The course provides a multi-perspective understanding of early child development, from the prenatal years up to five years, and its impact on later development. It draws together theory, research and clinical approaches from a range of perspectives. Its predominant theoretical orientation is psychoanalytic, while also incorporating insights from neuroscience, developmental psychology and other contemporary clinical perspectives.
Alongside a research project, you will develop clinical and observational skills through a supervised clinical placement, typically in the NHS, within Anna Freud, or with an external charity or organisation, and a two-year observation of a baby in their home.
This two-year full-time MSc course (formerly known as MSc in Psychoanalytic Developmental Psychology) has undergone changes to bring it up to date with current research and clinical practice.
By completing this course, you will gain the following skills to support future employability and careers:
Students who successfully complete the MSc can apply their degree in a variety of settings and we anticipate that they will go into roles such as child mental health workers, assistant psychologists/psychotherapists, or take up posts as research assistants. They may also be admitted onto professional doctorates or PhD programmes.
The course has links with the Independent Psychoanalytic Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy Association (IPCAPA) at the British Psychotherapy Foundation (BPF), and is a recognised pre-clinical course for the UCL Doctorate in Child and Adolescent Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy. Within 15 months of completing their studies, 85% of graduates from this course were in work of further study (Graduate Outcomes survey carried out by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), looking at the destinations of graduates in the 2018–2024 cohorts).