals
9%
Caring personal services

20 years ago, this was a specialist degree for would-be psychologists but now it is the model of a modern, flexible degree subject. One of the UK's fastest-growing subject at degree level, and the second most popular subject overall (it recently overtook business studies), one in 23 of all graduates last year had psychology degrees. As you'd expect with figures like that, jobs in psychology itself are incredibly competitive, so to stand a chance of securing one, you need to get a postgraduate qualification (probably a doctorate in most fields, especially clinical psychology) and some relevant work experience. But even though there are so many psychology graduates — far more than there are jobs in psychology, and over 13,800 in total last year — this degree has a lower unemployment rate than average because its grads are so flexible and well-regarded by business and other industries across the economy. Everywhere there are good jobs in the UK economy, you'll find psychology graduates - and it's hardly surprising as the course helps you gain a mix of good people skills and excellent number and data handling skills. A psychology degree ticks most employers' boxes — but we'd suggest you don't drop your maths modules.

Anthropology

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£19,450
med
Average annual salary
96%
med
Employed or in further education
60%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

27%
Business, research and administrative professionals
9%
Welfare and housing associate professionals
8%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals

This is a pretty flexible degree and a good one if you want to keep your options open. Just over 1,250 graduates completed anthropology degrees last year, and they were well spread out across a whole range of jobs — many industries have jobs that can be done by anthropology graduates and unlike a lot of degrees, there aren't many jobs we can point to and say ‘graduates from this degree do that job’. Management, marketing, housing and recruitment jobs are the most popular, though, and many graduates go into the education or social care sectors. Graduates are also rather more likely than average to work in London, or to go overseas to work. This is quite a popular subject at postgraduate level, and if you want to go into research, you'll need to think about postgrad study - and it's one of the few where numbers are on the up at the moment.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Psychology (non-specific)

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£21k

£21k

£27k

£27k

£31k

£31k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Anthropology

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£22k

£22k

£27k

£27k

£31k

£31k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

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Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

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