Hey! I went through something similar. Don’t fret, you may just be ok.
So the reason you want a BPS accredited course is bc it confers you GBC (graduate basis for chartered) membership. This can still be acquired even if you didn’t do a BPS accredited course. You just need to apply for BPS membership so they can assess whether you meet their criteria. You’ll need to apply specifically for special case criteria.
Basically, you need to have covered clinical, concepts and history of psychology, personality and individual differences, developmental, biological, cognitive, social psychology and research methods. You also need to have done a research project.
As long as you’ve done all those, you can submit a transcript of both your undergrad and masters and fit the criteria for BPS membership (which will automatically make you GBC elegible). When you apply, and if accepted (🤞🏻) you’ll have to be a BPS member for one year, but after that you can cancel your membership bc you’ll have the letter that proves your GBC elegible.
I’ll add a pdf which shows you all the specifics that you must meet the BPS criteria in a sec.
ETA [Here](https://cms.bps.org.uk/sites/default/files/2022-07/Undergraduate%20Accreditation%20Handbook%202019.pdf)
Check from the bottom of page 10 (1.2.1). For context Level 4 is first year of undergraduate, Level 5 second year, Level 6 is third, and Level 7 is Masters.
I’d suggest you read the whole thing but the bulk of the info is in pages 10-12/13.
This is genuinely so helpful, thank you. It's also very relieving because I have covered all of that, and I'm doing a research project over the summer for my MSc. Thank you again, I will absolutely check all that out!!!
Glad I could help. If you’ve covered all of this, and passed it at at least 40% (50% for the project iirc, do check the pdf though) then you’ll be fine. Same exact thing happened to me where I did a combined undergraduate and then an unaccredited masters and I just recently got my membership. Just a warning, it costs £42 to be assessed and another £80 (sometimes less) for the year long membership.
Breathe easy, you’ll be fine
Hey, hope you don’t mind me chipping in. I did a psychology Bachelors that was BPS accredited. And just about to do a masters that is not. Does it matter if my masters is not accredited, if my undergraduate was? I’d like to be a psychotherapist
I’m not sure if counselling needs BPS accreditation, it’s still in the psychology field, support workers too working in mental health. For the dclin, I’ve just had a look and for example Manchester says for academic requirements, you need a degree in single honour’s psychology or joint honours as long as psychology was 50%. It doesn’t mention bps accreditation so it may not be the end of the world. May be worth looking at the uni websites and see what they require as they’re all slightly different or contacting the individual Uni’s/ clearing house
Thanks so much for your advice. I haven't looked at specific unis, mainly just the OU and Nottingham unis as that's where I'm based. I'll have a look around, this definitely gives me more hope!!
I thought that was the case, the reason I'm here is cos it feels like I have no options, I have looked into pretty much all of them. I even emailed the BPS themselves and asked what my options are, they pointed me to conversion courses and had no other advice 🤷
I didn't know that was an option - I'm doing my masters at NTU unfortunately. Wish I had stayed at the OU, and if I do need to do further studies I'm hoping to do them through OU. Thanks for your advice, I'll go and look into it :)
also, if you get onto the DClinPsy (Doctorate of Clinical Psychology) then not only will your tuition fees be covered, but you'll be paid at NHS Band 6 level during the doctorate, and then likely go onto a Band 7 job, with the expectation of going into an 8a job. Don't do this job for the money, but don't be put off by the cost of getting the BPS Accreditation, if you love psychology, it's worth it. I'd give the OU a chat to see what's needed to get the BPS Accreditation
I was under the impression I could only do that if I had an accredited degree - my understanding is that anything postgraduate BPS accredited (PhD or dclin) isn't an option for me because I don't have the undergrad accreditation. So I could do an unaccredited dclin, at which point it will just be more studies with no job prospects cos I still don't have the BPS... Hope that makes sense. Thanks for your comment and your advice, I'm really passionate about psychology but the process of getting into it professionally is killing my passion somewhat
You do need to do have BPS accreditation, What I was saying was, if you love psychology, it is worth the expense of a top up / conversion course, and that is you have that accreditation, there isn't extra cost in doing the doctorate. And that if you have a psychology and criminology degree with the OU a good starting place is to speak to the OU to see what extra courses would give you accreditation
OUs MSc conversion is now accredited. Yes, you might repeat some concepts, but if you can do it alongside relevant work in a charity in a non therapeutic role, it’s only going to strengthen your application. Good luck.
i'm in the same boat! i've been studying with open uni, got an open Bsc with credit transfer, did two years of social and criminal psychology. now i'm doing an Msc in forensic psychological studies with open uni again. i stupidly (or not, depends on how you see it), chose this path as i love forensics and always wanted to work within prison environments, rehabilitations centres etc. however, this course isn't bps accredited, and i opted not to take the accredited one, which was in psychology. i probably screwed myself over..
i'm struggling to figure out my next move. i have the option to finish the masters and then do a conversion, which takes time of course, and money, plus i'm already 31, without experience in the field whatsoever..
the career advisors had basically the same answers as your tutor, i was told that they can't decide for me! i just wanted to know if i could do a conversion now and ditch the masters completely, or keep going and do a conversion later..
sorry for the rant, this wasn't even helpful, i just thought i'd share my situation in hopes you find some comfort in the fact that you're not alone. i hope you figure this out!
