M.Phil.-Ph.D. in Psychology (Full-time)
The objective of this programme is to provide advanced academic and research training in a field of specialization in psychology. Students, under close supervision by a faculty member, are required to write a thesis that will contribute to psychological knowledge.
Course List
| Course Title | Units | |
| PSYC5010 | Seminar in Research Methods I | 3 |
| PSYC5510 | Personnel Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC6000 | Major Psychological Approaches | 3 |
| PSYC6010 | Seminar in Research Methods II | 3 |
| PSYC6050 | Independent Study | 3 |
| PSYC6060 | Independent Study | 3 |
| PSYC6070 | Independent Study | 3 |
| PSYC6300 | Writing and Presentation | 2 |
| PSYC6520 | Organizational Psychology I | 3 |
| PSYC6530 | Organizational Psychology II | 3 |
| PSYC6610 | Psychopathology | 3 |
| PSYC6620 | Health and Community Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC7010 | Seminar in Cognition | 3 |
| PSYC7012 | Neuroimaging Methods in Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC7020 | Seminar in Social Psychology and Personality | 3 |
| PSYC7021 | Seminar in Developmental Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC8003 | Thesis Research | 3 |
| PSYC8006 | Thesis Research | 6 |
| PSYC8012 | Thesis Research | 12 |
M.Phil. Student
Admission Requirements
In addition to the general qualifications required by the Graduate School, all applicants must also fulfil the "English Language Proficiency Requirement" as stipulated by the Graduate School before being considered for admission. Please refer to the "Postgraduate Prospectus" or Graduate School Homepage for details on these requirements.
Besides, all applicants should
- possess a Bachelor's degree in Psychology or in a related field; and
- obtain an overall GPA of 3.0 or above
Additional Application Information
In addition to the general application materials, all applicants should submit
- a full resume
- a statement of research interest in specific topic(s) or issue(s) in psychology and justifications (750 words in English); and
- a statement to indicate their career goals and plans.
All supporting documents including confidential recommendations should reach our Division on or before the application deadline.
Study Scheme
| 1. | Coursework Requirements | |||||||||
| Students are required to complete a minimum of 17 units of courses (excluding thesis research courses). | ||||||||||
| (a) | Required Courses: | 14 units | ||||||||
| Students are required to take a minimun of 14 units and obtain a minimum grade of B-. | ||||||||||
| (i) | Courses to be taken in the first year of attendance | |||||||||
| 1) | PSYC5010 | 3 units | ||||||||
| PSYC6000 | 3 units | |||||||||
| PSYC6300 | 2 units | |||||||||
| 2) | 1 from the following 2 courses | 3 units | ||||||||
| PSYC6010 | ||||||||||
| PSYC7012 | ||||||||||
| (ii) | 1 from the following 3 courses*: | |||||||||
| PSYC7010, 7020, 7021 | ||||||||||
| * | Students whose research topic is related to Clinical Psychology, they could take the course PSYC6610 or PSYC6620 to replace the requirement of taking one out of the three specialized seminar courses. | |||||||||
| (b) | Elective Course | 3 units | ||||||||
| At least 3 units of undergraduate and postgraduate courses in psychology or courses offered by related departments, which may include the following, and obtain a minimum grade of B-: PSYC6010, 7010, 7012, 7020, or 7021 which has not been selected as required course(s) PSYC5510, 6050, 6060, 6070, 6520, 6530, 6610, 6620 |
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| Total: | 17 units | |||||||||
| (c) | Thesis Research Courses: | |||||||||
| Students are required to take the following thesis research course every term and obtain a minimum grade of B-: | ||||||||||
| Full-time students: PSYC8006 | ||||||||||
| Part-time and continuing students: PSYC8003 | ||||||||||
| (d) | Gender Studies Programme: | |||||||||
| Students admitted to the Gender Studies (Psychology) programme will be exempted from one elective course of 3 units. These students are required to complete at least 14 units of required courses | ||||||||||
| 2. | Other Requirements | |||||||||
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Qualifications for Transfer from M.Phil. to Ph.D. Pre-Candidacy
All students should:
- obtain an overall GPA of 3.5 or above in their first year of studies;
- submit an M.Phil. thesis proposal and pass an oral thesis proposal defense by the end of February during the second term of their first year of studies; no provision for a second attempt; and
- satisfy members of their Thesis Committee that their proposals have the potential to be expandable to become a proper Ph.D. thesis.
