The Department of Psychosocial Studies

Psychosocial Studies at Birkbeck is a new and exciting interdisciplinary venture that builds on the College's vibrant tradition of critical social science. It is concerned with the inter-relation between individual subjectivities and identities, and historical and contemporary social and political formations.

In order to understand the complexities of this inter-relation, it combines insights drawn from psychology and its related disciplines (such as psychoanalysis, psychotherapy, group analysis and systems theory) with understandings of the social and political domain in disciplines such as sociology, political studies, anthropology, cultural studies, philosophy, feminism, post-colonial studies and queer theory.

It seeks to link discussions of our precarious and increasingly interconnected collective fates with our most intimate personal and psychic life. In doing so, Psychosocial Studies aims to better understand contemporary manifestations of a range of concerns including violence, aggression and war; racial hatred, xenophobia and intolerance; trauma, loss and memory; affect and embodiment; intimacies, communities and care; parenting, friendship and love; sexuality, gender and desire; religion and the sacred; ethics, agency and human rights; resistance, transformation and change.

The Department of Psychosocial Studies is part of the School of Social Science, History and Philosophy.

On the pages of this website you will find information about Our Staff, Our Courses and Research. You can also read about the philosophy and aims of the Department and you can get details of seminars, talks and other events.

We welcome applicants from the UK and from all over the world to our range of postgraduate taught and research courses. If you would like details of our programmes and how to apply for our Certificate, Masters, Professional Doctorate or PhD programmes, please consult the Our Courses section.

• Request Birkbeck Application Form or Prospectus
• Map of Birkbeck/UCL Campus

If you would like to speak to someone or get more information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Prospective Students

If you would like to come to one of Birkbeck's Open evenings and meet our staff, you can book your visit here.

Current Students

If you are a current student in this Department, please click on the For Students tab on the top where you can find further information and current announcements about your studies.