Business and Organisational Psychology MSc

Study level: Postgraduate
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Studied on campus or 100% online, this MSc course will help to understand and apply psychological and behavioural factors relating to individuals and organisations in the workplace.

Year of entry

Location

Coventry University (Coventry)
100% online study

Study mode

Full-time
Part-time

Duration

1 year full-time
2 years part-time

Course code

HLST272 (on campus)
HLST282 (online)

Start date

January 2025
May 2025


Course overview

Through practical case studies, you will explore the individual, team and organisational factors that can affect workplace behaviours. These include decision-making, personnel selection, motivation and teamwork, as well as the techniques needed to manage such situations.

  • The course aims to provide you with a thorough grounding in the theory and practical skills required to apply psychological research, business tools and methods within a variety of organisational settings and corporate cultures.
  • You will explore learning business psychology-related techniques to promote individual workplace wellbeing and organisational success.
  • It aims to prepare you for business and organisational psychology roles in management or consultancy, in human resources and the many other occupational functions. These could include learning, training and development, recruitment, health and wellbeing.
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Rated Gold Overall

Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) 2023

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5 QS Stars for Teaching and Facilities

QS Stars University Ratings

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Top 5 Student City in England (Coventry)

QS Best Student Cities Index 2025

Why you should study this course

  • Accredited1 by the Association for Business Psychology (ABP).
  • Taught by academics, many of whom benefit from practitioner experience either as a Business Psychologist or through consultancy-based work (staff may be subject to change).
  • Dedicated consumer psychology module, which provides a critical understanding of consumer behaviour and applied marketing and advertising practice.
  • Opportunity to develop an evidence-based practice intervention plan as an outcome of a systematic literature review.
  • The opportunity to attend professional business conferences, which have previously included the National Work and Wellbeing Conference or the Workplace Sustainability Conference2 (subject to availability and additional costs may apply).

Accreditation and professional recognition

This course is accredited1 and recognised by the following professional bodies:

Association for Business Psychology

Association for Business Psychology

The course is accredited by the Association for Business Psychology (ABP) and aligns to their standards and codes of practice.


CMI Chartered Management Institute

Chartered Management Institute

The course currently includes the  Chartered Management Institute (CMI) accredited module, Leading Strategic Change through Creativity and Innovation. Upon successful completion of the module, you will gain the CMI Level 7 Certificate in Strategic Management and Leadership Practice at no additional cost. Further details can be found on the Professional Development module homepage.



What you'll study

The main study themes of this course are:

  • Work and Wellbeing: An introduction to employee wellbeing, based in applied theory and practice looking at workplace behaviours and issues, such as work life balance, stress and bullying, performance coaching and counselling including emotional triggers, mental and physical health symptoms related to the workplace, disorders and potential coping strategies and interventions. 
  • Psychological Assessment at Work: The principles, theories, methods and legal issues concerning recruitment, selection and assessment.
  • Learning, Training and Development: How to design, implement and evaluate training programmes according to the context and requirements. Consumer Psychology: Provides an overview of consumerism and buyer behaviour, marketing research linked to the psychological concepts of consumer decision-making. Considering how to reach consumers effectively, through an exploration of their behaviours and attitudes and effective advertising.
  • Leadership, Engagement and Motivation: The concepts of leadership, power and influence and their impact on employee engagement and motivation.
  • Consultancy/Management:  How to critically evaluate and develop solutions to complex, inter-related, multi-faceted issues that can be found in a variety of organisations and professional contexts.

Modules

We regularly review our course content, to make it relevant and current for the benefit of our students. For these reasons, course modules may be updated.


How you'll learn

This course can be taken either on campus or completely online and can be studied over three semesters in one year as a traditional full-time master’s programme or can be offered on a part-time basis.

The on campus version of the course shares the same learning platform as the online students and students are supported with workshops designed to apply the knowledge gained via applied and practical sessions. Online students benefit from the opportunity to attend synchronous online sessions.

The course takes a digitally rich teaching and learning approach and will consist of a mixture of the following methods:

  • Interactive lectures
  • Seminars
  • Workshops
  • Guest lecturers

Study on campus

Explore our campus

Study 100% online

How online learning works

This course can be offered on a part-time basis. Whilst we would like to give you all the information about our part-time offering here, it is tailored for each course each year depending on the number of part-time applicants. Therefore, the part-time teaching arrangements vary. Request further information about part-time study.


Teaching contact hours

In a typical teaching week you will have around six contact hours of teaching. Later in the course you will have 10 hours (total) of project supervision.

Teaching is typically organised as two-hour sessions for 20-credit modules and one-hour sessions for 10-credit modules, incorporating engagement on our digital platform with content material and applying learning in associated workshops.

In addition, you will be expected to undertake approximately a further 25-28 hours of self-directed study each week, for example, completing the recommended reading that accompanies your lectures, working on coursework assignments and taking part in group work.

