Key information

Duration: 1 year full time or 2 years part time

Institution code: R72

Campus: Egham

UK fees*: £14,900

International/EU fees**: £29,300

The course

Clinical Psychology (MSc)

Explore the complexities of the human mind. MSc Clinical Psychology offers an in-depth understanding of mental health, focusing on the assessment and treatment of psychological disorders.

You’ll study clinical assessment, therapeutic interventions, and the principles of evidence-based treatments. Learn from our award-winning educators through a mix of seminars, lectures, and research-led teaching. Gain both academic knowledge and practical skills.

Royal Holloway’s Department of Psychology offers strong expertise in applied neuroscience that is supported by a range of neuroscience technology and equipment to enrich your learning and research. Get hands-on experience with techniques used in clinical settings.

Understanding the mind

Conduct clinical assessments and learn to apply evidence-based therapeutic interventions in clinical settings
Understand the biological, psychological, and social factors influencing mental health
Engage in research and interpret complex data, while developing communication skills for working with clients and professionals

Your future in the field

Graduates are well-prepared for careers in clinical psychology, mental health services, and research. This course also opens up the opportunity for further study in doctoral clinical psychology programmes or academic research.

We sometimes make changes to our courses to improve your experience. If this happens, we’ll let you know as soon as possible.

Course structure

Core Modules

The module will cover a variety of topics in adjustment and well-being delivered by experts on the topics and practitioners. These will include measurement of well-being, antecedents and consequences of well-being, ill-being and health psychology. Some example topics include materialism and well-being, delusions, and adjustment of personal values to life transitions.
In this module you will develop an understanding of many of the key research techniques that are used in social, health, forensic, clinical and developmental research. You will look at both qualitative and quantitative research techniques, covering forms of data collection such as questionnaires, online data, interviewing and focus groups, observational research methods, computerised cognitive measures, and social neuroscience techniques. You will also consider other forms of data analysis, including grounded theory, interpretative phenomenological analysis, thematic analysis, content analysis, and the use of secondary data and meta-analytic and systematic review techniques.
In this module you will explore instruments that mental health professionals use to assess patients, as well as assess evidence-based treatment approaches to disorders.
In this module you will explore the concepts, theories and professional practices that clinical and counselling psychologists must be aware of, such as increasing awareness of health care structures (e.g. NHS), concerns surrounding the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, controversies in diagnosis, and communication skills.
In this module you will develop an understanding of the main statistical methods used in psychology research. You will look at basic descriptive statistics before covering more complex techniques, including analysis of variance, analysis of covariance, correlation analysis, and simple and multiple regression. You will examine advanced statistical methods, such as structural equation modelling and factor analysis. You will gain hands-on experience in applying these methods of analyses to actual datasets and problems using statistical software, considering their respective strengths and weaknesses, and what type of problems each approach is best suited to address.
You will be provided with the possibility to complete a systematic review or to carry out an original piece of research on a topic of your interest within the broad area of clinical psychology. You will be given the necessary support during the conception, conduct and writing up of your research.
This module will describe the key principles of academic integrity, focusing on university assignments. Plagiarism, collusion and commissioning will be described as activities that undermine academic integrity, and the possible consequences of engaging in such activities will be described. Activities, with feedback, will provide you with opportunities to reflect and develop your understanding of academic integrity principles.

Optional Modules

Below is a taster of some of the exciting optional modules that students on the course could choose from during this academic year. Please be aware these do change over time, and optional modules may be withdrawn or new ones added.

The module aims to help students understand the challenges but also benefits of conducting research in applied settings, as compared to laboratory settings. After discussing general opportunities and challenges in conducting psychological research in applied settings, the module will cover a variety of topics in applied psychology delivered by experts on the topics and practitioners. These may vary each year, but can include selected topics in organisational psychology, forensic psychology, educational psychology, counselling psychology, and applied social psychology. Some example topics include eyewitness testimony in the court, parenting interventions, and understanding donations.
Seminars will adopt an interactive, discussion-based style, focused around a topical research paper or a wider issue relating to psychological science. The topics for discussion will be drawn from a broad range of research areas, including neuroscience, cognition and social psychology. Many of the discussions will be student-led, and the topics for these sessions will reflect individual students’ particular areas of interest. The taught module will be complemented by a series of departmental research seminars, through which students will be able to hear about the latest research from a variety of external speakers.
In this module you will develop an understanding of cognitive, social and neuroscience approaches to forensic psychology. You will look at social approaches to different victim and offender groups, the neuroscience of psychopathy, interviewing victims, physiological approaches to deception, detection, and the role of eyewitness identifications in the legal system. You will also examine receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis and confidence relationships as they apply to decision makers and estimator and system variables.
The placement is designed to give you the opportunity to gain practical work experience to enhance your CV for future applications to jobs in the health sector or to undertake PhD-level study. You will be responsible for securing a placement that aligns with your individual career plans, but will provided with support by the Department of Psychology and the Careers and Employability Service.

Teaching & assessment

Teaching and learning is delivered primarily through sessions lasting between one-and-a-half and five hours. These typically combine seminar discussions with practical exploration or workshops. Where possible, these will be student-led, with participants encouraged to devise exercises engaging with the relevant issues and to direct fellow-students in these experiments.

