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Applied Paediatric Neuropsychology MSc

London, Bloomsbury

Learn all about the science underpinning clinical paediatric neuropsychology on this one-year Master’s degree, jointly delivered between UCL and Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children (GOSH). The programme is for outstanding psychology postgraduates not yet qualified as clinical or educational psychologists – or for international clinicians not registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).

UK students International students
Study mode
Full-time
UK tuition fees (2025/26)
£16,000
Overseas tuition fees (2025/26)
£36,500
Duration
1 calendar year
Programme starts
September 2025
Applications accepted
Applicants who require a visa: 14 Oct 2024 – 27 Jun 2025
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Applicants who do not require a visa: 14 Oct 2024 – 29 Aug 2025
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Apply for this course

Entry requirements

A minimum of an upper second-class Bachelor's degree in psychology (equivalent to BPS accredited Honours degree or BPS conversion diploma) from a UK university or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard. Students must obtain the BPS graduate basis for chartered membership (GBC). It is the responsibility of the student to show evidence of GBC before accepting a place on the programme.

The English language level for this programme is: Level 3

UCL Pre-Master's and Pre-sessional English courses are for international students who are aiming to study for a postgraduate degree at UCL. The courses will develop your academic English and academic skills required to succeed at postgraduate level.

Further information can be found on our English language requirements page.

Equivalent qualifications

Country-specific information, including details of when UCL representatives are visiting your part of the world, can be obtained from the International Students website.

International applicants can find out the equivalent qualification for their country by selecting from the list below. Please note that the equivalency will correspond to the broad UK degree classification stated on this page (e.g. upper second-class). Where a specific overall percentage is required in the UK qualification, the international equivalency will be higher than that stated below. Please contact Graduate Admissions should you require further advice.

About this degree

If you’re looking to pursue a clinical or educational psychology doctorate, or to work as a research assistant or assistant psychologist, this Master’s degree is an excellent choice.

The programme covers all key areas of the syllabus recommended by the British Psychological Society (BPS) Division of Neuropsychology, to give you a solid foundation in the techniques, methods and contemporary findings of developmental cognitive neuroscience.

You’ll work in close collaboration with UK-wide, and international, clinicians and researchers within UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health (UCL GOS ICH), other neuroscience and psychology departments and Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children.

Through your studies and MSc research project, you’ll get first-hand experience of how to interpret clinical case presentations within the context of the latest scientific findings of developmental brain-behaviour relationships.

The skills you go away with will put you in a strong position for research or psychology assistant roles, or going onto further research. 

Who this course is for

This programme is suitable for graduates or overseas professionals (without HCPC registration) who wish to pursue a research career in paediatric neuropsychology or to obtain scientific knowledge underpinning clinical paediatric neuropsychology prior to seeking qualifications that would enable them to pursue UK Training in Clinical Neuropsychology (TiCN).

Read about what it takes to study for a Master's at UCL

What this course will give you

  • Work with UK-wide and international clinicians and research experts in the fields of paediatric neuropsychology, neurology and neurodevelopment, including UCL academics and Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) clinicians.
  • Study at one of the world's top ten universities. UCL is ranked 9th in the world as a university (QS World Rankings 2025) and first for research power in Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience by the UK's Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021). 
  • Access to a highly interactive and engaging learning community of like-minded peers, researchers and academics, with regular networking opportunities for academic and professional development.
  • MSc projects supervised by UCL researchers using cutting-edge methods and by GOSH clinicians. UCL has a strong relationship with GOSH, and much of our research and teaching is carried out on a joint basis.
  • This programme covers all key areas of the syllabus recommended by the BPS Division of Neuropsychology – which means everything you study is underpinned by the latest developments in neuropsychology.
  • Gain knowledge of professional, ethical and service delivery issues in assessment and rehabilitative work.
  • A strong emphasis on developing transferrable professional and academic skills to prepare you for doctorate-level studies, for a research or clinical career.
Read about what you'll get out of a graduate programme

The foundation of your career

You’ll be well equipped to pursue a clinical or educational psychology doctorate, research assistant position or assistant psychology position (particularly in neuropsychology services).

Graduates of this course have gone onto work for the NHS, Child Brain Injury Trust, University of Cambridge, University of St Andrews and the National Autistic Society.*

* Graduate Outcomes survey carried out by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), looking at the destinations of UK and EU graduates in the cohorts 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22.

Employability

During your Master’s degree, you’ll gain experience of administering and interpreting neuropsychological assessments, qualitative and quantitative data analysis (including neuroimaging and electrophysiology) and report writing.

Your skills will put you in a good place for pursuing work as a research assistant or assistant psychologist. The programme is also good training for progressing onto a PhD, DClinPsych or DEdPsych qualification, which can then lead onto you becoming a clinical psychologist, educational psychologist, or, with further training, a neuropsychologist.

Networking

UCL GOS ICH offers seven MSc programmes as well as an MRes in Child Health encompassing a wide range of topics. Our students come from diverse academic and professional backgrounds, from the UK and overseas providing great networking opportunities within and across programmes. We hold social events throughout the year for the whole student cohort to enable networking between students. Students on the Master's programmes have the opportunity to join events such as the Otto Wolff lectures hosted by the research and teaching departments. These cover a variety of topics and provide an opportunity to hear from national and international experts and to network at the social event that usually accompanies these events.   

Teaching and learning

The programme is delivered through lectures, group seminars, video demonstrations and directed self-study time (reading, essay, seminar preparations).

