University of Staffordshire

Who Can Apply

We are unable to consider applications from:

• Those with incomplete qualifications at the time of application that cannot be confirmed to the course by the end of January.
• Those who have received NHS funding for other training within 2 years of completing that training. See NHS funding for psychological professions training programmes for more details.
• International applicants who do not have Home Fees Status.
• Self-funding applicants.

Academic

You need to demonstrate:

• A good honours degree (2:1 or 1st) in Psychology. (We do not consider applicants with a 2:2 in their original degree).
• Where your first degree is not in Psychology, you must have a minimum 2:1 in your original degree, supported by a recognised conversion course in Psychology.
• Eligibility for Graduate Basis for Chartered membership (GBC) with the British Psychological Society.
• If your first language is not English and your university courses were not taught and examined in English, you will need an IELTS score of 7.5 with no element below 6.5.  This applies to all university courses (Undergraduate and Masters level Conversion courses).

Clinical

Applicants must have a minimum of one year full-time equivalent (FTE) applied experience relevant to clinical psychology. This may include relevant research experience.

We are currently reviewing our selection process, and we recommend checking our web site for further updates on selection criteria and screening.

References / Suitability Statements

• You must provide two supportive references/suitability statements: one academic and one clinical.
• References/suitability statements will be checked as part of our screening process.
• Any application received not conforming to the following guidance will not be considered further.

Academic Suitability Statement

The person you nominate to write your Academic Suitability Statement:

• Must be able to comment on your academic ability.
• Should be from an academic institution at which you have studied.
• Must ideally have direct experience of your academic performance. However, we recognise that it may not always be possible to obtain an academic reference from the most suitable candidate (e.g., due to staffing changes since you studied at the institution) and in this instance, efforts should be made to identify an appropriate alternative.
• If it isn’t possible to identity an appropriate referee, for instance, due to the time that has passed since your most recent engagement in academic studies, you may provide an alternative. However, this person must be appropriately skilled to comment on your ability to manage the academic requirements of Doctoral study. In this instance, the reason for nominating an alternative must be included in the Personal Statements section of your application.

Experience Suitability Statement

The person you nominate to write your Experience Suitability Statement:

• Must have direct experience of and be able to comment on your performance in a role relevant to clinical psychology (which may include research).
• Must be from your most recent experience or current employer. If this is not possible, you must include the reason for this in the Personal Statements section of your application.

Documents required

Your application must include a document confirming your GBC status and the following:

• Undergraduate degree TRANSCRIPT
• Undergraduate degree CERTIFICATE
• Conversion course TRANSCRIPT (if completed)
• Conversion course CERTIFICATE (if completed)
• Any other Postgraduate degree TRANSCRIPT (if completed)
• Any other Postgraduate degree CERTIFICATE (if completed)

Advice for your application

All applicants should be able to demonstrate: 

• A commitment to clinical psychology as a profession
• An alignment to the values of the NHS constitution
• Awareness of the role of society and context in wellbeing and distress and a critical approach to diagnosis
• A commitment to equity and inclusion
• A commitment to meaningful service user involvement
• A willingness to engage in reflective practice

International applicants

Due to funding arrangements, we cannot consider applications from international candidates. Home fees status is required. Please see our Funding page for more details.

If your first language is not English and your university courses were not taught and examined in English, you will need an IELTS score of 7.5 with no element below 6.5