The Department of Psychology is a dynamic and varied research community covering the cognitive and neural underpinnings of social interaction, learning, memory, and language, through to more applied research topics in forensic, health, and developmental psychology.Our academic staff work at the forefront of their field, across psychological science and neuroscience, with an active, thriving postgraduate research community.The Department of Psychology at Royal Holloway has been placed joint third in the country by The Times Higher Education following the publication of the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021 results. In the REF 2021 results overall, 67% of Psychology's research was classified as 4* world leading in terms of originality, significance and rigour, highlighting the exceptional quality of the department’s research outputs, impact and environment.The department received a top score for its research impact, with 100% judged to be 4* which is the highest standard of excellence. This outstanding result for research impact reinforces the importance and value of the department’s research to society and the economy. We are located on a beautiful campus in Surrey, close to London and we have a wide range of research-dedicated facilities.The department has earned a Silver Athena SWAN award for best practice in equal opportunities and our inclusive environment.We invite candidates to discuss possible research topics with a potential supervisor before submitting a formal application. You can find out more about our staff and their areas of expertise here.From time to time, we make changes to our courses to improve the student and learning experience, and this is particularly the case as we continue to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. If we make a significant change to your chosen course, we’ll let you know as soon as we can.
Psychology PhD at Royal Holloway University of London
The Psychology PhD is a PhD degree offered by Royal Holloway University of London on the Egham campus in London, United Kingdom. The program is delivered on campus as a Full Time course in English and requires approximately 4 years to complete. Students study at the Egham campus while gaining the knowledge and practical experience expected for this area of study. The tuition fee is USD 34,856 / year, and the next intake is available from September 1, 2026.
About Psychology PhD
Disciplines
Requirements
Entry Requirements
Entry requirements
Applicants should have the equivalent of a 2:1 honours in Psychology, or a related discipline, and meet Royal Holloway’s requirements for English (for international students).
Before applying we recommend securing a supervisor in order to apply for your research project.
We advise getting in touch with the Director of Postgraduate Education making an informal enquiry for your chosen research degree to inquire whether there is any other additional material they require you to submit in your application.
English language requirements
All teaching at Royal Holloway is in English. You will therefore need to have good enough written and spoken English to cope with your studies right from the start.
The scores we require
- IELTS: 6.5 overall. Writing 7.0. No other subscore lower than 5.5.
- Pearson Test of English: 61 overall. Writing 69. No other subscore lower than 51.
- Trinity College London Integrated Skills in English (ISE): ISE III.
- Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) grade C.
- TOEFL ib: 88 overall, with Reading 18 Listening 17 Speaking 20 Writing 26.
Country-specific requirements
For more information about country-specific entry requirements for your country please see here.
English Requirements
- PTEMin 61
- IELTSMin 6.5
- TOEFLMin 88
English Program Requirements
All teaching at Royal Holloway is in English. You will therefore need to have good enough written and spoken English to cope with your studies right from the start.
The scores we require
- IELTS: 6.5 overall. Writing 7.0. No other subscore lower than 5.5.
- Pearson Test of English: 61 overall. Writing 69. No other subscore lower than 51.
- Trinity College London Integrated Skills in English (ISE): ISE III.
- Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) grade C.
- TOEFL ib: 88 overall, with Reading 18 Listening 17 Speaking 20 Writing 26.
Career
Your future career
Our PGR students often continue in careers in academia (Post-doctoral work, Teaching Fellow, Lecturer) or onto research in business and industry. Our former PGR students have moved into academia, into industry as statisticians, into marketing and neuromarketing, government (eg, Office for National Statistics), policy, cybersecurity, and have become founders of Tech start ups and charities.
Fee Information
United Kingdom, London