If you’re interested in how the human mind works and how it affects cognitive functions, behaviour, and body language, you can consider getting a psychology degree.
Getting your degree in psychological science is important to aid your learning and increase your knowledge and experience about the human mind and behaviour. Many federal, state and private universities across different Nigerian states offer psychology courses either for undergraduate or postgraduate studies.
In this article, we’ll discuss psychology degrees in Nigeria, entry requirements for the course, learning resources, and the places you can work as a psychologist.
Getting a Psychology Degree in Nigeria
To understand the science of the human mind and behaviour, you need adequate training and education. Also, to practice as a psychologist in Nigeria, you need a university degree in psychological science.
Psychology is a great programme to study, and it helps students explore the diversity of the human mind, including how it affects human behaviour and cognitive functions. Getting a degree in psychological science is very important in your journey to becoming a psychologist.
You need the right knowledge, experience, skills, and career requirements to help people solve their issues and function well in their day-to-day activities.
Signing up for the psychological science programme at the university will expose you to things like:
- Psychology specialisations
- Different psychology approaches
- Clinical experiments
- Research and project
- Interpretation of research and project findings
- Data handling and evaluation
- Scientific processes, etc.
Being introduced to all these will help you with your learning experience and career development.
In addition, the university is a perfect place to get your psychology degree in Nigeria. Whether federal, state, or private, you’ll get a good learning experience.
Here are some universities in Nigeria with a high ranking where you can study psychology:
- University of Ibadan, Oyo state
- University of Lagos, Lagos state
- University of Nigeria, Enugu state
- Ekiti State University
- Bowen University, Osun state
- Covenant University, Ogun state
- Afe Babalola university, Ekiti State, etc.
A psychology degree in Nigerian universities is usually between 3 to 4 years, depending on your entry mode. When applying to any university in Nigeria for a psychology programme, you should take note of your JAMB, O level, or A level subject combinations. It must include English, Biology, and social science subjects.
For JAMB, most universities accept a score of 200 and above to be qualified to sit for post-UTME, while some universities accept less than that.
Your O-level result is also one of the entry requirements. You must have 5 credit passes in one sitting or 6 credits in 2 sittings in your results, including English, Maths, Biology, and other social science subjects.
In your quest to become a psychologist, you don’t need any prior skills or qualifications to apply for psychological science at the university. However, there are important skills you need to build along the way.
The following is a list of skills you should build as you study to become a psychologist:
- Critical thinking
- Communication
- Patience
- Creative problem solving
- Active listening
- Research
Books and Tools for Learning Psychology
Books and study materials are important things students need to gain knowledge and build psychology skills. As students gain admission year in and year out, they must be exposed to adequate study resources and learning materials for their academic development.
There’s so much having a good education resource can do for your education and career development. Whether running an undergraduate or postgraduate university programme, there are books, research materials, and study resources that can help you with extra study and improve your cognitive functions.
Reading helps with project research and other school activities. It also helps students gain knowledge and skills and prevents cognitive decline. There are books on the human mind and behaviour that can help you understand the discipline you’re into.
So, you can read books from both local and international psychologists to help you with explanations on different psych topics.
Introductory books are available for students new to the discipline. Also, there are advanced psychology books.
Here is a list of a few books that can help you in your psychology discipline:
- Basic psychology by Olusola Ayandele
- Career paths in psychology by Robert J. Sternberg
- Health psychology by Jane Ogden
- Clinical health psychology by Amy Wachholtz
- The social animal by Elliot Aronson
- How learning happens by Carl Hendrick and Paul Arthur
- Forensic psychology by David V. Canter
- Language and human behaviour by Jessie and John Danz
- Essentials of lifespan development by John Santrock
Aside from books, you can access other study resources for your study and project research. With the internet, you can get important information on your field. You can take online courses from international schools worldwide to gain exposure, including certifications which is an advantage.
In addition, different education platforms online can connect you with suitable courses, course modules, and topics that can help you learn and aid your academic and career development. You can get free online courses and some affordable courses to get you started.
Another thing you can do to aid your learning as a psych student is to read articles on psychology websites. This will help you as a student get current and up-to-date news and topics in psychology.
Technology has made it easier to read articles and blogs from anywhere in the world at any time, just with your smart device. There is a lot of information online that you can get within a short time that can help with your education and career.
Here are some websites where you can get up-to-date news on psychology:
- PsychCentral
- Psyblog
- Mind Hacks
- Research Digest
Furthermore, to improve your experience as a psychology student, getting a psychology tutor might be all you need. This is another resource you can use to gain knowledge and experience in psychology topics.
Psychology Jobs in Nigeria
You might wonder how to make a career out of understanding the human mind and behaviour. There’s so much you can do with your psychology knowledge, degree, and skills. And we’ll be talking about them in this section.
Psychology is one of the fields that helps you explore different work sectors in the psychological disciplines both in Nigeria and international workspace.
You can work at hospitals and clinics, business organisations, rehabilitation centres, schools, non-governmental organisations and many more.
Psychology has different specialisations that you can choose to build your career. The following is a list of some psychology specialisations:
- Clinical or Health Psychology
- Social psychology
- Cognitive psychology
- Counselling psychology
- Environmental psychology
- Forensic Psychology
- Business Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
Due to the versatility of the psychology discipline, psychologists are not limited when building their careers as they’re needed in almost every sector.
As a psychologist, there are different job roles you can apply for based on your interest. You can work at clinics, law firms, business organisations, or any organisation that needs your service.
Here are a few roles you can apply for as a psychologist:
- Clinical health psychotherapist
- Clinical research assistant
- Cognitive therapist
- Counsellor
- Lecturer
- Human resource management
- Business management
- User experience researcher
- Social worker
- Intelligence officer
- People operations, etc
We all know how searching for jobs could be in Nigeria. To work as a psychologist in Nigeria, first of all, you must have the skills to deal with issues relating to people coupled with your degree.
Taking Psychology Classes With Superprof
Getting private tutors for your psychology courses is a great way to gain and retain knowledge. Since psychological science requires consistent learning, getting private teaching will help you stay up-to-date with the psychology discipline and different topics relating to it.
With private tutorials, students can get help with course modules, exam preparation, and any other issues relating to the course. To get good tutors that can work with you to achieve your learning requirements and career development, you should consider Superprof.
The educational platform connects you with qualified tutors that offer nothing but the best. With Superprof tutors, you can discuss areas you find difficult with your course without being scared about asking questions.
You can get a tutor on Superprof to build and develop your skills for a better understanding of the course, exam prep, or anything else.
Also, a private tutorial with Superprof is affordable, costing between 1,500 to 5,000 NGN to get a good tutor. You can take your lessons online or in person whenever you’re available. Also, one of the perks of hiring a Superprof tutor is that you will get the first lesson for free!
So, hurry to Superprof, sign up, and hire a psychology tutor today!
Enjoyed this article? Leave a rating!
Loading...
