Master Award in
Exploring Psychology

Learn, Earn, Certify, and Transfer with Master Award Certified

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DISTINCTION
LEARN

Learn and quickly master the latest skills and knowledge

Earn

Can start working immediately or enhance career opportunities

CERTIFY

Obtain a Master's certified with credits in Psychology from SIMI Swiss

Transfer

Transfer credits and tuition fees to the full Master's program

Learning Outcome
Learning outcomes
  1. Be able to conduct qualitative enquiry of stereotype threat, racial socialisation, LGBTQ psychology and connect it to mental health.
  2. Understand the critical theory, discourse of postmodernism and application of hermeneutics.
  3. Be able to practise critical psychology and apply the methods of liberation.
Introduction

The objective of this module is to advance and explore a psychology dedicated to addressing contemporary social challenges. It also seeks to offer a critical examination of mainstream psychology, allowing psychologists the opportunity to engage in critical and creative thinking on how to effectively serve diverse individuals and communities.

Topics
  1. Be able to conduct a qualitative enquiry of stereotype threat, racial socialisation, and LGBTQ psychology and connect it to mental health.
  2. Understand the critical theory, discourse of postmodernism and application of hermeneutics.
  3. Be able to practise critical psychology and apply the methods of liberation.
Indicative Reading
  • Costa, A. P., & Murphy, A. D. (2018) Mad Studies and Neurodiversity: A Dialogue in Critical Psychology Subjectivity, 11(3), 303–321.
  • Fox, D., & Prilleltensky, I. (1997). Critical Psychology: An Introduction Sage Publications.
  • Parker, I. (1999). Critical psychology: critical links Routledge.
  • Parker, I. (2007). Revolution in Psychology: Alienation to Emancipation Pluto Press.
  • Riger, S. (1997) Epistemological debates, feminist voices: science, social values, and the study of women American Psychologist, 52(2), 126–137.
  • Sloan, T. (1999). Critical psychology and diagnostic classification: A discourse analysis of the DSM-IV. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 9(5), 335–348.
  • Smail, D. J. (2005). On becoming a critical psychologist In I. Parker (Ed.), Handbook of Critical Psychology (pp. 393–409) Routledge.
  • Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the Oppressed Continuum.
  • Martín-Baró, I. (1994). Writings for Liberation Psychology Harvard University Press.
  • Prilleltensky, I. (1994). The Morals and Politics of Psychology: Psychological Discourse and the Status Quo State University of New York Press
  • Alexander, M. (2010) The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colour-blindness. The New Press.
  • Bullard, R. D. (1994). Unequal Protection: Environmental Justice and Communities of Colour Sierra Club Books
  • Connell, R. W. (1987). Gender and Power: Society, the Person, and Sexual Politics Stanford University Press.
  • Eagly, A. H., & Carli, L. L. (2007). Through the Labyrinth: The Truth About How Women Become Leaders Harvard Business School Press
  • Gomes, J., & LeCompte, M. D. (2014). Decolonising qualitative research: non-traditional reporting forms in the academy Springer.
  • Kawakami, N., et al. (2014) Social inequalities in mental health: results from the EU contribution to the World Mental Health Surveys Initiative Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 49(9), 1257–1266.
  • Martínes, D. (2006) Psychological distress in US Latino groups: The impact of immigration and acculturation In Handbook of U.S. Latino Psychology: Developmental and Community-Based Perspectives Sage Publications.
  • Prilleltensky, I. (2003). Understanding, resisting, and overcoming oppression: Towards psychopolitical validity American Journal of Community Psychology, 31(1-2), 195-201.
  • Stokols, D. (1996) Translating social ecological theory into guidelines for community health promotion American Journal of Health Promotion, 10(4), 282-298.
  • Williams, D. R., & Mohammed, S. A. (2009). Discrimination and racial disparities in health: Evidence and needed research Journal of Behavioural Medicine, 32(1), 20–47.
  • Pascoe, E. A., & Smart Richman, L. (2009). Perceived discrimination and health: A meta-analytic review Psychological Bulletin, 135(4), 531–554.
  • Krieger, N., Smith, K., Naishadham, D., Hartman, C., & Barbeau, E. M. (2005). Experiences of discrimination: validity and reliability of a self-report measure for population health research on racism and health Social Science & Medicine, 61(7), 1576–1596.
  • Major, B., & O'Brien, L. T. (2005). The social psychology of stigma Annual Review of Psychology, 56, 393–421.
  • Link, B. G., & Phelan, J. C. (2001). Conceptualising stigma. Annual Review of Sociology, 27, 363–385.
  • Williams, D. R., & Mohammed, S. A. (2009). Discrimination and racial disparities in health: evidence and needed research Journal of Behavioural Medicine, 32(1), 20-47.
  • Brondolo, E., ver Halen, N. B., Pencille, M., Beatty, D., & Contrada, R. J. (2009). Coping with racism: A selective review of the literature and a theoretical and methodological critique. Journal of Behavioural Medicine, 32(1), 64-
  • Pascoe, E. A., & Smart Richman, L. (2009). Perceived discrimination and health: A meta-analytic review Psychological Bulletin, 135(4), 531–554.
  • Mays, V. M., Cochran, S. D., & Barnes, N. W. (2007). Race, race-based discrimination, and health outcomes among African Americans Annual Review of Psychology, 58, 201-225.
  • Bryant-Davis, T., & Ocampo, C. (2006) A therapeutic approach to the treatment of racist-incident-based trauma Journal of Emotional Abuse, 6(4), 1–22.
  • Bryan, C. J., et al. (2016) Race and suicide: A review of recent literature Current Opinion in Psychology, 10, 88–93.
