The course is an excellent introduction to applied psychology, allowing students to consider its importance across many aspects of our lives, including practical applications.
A psychology qualification allows the learner to develop a broad range of transferable skills such as critical thinking and writing along with access to a broad range of careers from counselling and therapy to forensics and law.
Assessments are in the form of one internal and one external assessment each year and topics studied include Health Psychology and Criminal and Forensic Psychology.
Unit 3 – Health Psychology
External assessment: 2 hour written examination
Health psychologists are interested in how psychological and physiological factors affect health and ill health. This unit includes approaches, theories and studies that explore the reasons why individuals engage in specific behaviours such as addiction and why individuals may experience high levels of stress and the impact this has on health. In addition, the unit explores how health psychologists can help improve health behaviours using psychological theories of persuasion and learn about specific physiological and behavioural treatments.
Unit 4 – Criminal and Forensic Psychology
Internal assessment – Written assignment comprising of 3 reports
Are criminals born or made? This unit looks at a number of different explanations for criminal behaviour, linked to the approaches from unit 1, and analyse the best way to treat criminal behaviour; punishment or modification? Students will also learn about different methods of creating an offender profile and will create their own as part of the final assignment.
5 GCSEs A* - C including English Language, Maths and Double Science. Science and Maths should be Grade B or higher.
CAVC is a great place to study A Levels – the teachers, the support, the facilities and social experience has been so good – I’m delighted to have gained all A’s in my AS exams. The support to apply and prepare for university is brilliant and I’m looking forward to progressing after college.
This course will enable progression onto university courses such as BA/BSc Psychology, Human Sciences, Counselling, Marketing or Criminology
Alternatively, the qualification allows learners to gain the required understanding and skills to be able to consider employment within some aspects of the criminal justice system, marketing, education and the civil service. A sought-after qualification by many employers due to the development of transferable key skills such as critical thinking and writing.