Doctorate in Clinical Psychology

This module introduces you to the theoretical foundations and key skills that will be needed for your first clinical placement. There is a particular emphasis on establishing an understanding of, and competences in, assessing and formulating clinical casework from cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) perspectives and introducing students to alternative evidence-based practice (EBP) models. 

This module provides you with the theoretical foundations to understand the phenomenology of problems commonly referred to clinical psychology services. You will develop the key skills for planning and delivering cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) interventions with individual clients, based specifically on models of engagement and change of CBT and other psychological evidence-based practice models.

These modules span the full first year of the programme and account for one clinical placement experience. It is designed to support you to apply learning in the first-year taught modules (CPS & TWI) by establishing core clinical skills. You will learn to make theory-practice links and to assessment, formulate and intervene with psychological distress. You will get experience of the NHS services in which clinical psychology is practiced and you will learn, initially by observation, the role of a practicing clinical psychologist.

This module lays the foundation for the research component of the programme by introducing students to:

• the most influential study designs used in clinical psychology
• theoretical and practical aspects of systematically searching relevant literature to answer specific clinical and research questions
• and conducting applied research in healthcare settings

In the first part of the module you will develop:

• a defensible plan for a doctoral-level research project
• skills for writing formal research proposals for university and/or NHS ethics committees, including principles of ethical research and the requirements of the HCPC, BPS and other bodies as appropriate
• literature searching and synthesis skills

You'll also have an opportunity to further your research project by undertaking a systematic review of the literature in their chosen area of interest. The systematic literature review results in a publicat