Business Psychology MSc

What makes Business Psychology at Worcester special?

This Masters course is perfect for managers, HR professionals who want to apply different psychological approaches to their work and take their career to the next level.

Our MSc Business Psychology is open to students with a non-BPS accredited psychology degree or non-psychology related degree. You'll be taught by psychology experts, engaging with the major theories and models to see how they can be implemented in your workplace.

Overview

Key features

Designed to develop the key knowledge and skills required for a career in: personnel assessment, selection and training, the design of work environments, implementation of training interventions and management of careers
Guest speakers from a range of organisations, such as psychometric test publishers, occupational psychology consultancies and independent consultants
Develop your skill and knowledge through practical consultancy-style tasks, that demonstrate the application of theory and research to practice
Learn about the work carried out by Business Psychologists within organisations and about different psychological approaches to workplace issues

Register your interest

Enter your details below and we will keep you up to date with useful information about studying at the University of Worcester.

Entry requirements

Business Psychology MSc is open to students with a 2:2 Honours degree in a Psychology (non-BPS accredited) degree or a related subject (e.g. Business Management, Human Resource Management). Applications from those with a nonrelated subject will also be considered. Professional experience within Business Psychology is not a requirement for entry to this course.

Other information

If you have any questions about entry requirements, please contact the Admissions Office on 01905 855111 or email admissions@worc.ac.uk for advice.

Course content

Our courses are informed by research and current developments in the discipline and feedback from students, external examiners and employers. Modules do therefore change periodically in the interests of keeping the course relevant and reflecting best practice. The most up-to-date information will be available to you once you have accepted a place and registered for the course. If there are insufficient numbers of students interested in an optional module, this might not be offered, but we will advise you as soon as possible and help you choose an alternative.

Advanced Research Analysis	This module aims to consolidate undergraduate research abilities, and equip the student with the skills necessary to undertake Masters level research. As a core module of the course, research design and advanced statistical analysis are covered, using both quantitative and qualitative methods.
Psychological Assessment at Work	This module introduces the student to the means of fulfilling the organisational need to have people in work positions who either have the characteristics required for effective performance of the tasks of a job or have the capacities for relevant learning and development.
Work Design, Organisational Change and Development	This module will introduce the student to a range of factors affecting organisational effectiveness including the design of working environments, the consideration of risk management, organisational change and development strategies and contemporary themes within consumer psychology.
Learning, Training and Development	This module introduces the student to procedures designed to bring about learning and development in individuals, including the acquisition of skills and the development of work related competence, employability and attitudes, through training, career planning and coaching.
Wellbeing and Work	This module introduces the student to the link between well-being and work from both individual and organisational perspectives. Mental and physical health will be considered explicitly, with a focus on the psychological evidence base for relevant interventions.
Leadership Engagement and Motivation	This module introduces the student to the wide range of theories of leadership, engagement and motivation in the workplace, and their relationship with approaches to performance including management systems, relations between management and employees, organisational commitment and perceptions of fairness.
Professional Skills Development	This module introduces you to range of professional skills linking to career development. Overall models for reflection on evidence-based practice and also tools and techniques for gathering, analysing and feeding back data in organisational contexts.
Dissertation	The Dissertation is designed to allow the student to carry out a major piece of empirical research in an applied setting, based on the foundation of their course, for example Business/ Occupational Psychology Masters students will be expected to carry out their Dissertation in an organisational setting.

Teaching and assessment

The University places emphasis on enabling students to develop the independent learning capabilities that will equip you for lifelong learning and future employment, as well as academic achievement. A mixture of independent study, teaching and academic support through the personal academic tutoring system enables you to reflect on progress and build up a profile of skills, achievements and experiences that will enable you to flourish and be successful.

Teaching

You are taught through a combination of on-campus lectures and self-directed study tasks. All lectures are held on a Friday and Saturday, the date depends on your module choice. The days involve engaging with different learning activities, such as lectures, practical tasks (individual and/or group), discussion and reflection.

