Why study Psychology?

& why @ the Research School of Psychology, The Australian National University?

Professor Michael Kyrios, PhD, FAPS, MCCP

Director, Research School of Psychology

President, Australian Psychological Society

#ANUOpenDay

What is Psychology?

• Cognitive & Perceptual Psychology

• Social Psychology • Biological Psychology /

Neuroscience• Organisational and

Industrial Psychology • Human factors &

ergonomics• Educational &

Developmental Psychology

• Counselling Psychology• Clinical Psychology • Health Psychology • Clinical Neuropsychology • Forensic Psychology • Sport Psychology• Community Psychology• Consumer Psychology• Political Psychology

The study of behaviour, emotion, cognition & wellbe ing across the lifespan using biological, developmental , intrapersonal, interpersonal & other contextual frameworks

• Psychology is a foundational science that has a core mission of understanding and shaping human behaviour

• The problems we face as a planet all relate to human behaviour.

• Much more work to be done ….

Some of the Big Issues in our time

• Climate change• Managing resources• Behavioural economics• Design & ergonomics• Media & advertising• Business• Human resources• Traffic management• Health• Chronic illnesses• Mental health• Drugs & alcohol• Managing trauma• Refugees• Social cohesion• National security • Happiness• Wellbeing• Creativity• Ageing• Impact of technology• The Brain• Learning/Education

Some of the Big Issues in our time

What skills do psychologists have?

• Ability to understand human behaviour, emotion, motivations, thinking processes, social processes….t he “mind” or “psyche”– Ability to understand the range of influences on al l these

factors, e.g., experiential, biological and environ mental

• Ability to understand the principles to decrease dysfunction and increase wellbeing

• Strong research, analytical, problem solving, decis ion making, planning & evaluation skills– Ability to conduct surveys and design/undertake res earch

• Ability to manage projects & time management skills• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills,

including the ability to liaise, network and build strong relationships

• Report writing & presentation skills

• Ability to understand the issues, engage & work wit h people from a diverse range of backgrounds in an inclusive manner – Ability to operate independently and as part of a t eam

• Ability to work within a legal & ethical framework with issues of a highly confidential nature

• A willingness to understand and develop policy • Knowledge of a range of assessment methods,

counselling skills and referral services• Ability to understand organisational requirements i n

diverse settings, e.g., educational, government, community & corporate settings

• Knowledge about & experience in consultation, facilitation, negotiation and conflict resolution

What skills do psychologists have?

Career options in Psychology

Career options in Psychology• Career opportunities for graduates are enormous – these

include but are not limited to:– health– mental health – rehabilitation– social work – clinical & counseling work– human services

• youth & family services• child protection• domestic violence• disability services• welfare work & prisons• drug & alcohol services• aged services• relationship counseling

– community services• non-government organisations

– education & training

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– research psychology– data management– social & market research– human resources management– organisational development– ergonomics & human factors design– media & public relations– business

• management & other leadership roles• board positions

– policy– program/project management– life coaching– environmental management– national security– etc. etc. etc.

Personal commentary on a Psychology career • Heightened ability to understand self & others• Life skills• High level of personal satisfaction

– Ability to contribute to the wellbeing of individuals, families & the community

– Ability to advocate on behalf of individuals, families & the community– Ongoing learning opportunities

• Numerous career & personal options with changes in one’s circumstances

• Flexible working conditions• Travel opportunities• Social & professional networking• Community leadership• Positive sense of identity

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Study at ANU’s Research School of

Psychology

Did you know……?

…ANU is a leading world university

Psychology @ ANU is in the Top 20 - 30 Psychology departments in the world

Did you know……?

…ANU has world leading researchers

Did you know……?

• ANU has been home to five Nobel Prize winners � 2011 Brian Schmidt,

(Physics), who is our next Vice Chancellor

� 1996 Prof Rolf Zinkernagel & Prof Peter Doherty (Medicine)

� 1994 Prof John C. Harsanyi (Economics)

� 1963 Prof John Eccles (Medicine)

• Other leading researchers� Prof Manning Clark (History)� Prof Frank Fenner (public

health and environment)� Prof Hanna Neumann

(Mathematics)� Prof John Turner

(Psychology)

• ANU has more Fellows of the Australian learned academies & the Royal Society of London than any other Australian university

…ANU’s School of Psychology is a Research School• What is a Research School?

– Being a Research School means that staff conduct cutting edge & impactful research acknowledged by the university and federal government

– Research Schools access the “Block Grant” that the government gives the ANU to conduct nationally significant research

– Our teaching is led by experienced researchers who offer the latest information & put ANU students years ahe ad of the competition in the market place

– Our research is not just theoretical but also practical and can be applied in all sorts of industries

– The School of Psychology @ ANU comprises a single Department – Psychology

Did you know……?