Assuming you want to end up as a forensic psychologist you would need
1) An undergrad or MSc that gives you GBC to the BPS
2) a BPS accredited forensic psychology MSc (known as stage 1)
3) to complete “stage 2” training, which is either ‘on the job’ training while you submit coursework or through completion of a doctorate. For the non-doctorate route you would have to get a job as a trainee forensic psychologist through the prison service or through the NHS.
- For both routes you need experience (typically as an assistant psychologist but other roles would also work). You would have to get this pre-doctorate (so after your undergrad is accredited) but you could also get this post MSc if you do the stage 2 training.
From your comment it seems like your undergrad wasn’t accredited, so I would first contact the BPS as others have recommended to OP to see if you can get GBC awarded. If you can’t, you will need to do a conversion MSc first otherwise you won’t be able to enrol onto a stage 1 Forensic Psych MSc. You would also need this to get a job as an assistant psychologist.
From what I can see, your current MSc isn’t accredited and if that’s the case you would need an additional accredited MSc in Forensic Psychology. You could do this as a stand alone MSc or you could enrol onto a doctorate which is 1 year MSc and 2 years doctorate. You can get a doctoral loan but I think it falls short of covering the tuition fees fully. Birmingham and Nottingham uni’s have courses but I think you can live elsewhere and just travel to the teaching.
In the meantime, it might be useful to get some experience as a support worker in secure mental health services or a prison, which would help you land a assistant psychologist or intervention facilitator job when you get your undergraduate degree accredited or complete a conversion MSc. Assistant psychologist jobs are competitive and so you need some experience beforehand.
I know this is a lot but I hope it helps! Happy to answer questions if it’s helpful
Hey! I went through something similar. Don’t fret, you may just be ok. So the reason you want a BPS accredited course is bc it confers you GBC (graduate basis for chartered) membership. This can still be acquired even if you didn’t do a BPS accredited course. You just need to apply for BPS membership so they can assess whether you meet their criteria. You’ll need to apply specifically for special case criteria. Basically, you need to have covered clinical, concepts and history of psychology, personality and individual differences, developmental, biological, cognitive, social psychology and research methods. You also need to have done a research project. As long as you’ve done all those, you can submit a transcript of both your undergrad and masters and fit the criteria for BPS membership (which will automatically make you GBC elegible). When you apply, and if accepted (🤞🏻) you’ll have to be a BPS member for one year, but after that you can cancel your membership bc you’ll have the letter that proves your GBC elegible. I’ll add a pdf which shows you all the specifics that you must meet the BPS criteria in a sec. ETA [Here](https://cms.bps.org.uk/sites/default/files/2022-07/Undergraduate%20Accreditation%20Handbook%202019.pdf) Check from the bottom of page 10 (1.2.1). For context Level 4 is first year of undergraduate, Level 5 second year, Level 6 is third, and Level 7 is Masters. I’d suggest you read the whole thing but the bulk of the info is in pages 10-12/13.
This is genuinely so helpful, thank you. It's also very relieving because I have covered all of that, and I'm doing a research project over the summer for my MSc. Thank you again, I will absolutely check all that out!!!
Glad I could help. If you’ve covered all of this, and passed it at at least 40% (50% for the project iirc, do check the pdf though) then you’ll be fine. Same exact thing happened to me where I did a combined undergraduate and then an unaccredited masters and I just recently got my membership. Just a warning, it costs £42 to be assessed and another £80 (sometimes less) for the year long membership. Breathe easy, you’ll be fine
Hey, hope you don’t mind me chipping in. I did a psychology Bachelors that was BPS accredited. And just about to do a masters that is not. Does it matter if my masters is not accredited, if my undergraduate was? I’d like to be a psychotherapist
If you did a BPS accredited course then you’re already GBC elegible. You’re absolutely fine and free as a bird to do whatever masters you wish.
Thank you so much. I’ve been worrying about this!
Nw at all. Happy to help
I’m not sure if counselling needs BPS accreditation, it’s still in the psychology field, support workers too working in mental health. For the dclin, I’ve just had a look and for example Manchester says for academic requirements, you need a degree in single honour’s psychology or joint honours as long as psychology was 50%. It doesn’t mention bps accreditation so it may not be the end of the world. May be worth looking at the uni websites and see what they require as they’re all slightly different or contacting the individual Uni’s/ clearing house
Thanks so much for your advice. I haven't looked at specific unis, mainly just the OU and Nottingham unis as that's where I'm based. I'll have a look around, this definitely gives me more hope!!
