The programme is designed in a modular fashion. The number of mandatory modules decreases towards the end of the programme, offering increased flexibility to students. The course lasts for two years or four semesters, during which a total of 120 credit points (CP) must be achieved.

The “general” portion of the course contains five mandatory modules, including MATLAB, statistics, diagnostics, and scientific communication. The Minor module allows you to broaden your view and take courses from fields related to psychology.

The “specialised” portion offers several different modules from which students may choose according to their interests (requiring 24 CP).

The practical part of the programme includes 12 CP for a mandatory internship (lasting 360 hours) which can be carried out in (clinical) institutions, companies or research groups that employ psychologists. Another 9 CP must be acquired via the practical project module, where you will gain hands-on research experience in one of the Psychology labs at Carl von Ossietzky University. 30 CP are allocated for completing a Master's thesis with an accompanying Master's colloquium.

General part (mandatory):  45 CP
*  Research methods I & II   12 CP
*  Neuropsychological Diagnostics    6 CP
*  Test Theory and Test Construction    6 CP
*  Communication of scientific results    6 CP
*  Computation in Neuroscience    9 CP
*  Minor    6 CP

Specialized part (choose 4*6, or 2*9 + 1*6;
taking a methods module is strongly recommended):  24 CP 

* Transcranial Brain Stimulation    6 CP
* Neurophysiology (EEG)   6 CP
* Neurocognition    6 CP
* Sex and Cognition    6 CP
* Neuropsychology    6 CP (clinical non-mandatory contents partly taught in German)
* Applied Cognitive Psychology    6 CP
* Human Computer Interaction    6 CP
* Functional MRI Data Analysis    9 CP
* Ambulatory Assessment in Psychology    6 CP
* Clinical Psychology    9 CP (clinical contents partly taught in German)
* Study abroad Psychology/Neuroscience 2x 6 CP (to accredit modules from a study abroad)

Restrictions in participant numbers apply for each elective module. There is no guarantee that students can take all modules of their choice. Each student can study at least one module in which a neuroscientific method is taught.

Practical part (mandatory; choose 1 practical project):  51 CP
* Internship or lab visit (outside the Department of Psychology, Oldenburg)    12 CP
* Practical project   9 CP²
* Master's thesis & Master's colloquium  30 CP

² choose from: Applied Neurocognitive Psychology, Psychological Methods and Statistics, Experimental Psychology, Neuropsychology, Biological Psychology, Ambulatory Assessment in Psychology

Total:    120 CP

Module descriptions and offered courses

You can find the module descriptions and the offered courses directly in the campus management system Stud.IP. You can also download a PDF version of the module handbook.

Module descriptions and offered courses

Our programme requires solid knowledge in statistics as you should have learned it in your Bachelor's studies. Please test your knowledge with our short test. Make sure to catch up with any missing competencies before you start your studies with us in order to easily follow our Master's course.

Statistics Test

As a Research Master programme we will teach you various programming skills (Matlab, R, PsychoPy) that are essential for performing research in neurocognitve psychology. Those classes are mandatory and will make up, together with classes in advanced statistics, many of the studying hours in your first year. 

We expect students to be interested in learning programming and deepening their statistical knowledge.

Knowledge of either EEG, fMRI, TBS, or MEG data analysis, or knowledge of HCI or ambulatory assessment methods is essential for most practical projects and Master’s theses offered in the Department of Psychology. Therefore, we strongly advise to attend at least one of the modules:

psy170: Neurophysiology (EEG)
psy220: Human Computer Interaction
psy270: Functional MRI Data Analysis
psy280: Transcranial Brain Stimulation
psy290: Ambulatory Assessment in Psychology

Working with patients or experimental data acquisition with participants generally require a good command of German! Students who want to follow the clinical contents of the modules Clinical Psychology or Neuropsychology need to understand a lecture given in German with accompanying English slides.
You can take German courses as your Minor.

The internship (usually outside the Department of Psychology, Oldenburg) is a mandatory part of the study programme and lasts 360 hours. It may be split in two shorter internships. We suggest that you do your internship in the semester breaks. When planning your internship dates, please consider that exams always take place in the two weeks after the lecture periods end.

Students should do internships that help them develop their individual career perspective. Often, students find their first job in the institutions where they performed an internship.

You are free to do internships in institutions (research, clinics, public sector, industry etc.) of your choice. Internships can be performed in Germany or abroad to gain international experience; in the last years, about 1/3 of all internships have been performed outside Germany.

The following institutions near or in Oldenburg have accepted applications for research and clinical internships from students enrolled in the programme "Neurocognitive Psychology" in the past:

• Agentur für Arbeit, Psychologischer Dienst, Oldenburg
• Evangelisches Krankenhaus, Neurozentrum, Oldenburg 
• Rehazentrum, Oldenburg
• EWE AG, Oldenburg
• Hörzentrum/HörTech Oldenburg
• Fraunhofer IDMT, Oldenburg
• OFFIS, Oldenburg
• Department of Neuroscience, University of Oldenburg
• Department of Medical Physics, University of Oldenburg
• Nemo Research Group, Universitätsklinik für Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie, Oldenburg
• Universitätsklinik für Neurologie, Oldenburg
• Klinikum Oldenburg, Onkologie und Hämatologie, Oldenburg
• Klinikum Bremen Ost, Psychiatrie, Bremen
• Klinikum Bremen Ost, Neurologie, Bremen
• Waldklinik Jesteburg, Jesteburg
• Diakoniekrankenhaus Rotenburg (Wümme)
• Helios Klinik Leezen
• Karl-Jaspers-Klinik, Bad Zwischenahn
• Reha-Zentrum am Meer, Bad Zwischenahn
• Klinik für Psychosomatik und Psychotherapie, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover (MHH)
• Netzwerk für traumatisierte Flüchtlinge in Niedersachsen (NTFN e.V.)

Please keep in mind that work with patients or customers always requires a very good command of German.

To generate ideas, a folder with information on internships that other students have performed is available in the office of Dr. Cornelia Kranczioch. Additionally, we encourage students to attend the internship presentations of other students that take place regularly about three times per semester.

For questions or if in doubt whether your internship fulfils the requirements for approval, please contact Dr. Cornelia Kranczioch before you start.

If you experience problems in one of your classes, please discuss the problems with the lecturer directly if possible. If this does not solve the problem, you can contact the person responsible for the entire module.

If you want to discuss the issue with someone outside the teaching staff, please contact Kerstin Bleichner as programme coordinator. She will always handle complaints confidentially. She is also an elected equal opportunity representative.

If you cannot solve the issue within the study programme, you can contact the deanery of student affairs of Faculty VI: 

Complaint Management of School VI

If you experience sexual discrimination or harassment, you can contact conTakt, the counselling centre for sexualized discrimination and violence issues of the university.

conTakt

Additionally, students can always ask the programme coordinator Kerstin Bleichner for advise on all study related issues.