Siobhan Thomas ~ MA Applied Psychology (Mental Health)

I chose this course because of the focus on preparing for a career in clinical psychology and I find that it has given me so much in the way of education and practical experience for my future career

It seems that this year has flown by; my MA in Applied Psychology (Mental Health) is nearing its end, which is bittersweet. On one hand, it has been a very tough year and I will be glad to be able to say that it’s all done. On the other hand, the course turned out to be everything I’d hoped for. I chose this course because of the focus on preparing for a career in clinical psychology and I find that it has given me so much in the way of education and practical experience for my future career. I’ve been able to get a more in-depth understanding of mental health issues and the role of psychology in providing interventions and strategies. I’ve also had the opportunity over this year to meet some amazing people. The level of support in my class is like nothing I’ve experienced before; there’s always someone there if you’re stuck on an assignment or if you just need to vent about how stressful everything is!

With almost all of my assignments handed in and lectures finished, all that’s left for me on this course is my placement and my dissertation. The placement aspect of this course is an amazing opportunity for students looking to pursue a career in clinical or counselling psychology. Getting to spend six months in a mental health setting is a great learning experience because you get to learn by doing. My placement is with the Psychology Service in the Irish Prison Service and I’m loving the experience of getting to understand how a psychology service is run and what working in psychology entails. The placement aspect of this course was a huge driving factor in my choice of course, and I’m delighted to say that it is everything that I thought it would be.

Something that I’ve learned over the course of this year is how respected this particular course is, and how many past students on the course have gone on to get great Assistant Psychologist jobs or have gotten onto competitive Doctoral programmes. I will be very proud to be able to say that I did my MA in the School of Applied Psychology in UCC, and hope that all I’ve learned over this year will help in my own path towards becoming a Clinical Psychologist.

Siobhan Thomas

MA Applied Psychology (Mental Health)

To find out more about the MA in Applied Psychology (Mental Health), please click here