Covid-19 information and FAQs for applicants, students and staff >

Child Development - MSc

Mode of study: Full time, Part time
Start date: September 2021
Duration of Study: 1 year full-time or 2 years part-time

Subject Area: Natural Sciences, Psychology, Science
FEES (2021/22 academic year): UK - FT £9,000 / PT £4,950; EU/International - £16,500

Keele Postgraduate Enquiries Form

Please submit your question in the form below and a member our enquiries team will be in touch with you shortly.

Your Name

Date of Birth (dd/mm/yyyy)

Please provide a contact telephone number *

Country of Residence

Please indicate the level of study that you are interested in

Postgraduate TaughtPostgraduate Research

Select the Postgraduate Research course that you would like to receive more information about

For more information about PGR courses at Keele, please visit: www.keele.ac.uk/study/postgraduateresearch/researchareas

Select an OptionAstrophysics and PhysicsBiochemistryBiological, Biomedical and Life SciencesBiologyBiomedicEngineeringBiomedicalEngineerin(Computational)Biomedical ScienceCancer StudiesCell and Tissue EngineeringChemical SciencesClinical BiochemistryClinical ScienceComputer ScienceCreative Writing, EnglishCriminologyCriminology and Criminal Justice (DCrim)Diagnostic ScienceEconomicsEducationEducation (EdD)Employment Policy and EqualitiesEnglishEntomology and ParasitologyEnvironment/SustainabilityEthicsGenetics, Epigenetics and EpidemiologyHuman GeographyPhysical GeographyGeology/GeoscienceHealth Policy and GovernanceHealth Science (DHealthSci)Healthcare Professional Focused ResearchHistoryHuman MetabolismImagingInflammation, Infection and ImmunologyLawManagementMathematicsMedia, Communications and CultureMedical StatisticsMedicinal ChemistryMedicine (DM)MusicNeurologyNeuroscienceNursingOccupational TherapyParasitologyPharmacologyPharmacyPharmacy (DPharm)PhilosophyPhysics and AstrophysicsPhysiotherapyPolitics and International RelationsPsychologyPublic PolicySocial GerontologySocial PolicySocial WorkSocial Work (DSW)SociologyStatisti

Select the Postgraduate Taught course that you would like to receive more information about

For more information about PGR courses at Keele, please visit: www.keele.ac.uk/study/postgraduatestudy/postgraduatecourses

Select an OptionAstrophysics and PhysicsBiochemistryBiological, Biomedical and Life SciencesBiologyBiomedical EngineeringBiomedicalEngineerin(Computational)Biomedical ScienceCancer StudiesCell and Tissue EngineeringChemical SciencesClinical BiochemistryClinical ScienceComputer ScienceCreative Writing, EnglishCriminologyCriminology and Criminal Justice (DCrim)Diagnostic ScienceEconomicsEducationEducation (EdD)Employment Policy and EqualitiesEnglishEntomology and ParasitologyEnvironment/SustainabilityEthicsGenetics, Epigenetics and EpidemiologyHuman GeographyPhysical GeographyGeology/GeoscienceHealth Policy and GovernanceHealth Science (DHealthSci)Healthcare Professional Focused ResearchHistoryHuman MetabolismImagingInflammation, Infection and ImmunologyLawManagementMathematicsMedia, Communications and CultureMedical StatisticsMedicinal ChemistryMedicine (DM)MusicNeurologyNeuroscienceNursingOccupational TherapyParasitologyPharmacologyPharmacyPharmacy (DPharm)PhilosophyPhysics and AstrophysicsPhysiotherapyPolitics and International RelationsPsychologyPublic PolicySocial GerontologySocial PolicySocial WorkSocial Work (DSW)SociologyStatisti

Year of Entry

Please enter your question below:

Upon submitting this form, your enquiry will be forwarded on to our enquiries team who will contact you to answer your question and provide further details about the course that you are interested in.

Your Preferences

Please keep me informed using email

YesNo

Please keep me informed using phone

YesNo

What we’re going to do with your data and why?

We will securely store your data and send you essential information (examples include updates on an application or booking confirmations for events such as Open Days).

We would also like to send you useful information about studying at University (particularly Keele) and/or the courses that you have shown an interest in. To do this we need your consent and information on which communication channels you would like to hear from us on (please see opt-in boxes above).

