Overview

NFQ Level 9, Major Award

Exit Award only

Students on the MA (Applied Psychology) (Mental Health) programme who have completed and passed modules to the value of at least 60 credits in Part I and who fail or do not wish to proceed to Part II may opt to exit the programme and be awarded a Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Psychology (Mental Health).

Placements

While sufficient placements will be secured for all students on the programme, if a student chooses not to accept the placement offered by the School of Applied Psychology, it will then become their responsibility to secure an alternative placement for themselves which meets with the School of Applied Psychology placement criteria for MA (Applied Psychology) (Mental Health). Placements may be located throughout the Republic of Ireland. 

Students failing the Placement may, with the approval of the programme team, be permitted to either extend or repeat the Placement. Students may repeat the placement only once in a repeat year. 

Students failing or not completing the placement because of a serious ethical breach as per placement contract will not be permitted to repeat the placement.

If a student is deemed unsuitable to continue a placement for any reason other than an ethical breach, they may be permitted to complete 20 credits of taught Postgraduate Applied Psychology modules instead plus the 30 credit dissertation and exit with an MA in Psychology.

All placements will be supervised in a work setting relevant to the programme of study. Placements will run two days a week (usually Thursdays and Fridays) for at least six months (340 hours minimum). 

Programme Requirements

For information about modules, module choice, options and credit weightings, please go to Programme Requirements. 

Programme Requirements

Module List

Code	Title	Credits
Students take 60 credits as follows:
Core Modules
AP3119	Psychological Therapies	5
AP6023	Psychological Assessment	5
AP6060	Advanced Issues in Quantitative Research Methods	5
AP6061	Qualitative Research Methods and Data Analysis	5
AP6128	Introduction to Psychotherapeutic Skills	5
AP6174	Clinical Presentations (Child, Adolescent, Adult, and ID)	10
AP6180	Mental Health and Disability Placement 1	20
LW6616	Critical Perspectives on Mental Health Law	5
Total Credits		60

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See the Placements section on the Overview tab.

Examinations

Full details and regulations governing Examinations for each programme will be contained in the Marks and Standards Book and for each module in the Book of Modules.

Programme Learning Outcomes

Programme Learning Outcomes for Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Psychology (Mental Health) (NFQ Level 9, Major Award)

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

• Understand the discipline of psychology and its value in mental health contexts;
  
• Critically appraise psychological research and practice;
  
• Know the professional and ethical issues that may arise in the application of psychology in mental health contexts;
  
• Utilise the principles of applied psychological practice, gained through coursework, in mental health placements;
  
• Develop an adequate level of knowledge and competence with working practices in the area of mental health.