In addition, meetings with your allocated personal academic tutor and your research supervisor are scheduled when required and in line with the module handbook.

Contact time

The programme is taught across two-day blocks on a Friday and Saturday, each 15 credit module being four days in total, and the 30 credit module being eight days in total. Full time students complete all eight taught modules across two semesters, four modules per semester, plus the dissertation within a third semester in one academic year. Part time students select which modules and how many they want to complete in each year, with their dissertation in the final year.

Independent self-study

In addition to the contact time, full time students are expected to undertake around 24 hours of personal self-study per week. Part time students are expected to undertake around 6 hours of personal self-study per module per week. Typically, this will involve further reading on each module and additional reading and research to complete each module's assessments. Assessments may consist of written essays, individual presentations, poster presentation and case study work.

Independent learning is supported by a range of excellent learning facilities, including the Hive and library resources, the virtual learning environment, and extensive electronic learning resources. There is also additional reading and resources on the module's Blackboard site, which will be available once you register for the module.

Teaching staff

You will be taught by a teaching team whose expertise and knowledge are closely matched to the content of the modules on the course. The team includes Occupational Psychologists, Researchers, Academics, Counselling Staff and Consultants/Practitioners.

Teaching is informed by the research and consultancy, and all of our lecturers are practitioners with significant training and skills in their area of expertise.

Assessment

The precise assessment requirements for an individual student in an academic year will vary according to the mandatory and optional modules taken, but a typical formal summative assessment pattern, for a full-time student on both sites, for each year of the course is:

Semester 1

1 Research proposal
1 Analysis of statistical data
1 Design of a training programme
1 Design of a selection process1 Reflective log

Semester 2

1 Case study
1 Group presentation
1 Seen exam
1 Consultancy report
1 Reflective log

Semester 3

Dissertation

Feedback

You will receive feedback on practice assessments and on formal assessments undertaken by coursework. Feedback is intended to support learning and you are encouraged to discuss it with personal academic tutors and module tutors as appropriate.

We aim to provide you with feedback on formal course work assessments within 20 working days of hand-in.

Programme specification

For comprehensive details on the aims and intended learning outcomes of the course, and the means by which these are achieved through learning, teaching and assessment, please download the latest programme specification document.

Andy Cole - Business Psychology MSc

I started my MSc in Business Psychology on a part time basis as a mature student. I had already been working in business consulting for a number of years, and had always been interested in psychology. I wanted to combine my passion with a profession.

I needed to study flexibly to suit my varied work pattern. I also wanted a direct relationship between what I studied and what I did. For me, I would be a better consultant by learning psychology, and a better psychologist by working in consultancy. I am really happy to say that this was the case; each module I took had a direct relationship to my work and my tutors always encouraged me to apply my learning in a practical context.

I achieved much more support from my personal tutor than I ever expected; this was really helpful both in terms of learning how to engage academically at masters level and for giving me real direction in my career.

Since graduating, I have been able to work across a broader field of psychology than before and have accessed more specialist work. My tutor also encouraged me to submit my dissertation research to conferences. I ended up as a finalist in the Association of Business Psychology’s 2016 Conference Workplace Awards and have also submitted papers to academic journals for publication.

I think I am a better social scientist and do a better job for my clients than ever before. Thank you Worcester!

Careers

Employability

Our courses will equip you for employment within a diverse range of organisations. Business Psychologists work in training, environments, recruitment, coaching, organisational change, management, consultancy and in academic research and teaching.

Many Business Psychologists are employed within the public sector, such as the Police, Civil Service Commission, Department for Work and Pensions, Ministry of Defence, HM Prison Service and the NHS.

Students who have completed our programmes have gone on to work in the following areas:

Management within organisations
Coaching
Human resources
Psychology, management or recruitment consultancy
Psychometric testing
Health and wellbeing within the NHS
Counselling
PhD study

The structure and content of the programme allows students to gain skills that are valued by employers and help them to find their chosen career.

