Have you ever encountered an awkward silence during a conversation?
You know, the sudden pause after someone (or maybe it's you) blurted out a stereotype.
" What? I can't believe you're a firefighter! How can a woman handle that?"
" Oh, you're a lawyer. How nice it is to earn money through your debating skills."
Let's face it, job-related stereotypes can be a dangerous ice-breaker because most of the time, stereotypes do not represent the whole and true picture of our reality.
That's why the concept of stereotype is widely studied in the field of social psychology today, making the study of psychology more relevant than ever.
In this article, we will learn about the different aspects of studying psychology in Malaysia in terms of the misconceptions, psychology learning resources, studying tips and specifically look at the places where you can enrol in a psychology programme in Petaling Jaya.
What Are Some Biggest Myths About Psychology Students/Practitioners?
Continuing our conversations on job stereotypes earlier, even the field of psychology is not spared from them. Undeniably, we often have our own set of "expectations" and generalisations whenever we know of someone who is studying psychology or working in a related field.
That being said, here are the three most common myths that revolve around psychology students.
Myth 1: They can only work in hospitals/clinical settings
Most of the time, whenever we hear the word "psychology", we will often be directed to an image of someone wearing a white gown writing down notes or listening to someone on a sofa comfortably. While this is true for individuals who eventually become clinical psychologists or professional counsellors, not every psychology graduate chooses to work in a hospital.
Source: Xframe
There are some graduates who prefer to work in a corporate setting, set up their own business, establish a non-governmental organization or even take up teaching.
Myth 2: They can "read your mind"
Isn't this the most common question that every psychology student will encounter? Sorry to disappoint you, but the answer is a big fat no.
The end goal of psychology students is not to read your mind but to let you understand your own mind through the right application of psychological knowledge of your brain, emotions, intelligence, personality and so on. For example, they'll probably ask you some questions, let you do some personality tests and from there, they'll draw their observations and inferences through the information that they receive.
Myth 3: They will not deal with numbers at all
While psychology students do not take subjects like advanced mathematics, they do need to take lessons on statistics during their degree programme. This is especially important whenever they conduct a questionnaire or an in-depth study. It is through the organization of these data that they can identify and conclude the significance of what is studied.
For instance, their knowledge of statistics will enable them to know the percentage of males and females in Malaysia that experience insomnia due to the pandemic and from there, they can even break down the percentages of the most common reasons that cause insomnia.
Find out where you can study psychology in Kuala Lumpur.
What Is The Overview Of The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme Psychology Course?
Do you know that psychology is offered as a subject under the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme?
This programme is widely recognized by many universities worldwide and it has a two-year comprehensive studying syllabus. Students are required to study 6 subjects from the following groups namely:
- Group 1: Studies in Language and Literature
- Group 2: Language Acquisition
- Group 3: Individuals and Societies
- Group 4: Sciences
- Group 5: Mathematics
- Group 6: The Arts
The psychology course falls under Group 3. Let's take a look at the overview of the subject.
Syllabus
Students will study 3 core topics. They are the biological approach to understanding behaviour, the cognitive approach to understanding behaviour and the sociocultural approach to understanding behaviour.
The other optional topics under this subject include: abnormal psychology, developmental psychology, health psychology and psychology of human relationships
Examination Format and Grading
Students will sit for this subject at Standard Level and Higher Level through various assessments.
Here's how they will be graded for Standard Level:
| Assessments | Paper 1 | Paper 2 | Internal Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exam format | Section A: Three short-answer questions on the core approaches to psychology Section B: One essay from a choice of three on the biological, cognitive and sociocultural approaches to behaviour | One question from a choice of three on one option. | A report on an experimental study undertaken by the student. |
| Total marks | Section A: 27 marks Section B: 22 marks | 22 marks | 22 marks |
Here's how they will be evaluated for Higher Level:
| Assessments | Paper 1 | Paper 2 | Paper 3 | Internal Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exam format | Section A: Three short-answer questions on the core approaches to psychology. One essay from a choice of three on the biological, cognitive and sociocultural approaches to behaviour. One, two or all of the essays will reference the additional HL topic | Two questions; one from a choice of three on each of two options. | Three short-answer questions from a list of six static question on approaches to research. | A report on an experimental study undertaken by the student. |
| Total marks | Section A: 27 marks Section 2: 22 marks | 44 marks | 24 marks | 22 marks |
Discover where you can take a psychology course in Shah Alam.
Where Can You Learn Psychology In Petaling Jaya?
