Goldsmiths, University of London · Full-time
Psychology of the Arts, Neuroaesthetics and Creativity
This Masters is the first postgraduate programme in the world for the scientific study of aesthetics and creativity. - The programme sits at the intersection of the arts and the sciences. It will introduce you to the psychology and the cognitive neuroscience o…
Masters1 yearFull-time
Browse psychology courses in UK
Psychology · Psychology
This Masters is the first postgraduate programme in the world for the scientific study of aesthetics and creativity. - The programme sits at the intersection of the arts and the sciences. It will introduce you to the psychology and the cognitive neuroscience of how humans generate new ideas, how we appreciate beauty, and how we form preferences. - With a strong interdisciplinary focus at the intersection of the arts and the sciences, the programme provides an in-depth introduction to the scientific and psychological study of aesthetic experiences, art engagement, and creativity. - Aesthetic and creative decisions are relevant in the visual and the performing arts, and in many applied and commercial contexts – ranging from clinical interventions to curating exhibitions, and from dance choreography to marketing and advertising. - Based in Psychology and Neuroscience, in collaboration with Computing, Media, Communications and Cultural Studies and Creative Management, the course builds critical knowledge, research and communication skills across the arts and the sciences, centred around two key topics: the psychological and brain mechanisms of making (creativity) and appreciating (neuroaesthetics) art. - You'll be able to follow one of of two options: the Interdisciplinary Pathway or the Creative Coding Pathway. - The Interdisciplinary Pathway will help prepare you for a career in psychology, marketing, media studies or the creative industries, while the Creative Computing Pathway is well-suited for those interested in a research career in experimental psychology or computational arts. - You'll gain in-depth knowledge of experimental design, statistics and neuroscientific methods, providing you with the necessary research skills for an empirical investigation of these topics in a dissertation research project and beyond.
Getting in
As the university states it
You should normally have (or expect to be awarded) an undergraduate degree of at least second class standard in psychology or a related subject (cognitive science, neuroscience) with a research component. However, we explicitly encourage candidates with interdisciplinary and unusual biographies to apply. Applicants with undergraduate degrees in the visual or performing arts, design, humanities, business, or other non-scientific subjects will be required to demonstrate sufficient background knowledge and experience with psychological or cognitive neuroscience approaches, including statistics. We particularly invite applicants from the following backgrounds: Students with a degree in Psychology or a related subject (Cognitive Science, Neuroscience) who wish to specialise in the psychology of art, neuroaesthetics or creativity. Students with arts backgrounds who wish to move into psychology/neuroscience, or want to enrich their artistic or professional practice (e.g., in arts administration, curation, research, creative industries, etc) with knowledge from psychology, neuroscience and neuroaesthetics. Students with a background in the creative industries, marketing or business who wish to acquire knowledge in scientific methods, cognitive neuroscience and experimental psychology in relation to the arts, aesthetics and creativity to support their career. Candidates with a non-Psychology background (e.g., Arts, Business, Philosophy, etc.) are expected to acquire introductory knowledge and/or experience of psychology, neuroscience, and/or statistical data analysis prior to joining the programme (demonstrated in the personal statement). Candidates should make clear in the personal statement that they understand the programme is fundamentally scientific in its approach and rooted in empirical (primarily quantitative) research methods. Please contact the programme leader directly if you are unsure as to whether you would qualify for this programme. A preparatory statistics workshop is offered to all students who have been accepted on PG Psychology programmes. The course runs online/asynchronously, and students gain access to the materials as soon as they have completed enrollment and have access to the VLE. It covers basic descriptive (measures of centrality and variance) and inferential (T-tests and univariate analysis of variance) statistics. It is offered at no additional cost. Completion of the preparatory stats course is not required for all students but should be considered a prerequisite for those with little prior knowledge in statistics. We accept a wide range of international qualifications. If English isn’t your first language, you will need an IELTS score (or equivalent English language qualification) of 6.5 with a 6.5 in writing and no element lower than 6.0 to study this programme.
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