We will never sell your data to a third party. We only ever share data with companies involved in helping us communicate with you or helping us to manage your data (examples include; Online forms, Printers, Postal services, other University partners etc).

How long are we keeping it?

We will keep your data for the year that you first enquire with us plus 6 subsequent years. This is to ensure that you are legally protected should you have any issues with the use of your data.

Unsubscribe

By selecting no to the preferences above you will have unsubscribed, however, this does not mean that your data has been deleted. If you would like to invoke your right to be forgotten please refer to the section below.

What to do if I change my mind?

To change your preferences after you have closed this form, simply reopen the link to this page. For further information about how your data is held, including your right to be forgotten, please contact dpa@keele.ac.uk

Please keep me informed using messages/texts

YesNo

Apply now
Postgraduate open afternoons
Get a prospectus
International applications information
Scholarships
Programme specifications

Course Overview

The MSc in Child Development is designed to prepare psychology graduates for the next stage of their career in research or applied areas of psychology.

Dan Middleton, MSc in Child Development alumnus

"The child development course has been an incredible experience for me for many reasons beyond the course content. " - read more about Dan Middleton, MSc in Child Development alumnus

Jess Hill, MSc in Child Development alumna

"I joined the Child Development MSc course as an aspiring Educational Psychologist. Studying part-time allowed me to continue working as Teaching Assistant while completing the course over two years." - read more about Jess Hill, MSc in Child Development alumna

Gemma Haywood, MSc Child Development alumna

""I very much enjoyed my Master’s in Child Development. It has enhanced my passion for research and has equipped me with many transferable skills."" - read more about Gemma Haywood, MSc Child Development alumna

About the course

Overview

The MSc in Child Development is designed to prepare psychology graduates for the next stage of their career in research or applied areas of developmental psychology.

Keele has a vibrant, well-established and ever-expanding community of researchers in child development. Students will benefit from their expertise across a wide range of areas including child social development (e.g. bullying and peer relationships), child cognitive development (e.g. theory of mind, attention in autism and ADHD), education (e.g. girls and science and enhancing collaborative learning in the classroom) and religion and supernatural beliefs.

MSc students are made to feel part of this research culture both through the formal modules and through involvement in research seminars and meetings. Students also become members of the Children and Young People’s Research Network.

Key features of your MSc programme in Psychology will include:

Strong focus on your personal skills development throughout the course to help you pursue your career goals
Opportunities to pursue your personal interests in Child Development with support from experts in Child Development
A broad range of research methods training to maximise your employability skills
Small group specialist teaching Child Development from research-active tutors
A large cohort of MSc students sharing the core Psychology modules provides a lively and supportive peer community

The programme provides taught content and research training in a range of areas in Child Development, building on areas of staff research expertise.

We have well-established links with local schools and have created research partnerships where students come to the university to experience learning in a university setting as well as allowing our students to gain valuable experience working and collecting data in a school setting. We work with local primary, secondary, SEN and other youth groups such as with looked after children.

The overall aims of all our MSc Psychology programmes are as follows:

To equip you to formulate and conduct psychological research projects;
To develop your knowledge of different theoretical perspectives, philosophical traditions and methodological approaches to psychology;
To enable you to understand the strengths and weaknesses of different research methods and different forms of data, and to evaluate their appropriateness for different research problems;
To enable you to define and formulate research questions and testable hypotheses, and to design appropriate research to answer these questions using relevant methods of data collection, consistent with British Psychological Society principles of ethics and research governance;
To provide you with knowledge of quantitative and qualitative approaches to research and data analysis techniques;
To provide you with a range of opportunities to engage with advanced research in substantive areas relevant to their own research topic and to the discipline of psychology;
To provide you with opportunities to enhance and develop your written and communication skills, independent learning skills, and critical reflection and evaluation skills.

You will develop these skills in Child Development under the guidance of a faculty member with expertise this area.

Course structure

How the course is taught

Our MSc Psychology programmes are designed to foster a vibrant and collaborative peer culture amongst our MSc students. We know it’s vital that you develop the advanced specialised skills you will need to pursue careers in your chosen fields. Throughout your MSc degree you are supported and encouraged to focus your work to help you conduct in-depth explorations of Child Development and your personal interests.

Teaching and Assessment

Each module has different prescribed learning activities, including formal lectures and seminars, discussions and consultation with staff. You should expect some lively debates and interesting discussions. Please be aware that you will be expected to contribute to the programme, in the form of advance reading (of which there is a substantial amount), preparing presentations and contributing to discussions in seminars, and bringing your own ideas to bear on the teaching material.

