赫特福德大学

About the course

Our three-year Doctorate in Clinical Psychology training programme (full-time) is based in Hatfield at the University of Hertfordshire. It is a 20-minute train journey from Hatfield to Kings Cross Station, London and covers the rural and urban geographical areas of Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Essex. We are a relatively small programme, currently consisting of fifteen NHS training places and two self-funded places per cohort. This allows us to put our trainees at the heart of the course. We are a friendly and supportive staff team, which we feel is integral to creating a collaborative and collegiate learning environment. This is important for assisting trainees through what can be a challenging experience at times but also, we believe, in facilitating trainees to become unique and highly competent Clinical Psychologists, where personal values and social and cultural background can be integrated with professional development. Post qualification, our graduates go on to provide high quality services and leadership within the NHS. Placements are planned across the three years to meet individual training needs and preferences, while preparing trainees for the needs of the NHS workforce. We have a variety of local specialist placements in terms of clinical group (such as paediatric, health, older adults, eating disorders, psychosis and neuropsychology) and therapeutic orientation (such as CBT, systemic, psychodynamic, and CAT). We provide high quality teaching in terms of our content and methods. Regular course reviews take place between trainees and the course team. Trainees can participate in committees to shape the training course and continually improve all aspects of the course. We have developed innovative teaching methods to ensure learning is as stimulating, interactive and progressive as possible, such as problem-based learning (PBL) and using the university's high-tech simulation suites for simulation training (role plays) with actors playing the part of clients, families and helping professionals. We engage lecturers across disciplines where helpful, such as inviting a barrister to jointly run a lecture on presenting expert evidence in court. Our trainees have the opportunity to engage in training on organisational and systemic influence and leadership. There are opportunities to gain experience in these areas during the programme.