Key takeaways
- Psychology students cover statistics, experiments, and theory
- Regular coursework and research projects required
- Expect lectures, seminars, and lab work
Before lectures

Lecture time!
I tend to arrive on campus around 9-10 am, spending the walk over mentally preparing myself for the day. I go straight to my lectures, as I’m not organised enough to leave enough time beforehand to study or get coffee!What I learn
Psychology courses are very varied. Through seminars and lectures, we learn about the many different areas of psychology, from social to clinical and developmental psychology. Of course, there are the dreaded statistics lectures as well. I’m yet to meet someone who enjoys those. It’s important to know that doing a psychology degree means you may not get much flexibility in what you study. This is because psychology degrees are usually accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS). It’s important to take a BPS-accredited degree as many postgraduate courses and clinical psychology programmes require you to have studied a BPS-accredited course. However, don’t worry – you still get to study a wide range of things! You’ll study many different areas of psychology (like the fields I’ve mentioned above), but if you’re interested you can read more about BPS-accredited courses here. My lectures are usually one to two hours long (although I have suffered through a fair few mammoth three-hour seminars in my time), so lectures take up most of my day. Luckily, I tend to have a break in between the chaos for lunch, which is spent eating, chatting with my friends, and telling myself I should really get started on that essay due next week. Maybe tomorrow. Aside from lectures and coursework, psychology students often have a lot of other things to be getting on with. Some universities may require you to either be a participant in psychological studies or help to carry them out yourself! Many psychology students who want to go into research after they graduate will take on internships where they help to carry out psychological studies. In your third year, you usually have to do a dissertation (as someone who’s halfway through their third year, wish me luck!), and so you’ll have commitments like dissertation meetings, data collection, and data analysis outside of your lectures and coursework.After lectures
On campus

Heading home!
After a long day of studying (and an awful lot of gossiping and chatting), I head home in the late afternoon or early evening. I debate getting a takeaway but tend to cook in an attempt to save some money. I often chat with my housemates as we cook together. This sounds very domestic. In reality it often involves us fighting to get the prime hob on the stovetop before someone else. What I do after dinner depends on my workload. As a general rule, I like to wrap up my work for the day before dinner so I can spend the evening relaxing and having fun. That is, unless I’m swamped, in which case I do end up doing a bit more studying. In the evenings, I like to socialise with my friends, take some time for my hobbies, or go to a society event. Most universities will have a psychology society, which is a really useful way to meet people on your course if you’ve been struggling to strike up conversations in lectures. I’m sure you’ve heard this before, but university societies in general are a really good way to meet new people who share your interests. Want to know what sort of societies to expect? You might want to check out our article about the weirdest, most wonderful university societies in the UK – Hummus Society, anyone? There’s no doubt psychology is a busy degree, with a lot of time spent in lectures and studying. Despite this, I find it very interesting and rewarding to study! If you’re still not sure whether you want to study psychology, or what university you want to study at, there are many other things you can do. Attending open days and looking at the course content at different universities are great ways of getting a feel for courses and universities.
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Authors
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Hi, my name is Lili and I am currently studying for a Psychology degree! When I'm not studying, I love swimming, reading and writing.
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Aminah is a dedicated content expert and writer at Unifresher, bringing a unique blend of creativity and precision to her work. Her passion for crafting engaging content is complemented by a love for travelling, cooking, and exploring languages. With years spent living in cultural hubs like Barcelona, Sicily, and Rome, Aminah has gained a wealth of experiences that enrich her perspective. Now based back in her hometown of Manchester, she continues to immerse herself in the city's vibrant atmosphere. An enthusiastic Manchester United supporter, Aminah also enjoys delving into psychology and true crime in her spare time.
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