Top 10 Universities in the UK for Psychology: THEWUR 2016

On 21st September, the results of Times Higher Education World University Rankings (THEWUR) 2016-2017 were announced. The University of Oxford has emerged to be the first UK university to top the league table in its 12-year history. It knocked the five-time leader, the California Institute of Technology, into second place.

THEWUR 2016 lists the 980 top universities in the world, making it the biggest international league table to date. It is the only global university performance table to judge world class universities across all of their core missions – teaching, research, knowledge transfer and international outlook. Here are the top 10 universities in the UK for Psychology:

1. University of Oxford – Experimental Psychology has been taught in Oxford for more than 100 years, and is one of the leading psychology departments worldwide. Its department is known for its groundbreaking basic and translational research, and for the exceptional educational opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students alike.
2. University of Cambridge – The study of psychology has been organised in various forms in Cambridge for over a century. In 1897 William H.R. Rivers was appointed University Lecturer in Physiological and Experimental Psychology. A proposal for the establishment of a psychophysics laboratory had been put forward as early as the 1870s by James Ward, but it was not until 1912 that a purpose-built Psychological Laboratory was opened on the Downing Site in the centre of Cambridge. Research and teaching in experimental psychology has continued in the Psychological Laboratory to the present day.
3. University College London – UCL undertakes world-leading research and teaching in mind, behaviour, and language. It brings together researchers in a range of disciplines such as cognition, neuroscience, linguistics, education, communication, medicine, health, phonetics and development. The Division of Psychology and Language Sciences is a vibrant environment for both study and research. UCL is a consistently top-ranked university in the UK for research in psychology, psychiatry and neuroscience.
4. London School of Economics and Political Science – From the 1st of July 2016, the Department of Social Psychology expanded to become the Department of Psychological and Behavioural Science. The name change showcases the Department’s new BSc programme, the BSc in Psychological and Behavioural Science (to be launched in 2018), with British Psychology Society accreditation. It will also provide an appropriate home for its existing MSc programmes in Social and Cultural Psychology; the Psychology of Economic Life; Social and Public Communication; and Organisational and Social Psychology, as well as its thriving PhD programme.
5. University of Edinburgh – Psychology at Edinburgh brings together world-class researchers approaching the scientific study of mind and behaviour through a range of topics: from language development to dementia, personality to paranormal beliefs. Edinburgh is ranked as the top psychology department in Scotland, and fifth best in the UK. The department benefits from a vibrant postgraduate community and strong interdisciplinary links with colleagues in medicine, informatics, linguistics, education, biology and public health.
6. King’s College London – The Department of Psychology was founded in 1950 at the Institute of Psychiatry; since then it has carried on a distinguished programme of research, teaching and clinical practice, with a long-standing link with the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. In 2004 the psychology sections of Guy’s, King’s and St Thomas’ School of Medicine merged with the Department, creating one of the world’s largest groupings of clinical and health psychologists. Today, Psychology is one of the largest departments in the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience.
7. University of Manchester –Philosopher Professor Samuel Alexander kickstarted the study of psychology in Manchester after training in experimental psychology in Germany. This eventually led to the appointment of the first lecturer in experimental psychology in Manchester in 1909 and the establishment of a dedicated psychology department – a rare phenomenon for Britain and, indeed, anywhere outside of London at the time.
8. University of Bristol – Psychology at the University of Bristol was established in 1901 with the appointment of Conwy Lloyd Morgan, the first UK Professor of Psychology (and Ethics). Teaching and research are carried out in state of the art laboratories within the school, and it also has access to brain imaging and clinical research facilities at Clinical Research and Imaging Centre (CRIC-Bristol).
9. Warwick University – Studying Psychology at Warwick will involve you being taught by people who are experts in their fields, passionate about the subject, engaged in research and keen to pass on that passion and interest.
10. University of Glasgow – Research at the School of Psychology attempts to advance our understanding of behaviour and the underlying mental processes and brain functions at multiple levels of analysis. Most research takes place in the Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology.

You can find out the top 10 universities in the world on Psychreg.

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