Meet the academics currently leading this programme on the UCL GOS ICH website.

Assessment is by two essay journal papers (up to 3,000 words each), two scientific commentary papers (up to 1,500 words each) and four unseen examinations. Students on the MSc in Applied Paediatric Neuropsychology will also be assessed by a research portfolio and a research portfolio presentation. 

There are eight core compulsory taught modules. Each taught module is delivered as a one-week block, with lectures and activities roughly from 9.30am - 5.30pm Monday to Friday.

On average, students spend approximately 30 hours per month attending lectures, three hours in tutorials and workshops, and 140 hours studying independently for their assignments and research projects.

Overall we expect full-time students to study a full 35 to 40-hour week, with time outside classes spent in self-directed study.

A Postgraduate Diploma (120 credits, full-time 1 year) is offered, consisting of the 8 core compulsory taught modules.

Modules

In First Term, you will study Introduction to Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Professional Issues for Paediatric Neuropsychologists, and Development of the Sensory, Motor and Cognitive Systems. These modules set the foundation for the whole MSc preparing you for further topics by introducing the fundamental principles behind a range of methodologies, describing issues associated with the practice of paediatric neuropsychology in a range of settings, and by providing background on normal development in various domains as a basis for understanding atypical development.

In Second Term, you will study Developmental Disorders and Neuropsychological Profiles, Infant and Neurodevelopmental Assessment, and Assessment of Neuropsychological Disorders and their Functional Implications. These modules further develop key concepts learnt in your First Term and apply this knowledge to understand neuropsychological assessment in a range of paediatric populations. During Second Term, you will also submit your research project proposal.

In Third Term, you will study Advanced Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience and Developing Clinical Formulations and Interventions. These modules build on those on the previous two terms and cover more advanced methods for studying brain-behaviour relationships to provide an evidence base for clinical practice, and describe different settings and systems for intervention and support. Following these two modules, the research project is submitted in early September.

Compulsory modules











Please note that the list of modules given here is indicative. This information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability are subject to change. Modules that are in use for the current academic year are linked for further information. Where no link is present, further information is not yet available.

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. All modules in this programme are non-condonable, requiring a pass mark of at least 50%. Upon successful completion of 180 credits, you will be awarded an MSc in Applied Paediatric Neuropsychology. Upon successful completion of 120 credits, you will be awarded a PG Dip in Applied Paediatric Neuropsychology.

Accessibility

Details of the accessibility of UCL buildings can be obtained from AccessAble. Further information can also be obtained from the UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services team.

Visit us

All open days and events

Balcony and Winter Garden UCL, Great Ormond Street, Institute of Child Health, 30 Guilford St, WC1N 1EH, London, UK - Open day

Life and Medical Sciences Postgraduate Open Evening

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Discover UCL’s Master's degrees in health, medicine, brain sciences and life sciences at our upcoming Open Evening! Join us to learn more about our Master’s degrees, meet our academic teaching staff, and see where postgraduate study may take you.

Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students
Fee description Full-time
Tuition fees (2025/26) £16,000
Tuition fees (2025/26) £36,500

The tuition fees shown are for the year indicated above. Fees for subsequent years may increase or otherwise vary. Where the programme is offered on a flexible/modular basis, fees are charged pro-rata to the appropriate full-time Master's fee taken in an academic session. Further information on fee status, fee increases and the fee schedule can be viewed on the UCL Students website: ucl.ac.uk/students/fees.

Additional costs

For Full-time and Part-time offer holders a fee deposit will be charged at 10% of the first year fee.

There is no fee deposit required for PG Dip and PG Cert applicants.

Further information can be found in the Tuition fee deposits section on this page: Tuition fees.

There are no additional costs for this programme.

UCL’s main teaching locations are in zones 1 (Bloomsbury) and zones 2/3 (UCL East). The cost of a monthly 18+ Oyster travel card for zones 1-2 is £114.50. This price was published by TfL in 2024. For more information on additional costs for prospective students and the cost of living in London, please view our estimated cost of essential expenditure at UCL's cost of living guide.

Funding your studies

Visit the funding and studentship pages of the UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health (UCL GOS ICH) website for details of funding available to students, including the UCL GOS ICH bursary.

For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.

See all the ways you can fund your studies

Next steps

Students are advised to apply as early as possible due to competition for places. Those applying for scholarship funding (particularly overseas applicants) should take note of application deadlines.

There is an application processing fee for this programme of £90 for online applications. Further information can be found at Application fees.

When we assess your application we would like to learn: 

  • Why you want to study Applied Paediatric Neuropsychology at graduate level. 
  • Why you want to study Applied Paediatric Neuropsychology at UCL. 
  • What particularly attracts you to the chosen programme. 
  • How your academic and professional background meets the demands of this challenging programme.
  • Where you would like to go professionally with your degree. 

Together with essential academic requirements, the personal statement is your opportunity to illustrate whether your reasons for applying to this programme match what the programme will deliver.

Please note that you may submit applications for a maximum of two graduate programmes (or one application for the Law LLM) in any application cycle.

Choose your programme

Please read the Application Guidance before proceeding with your application.

Year of entry: 2025-2026

Apply for this course

Got questions? Get in touch

UCL GOS Institute of Child Health
UCL GOS Institute of Child Health

paed-neuropsych@ucl.ac.uk

UCL is regulated by the Office for Students.