The contact hours may be made up of a combination of face-to-face teaching, individual and group tutorials, and online classes and tutorials.

As an innovative and enterprising institution, the university may seek to utilise emerging technologies within the student experience. For all courses (whether on-campus, blended or distance learning), the university may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via online technologies and methods.

Since COVID-19, we have delivered our courses in a variety of forms, in line with public authority guidance, decisions, or orders and we will continue to adapt our delivery as appropriate. Whether on campus or online, our key priority is staff and student safety.


Assessment

This course will be assessed using a variety of methods which will vary depending upon the module.

Assessment methods include:

  • Essays
  • Consultancy reports
  • Practical reports
  • Systematic literature review
  • Evidence–based intervention plan

The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.


Entry requirements

Typical offer for 2024/25 entry.

The criteria for entry are:

  • an honours degree in a relevant subject (e.g. Psychology, Business or Social Science)
  • 2:1/2:2 or first class award.

Applicants who do not meet one or both of the two criteria above but have relevant experience will also be considered for entry on an individual basis.

We recognise a breadth of qualifications, speak to one of our advisers today to find out how we can help you.

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Select your region to find detailed information about entry requirements:

You can view our full list of country specific entry requirements on our Entry requirements page.

Alternatively, visit our International hub for further advice and guidance on finding in-country agents and representatives, joining our in-country events and how to apply.

Typical entry requirements

The criteria for entry are:

  • an honours degree in a relevant subject (e.g. Psychology, Business or Social Science)
  • 2:1/2:2 or first class award.

Applicants who do not meet one or both of the two criteria above but have relevant experience will also be considered for entry on an individual basis.

English language requirements

  • IELTS: 6.5 overall, with no component lower than 5.5

If you don't meet the English language requirements, you can achieve the level you need by successfully completing a pre-sessional English programme before you start your course. 

For more information on our approved English language tests visit our English language requirements page.

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Fees and funding

2024/25 tuition fees.

Student Full-time Part-time
UK, Ireland*, Channel Islands or Isle of Man £9,350   Request fee information
EU £9,350 per year with EU Support Bursary**
£18,600 per year without EU Support Bursary**
Not available
International £18,600   Not available

For advice and guidance on tuition fees3 and student loans visit our Postgraduate Finance page.

We offer a range of International scholarships to students all over the world. For more information, visit our International Scholarships page.

Tuition fees cover the cost of your teaching, assessments, facilities and support services. There may be additional costs not covered by this fee such as accommodation and living costs, recommended reading books, stationery, printing and re-assessments should you need them.

The following are additional costs not included in the tuition fees:

  • Any optional overseas field trips or visits: £400+ per trip.

*Irish student fees

The rights of Irish residents to study in the UK are preserved under the Common Travel Area arrangement. If you are an Irish student and meet the residency criteria, you can study in England, pay the same level of tuition fees as English students and utilise the Tuition Fee Loan.

**EU Support Bursary

Following the UK's exit from the European Union, we are offering financial support to all eligible EU students who wish to study an undergraduate or a postgraduate degree with us full-time. This bursary will be used to offset the cost of your tuition fees to bring them in line with that of UK students. Students studying a degree with a foundation year with us are not eligible for the bursary.


Facilities

The on-campus course will take place at our Coventry University main campus.

  • Specialist teaching facilities4 include an observation suite, counselling rooms and specialist software, such as OpenSesame, Gorilla experiment builder, E-Prime, SPSS statistical analysis, Pinnacle Studio and NVIVO.

Careers and opportunities

A diverse and broad range of career opportunities have been the ‘next step’ for students completing the course. These have included CEOs who have gained the confidence to apply evidence-based practice to others who have careers as business consultants, leadership coaches, HR managers and training and development practitioners.

On successful completion of this course you should be able to:

  • Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the theoretical principles of Business and Organisational Psychology as applied in a business (occupational) setting, together with relevant psychological business analysis techniques
  • Critically evaluative psychological literature and apply research findings to professional practice
  • Demonstrate the appropriate application of ethical and codes of conduct, analysing complex employee-related issues and selecting appropriate intervention techniques to produce creative and effective business solutions
  • Produce consultancy reports based on theoretical concepts and knowledge in line with professional reporting standards in psychology
  • Evidence a range of transferrable and professional skills, thereby enhancing employment and promotion opportunities. These could include presentation; problem-solving; aptitude in literacy, numeracy and IT; working independently and with others to complete tasks effectively; excellent verbal and written communication; report writing; and self-management strategies to organise time and workloads.

Where our graduates work

Many of our graduates have gone on to work as independent business consultants for companies like Kellogg's and Ricoh UK. Graduates have also found employment as business consultants, in sales, in HR, and as learning, training and development, and leadership training practitioners.


How to apply

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