We place emphasis on group discussion and the development of independent thought and analysis appropriate to carry out an independent piece of research of high quality, in an area of interest to you. In some contributing modules, you will give oral presentations which form part of the formative assessment. Summative assessment is usually by extended essay, although there are written exams for modules focussing on methodology and statistics.

Entry requirements

2:1

Single honours or joint honours Psychology degree or a related Social Science degree with evidence of having taken and passed methodological and statistics training at degree level.

Acceptable Social Science disciplines include: Demography, Area and Development Studies, Economics, Economics and Social History, Education, Environmental Planning, Human Geography, Linguistics, Management and Business Studies, Politics and International Relations, Science and Technology Studies, Social Anthropology, Social Policy, Social Work, Social Statistics Methods and Computing, Socio Legal Studies, Sociology.

International & EU requirements

Bachelor degree from the American University of Armenia or a Specialist diploma with 85% overall.

Bachelor degree (Honours) with a 2:1 or a Bachelor degree (Ordinary) with a Credit.

Bachelor degree or Fachhochschuldiplom/Diplom (FH) with a Grade 2.9 overall.

Bachelor degree (Bakalavr) or Specialist Diploma with 4.2 out of 5 or 80% overall.

4 year Bachelor degree from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) with a First Class Division or a Masters Degree following a 3 or 4 year degree.

Bachelor degree with grade 14 overall or the Licentiaat or Licence and other two cycle diplomas with grade 14 overall.

Diploma Visokog Obrazovanja Diploma Visokog Obrazovanja / Diplomirani with Grade 9.

Bakalavar or Diploma of Completed Higher Education with a Grade 4.5 out 6 overall.

4 year Bachelor degree with 73%, a GPA 3.1 out of 4, Grade 8 out of 12 or grade B overall OR 3 year Bachelor degree with 80%, a GPA of 3.5 out of 4, Grade 10 out of 12 or grade B+ overall, depending on the grading scheme.

4 year Bachelors degree with an overall 75% to 80% or GPA of 3.0 to 3.2 out of 4.0 depending on the institution.

4 out of 5 overall in the Baccalaureus Prvostupnik or Visoko Obrazovanja/Level VII/1 (second level degree obtained on completion of 4-6 year course).

Overall 8 out of 10 or a GPA of 3.5 out of 4 in a Bachelor degree from a public university, Ptychion (from University of Cyprus) or Bachelor degree awarded by a private institution (the programme must be accredited by the Ministry of Education and Culture).

Bakalar with Velmi dobre (excellent) or Grade B overall.

8 to 10 from 13 points grading system or 7 to 10 from 7 points grading system in a Bachelor degree, Candidatus Philosophiae or Professionbachelor.

University bachelors degree with a GPA of 3.0 overall or 75% overall

85%, 3.5 or B overall in a Bakalaurusekraad/Diploma, Magister or Magistrikraad

GPA of 2 where marks are in 1 - 3 system or GPA of 3.25 where marks are in 1 - 5 system in a Kandidaattii/Kandidat or Maisteri/Magister.

Licence awarded from 2009 with grade 13 or Maitrise (pre-Bologna) with grade 13.

Grade 2.3 overall in a Bachelor, Fachhochschuldiplom or Magister Artium.

Bachelor degree with a Second Class Upper Division overall.

7 out of 10 overall in a Diploma from the Faculties of Engineering and Agriculture or a Ptychion (Bachelor degree) awarded by an AEI.

Bachelors degree degree with a Second Class Honours, Upper Division.

Egyetemi Oklevel /Foiskola Oklevel/ Alapfokozat with 4 out of 5 overall.

Baccalaurreatus with grade 7.5 out of 10 overall or Kandidatsprof / Cadidatus Mag with 7 out of 10 overall.

Bachelor degree with 60% to 65% overall or a CGPA of 6.0 to 6.5 out of 10 overall depending on the institution.

Bachelor degree or Diploma IV with overall GPA of 3.0.

Bachelor Degree/Professional Doctorate with 15 out of 20 overall.

Bachelor’s degree (four years) with 75% overall.

Bachelors degree with at least 85% overall depending on the mark scheme.

Diploma di Laurea or Licenza di Accademia di Belle Arti with 94 out of 110 overall.

Bachelor degree (Gakushi) with a B+ overall, dependent on the mark scheme.

Bakalavr or Specialist Diploma with 4 out of 5, 80% or 3.33 out of 4.33 overall.

Bachelor degree with a Second Class Honours (upper division) overall.

Bachelor degree with B+ or a GPA of 3.33 overall.

Bakalaura Diploms or Professional Bakalaura Diploms with Grade 7.5 overal

Bachelor’s degree (4 years) with 80% or a score of 15 out of 20

Dipl Ing (FH) or Dipl Arch (FH) from Liechtenstein Technical College with a Grade 5.5 overall.

8 out of 10 overall in a Bakalauras or Specialist Diploma.