If you are interested to study psychology and are currently based in Petaling Jaya, here are three educational institutions that you can check out:
1. SRI KDU International School
Located in Kota Damansara, this private school offers the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme as mentioned in the previous paragraph. It is a pre-university programme where IGCSE students can enrol to prepare them for an overseas undergraduate degree.
Having said that, do bear in mind that you will be taking psychology as one of your subjects for this programme and it is a 2-year duration course.
2. Unitar International University
For students who have completed their pre-university programmes, you can consider enrolling on the Bachelor of
Psychology (Hons) degree in Unitar.
Located at SS6, the psychology programme offered here has extensive modules which cover topics like fundamentals of guidance and counselling, motivation and emotion, psychological testing and evaluation and many more.
The duration of the whole programme is 3 years and the intakes are in January, May and September.
3. Segi University
This is another university that you can check out if you are located near Kota Damansara.
Under the Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) at Segi, you will get to explore topics like introduction to applied psychology, abnormal psychology, clinical psychology and others.
The duration of this course is also 3 years and the intakes are in January, April, June, August, September and October.
Source: Xframe
Tip: If you are based in Klang Valley, you can also check out other universities in Subang Jaya that offer psychology programmes.
What Are Some Must-Haves Reference Books For A Psychology Student?
Once you have registered to become a psychology student, it's now time to do some serious shopping.
Book shopping.
Trust us, you have to make these 3 books your fellow best friends throughout your pre-university and degree studies.
1. Cambridge International AS and A Level Psychology Coursebook by Julia Russell, Fiona Lintern, Lizzie Gauntlett and Jamie Davies
The first on our list is every A-Level student's go-to psychology textbook. It is endorsed by the Cambridge International Examinations.
This coursebook covers the key concepts of research methods and ethics revolving around psychology and provides extensive discussions and debates on various psychological research. At the end of every chapter, you can find exam-style questions and self-assessments alongside a detailed summary of the topic.
This book has 368 pages and you can find this book at Book Depository or other bookstores near you.
2. Psychology: A Complete Introduction: Teach Yourself by Sandy Mann
The next book that we recommend provides you with a clear and simple structure on some of the most commonly taught psychology topics in university. Furthermore, you'll be exposed to several learning outcomes of famous psychological experiments and key questions that may arise from there.
Some of the topics that are highlighted in this book include:
- Mental health and psychological disorders
- Personality and gender
- Abnormal psychology and the treatment of such
- The nervous system
- Sleep
- Intelligence
- Social psychology
This book has 336 pages and it is only RM52 at Book Depository!
3. A Dictionary of Psychology by Andrew M. Colman
Last but not the least, your revision process will not be complete without a good psychology dictionary.
This dictionary has more than 11,000 definitions and includes an extensive definitions and elaborations of psychological disciplines across psychoanalysis, psychiatry, the neurosciences, and statistics. Furthermore, you can also find more than 100 illustrations while studying.
That being said, you can easily learn more about various concepts such as:
- Emotion and motivation
- Mental disorder
- Research method cognition
- Learning and skills
- Language
- Phobia
- Sensation and perception
While you're gearing for your psychology lessons, don't forget to explore these higher learning institutions in Ipoh that offer psychology courses.
How Can You Improve Your Psychology Grades Consistently?
As a student, you cannot shy away from the realistic side of studying. Your grades do matter.
Here are 3 practical tips to take your psychology subject grade to the next level.
Tip 1: Identify your learning style
What better way to kickstart your psychology learning journey than by learning more about learning styles! Identify how you study best (visual, reading and writing, auditory and kinasthetic) and slowly work out an effective revision method.
For instance, you can use mind maps and illustrations for your revision if you are a visual learner to remember the psychological concepts better.
Photo by Sigmund on Unsplash
Tip 2: Incorporate a comprehensive studying guide
From there, you can review several revision methods and learning materials when you're preparing for your exams. It's also important to plan your revision according to the examination format of the course you're taking (objective, subjective assessments, quizzes, presentations etc).
Tip 3: Take extra lessons from a private tutor
Private tutoring is an effective and flexible learning method among many students across the globe. If you're looking for a psychology tutor, we highly recommend you to find one through Superprof!
You can find many experienced tutors with diverse educational and occupational backgrounds who can teach topics such as human personality, social psychology, cyberpsychology, ethics in psychology and many more.
All you need to do is head to the Superprof Malaysia homepage and start browsing the tutors' profiles to learn more about their teaching methodology, teaching mode, hourly rate and past students' reviews.
Say goodbye to stereotypes and master the core foundation of psychology through a good psychology course wherever you are. You can also take a look at these places in Johor Bahru where you can learn psychology at the university level.
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