The programme is assessed through a range of formats including:

Blog portfolios
Personal skills audits
Research Critiques
Lab Reports
Unseen exams and class tests
Verbal presentations
Independent research written up as a dissertation.

Taught modules

Over the course of the MSc, students will complete 120 credits across 7 modules (see below for more info). Of these 180 credits, 120 credits are focused on specialist Child Development content. The remaining 60 credits develop students’ general Psychological skills and knowledge.

Specialist Child Development Modules

Advanced Study in MSc Child Development	45 credits	You will undertake this triple weighted module that spans both semesters of the programme. On the Advanced Study module you get to choose the topic to focus on for the Critique. Previous topics have included: the influence of siblings; the intergenerational transmission of violence; whether attachment in childhood is fixed; the implications of a ‘growth mind-set’; Theory of Mind and Autism; the interplay between child temperament and parenting. For the group report, you work together in small groups to devise an intervention to bring about behavioural change. This year’s projects include: a schools-based mental health intervention, a domestic abuse prevention education programme for primary-age children; and an App for children at risk of exclusion to help manage their emotions. The module aims to deepen students’ knowledge and understanding of key concepts, theories and research evidence on child development and to develop their critical awareness of current issues and new insights in this area of psychological research. There is a key focus on the ethical and practical issues associated with conducting research with children and young people. Topics can include: children’s humour, children and face perception, children and advertising, bullying in schools.
Dissertation Module	60 credits	Research is a key emphasis in our programmes and you will be supported by a specialist tutor in your chosen field to undertake original research as part of the Dissertation module. Our expert staff and specialist facilities can support a range of projects across the field.
Research Apprenticeship in Psychology	15 credits	Every year we run apprenticeships in which students join staff working on real research projects across a broad range of areas of psychology. Students are allocated to an apprenticeship based on the self-development goals you each identify in your personal skills audit. This ensures the apprenticeship provides you with experiences and opportunities that will support your future career ambitions and encourage you to learn new skills.

Core Psychology Modules

Contemporary Research in Psychology	15 credits	This is a breadth module that enables you to engage with psychological research across a range of topics and sub-disciplines at the cutting edge of contemporary research in psychology. You will attend research seminars given by experts within and outside Keele and reflect on and critically evaluate the theoretical, methodological and ethical issues associated with a wide range of contemporary topics and issues in psychological research.
Advanced Research Skills and Design	15 credits	This innovative module gives you a broad range of advanced research skills and familiarity with a range of cutting edge research designs in psychology, the help you progress through the rest of the programme being able to set your work in wider context. It introduces new techniques not typically covered at undergraduate level as well as equipping students with the advanced research skills or critical literature reviewing, generating a suitable research question, identifying a suitable method, ethical issues in research, and managing time and research relationships. You will complete a detailed skills audit and engage in some complex reflections of your own abilities and how you can progress through the course - an innovative assessment praised by our external examiners for encouraging engagement and thinking about personal development.
Advanced Quantitative Data Analysis	15 credits	The topics covered in this module are: extensions of the regression model, analysis of variance, logistic regression, and multivariate data reduction techniques such as factor analysis, together with a few more specialist methods, which you can select between based on your interests. The material is taught using SPSS, and although the module encourages a sound understanding of statistical principles, the primary emphasis is on practical data analysis.

Research Methods Training

All students can tailor their research methods training to suit their needs and interests by choosing one of the following optional modules and complete a project in an area of Child Development:

Qualitative Research Methods	15 credits	This module will give you an appreciation of different approaches to qualitative data collection and analysis. We encourage you to try out data collection and analytic methods you haven't used before. During the module you will design, conduct, analyse and reflect on a qualitative research study based on a topic you are interested in. Students often choose to explore something that complements or extends their dissertation research.
Advanced Cognitive Neuroscience Research Methods	15 credits	This module develops your knowledge and practical skills with contemporary methods in cognitive psychology and cognitive neurosceince such as electroencephalography (EEG), eyetracking, and other contemporary methods. It prepares you to design, conduct, and critically appraise research using these methods. Lectures cover the theoretical background of the methods and, for several months, you will gain hands-on experience with data collection, data analysis, and use of specialist software and equipment. This module will emphasise a framework which will allow you to understand existing methods and follow the development of new methods going forward.