Psychology with Education [with Placement year]

Learn to understand people's behaviour, emotions and thoughts, with a particular focus on educational psychology.


• Study specialist modules on education and educational psychology



• Bring the world of work to life through Live Briefs; designed and developed with regional employers to give you exposure to ‘real world’ problem-solving.



• Explore world-leading research with 98% of our Psychology research being recognised as internationally significant (REF 2021).



• We offer support with the cost of living, and Psychology courses deliver compressed teaching across three days of the week, freeing your time for work experience.



As a student at ARU, you’ll explore all the different facets of psychology including applied, social and clinical psychology, cognitive neuroscience and biological psychology. You’ll broaden your understanding of educational psychology through specialist modules on educational psychology, atypical development, inclusion, special educational needs and developmental difficulties.

You’ll also complete a compulsory work experience module, giving you the opportunity to gain essential applied experience to support and enhance your graduate career.

At ARU, you’ll learn from expert lecturers who are actively engaged in psychological research. You’ll have the opportunity to take advantage of our specialist state-of-the-art facilities too, including laboratories for measuring electrical activity in the brain, eye movement, psychoneuroimmunology, emotions and communication, psychometrics, and much more.

Outside of the lab, there's the opportunity to join regular seminars from guest speakers and take an optional placement year where you’ll gain valuable experience in the field of psychology. For example, students have completed their placement at the Gretton School for children with a diagnosis of autism.

After graduation, you’ll be ready to continue your professional training and prepare for a career in educational psychology or an allied profession in teaching, education or mental health. One of the attractions of this degree is the wide range of career prospects available to graduates beyond what is commonly thought of as a psychology profession, such as a career within education, social work, human resources, police, probation, marketing and the NHS, just to name a few.

Most educational psychologists gain experience working with children and young people in an education, health, social care or childcare setting between completing their undergraduate degree and starting their doctoral training. There is high competition for places on doctoral training programmes, so any additional experience will help your application stand out.

The Association for Educational Psychologists in the UK recommends getting some experience, either in a paid job or as a volunteer, perhaps during holiday periods, of working with children and young people in an education, early years, residential care or special educational needs setting.

Successful applicants for the Doctorate in Educational Psychology typically have experience working as teachers, social workers, assistant psychologists, classroom assistants, teaching assistants, learning mentors, residential care workers, and early years workers, amongst other types of work.

At ARU, you’ll be supported from day one with wellbeing services, money advice and careers guidance to help you through university and beyond.

Their courses are built around the skills and experience employers value. ARU are proud to be in the top 20% of UK universities for teaching quality (TEF 2023), and ranked #1 in the East of England, and #8 in the UK, for UG graduates in senior roles 15 months after gradudation (Graduate Outcomes Survey 2025). You'll have access to fantastic facilities thanks to £95m of investment - think SuperLabs, TV studios, law courts, mock hospital wards, gaming studios and more.

Wherever you're heading, ARU will help you get there.