Business Psychology MSc

During this master’s degree, you’ll deepen your knowledge of the psychological mechanisms that drive positive behaviours and performances in the workplace. Our MSc Business Psychology programme will equip you with an effective blend of knowledge drawn from the specialist fields of psychology, management and leadership. You’ll develop commercial awareness and an understanding of global organisations which will allow you to recognise the impact of the economy, technological advances, globalisation and the changing labour market on the psychology of a workplace and the performance of individuals and teams.

You’ll learn key skills that will help you thrive in several job roles including business psychology practitioner, human resources manager, organisational development manager, coaching consultant, management consultant or leadership consultant.

Each course will equip you with highly employable skills and expertise in the following areas:


- coaching


- leadership


- diversity


- organisational change


- organisational culture


- marketing and consumer behaviour


- human-machine interaction in the workplace


You’ll study the areas of psychology that directly apply to business settings and will explore some of the key psychological research methods that can be practised in the workplace. By viewing the workplace through a psychological perspective and by developing your analytical, critical thinking and reflection skills, you’ll learn to recognise and improve seemingly intangible aspects of the workplace which, when appropriately managed, can directly improve business performance in terms of job satisfaction, wellbeing, leadership, organisational commitment, organisational culture, performance and productivity.

Expertise
The MSc Business Psychology degree is taught by experienced, leading academics who, in many cases, have published the research which shapes their disciplines and written the books and journal papers which will guide your learning. Many academics balance teaching time with continued professional practice as coaches, practitioner psychologists, and management consultants. They bring their real-world experience and expertise to the classroom.

Your learning environment

The Business Psychology programme at Heriot-Watt University has excellent research facilities such as eye trackers, driving simulators and consistent environment labs which will support your independent research projects.  

This degree is taught through a combination of lectures, tutorials and seminars involving multiple modes of learning including case studies, workshops, research papers and electronic formats. You’ll also take part in specifically designed group tasks and presentations which will allow you to develop your interpersonal and communication skills, giving you the platform to implement your expertise and directly improve the performance of diverse groups of individuals and teams at any level within an organisation.

Customise your learning

In addition to pure business psychology, we offer three specialist business psychology pathways at our Edinburgh campus: MSc Business Psychology with Coaching, MSc Business Psychology with Human Resource Management and MSc Business Psychology with Intercultural Communication. The development of these specialisms will put you in the perfect position to make a positive impact on the performance, communication and culture of global organisations.

Accreditation
This programme is accredited by the International Coach Federation (ICF) as Continuing Coach Education (CCE). Therefore, several hours from the MSc courses can be used to apply for the personal credentialing process should the student wish to pursue accredited Coach status with the ICF. A certificate will be issued on completion of these hours.