Psychology

  • PhD
  • MSc by research

Overview

Studying human behaviour in the School of Psychology and Neuroscience will give you the opportunity to be part of a vibrant postgraduate community and a world-class research department with more than 45 internationally recognised academic staff.

The programme aims to provide you with outstanding and cutting-edge training from the purest research into psychology to interdisciplinary research in a wide range of areas. These include advancing the frontiers of cognitive science into engineering or educational applications, investigating the neural mechanisms underlying human behaviours, and developing integrated interventions to improve health and wellbeing. Our postgraduate students are a very important part of the school's research culture and a key component in maintaining our international research reputation.

Current research areas can be found on the School of Psychology and Neuroscience Research page.

Entry requirements

A first or upper second-class honours degree (or international equivalent) in psychology or a related discipline is required for entry to the PhD and MSc by research programmes. 

See international equivalent qualifications on the International Office website.

Read the programme admissions statement for important information on entry requirements, the application process and supporting documents required.

Go to admissions statement

If English is not your first language, you will need to reach the requirements outlined in our profile level C.

Further information about English language requirements and profile levels.

Fees and funding

Home: full-time
£5,106 per year
Home: part-time
£2,553 per year
Overseas: full-time
£27,500 per year

Fees are subject to an annual review. For programmes that last longer than one year, please budget for up to an 8% increase in fees each year.

More about tuition fees, living costs and financial support.

Alumni discount

University of Bristol students and graduates can benefit from a 25% reduction in tuition fees for postgraduate study. Check your eligibility for an alumni discount.

Funding and scholarships

Students may be eligible to apply for funded scholarships, for example, doctoral training centre scholarships and University of Bristol scholarships. Details of these and other scholarship opportunities, such as the China Scholarship Council programme, are published on the School of Psychology and Neuroscience website and the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences website.

Further information on funding for prospective UK and international postgraduate students.

Career prospects

Many of our PhD graduates continue with a career in academia; others work in the private sector or in government institutions.
The School is committed to promoting the advancement of underrepresented groups in science, and we provide an environment that allows everyone to meet their full potential during their studies.

Meet our supervisors

The following list shows potential supervisors for this programme. Visit their profiles for details of their research and expertise.

p.allen@bristol.ac.uk;alex.anderson@bristol.ac.uk;angela.attwood@bristol.ac.uk;m.banissy@bristol.ac.uk;polly.barr@bristol.ac.uk;j.bowers@bristol.ac.uk;j.briscoe@bristol.ac.uk;jeff.brunstrom@bristol.ac.uk;fay.clark@bristol.ac.uk;p.collard@bristol.ac.uk;laura.contu@bristol.ac.uk;helio.cuve@bristol.ac.uk;bruna.dasilvanascimento@bristol.ac.uk;edwin.dalmaijer@bristol.ac.uk;m.damian@bristol.ac.uk;pscjd@bristol.ac.uk;anca.dobrescu@bristol.ac.uk;brandi.drisdelle@bristol.ac.uk;kayleigh.easey@bristol.ac.uk;danielle.ferriday@bristol.ac.uk;jessica.fielding@bristol.ac.uk;claire.garnett@bristol.ac.uk;i.d.gilchrist@bristol.ac.uk;craig.gunn@bristol.ac.uk;claire.haworth@bristol.ac.uk;dawn.holford@bristol.ac.uk;karla.holmboe@bristol.ac.uk;bruce.hood@bristol.ac.uk;c.jarrold@bristol.ac.uk;sarah.jelbert@bristol.ac.uk;c.kent@bristol.ac.uk;ute.leonards@bristol.ac.uk;stephan.lewandowsky@bristol.ac.uk;c.ludwig@bristol.ac.uk;kristopher.magee@bristol.ac.uk;olivia.maynard@bristol.ac.uk;laura.mickes@bristol.ac.uk;philip.newall@bristol.ac.uk;j.h.park@bristol.ac.uk;i.s.penton-voak@bristol.ac.uk;c.pleydell-pearce@bristol.ac.uk;s.quadflieg@bristol.ac.uk;n.e.scott-samuel@bristol.ac.uk;m.smyth@bristol.ac.uk;k.tsetsos@bristol.ac.uk;david.turk@bristol.ac.uk;robyn.wootton@bristol.ac.uk;lucy.yardley@bristol.ac.uk;

Research groups

Find out about all our research groups on our School of Psychology and Neuroscience website.