Review of psychology modules I took from university
The content and assessments in the psychology modules from my university
I studied psychology in Nanyang Technological University Singapore (NTU) and this is a review of the modules that I took in my undergrad years! If you are looking for more general tips for studying psychology, do read my other article (link).
*Disclaimer: I graduated in 2022, so the modules might have changed since then. I tried my best to recall the mode of assessment but I might have missed out some projects/tests/group work component. Most class participation is graded too.
🌈 LIST OF MODULES THAT I TOOK
Year 1
HP1000 Introduction to Psychology
HP1100 Fundamentals of Social Science Research
HP2100 Research Design & Data Analysis in Psychology
Year 2
HP2500 Personality & Individual Differences
Year 3
HP3101 Applied Statistical Methods for Psychological Research
HP3708 Biopsychosocial Criminology
HP4103 The Forensic Psychology of Crime, Terrorism & Disasters
HP4273 Introduction to Functional Neuroimaging
Year 4
HP4104 Evidence-Based Practice in Clinical Psychology
HP1000 Introduction to Psychology
Mode of assessment: mid-term test + finals
This is a core module that is mandatory to all psychology students. It introduces the various fields of psychology and covers core theories. However, the bell curve is difficult to beat because it is also open as an elective to the other faculties. This means there are more people who may be performing better than you and they drive up the average 🥲 The content is not difficult to understand yet, and the best advice I can give is to study hard! 💪
HP1100 Fundamentals of Social Science Research 📈
Mode of assessment: mid-term test + finals
Another core module that lays foundation for statistics before really going into the mathematical calculations. You will learn about the considerations when designing research studies, such as confounders, and reliability vs. validity. Generally, the module is easy to follow even though lectures can be a little boring.
HP2100 Research Design & Data Analysis in Psychology 📈
Mode of assessment: multiple tests + project + finals
This is one of the most important core module I would say throughout my psychology education. Especially if you are intending to do thesis project, you will need to have rock solid statistics skills. During the lectures, you will be taught manual calculations for t-test, ANOVA and chi-square. In the tutorials, you will be given the chance to apply the tests using SPSS. If I am not wrong, R is also being taught during tutorials now, so listen during your tutorials! There is also a group project component whereby you need to design a statistical test based on the scenario given to you and present the results in a report! Contrary to common consensus, I enjoyed Prof Ringo’s (the stats legend in psych - he teaches all the stats mod btw) lecture even though he talks fast and it can be quite challenging to understand his accent! It felt like he really knows what he’s teaching! Even though he’s strict, you can approach him to ask him any question and he will answer you regardless of how busy he is! ☺️
HP2200 Biological Psychology
Mode of assessment: mid-term test + finals
This is an elective for psychology students but core for those with double major in biological sciences and psychology (BSPY). In this module, you will learn neuroanatomy, functions of the central and peripheral nervous system, and neuroimaging techniques, just to name a few 🧠🧠🧠 Mostly, there will be physiological functions linking to the psychological processes (e.g. sense of hearing, sight, touch, etc. —> perception). This module can be difficult to grasp if you are not used to studying the human body, and there will be a lot of content covered. The finals was also difficult to score. In my year, it was an open-book test but they were all application questions, so it really tests your understanding instead of memory.
HP2400 Social Psychology
Mode of assessment: mid-term tests + finals
An interesting module taught by Prof Albert Lee (he is really engaging) about psychology applied in social settings 👫 You will learn about theories explaining some of the phenomenon we see in every day life, such as cognitive dissonance. I would recommend this module because of how enjoyable it is to learn something relatable to everyone!
HP2500 Personality & Individual Differences
Mode of assessment: mid-term tests + finals
If you are interested in MBTI and personality tests, this module is for you. It talks about how people can be classified by their personality types, yet still share individual differences with people in the same personality group.
HP2600 Cognitive Psychology
Mode of assessment: mid-term tests + projects + finals cancelled due to COVID
Sorry but this module is too abstract for me to understand. I felt like I could not keep up with all the theories exemplified by the research studies and the lecture content was too dry. There is also a group project whereby you need to design a cognitive study to test one of the theories. I was lucky to have skipped the finals because of the pandemic, otherwise I would probably performed poorly 🫠
HP2700 Abnormal Psychology
Mode of assessment: mid-term tests + finals cancelled due to COVID
For those interested in becoming a clinical psychologist, this module is a must! You will learn about how the DSM is developed and modified over the years, as well as the classification for various mental disorders. This module also highlights the stigma that people have towards the mentally ill population and how that has changed in the modern day.
HP3101 Applied Statistical Methods for Psychological Research 📈
Mode of assessment: multiple tests + project + finals
Moving onto the 3k modules, you will expect a huge jump in the difficulty of content and assessment. This is the next most useful statistics module I have taken, because it covers the linear regression models, which is commonly used for research. If you are up for more statistics, then I would recommend this module. As per usual, all Prof Ringo’s modules come with a group project to apply your own statistical test.