Bachelor degree, Diplome d?Ingenieur Industriel or Dipl?me d'?tudes Sup?rieures Sp?cialis?es with 45 out of 60 or 16 out of 20 (Tres Bien) overall.

Bachelor degree with Class 2 Division i, B+ or 3.0 out of 4.0 overall.

Honours degree with a Second Class (Upper Division) overall.

Bachelor degree or Doctoraal with Grade 7.0 out of 10 overall.

Bachelor degree Honours or Ordinary with an overall Grade B or Grade 5 out of 9 points grading system.

Bachelor degree with a Second Class Honours, First Division or overall GPA of 3.5 out of 5.

Visoko Obrazovanja with 8.5 out of 10 overall

Bachelor degree, Candidatus Magisterii, Sivilingeni?r (siv. ing.) (Engineering degree ) or Sivil?konom (siv. ?k.) (Economics degree) Grade B or 1.6 to 2.5.

Bachelor degree with an overall GPA of 3.3.

4 year Bachelor degree or combined bachelors degree and Master degree for the duration of 4 years with 60% - 68% or a CGPA of 3.0 ? 3.5 overall depending on your institution.

Licencjat, Inzynier or Bachelor with grade 4.21 overall.

Diploma de Estudos Superiores Especializadoswith grade 16 overall or Licenciado with grade 16 overall.

Bachelor degree with an overall GPA of 3.3 overall.

Diploma de Licenta, Diploma Inginer or Diploma de Arhitect with 8.0 out of 10 overall.

Bakalavr Bachelor degree or Specialist Diploma with 4 out of 5 or 80% overall.

Bachelor degree with 75%, 3.5 out of 5.0 or 3.0 out of 4.0 overall.

Diplom Visokog Obrazovanja (second-level degree obtained on completion of a four to six-year course) with 8.5 out of 10 overall.

Bachelor degree (from a public university) with a Class II (upper) overall.

Bakalar or Magister / Inzinier with v?born? (excellent) or Grade 1.5 overall.

Diplomirani / Diplomirani Inzenir from Visoko izobrazevanje, University Diploma or Visoko Obrazovanja (until 1999) with 7.5 out of 10 (9 for Visoko Obrazovanja) overall.

Bachelor (Honours), Bachelor or Professional Bachelor degree with 70% or Second Class Upper Division.

Bachelor (Haksa) degree with 3.25 out of 4.5, 3.1 out of 4.3 or 3.0 out of 4.0.

Licenciado, Titulo de Ingeniero or Titulo de Arquitecto 7 out of 10.

Bachelor degree from National University or Private University with 73% to 78% or GPA 3.0 to 3.2 depending on your institution.

Bachelor degree with a 2nd Class Honours (Upper) overall.

Bachelor degree GPA 2.8 to 3.0 depending on your institution.

Bachelor degree (post 2007) or Specialist Diploma (after 1991) with a Grade 2, Excellent, 11 out of 12 or 4.5 out of 5 overall.

Bachelor degree with 85%, a GPA of 3.0 out of 4, B or Very Good overall.

Bachelor degree with a GPA of 3.2 overall.

Kandidatexamen with at least a Pass with distinction (val godkand) overall.

Bachelor degree or Bang tot nghiep dai hoc with 7.0 out of 10.

English language requirements

IELTS: 6.5 overall. No subscore lower than 6.0.
Pearson Test of English: 61 overall. Writing 61. No other subscore lower than 54.
Trinity College London Integrated Skills in English (ISE): ISE III.
Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) grade C.
TOEFL iBT: 88 overall with Reading 22 Listening 20 Speaking 22 Writing 24.
Duolingo: 120 overall and no sub-score below 115.

Your future career

Graduate with a Masters degree in Clinical Psychology at Royal Holloway, University of London and you’ll be well-placed to progress to further postgraduate study or to a rewarding career in mental health.

Please note that this MSc does not lead to a professional qualification as a clinical psychologist, nor does this guarantee you entry onto a Clinical Psychology doctorate programme.

Royal Holloway's Department of Psychology is one of the most highly regarded psychology departments in the country, and we work hard to provide our students with the help and advice they need to achieve their postgraduate career ambitions. We hold annual ‘Meet the Grads’ events where students can get help and advice from our successful alumni, while a dedicated online forum provides students with the information they need to prepare for postgraduate life. We also have close links with local organisations including the Macular Society, Southern Addictions Advisory Service and Bishop Creighton House to provide rewarding placement opportunities.

Fees, funding & scholarships

Home (UK) students tuition fee per year*: £14,900

EU and international students tuition fee per year**: £29,300

Other essential costs***: There are no single associated costs greater than £50 per item on this course.

How do I pay for it? Find out more about funding options, including loans, grants, scholarships and bursaries.

* and ** These tuition fees apply to students starting their course on a full-time basis in the academic year 2026/27. Students studying on the standard part-time course structure over two years are charged 50% of the full-time applicable fee for each study year.

Royal Holloway reserves the right to increase all postgraduate tuition fees annually. For further information, see fees and funding.

** These estimated costs relate to studying this particular degree at Royal Holloway during the 2026/27 academic year, and are included as a guide. Costs, such as accommodation, food, books and other learning materials and printing, have not been included.