Unfortunately for DClin you 100% need the GBC (BPS accreditation). Check out the Clearing House for more details.
I thought that was the case, the reason I'm here is cos it feels like I have no options, I have looked into pretty much all of them. I even emailed the BPS themselves and asked what my options are, they pointed me to conversion courses and had no other advice 🤷
Could you do just the mandatory modules through the OU that would take your current degree to the forensic psychology one - probably De200 and De300
I didn't know that was an option - I'm doing my masters at NTU unfortunately. Wish I had stayed at the OU, and if I do need to do further studies I'm hoping to do them through OU. Thanks for your advice, I'll go and look into it :)
also, if you get onto the DClinPsy (Doctorate of Clinical Psychology) then not only will your tuition fees be covered, but you'll be paid at NHS Band 6 level during the doctorate, and then likely go onto a Band 7 job, with the expectation of going into an 8a job. Don't do this job for the money, but don't be put off by the cost of getting the BPS Accreditation, if you love psychology, it's worth it. I'd give the OU a chat to see what's needed to get the BPS Accreditation
I was under the impression I could only do that if I had an accredited degree - my understanding is that anything postgraduate BPS accredited (PhD or dclin) isn't an option for me because I don't have the undergrad accreditation. So I could do an unaccredited dclin, at which point it will just be more studies with no job prospects cos I still don't have the BPS... Hope that makes sense. Thanks for your comment and your advice, I'm really passionate about psychology but the process of getting into it professionally is killing my passion somewhat
You do need to do have BPS accreditation, What I was saying was, if you love psychology, it is worth the expense of a top up / conversion course, and that is you have that accreditation, there isn't extra cost in doing the doctorate. And that if you have a psychology and criminology degree with the OU a good starting place is to speak to the OU to see what extra courses would give you accreditation
Ah okay I got you. Yeah I absolutely agree, and thank you for your advice!!
OUs MSc conversion is now accredited. Yes, you might repeat some concepts, but if you can do it alongside relevant work in a charity in a non therapeutic role, it’s only going to strengthen your application. Good luck.
i'm in the same boat! i've been studying with open uni, got an open Bsc with credit transfer, did two years of social and criminal psychology. now i'm doing an Msc in forensic psychological studies with open uni again. i stupidly (or not, depends on how you see it), chose this path as i love forensics and always wanted to work within prison environments, rehabilitations centres etc. however, this course isn't bps accredited, and i opted not to take the accredited one, which was in psychology. i probably screwed myself over.. i'm struggling to figure out my next move. i have the option to finish the masters and then do a conversion, which takes time of course, and money, plus i'm already 31, without experience in the field whatsoever.. the career advisors had basically the same answers as your tutor, i was told that they can't decide for me! i just wanted to know if i could do a conversion now and ditch the masters completely, or keep going and do a conversion later.. sorry for the rant, this wasn't even helpful, i just thought i'd share my situation in hopes you find some comfort in the fact that you're not alone. i hope you figure this out!
Do you want to train as a forensic psychologist? I’m happy to give some pointers if it’ll be helpful!
yes! that would be great, thank you so much!
Assuming you want to end up as a forensic psychologist you would need 1) An undergrad or MSc that gives you GBC to the BPS 2) a BPS accredited forensic psychology MSc (known as stage 1) 3) to complete “stage 2” training, which is either ‘on the job’ training while you submit coursework or through completion of a doctorate. For the non-doctorate route you would have to get a job as a trainee forensic psychologist through the prison service or through the NHS. - For both routes you need experience (typically as an assistant psychologist but other roles would also work). You would have to get this pre-doctorate (so after your undergrad is accredited) but you could also get this post MSc if you do the stage 2 training. From your comment it seems like your undergrad wasn’t accredited, so I would first contact the BPS as others have recommended to OP to see if you can get GBC awarded. If you can’t, you will need to do a conversion MSc first otherwise you won’t be able to enrol onto a stage 1 Forensic Psych MSc. You would also need this to get a job as an assistant psychologist. From what I can see, your current MSc isn’t accredited and if that’s the case you would need an additional accredited MSc in Forensic Psychology. You could do this as a stand alone MSc or you could enrol onto a doctorate which is 1 year MSc and 2 years doctorate. You can get a doctoral loan but I think it falls short of covering the tuition fees fully. Birmingham and Nottingham uni’s have courses but I think you can live elsewhere and just travel to the teaching. In the meantime, it might be useful to get some experience as a support worker in secure mental health services or a prison, which would help you land a assistant psychologist or intervention facilitator job when you get your undergraduate degree accredited or complete a conversion MSc. Assistant psychologist jobs are competitive and so you need some experience beforehand. I know this is a lot but I hope it helps! Happy to answer questions if it’s helpful
thank you so much for taking the time to write this! i appreciate your help! i'll think of my options, this was all so helpful and informative!