  • Foucault, M. (1977). Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison Vintage.
  • Foucault, M. (1980). Power and Knowledge: Selected Interviews and Other Writings, 1972–1977) Pantheon Books.
  • Drucker, P. F. (1969). The Age of Discontinuity: Guidelines for Our Changing Society Harper & Row.
  • Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Continuum.
  • Marx, K., & Engels, F. (1845). The German Ideology. Progress Publishers.
  • Lasswell, H. D. (1936). Politics: Who Gets What, When, and How? Peter Smith.
  • Bourdieu, P. (1986). The Forms of Capital in J. G. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education (pp. 241-258), Greenwood Press.
  • Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict In W. G. Austin & S. Worchel (Eds.), The social psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 33–47), Brooks/Cole.
  • Simbardo, P. G., Haney, C., & Banks, W. C. (1973). The Stanford prison experiment: A simulation study of the psychology of imprisonment Stanford University.
  • Smith, L. T. (2006) Theorising Native Studies University of Manitoba Press.
  • Kellermann, N. P. (2001). Transmission of Holocaust trauma—an integrative view Psychiatry, 64(3), 256-267
  • Brown, L. M. (2009). The politics of respectability: Negotiating race and gendered expectations Race and Society, 12(2), 173–188.
  • Sue, D. W., et al. (2019). Racial microaggressions in everyday life: Implications for clinical practice American Psychologist, 74(1), 49–62.
  • Neville, H. A., et al. (2019). The Colourblind Racial Attitudes Scale: Development, Validity, and Reliability Journal of Black Psychology, 45(1), 8–30.
  • Hankerson, S. H., & Watson, A. C. (2019). Addressing mental health disparities through clinical competence and a social justice framework Journal of Contemporary Psychotherapy, 49(4), 261-270
  • Prilleltensky, I. (2008). The role of power in wellness, oppression, and liberation: The promise of psychopolitical validity Journal of Community Psychology, 36(2), 116–136.
  • Dixon, T. L., & Williams, C. L. (2015). The changing misrepresentation of race and crime on network and cable news Journal of Communication, 65(1), 24-39.
  • Williams, D. R., & Mohammed, S. A. (2009). Discrimination and racial disparities in health: evidence and needed research Journal of Behavioural Medicine, 32(1), 20–47.
  • Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the Oppressed Continuum.
  • Du Bois, W. E. B. (1903). The Souls of Black Folk Bantam Classics.
  • Capussi, D., & Stauffer, M. D. (2016). Foundations of addiction counselling Pearson.
  • Cormier, S., & Hackney, H. (2018) counselling strategies and interventions for professional helpers. Pearson.
  • Geldard, D., & Geldard, K. (2019). Basic personal counselling: A training manual for counsellors Pearson.
  • Gonsales, J. M., & Tarlow, K. R. (2015). Professional identity of counsellors-in-training: A grounded theory Counsellor Education and Supervision, 54(1), –18.
  • Henderson, D. (2017) The practical art of suicide assessment: A guide for mental health professionals and substance abuse counsellors Wiley.
  • Hobfoll, S. E., Watson, P., Bell, C. C., Bryant, R. A., Brymer, M. J., Friedman, M. J.... & Ursano, R. J. (2014). Five essential elements of immediate and mid-term mass trauma intervention: empirical evidence Psychiatry: Interpersonal and Biological Processes, 77(4), 337–356.
  • James, R. K., & Gilliland, B. E. (2017). Crisis intervention strategies. Cengage Learning.
  • Joiner, T. E., Stanley, I. H., Sachs-Ericsson, N. J., Kraemer, H. C., & Tesanos, K. M. (2017). An interpersonal theory of suicide Psychological Review, 124(3), 349–372.
  • Kaplan, D. M., Tarlow, K. R., Beck, A. T., Bilsker, D., Brodsky, B. S., Goldstein, D.... & Semishlany, S. (2018). Suicide risk assessment and intervention: a universal model Suicide and Life-Threatening Behaviour, 48(5), 524-533.
  • Lambert, M. J., & Alhassoon, O. M. (2015). Psychotherapy outcome research In B. L. Duncan, S. D. Miller, B. E. Wampold, & M. A. Hubble (Eds.), The heart and soul of change: Delivering what works in therapy (2nd ed., pp. 209–238) American Psychological Association.
  • Wheeler, K. (2014) Psychotherapy for the advanced practice psychiatric nurse: A how-to guide for evidence-based practice Springer Publishing Company
  • Simet, G. D., Dahlem, N. W., Simet, S. G., & Farley, G. K. (1988). The multidimensional scale of perceived social support Journal of Personality Assessment, 52(1), 30-41.
  • Burr, V. (1995). An introduction to social constructionism Routledge.
  • Burton, M. (2012) Towards a Critical Health Psychology: Theories and Practices of Change Palgrave Macmillan.
  • Fox, D., & Prilleltensky, I. (1997). Critical Psychology: An Introduction Sage Publications.
  • Gergen, K. J., McNamee, S., Barrett, F. J., & Barrett, F. J. (2001). towards transformative dialogue. International Journal of Public Administration, 24(7-8), 679–707.
  • Hansen, H. (2004). The problem of power: A discussion of the construction of power in critical psychology Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology, 14(6), 409–421.
  • Parker, I. (2007). Revolution in Psychology: Alienation to Emancipation Pluto Press.
  • Prilleltensky, I., & Nelson, G. (2002). Doing psychology critically: Making a Difference in Diverse Settings Palgrave Macmillan.
Entry requirements
Yêu cầu đầu vào:
  • Bằng cử nhân các chuyên ngành từ các đại học được kiểm định; hoặc
  • Bằng Level 6 theo hệ EQF hoặc tương đương.
Yêu cầu tiếng Anh:
  • Tiếng Anh đạt tối thiểu khung năng lực CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference) ở mức B2 hoặc tương đương;
  • Hoặc, chứng chỉ IELTS 5.5 với kỹ năng Speaking và Writing phải đạt từ 5.5 hoặc tương đương.