Many of our students use the Dissertation as a springboard into their chosen research area, with a large number of our students continuing their studies at PhD. All students are encouraged and supported to submit their work to national conferences.

Fees and funding

Full-time tuition fees	UK and EU students The standard tuition fee for full-time home and EU students enrolling on MA/MSc/MBA/MRes courses in the academic year 2025/26 is £9,450 per year. For more details, please visit our course fees page.	International students The standard tuition fee for full-time international students enrolling on MA/MSc/MBA/MRes courses in the academic year 2025/26 is £17,900 per year. For more details, please visit our course fees page.
Part-time tuition fees	UK and EU students The standard tuition fees for part-time home and EU students enrolling on MA/MSc/MBA/MRes/PGCert/PGDip courses in the academic year 2025/26 are £788 per 15-credit module, £1,575 per 30-credit module, £2,363 per 45-credit module, and £3,150 per 60 credit module. For more details, please visit our course fees page.	International students The standard tuition fees for part-time international students enrolling on MA/MSc/MBA/MRes courses in the academic year 2025/26 are £1,492 per 15-credit module, £2,983 per 30-credit module, £4,475 per 45-credit module, and £5,967 per 60 credit module. For more details, please visit our course fees page.
Additional costs	Every course has day-to-day costs for basic books, stationery, printing and photocopying. The amounts vary between courses. If your course offers a placement opportunity, you may need to pay for an Enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check.
Accommodation	Finding the right accommodation is paramount to your university experience. Our halls of residence are home to friendly student communities, making them great places to live and study. We have over 1,000 rooms across our range of student halls. With rooms to suit every budget and need, from our 'Traditional Halls' at £131 per week to 'Ensuite Premium Halls' at £228 per week (2025/26 prices). For full details visit our accommodation page.
Postgraduate loans	The Government will provide a loan of up to £12,471 if your course starts on or after 1 August 2024 per eligible student for postgraduate Masters study. It will be at your own discretion whether the loan is used towards fees, maintenance or other costs. For more details visit our postgraduate loans page.

Full-time tuition fees

UK and EU students

The standard tuition fee for full-time home and EU students enrolling on MA/MSc/MBA/MRes courses in the academic year 2025/26 is £9,450 per year.

For more details, please visit our course fees page.

International students

The standard tuition fee for full-time international students enrolling on MA/MSc/MBA/MRes courses in the academic year 2025/26 is £17,900 per year.

For more details, please visit our course fees page.

Part-time tuition fees

UK and EU students

The standard tuition fees for part-time home and EU students enrolling on MA/MSc/MBA/MRes/PGCert/PGDip courses in the academic year 2025/26 are £788 per 15-credit module, £1,575 per 30-credit module, £2,363 per 45-credit module, and £3,150 per 60 credit module.

For more details, please visit our course fees page.

International students

The standard tuition fees for part-time international students enrolling on MA/MSc/MBA/MRes courses in the academic year 2025/26 are £1,492 per 15-credit module, £2,983 per 30-credit module, £4,475 per 45-credit module, and £5,967 per 60 credit module.

For more details, please visit our course fees page.

Additional costs

Every course has day-to-day costs for basic books, stationery, printing and photocopying. The amounts vary between courses.

If your course offers a placement opportunity, you may need to pay for an Enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check.

Accommodation

Finding the right accommodation is paramount to your university experience. Our halls of residence are home to friendly student communities, making them great places to live and study.

We have over 1,000 rooms across our range of student halls. With rooms to suit every budget and need, from our 'Traditional Halls' at £131 per week to 'Ensuite Premium Halls' at £228 per week (2025/26 prices).

For full details visit our accommodation page.

Postgraduate loans

The Government will provide a loan of up to £12,471 if your course starts on or after 1 August 2024 per eligible student for postgraduate Masters study. It will be at your own discretion whether the loan is used towards fees, maintenance or other costs.

For more details visit our postgraduate loans page.

How to apply

Please make your application via our online application form. If you have any questions, please contact our admissions office or the course leader using the details below.

Apply now for a January or September start.