Ph.D. Student
Admission Requirements
In addition to the general qualifications required by the Graduate School, all applicants must also fulfil the "English Language Proficiency Requirement" as stipulated by the Graduate School before being considered for admission. Please refer to the "Postgraduate Prospectus" or Graduate School Homepage for details on these requirements.
Besides, all applicants should
- possess a Bachelor's degree in Psychology or in a related field;
- obtain an overall GPA of 3.5 or above or honours not lower than Second Class Upper; and
- have completed an individually supervised research thesis.
Additional Application Information
In addition to the general application materials, all applicants should submit
- a full resume
- research proposal in English (2500 words or above); and
- a statement to indicate their career goals and plans.
All supporting documents including confidential recommendations should reach our Division on or before the application deadline.
Study Scheme (Pre-Candidacy)
1. Coursework Requirement
| Students are required to complete a minimum of 14 units of courses (excluding thesis research courses) | |||||
| (a) | Required Courses: | 14 units | |||
| First Year of Attendance | |||||
| Students are required to take a minimun of 11 units and obtain a minimum grade of B-. | |||||
| (i) | PSYC5010 | 3 units | |||
| PSYC6000 | 3 units | ||||
| PSYC6300 | 2 units | ||||
| (ii) | 1 from the following 2 courses | 3 units | |||
| PSYC6010 | |||||
| PSYC7012 | |||||
| (iii) | 1 from the following 5 courses which has not been selected as required course(s) | 3 units | |||
| PSYC6010, 7010, 7012, 7020, 7021 | |||||
| Total: | 14 units | ||||
| (b) | Thesis Research Courses: | ||||
| Students are required to take the following thesis research course every term and obtain a minimum grade of B-: | |||||
| Full-time students: PSYC8006 | |||||
| Part-time and continuing students: PSYC8003 | |||||
2. Candidacy Examination
The candidacy examination is a Major Qualifying Assessment which consists of a written paper and an oral examination. Prior to the thesis proposal oral defense, students will need to do a Psych Review-type paper (literature review or meta-analysis) of approximately 6,000 words in main text (around 30 pages double-spaced) as an intensive review of a body of literature approved by their supervisor. Students are also required to pass an oral examination on this review.
The candidacy examination will be arranged 2 times per year. A student will be asked to have the second attempt when he/she has failed the examination for the first time. A student will be asked to withdraw from the programme if he/she has failed the examination for the second time.
3. Thesis Proposal and Oral Defense
After passing the Candidacy Examination*, the candidate must submit a thesis proposal of approximately 20 pages and pass a thesis proposal oral defense by a Thesis Committee consisting of his/her thesis supervisor and other nominated internal examiners.
* No later than 30 January of second year of studies for students admitted with a research Master's degree;
* No later than 30 January of third year of studies for students admitted with a Bachelor's degree.
Study Scheme (Post-Candidacy)
1. Coursework Requirement
| Students are required to complete a minimum of 3 units of course (excluding thesis research courses). | |||||
| (a) |
Required Courses |
3 units | |||
| Students are required to take one of the following courses* and obtain a minimum grade of B-: | |||||
| PSYC6010, 7010, 7012, 7020, 7021 which has not been selected as required course(s) | |||||
| * |
|
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| Total: | 3 units | ||||
| (b) | Thesis research courses: | ||||
| Students are required to take the following thesis research course every term and obtain a minimum grade of B-. | |||||
| Full-time students: PSYC8012 | |||||
| Part-time students: PSYC8006 | |||||
| Continuing students: PSYC8003 | |||||
2. Other Requirements
- Students are required to submit a research thesis and pass an oral examination for graduation.
- Complete an Improving Postgraduate Learning (IPL) module on "Observing Intellectual Property and Copyright Law during Research". This will be an online module and relevant information can be accessed from the website.
- A student who receives two (or more) grades F or below will be asked to discontinue studies.