ANU Research School of Psychology• Staff

– 25 - 30 full-time staff– Postdocs, sessional teachers, Clinic Staff,

clinical supervisors, Emeritus & Honourary staff, etc.

• Students ≈ 1400– ≈ 350 - 400 1st year– ≈ 60 Honours– ≈ 20 Masters– ≈ 100 DPsych/PhDs

People in Psychology @ ANU

…ANU staff write many of the textbooks used in the Department –and worldwide

Did you know……?

…our staff have won multiple prizes for teaching excellence

• Senior Fellows of the Higher Education Academy (UK)

• Australian Commonwealth Office of Learning and Teaching Award

• National Carrick Award• National Australian Learning and Teaching Council

Award• Multiple ANU Top Supervisor Awards • ANU Students’ Association Most Popular Teacher

Award

Did you know……?

…our staff have won multiple research, academic & professional prizes

• Membership of Academy of Social Sciences• President, APS• National Health & Medical Research Council• Australian Research Council (ARC)• ARC Queen Elizabeth II Fellows• ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Awards • Ian Campbell Prize in Clinical Psychology• Citation for Excellence, American Psychological

Society• Etc.

Did you know……?

Importance of research leadership • It is important to study where there is excellence in

Research– Your university education should not be passive knowledge

acquired from textbooks– It should come from researchers actively involved in the

process of creating that knowledge– Taught by experts in the area where a learning relationship

can develop because classes are small.– Scientist-Practitioner model underpins Psychology as a

profession – Our teaching is led by experienced researchers who offer

the latest information & put ANU students years ahe ad of the competition in the market place

Pillars of psychological research expertise @ ANU

Cognitive/V

ision

Social/O

rganisational

Clinical/H

ealth

Developmental

RSP @ ANU:Broad range of available

equipment & facilities

• There are links between the Research School of Psychology and other ANU areas including: – National Institute for Mental Health

Research – Centre for Research on Ageing,

Health and Wellbeing – Dementia Collaborative Research

Centre - Early Diagnosis and Prevention

– ARC Centre of Excellence for the Dynamics of Language

– Crawford School of Public Policy – John Curtin School of Medical

Research

Research links of Psychology @ ANU?

• Psychological research at ANU covers the full spectrum of basic => applied research, e.g., – What are the defining personality traits that reliably predict our

behaviour? – What are the causes of bullying and what can be done about it? – How do eating disorders distort the way that people perceive

themselves? How can we change that? – How can we treat the behavioural aspects of obesity ?– How does the way we define ourselves affect our mental health ?– What are the determinants of happiness ?– Developing psychological treatments for psychological disorders– How can we use the internet to treat people with psychological

disorders? – Measuring personality in special populations, e.g., forensic

Examples of ongoing research projects

• Psychological research at ANU covers the full spectrum of basic => applied research, e.g., – How the visual brain works to develop applications for the ‘bionic eye’

for people with sight loss/blindness– What grabs our attention and when, and what implications this has for

driving performance – Why do people have difficulty understanding climate science , and

how can we present information so they can understand? – The causes of dyslexia– The impact of long-term ecstasy use on the brain – The impact the way children play has on the development of their

creativity– How can we predict & improve children’s academic performance ?– What qualities make someone a good leader ?

Examples of ongoing research projects

The student experience is at the centre of all that we do…..

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Lab classes

Lectures & online supports

Researchopportunities

Research-led Teaching

World class research

laboratories

Applied content

Theoretical content

Opportunities for advanced

learning

Friendlysupportive

staff Your future

What our students say.

What our students say.

…ANU Psychology students have gone on to study abroad. e.g., • Oxford University• Yale University• Stanford University• State University of New York• Pennsylvania State University• McGill University• University of Toronto• University of British Columbia• University of Copenhagen• Trinity College, Dublin• University of Texas Austin

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Did you know……?

…recent ANU Psychology graduates have careers at:

• KPMG• Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC)• United Nations • ACT Education and Training

Directorate as School Psychologists• Department of Defence• ACT Health Crisis Assessment and

Treatment Team• ANU as Research Assistants• NSW Corrective Services• Australian Bureau of Statistics• Australian Institute of Health &

Welfare• Australian Defence Force• Defence, Science & Technology

Organisation

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Did you know……?

• ANU graduates ranked – #1 as the most employable graduates in

Australia– #23 as the most employable in the world

…we’ve had some very accomplished graduates from Psychology @ ANU!!!

