Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Sociology

Electives as listed are offered subject to resourcing scheduling requirements and the number of registrations which may vary from year to year. No commitment is given to offering any specific elective in any year.

In general, there are 50 places in total for the BSc and 30 places for the BA. Of these, for each course around 6 places will be dedicated to mature entry and access students. 

Accreditation is the official recognition of the degree by the professional psychological body in Ireland - the Psychological Society of Ireland - PSI.  Your degree must be accredited to allow you to pursue a career as a professional Psychologist.  Both the BSc and the BA are fully accredited by the PSI.   

Psychology has many subdisciplines, including developmental, biological, cognitive, personality and social psychology.  You will take modules in all of these areas and, in addition, from the start of the course you will undertake research methods training in the form of laboratory classes, statistics and group work. By the end of your course you will be able to undertake a piece of independent research in a topic of your choosing under the supervision of a member of staff. Programme structures for the B.Sc. and the B.A. are below.

Both degree programmes are four years long. Each term, students take five modules with associated tutorials, labs and coursework.  The subject matter is interesting and varied and although the course is demanding, students find it engaging and rewarding. 

During the degree students have the opportunity to spend six months in a 'co-op' work placement related to psychology. Previous placements have been in healthcare, research and overseas teaching in numerous countries across the globe.  The 'exchange' programme is a further six months spent in another university abroad.  While many students spend this in Europe, others travel to other parts of the world including the US and Canada.  During this placement students are encouraged to take classes in psychology, though their choice of subjects is much wider than this.  

Psychology is a broad subject, involving elements of biology and physiology, mathematics and statistics as well as sociology and philosophy.  However (other than the basic entry requirements for the course) we do not expect students to have taken particular subjects at Leaving Certificate level.  All the course material will be taught from first principles and covered exhaustively within the course.

Look at the careers open to psychologists and ask your guidance counsellor for further information.  Careers in psychology are varied, from Clinical and Counselling Psychology to Health Psychology, Educational Psychology and careers in psychological research.  Even if you do not want to pursue a career in psychology, bear in mind that a degree in psychology is very marketable and will provide you with transferable skills which employers will be keen to recruit.  The Psychological Society of Ireland offer Psychology Career Guidance.

Lectures on some modules will be open to other degree pathways.  However, methods classes and practical laboratory classes will be for psychology students only.

Mature applicants (over 23 years of age at application) apply directly through the CAO. Applications for the mature places on this course are judged on the basis of applicants' readiness to undertake a psychology degree. Previous life and work experience are considered, as is personal suitability for the course. Having some understanding of the subject and a clear career goal would also be an advantage. More information about mature and Access student applications can be found at the Admissions Office webpage. In general, six places on each course are reserved for mature and access students.

Mature student applicants relevant work experience:

Mature applicants are asked to write a short essay demonstrating 'readiness to study for a psychology degree.' Previous life or work experience will likely be relevant. In terms of previous work experience, very few applicants will have worked in a directly relevant area (as they usually need a psychology degree for this first). We look for the applicant to make a case for the relevance of their experience to the study of psychology. We wouldn't discourage anyone from applying if they haven't any directly relevant work experience, but we do encourage them to think about how they might present this in their application.