HP3205 Animal Behaviour
Mode of assessment: multiple tests + individual poster
I am a little on the fence about this module because it is certainly one of the most unique module, yet at the same time, there are too many assessment components which may not be worth the number of academic units. It is very fascinating to learn about the behaviour of birds, mammals and even insects in this module! 🦜🦁🐝However, the content is heavy as you learn theories about animal communication, mating and reproduction, as well as prey and predator behaviour. It is also biological and evolutionary based, so it may not be easy for some people to grasp. Regarding the assessments, there were three very intensive tests lasting 1h to 1h 30min iirc. Each test covered content from all the lectures taught before and you will need to remember the examples for the specific animal (e.g. white crowned sparrow). For the individual poster, you will need to design your own study to investigate an animal’s behaviour, collect the data, analyse them and then present them. For me, I had to visit the zoo several times to observe my chosen animal - otters - and collect data, so it can be quite time consuming, considering this is not the only module I took in the semester. If you have the time, I would recommend this module for purely educational purpose! There is also a chance to go on a field trip with the professor, which was cancelled for us due to the pandemic.
HP3302 Cognitive Development
Mode of assessment: weekly quizzes + presentation
In my time, this module was taught by a professor who was practising as a child psychologist. The content covered include developmental process of children in terms of intelligence, reading and writing skills 👶🍼
HP3402 Social Cognition
Mode of assessment: mid-term tests + finals + group work during lectures + short essays
This module feels like an advanced module of social psychology, and you will learn the cognitive process about how people relate to other people in terms of receiving and processing information (e.g. priming). I would say this is very interesting and Prof Catherine was really good at simplifying complex theories so that we could understand. The tutorials were combined with the lectures, so there was a group component, whereby every week we had to come together to discuss and answer questions about a pre-specified reading (a research study). Highly recommend this module!
HP3702 Child Psychopathology
Mode of assessment: weekly quizzes + presentation
This module was taught by the same professor from cognitive development. It is highly beneficial for those intending to work with children with special needs! Every week, we were taught the various neurodevelopmental disorders and mental disorders that children experience. During tutorials, we even had the chance to role play as therapist and client.
HP3708 Biopsychosocial Criminology
Mode of assessment: multiple tests + finals
This is one of the most popular module in NTU! You will learn about the biological, psychological and social factors that may contribute to crime 🚓🚨 It is fascinating as you will be introduced to research studies that compare the normal population and those who commit crime. Even if you do not intend to continue in a forensic psychology career, this is also an interesting module to take!
HP3804 Psychological Testing 📈
Mode of assessment: multiple tests + project + finals
The last statistics module that I took and I never really appreciated the content I was taught until I started doing research work! In this module, you will learn how psychological tests (i.e. those standardised questionnaires) are developed and validated using factor analysis. This is extremely useful for you when designing your own study and having to choose between different psychological tests to administer! As the group project, we developed our own questionnaire items and performed factor analysis to test their reliability and validity.
HP4103 The Forensic Psychology of Crime, Terrorism & Disasters
Mode of assessment: two essays + group presentation
The other forensic psychology module offered by NTU and taught by a forensic psychologist under the Singapore Police Force! 👮♂️ We were taught interesting topics like lie detection and crime profiling. There are two reports as the core assessment. The first is a research report of a chosen crime to analyse the forensic science, legal and psychological considerations just to name a few. The latter is a similar report but for a specified crime (e.g. love scams for our year) and to also provide suggestions on what the law enforcers can do to prevent crime.
HP4104 Evidence-Based Practice in Clinical Psychology
Mode of assessment: individual report + group report + presentation
The lecturer for this module is a practising clinical psychologist and provide many insights about the field. The topics covered include the different mental disorders, and also factors affecting efficacy of therapy. In the individual report, we had to research the assessment tools to employ and then perform a case formulation of the scenario provided to us. For the final group presentation and report, we applied what we learn to assess, diagnose and suggest therapy to the selected mental disorder. As part of the presentation, we also had a role play of how the therapy session will be conducted.
HP4273 Introduction to Functional Neuroimaging
Mode of assessment: tutorial assignments + individual report + presentation
The last 4k module I took was actually an introductory module for master’s students. However, we were graded differently and on a separate bell curve. In this module, we learnt the principles behind how magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) worked and research designs involving neuroimaging techniques. For the tutorials, we even had the chance to use MATLAB and analyse sample data. We were assessed based on our assignments after tutorial sessions and individual project on designing a research study using MRI. It was a good bridging course for anyone intending to continue with postgraduate course in neuroscience or psychology involving neuroimaging tools.
Hope this review helps anyone studying from the same university, or just to get a general idea of what a university education in psychology is like!