Doctor of Clinical Psychology (DClinPsy)

About the course

3 years full time

Train to be a clinical psychologist. This doctoral programme involves learning in both the workplace and the classroom. It is designed to meet the needs of local health services and will give you the skills, knowledge and experience to give excellent patient care.

Entry requirements

You need a 2:1 or first-class honours degree in psychology, with evidence of eligibility for the British Psychological Society's (BPS) Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC). A 2:2 degree may be considered if you can show other successful academic or relevant achievements, like a higher degree or research experience.

If you have knowledge and experience of other cultures or minority groups, you’re particularly encouraged to apply. Relevant experience working in a caring role, preferably associated with clinical psychology, is an advantage. A current driving licence is highly desirable.

You'll also need some direct experience of conducting a research project either at undergraduate level or in subsequent work. EU applicants should have already made enquiries concerning GBC, be prepared to attend a selection interview and provide a commitment to continue to work within the UK, preferably the local region.

Entry requirements for international students 

Course content

The course is made up of:

• day-release teaching
• mini teaching blocks (one or two weeks long)
• clinical placements

Year one

You'll attend an introductory block of academic teaching and clinical skills training. This is followed by two five-month placements that focus on core skills and individual work, separated by a two-week mini block. During term time, you'll be at the University for one or two days a week.

Years two and three:

You'll be at the University for one day each week. The remaining four days are set aside for private study (one day) and clinical work (three days). The second year involves two five-month placements, while the third year involves two five-month placements with some choice of specialisms.

In the third year, your specialisms run in conjunction with learning needs and competency development, and may be combined. Each placement except the final one is preceded by a two-week teaching mini block, designed to prepare you for the following placement.

Assessment

Academic–clinical projects (three in total) conducted whilst on placement. These include:

• A literature review
• A single case study
• A service evaluation project
• A series of written short answer questions based on directed readings
• Case studies (four in total)
• Research thesis

Clinical competence is assessed at the end of each placement by your clinical supervisors. They will give you a rating and make an overall recommendation of pass or fail to the course examiners, who have the final decision.

Fees and funding

Fees are contract based – please enquire directly with the department.

Financial information for postgraduate taught courses

Any questions?

If you'd like to know more about any aspect of our courses, contact us:

E: dclinpsy-admissions@sheffield.ac.uk

Where your masters can take you

You'll develop the skills and knowledge for all sorts of careers. Many of our graduates continue to PhD level. Others work as research associates and assistant psychologists.

Others work as research associates and assistant psychologists. DClinPsy students have sessions in the final year preparing them for employment and for the job interview process. Throughout your course, you’ll have frequent reviews with your tutor to discuss your learning needs and objectives.

Throughout your course, you'll have frequent reviews with your tutor to discuss your learning needs and objectives.

Applying psychology in the real world

Our ongoing collaborative projects with hospitals, mental health care units, the police and prison service, and several leading firms in business and industry will show you how psychology can be applied in the real world.

You'll also benefit from our research excellence. We don't just focus on one or two specialisms – with active researchers in most areas of psychology, we are consistently one of the highest-ranked research departments in the UK.

We're one of the top psychology departments in the UK for research.

Our facilities

Whatever your particular interest, we have the facilities. We have extensive facilities for research in health and social psychology. There is also a Clinical Psychology Unit laboratory for infancy research.

To give you the right tools for your research, there is a fully equipped neuroscience unit with excellent facilities for brain imaging, neuroanatomy, electrophysiology, behavioural neuroscience and computational neuroscience. We have two small-bore MRI devices and access to the University’s fMRI facility for human studies.

The Clinical Psychology Unit

Seventeen academic and clinical staff are involved in wide-ranging research programmes, training and consultancy, working closely with local NHS Trusts. You can train as a clinical psychologist with the pre-registration Doctor of Clinical Psychology (DClinPsy) course.

Apply now

Apply through Clearing House for Postgraduate Courses in Clinical Psychology:

Clearing House for Postgraduate Courses in Clinical Psychology