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Did you know……?P

aul S

teph

ens

Am

bass

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to S

wed

enB

ache

lor o

f Art

s

Jane Halton AO PSMSecretary, Department of FinanceMost senior female public servant

Honours degree Psychology

Michelle MelbourneTelstra & ACT Gvt

Small Business Award Businesswoman of the Year

BSc (Psychology)

Journalist; AuthorBSc (Psych)

Sarah BourkeRoberta Sykes Scholarship

Sir John Monash Scholar, Oxford Uni

2012 NAIDOC Scholar of the YearBSc (Psychology); BA (Hons)

Brad Carron-ArthurPhD Candidate

2015 ANU PostgraduateStudent of the Year

Bachelor of Psychology

Deb

orah

Ter

ry, O

AV

C, C

urtin

Uni

vers

ityB

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PhD

in P

sych

olog

y

Thérèse ReinBA (Honours in Psychology)

Master of Psychology2010 Human Rights Medal

Studying Psychology @ ANU

The Study Of Psychology @ ANU

1st Year Psychology

2nd Year Psychology

3rd Year Psychology

4th Year Psychology (Honours)

ACADEMIC PSYCHOLOGY PATH• Research Masters• PhD

PROFESSIONAL PSYCHOLOGY PATH• Masters (Clinical Psychology )• Doctorate (Clinical Psychology)

COMBINED ACADEMIC/PROFESSIONAL PSYCHOLOGY PATH• PhD (Clinical Psychology) – includes

Masters coursework

NON-PSYCHOLOGY PATH• Single degree (Arts, Science)• Double degree• Further study in other areas• Useful in any career

Becoming a practicing psychologist

1st Year Psychology

2nd Year Psychology

3rd Year Psychology

4th Year Psychology (Honours)

2 years Supervised Experience• Find an Accredited supervisor• Find somewhere to work/practice• Reading, APS Institute,

workshops, case audits, etc.• Sit an Exam• Some limitations in report-

writing, rebates, etc.• Ongoing mandated professional

development

Post-graduate study• Masters (Clinical Psychology )• Doctorate (Clinical Psychology)• PhD (Clinical Psychology)

• 1 or 2 years ongoing supervision (2 for Masters/PhD, 1 for Doctorate)

• Ongoing mandated professional development

• Registration• Tier 2 Medicare

rebates• APS Division of

General Practicing Psychologists

• Registration• Endorsement • Tier 1 Medicare

rebates• APS College of

Clinical Psychologists

Undergraduate Psychology Courses @ ANU• Bachelor of Arts/Science – 3 years• Bachelor of Arts/Science (Honours) • Bachelor of Psychology

– designed for high achieving students who are seeking a 4-year sequence in psychology. The degree offers concentrated study in psychology & the opportunity for specialisation in their 3rd year before conducting a major research project in the Honours year. Entrance requires ATAR ≥ 95.

• Combined degrees – here are some examples of how the Bachelor of Science (Psychology) can be combined with other programs.

– Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Science (Psychology)– Bachelor of Business Administration / Bachelor of Science (Psychology)– Bachelor of Commerce / Bachelor of Science (Psychology)– Bachelor of Economics / Bachelor of Science (Psychology)– Bachelor of Music / Bachelor of Science (Psychology)– Bachelor of Science (Psychology) / Bachelor of Laws– Bachelor of Science (Psychology) / Bachelor of Science– Bachelor of Medical Science/Bachelor of Science (Psychology)

Postgraduate Psychology Courses @ ANU• Master of Philosophy (Research)• Master of Studies (Coursework)• Master of Clinical Psychology (Coursework & Researc h)• Doctor of Clinical Psychology (Coursework & Researc h)• PhD (Clinical Psychology) (Coursework & Research)• PhD (Research)

…did you know….?• ….80% of our current students who completed a recent

survey said their experiences had met their expectat ions or exceeded them.

• …our current students who completed a recent survey ra ted us as top performers for our comprehensive psychology pro gram

• …ANU Psychology is always building stronger relation ships with potential employers

• …from 2016 ANU Psychology will run 2-3 information a nd research experience days for interested ACT college students

• …ANU Psychology has an annual lecture that focuses a ttention on the big issues

• …ANU Psychology keeps in touch with graduates and us es their expertise to deliver even better learning experienc es for current students

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• ANU Quality• Options & opportunities• Cutting edge• Research-led education

� Theory & application combined • Amazing linkages

� industry, research, universities, the profession, nationally & internationally, etc.

• Puts you years ahead of the opposition

• …a truly winning combination…• Why would you go anywhere else?

What does all this mean for you?