Social & Psychological Inquiry

If you're working in a context which makes considerable use of social or psychological research or are fascinated by social research, this certificate will equip you with the knowledge, skills and confidence to appraise research and communicate your assessment to academic and non-academic audiences. Drawing together topics from criminology and psychology, it supports future study and adds value to your career by providing professional development in research literacy, managing research and conceiving of new studies.

Key features of the course

Focuses on critical appraisal of research and constructing new questions

Applies focus relating social and psychological research to everyday and professional contexts

Provides the opportunity to develop a case study relevant to your work environment or interests

Develops your communication skills to academic and non-academic audiences, offline and online.

Modules
To gain this qualification, you need 60 credits from the following:

Compulsory module Credits
Principles of social and psychological inquiry (DD801) 60

You should note that the University's unique study rule applies to this qualification. This means that you must include at least 20 credits from OU modules that have not been counted in any other OU qualification that has previously been awarded to you.

You must hold a UK honours degree (2:2 at least) or equivalent to study for this qualification. All teaching is in English, and your proficiency in the language needs to be adequate for postgraduate study and for contributing to online discussions by text and voice. If English is not your first language, we strongly recommend that you make sure you can achieve a score of at least seven in the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). To assess your English Language skills in relation to your proposed studies, you can visit the IELTS website. Although experience of distance education may be an advantage, it is not essential.

If you are not sure whether your qualifications and experience are suitable, please contact us for advice.

1 year

How long it takes
The minimum time to complete this qualification is one year.

Career relevance
Completing the qualification will enable students to manage social and psychological evidence. In particular students will able to independently source, select and review social and psychological research, evaluate its relevance for complex real life issue/cases, assess its validity and persuasively clearly communicate their findings to academic and non-academic audiences. The postgraduate certificate will be of direct interest to existing professionals who wish to advance their careers or those wishing a career in all areas of public policy, social justice, management, advertising and marketing. It provides professional development for all those working in professions that value research literacy, analytic and communication skills.

Careers and Employability Services have more information on how OU study can improve your employability.