What Can Psychology Give You?

Studying Psychology at Massey

The options for studying psychology at Massey are diverse - and because it is a subject that is commenced at university, you don't need to have studied any special subjects at school. All you need is a logical mind and willingness to learn.

You can study psychology as a major in a Bachelor of Arts, a Bachelor of Science or a Bachelor of Health Science degree. You can complete a major in Business Psychology in a Bachelor of Arts. If you already have an undergraduate degree you can gain the equivalent of a major in Psychology through a Graduate Diploma in Arts or Sciences.

You can study psychology as an internal student at any of our three campuses – Albany, Turitea or Wellington; - or you can study as an extramural student. You can be registered in internal and extramural study at the same time if this suits you best. If you are planning to do postgraduate study in psychology, it is recommended that you take at least one extramural paper because postgraduate papers are delivered in a manner similar to extramural papers. They are taught in block mode which involves attending compulsory campuses course for short intensive periods of time, as this enables distance study for a number of postgraduate qualifications. You can choose between full time and part- time study, whichever suits your situation. You can change between campuses, between internal and extramural delivery or between full-time and part-time.

Extramural Study

The School of Psychology offers an extensive extramural programme, and it is possible to complete a BA, BHlthSc or BSc degree, or a Graduate Diploma, through extramural study. The two 100-level papers, 175.101 and 175.102, and five 200-level papers are available extramurally every year. The selection of 300-level papers varies from year to year. Most papers have contact courses associated with them, which are usually of two or three days duration. For further information see the Extramural Handbook, or the extramural web site - http://extramural.massey.ac.nz

Bicultural focus in the School of Psychology

As part of Massey University’s commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi (the Treaty of Waitangi), the School of Psychology is developing a bicultural focus as an integral part of the programmes offered. The Bicultural Committee and Maori staff play an important role in facilitating the development of this focus within the School. There are Tangata Whenua tutorials available at 100-level for Maori and Pasifika students at the Turitea campus in Palmerston North, and support tutorials for Maori undergraduates at all levels on the Albany Campus, Auckland. Turitea has Tuia te Mana Maori, a Maori Resource room, with study space, access to computers, and opportunities for whanaungatanga. At Albany, Te Puawaitanga is a support network for Maori students, which provides tutorial support for undergraduates, and is developing a research network for Maori graduate students. Across the School, a second year paper, Nga tirohanga rua o te taha hinengaro: Bicultural Perspectives in Psychology, is offered internally and extramurally, and Maori perspectives are included in several other papers. We expect that all participants in our programmes (both staff and students) will recognise that Psychology has an ongoing responsibility, through teaching and research programmes, to promote genuine Maori participation in the discipline in a manner consistent with Maori aspirations and processes. We anticipate building our capacity for bicultural knowledge and practice through active involvement of all staff and students.

Psychology graduates acquire a number of valuable transferable skills in their papers, which actually equip them to undertake a wide range of graduate careers.

Listed below are some of the skills in which psychology students are directly trained. None of them is unique to psychology, of course; but not many disciplines can offer so comprehensive a list. How often, for instance, do you find graduates who are simultaneously literate, numerate, computer-literate and good at problem-solving?

Literacy

The ability to write both succinct reports and more lengthy essays.

 

Numeracy

The ability to handle and interpret statistical information.

 

Computer Literacy

The ability to use a computer package, whether for word-processing or statistics; and the ability to learn to use new ones.

 

Interpersonal Awareness

Knowledge of the mechanisms of social communication and the potential sources of interpersonal conflict.

 

Environmental Awareness

The ability to identify different strategies and approaches to solving problems.

 

Information-finding Skills

Knowing how to go about looking for information on a particular topic or general area.

 

Critical Evaluation

The ability to appraise information and situations realistically, and to anticipate problems or difficulties.

 

Research Skills

Knowing how to go about gathering systematic information about human experience or behaviour.

 

Measurement Skills

Knowing how to go about designing questionnaires and developing other measurement tools.

 

Higher-order Analysis

The ability to extract general principles from immediate or concrete situations.

 

Many of our undergraduates fail to do justice to themselves in interviews because they freeze up when they come to the dreaded question: “And what do you have to offer us?” We would hope that our summary of useful skills will help you avoid similar situations when you graduate.

Adapted from: Hayes, N. (1989). The skills acquired in psychology degrees. The Psychologist, June, 1989, pp. 238–239.