Please note: SIMI Swiss, PsySchool Switzerland reserve the right to make admissions decisions based on the requirements of recognized agencies and the global quotas of the program.

Master Award Certifed

Aligned with the program's professional competency framework, students not only follow the official curriculum but also gain access to applied lectures designed to enhance their skills. These lectures enable students to build expertise, leading to a specialist certification upon successfully completing a 30-minute assessment.

After completing the Exploring Psychology course, students can take a test on SIMI Swiss's exclusive platform to obtain the Level 7 Certified in Exploring psychology in digital format. An optional hard copy certificate is also available upon request.

LEVEL 7 CERTIFIED IN EXPLOIRING PSYCHOLOGY WILL HELP YOU DEMONSTRATE THE FOLLOWING COMPETENCIES:

Competency 1: Conducting Qualitative Enquiry in Stereotype Threat, Racial Socialization, and LGBTQ Psychology

  • Evaluate the theory of 'Critical Psychology and Psychology for Liberation.'
  • Construct arguments on current pressing social issues using critical psychology principles.
  • Analyze the impact of prejudices and discrimination on individual mental health.

Competency 2: Understanding Critical Theory, Postmodern Discourse, and Hermeneutics

  • Assess the relationship between power and knowledge.
  • Examine the psychology of oppression and utilize this understanding to address social problems.
  • Develop practical and realistic solutions to social issues.

Competency 3: Practicing Critical Psychology and Applying Methods of Liberation

  • Evaluate critical consciousness and double consciousness.
  • Design a model that represents crisis counseling.
  • Analyze the concept of "therapy of capitalism" and its implications.
Transfer Credits & Tuition fees

Students can transfer credits and tuition fees when enrolling in the Master of Psychology program at SIMI Swiss.

Notice & Disclaimers

Swiss Information and Management Institute (SIMI Swiss), Swiss PsySchool cùng với các trường Đại học Đối tác, Đối tác, Đối tác học thuật, Đối tác Khoa học Địa phương và các Cơ quan Cấp Chứng chỉ (gọi chung là 'Các Bên'), qua đây tuyên bố và khẳng định rằng:

  • Các Bên không đảm bảo đăng ký học là sẽ ra trường, sẽ tốt nghiệp và sẽ nhận văn bằng. Các đại học đối tác chỉ cấp văn bằng và công nhận kết quả học tập nếu học viên đáp ứng đầy đủ và hoàn tất các yêu cầu về học thuật, quy chế tài chính, kỷ luật học tập và các quy định khác;
  • Trong trường hợp vi phạm cam kết, tự ý vắng mặt, tự ý không tiếp tục chương trình, vi phạm các quy định bao gồm nghĩa vụ tài chính, Các Bên có quyền từ chối tiếp nhận, từ chối hỗ trợ, huỷ bỏ tư cách học viên và không bồi hoàn chi phí, học phí;
  • Các Bên không đảm bảo bằng cấp được tiếp nhận, công nhận, công nhận tương đương, kiểm định bởi bên thứ ba bao gồm cơ quan, chính phủ, địa phương, các ban ngành…. Quyết định tiếp nhận hay không tiếp nhận phụ thuộc vào chủ quan của đơn vị tiếp nhận, theo quy định của từng quốc gia, từng chính phủ, từng địa phương và từng đơn vị;
  • Các Bên không đảm bảo sau khi ra trường người học sẽ tăng lương, sẽ thăng tiến, sẽ thăng chức, sẽ được tiếp nhận vào vị trí mới, chỗ làm mới;
  • Mặc dù có rất nhiều quy định về công nhận chéo, công nhận tương đương về bằng cấp nhưng mỗi quốc gia, mỗi tổ chức, mỗi đơn vị có quyền tiếp nhận, công nhận bằng cấp của riêng mình. Các Bên không đảm bảo, không cam kết, không hứa hẹn việc công nhận bằng cấp trong quá trình sử dụng văn bằng, chứng chỉ, chứng nhận, bảng điểm… của Các Bên. Các Bên cũng không đảm bảo, không hỗ trợ quy trình công nhận bằng cấp tương đương (nếu có và nếu cần);
  • Các Bên không đảm bảo, không cam kết người học sẽ có cơ hội định cư, việc làm tại nước ngoài, sẽ có giấy phép làm việc, giấy phép giảng dạy, giấy phép chuyên gia tại Thụy Sĩ, Châu Âu hoặc bất kỳ quốc gia nào khác;
  • Các Bên không đảm bảo sinh viên đạt 100% visa du học (nếu có).
Academic Support from local Partners

LOCAL PARTNERS ARE PRESENT ONLY IN CERTAIN COUNTRIES AUTHORIZED BY SIMI

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1. English support for non-native speakers

All PsySchool programs of SIMI are delivered in English, and SIMI recognizes that language is not the key determinant of success in an educational program—it’s simply a medium for instructors to share knowledge.

To help students confidently navigate any challenges with English, particularly the specialized language of Psychology courses, the local academic support team provides assistance through various activities.

Key lectures from SIMI instructors are translated into the local language with the help of local partners. Additionally, each course features a learning assistant who supports students throughout the program, serving as a bridge between students and instructors to ensure seamless communication and to break down language barriers.

2. Support for APA/Harvard formatting and writing style

At PsySchool and in all SIMI programs, students are required to write their assignments following international standards such as APA or Harvard. For some students, this can be a significant initial challenge.

Understanding this, SIMI Swiss has developed detailed guidelines, and with the support of local partners, students receive in-depth guidance and formatting assistance before submitting their assignments to SIMI Swiss.

Check it out [HERE].

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