The path to becoming a psychologist is quite the extensive one, one that requires a lot of dedication. Three years for Bachelor’s, one for Honours (or four for the BPsych), and an additional two for your Master’s, this is enough to get anyone to rethink their decision to become a psychologist…I know it has done that for me.
The honours route vs the bpsych
In this article, we are going to go over several Honours programmes offered by different universities in South Africa and the requirements that are necessary for admission into each one, but before we go on, it is important to clarify the difference between the Honour’s route and the BPsych. The Honours programme is an additional year that graduates of a 3-year BA, BSocSci, or any degree that includes psychology in it’s curriculum need to take before they can apply for their Master’s degree. Since this route is highly theoretical, the Honours in Psychology cannot be used in any capacity outside of research. The BPsych degree is a more practical avenue that goes for four years and does not have an Honours year before going into Master’s. It even allows it’s graduates the opportunity to register with the HPCSA as either a Psychometrist or a Registered Counsellor.
Should anyone who went into the BSocSci, BA degree route and went into their Honours in Psychology want to practise in psychology in any way outside of research, they would have to either get a Master’s degree and register with the HPCSA as Clinical Psychologist, or the BPsych Equivalent degree, which is an 18 month course that helps them gain the practical skills that the graduates of the BPsych already have. They can register with the HPCSA as a Psychometrist or a Registered Counsellor
Different honours in Psychology programmes
Here is a list, in no particular order, of a few universities in South Africa that offer the Honour’s in Psychology degree:
University of the Witwatersrand (WITS)
The University of the Witwatersrand, more commonly referred to as WITS, offers a Bachelor of Arts Honours in Psychology programme that takes in approximately 100 students in a year. According to their website, the qualifications for this programme are:
- The completion of a 3-year undergraduate degree (BA, BSocSci) with Psychology as a module for all 3 years, obviously
- A 65% average for all third year psychology modules
The University of the Witwatersrand also offers a 2-year part time option for those who are unable to commit themselves to a full-time, 1-year course of study that will leave them unable to keep a job. Given the popularity and prestige of universities such as WITS, the likelihood of your admission into the programme will depend on your performance as it’s compared to other applicants.
University of South Africa (UNISA)
The University of South Africa, aka UNISA, is known for its emphasis on the availability of long distance online courses, offers a BA Honours in Psychology prorgramme. There is no indication of how many candidates they admit on a yearly basis. According to their website, in order to qualify for this programme, an applicant will need:
- To have completed a 3-year undergraduate degree with Psychology as a module for all 3 years
- A 60% average for all third year psychology modules
UNISA funnels its Honours in Psychology in one of three streams being Psychological Counselling, Community and Health Psychology, and and Applied Psychology for Professional Contexts. Although UNISA has an appeal process for people who are not submitted into postgraduate studies, they do not take applications that do not meet the requirements into consideration.
University of the Free State (UFS)
The University of the Free State, known as UFS or YouOffs to some, has 3 different campuses: the Bloemfontein (Main) Campus, the South Campus (also located in Bloemfontein), and the Qwaqwa Campus. Despite having multiple campuses, only one of them offers a Honours in Psychology programme, that being the Bloemfontein Campus. While the UFS does not have a minimum requirement in terms of marks, it is important to remember that they only select the top applicants for the programme. They also consider your performance for all your undergrad psychology modules, from first up until third year. Obviously, you must have completed a degree that has psychology as your major before applying.
Stellenbosch University
Another BA Honours in Psychology programme that we’re going to talk about in this article is from the Stellenbosch University. An important thing to note about their programme is that unlike most of the other universities, their closing date is much earlier. At the time of writing this article, the Stellenbosch University psychology Honours application closing date is said to be on the 31st of August for the following year. The requirements according to their website are:
- A Bachelor’s degree with psychology as a major (3 years of psychology)
- 65% average for all psychology modules, meaning from first till third year
The programme offered by the Stellenbosch University does not have a part-time option, meaning you can only complete it as a one-year course.
North West University
Contrary to most universities, the Honours in Psychology programme offered by the North West University is not a Bachelor of Arts, but rather a Bachelor of Health Sciences degree. While this might not be the norm, it might be a more apt depiction of the degree given it’s nature and where it leads (becoming a psychological health practitioner). Their website has shown the following to be their requirements for admission into their programme:
- A 3-year degree with Psychology as major (complete 3 years of psychology)
- Alternatively to the first point, a degree with third-year Developmental Psychology and Psychology
- A 65% average for all undergrad psychology modules
Similar to the Stellenbosch University, NWU only offers their Honours in Psychology programme as 1-year course of study.
University of Pretoria
The University of Pretoria offers a Bachelor of Social Science (BSocSci) Honours in Psychology programme over the course of 1 year. While they made no mention of how many learners they take in on a yearly basis, they do emphasise their limited capacity for Honours students. The information on their website list the following as their requirements:
- A Bachelor’s degree with Psychology as a major (Six completed modules) or two Psychology modules completed in the third year
- A 70% average for both 2nd and 3rd year Psychology modules
- A research module in your third year as part of your curriculum
Even though the averages from both second and third year are required, they are weighted differently with the third year modules getting more importance counting for 60% of the final average, while the second year modules count for 40%. The University of Pretoria opens applications for their Honours in Psychology programme quite early, as they opened the 2023 applications for 2024 intake on the 1st of April 2023. There was no indication as to when the closing date will be on their website.
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town (UCT) also offers a Bachelor of Social Science (BSocSci) Honours specialising in Psychology degree. Contrary to how the University of Pretoria operates, UCT does not provide an opening date for their application, but they close on the 31st of October. The requirements listed on their website are quite extensive and a bit more thorough than you are likely to see for other varsity websites. Here is a list of their requirements:
- A Bachelor’s degree with Psychology as a major (to call this obvious is pointless now)
- An upper second class pass minimum for all three undergraduate years (Second class pass is the 60-70% range, so about 65% upwards is your goal)
It is worth mentioning that while those stand as the mentioned requirements academically speaking, they do, however, take your entire academic record into account. If you are planning to apply to UCT, bear in mind that they also require the details of 2 people they can reach out to regarding your academics.
University of Johannesburg
The University of Johannesburg (UJ) offers two Honours in Psychology programmes, being the Bachelor of Arts and the Bachelor of Science degrees with psychology. Both degrees require an undergraduate degree in the respective degree streams. The listed requirements on the University of Johannesburg website for the Honours in Psychology programmes are:
- A Bachelor’s degree with psychology as a major
- An average of 70% in all your psychology modules (first til third year)
- The completion of a research module in your undergraduate studies
A few key things to remember when applying to UJ: firstly, they only admit 70-80 learners every year for the programme, so the 70% average might not be a guarantee for your space; secondly your undergraduate degree that has Psychology as a major has to have been obtained no more than 10 years before you are making your application
Rhodes University
The Rhodes University (RU) has a Honours in Psychology programme. It is still unclear to us whether it is a BA, BSocSci, or whatever the case may be. However, we do know that the Rhodes University only takes in 40 candidates for their Honours in Psychology for a given year. The requirements for the Honours in Psychology programme at Rhodes University are:
- A Bachelor’s degree with Psychology as a major
- A 70% average for third year Psychology modules
- At least a 65% for your third year Psychology research module
It is very important to note that out of the 40 spaces they designate for the Psychology Honours programme, 20 of those are reserved for Rhodes University graduates so all the other graduates will be contending for the remaining 20. If you barely missed the 70% requirement (65-69%), you can then appeal to the university.
Conclusion
While the road ahead of you might long and taxing, it is definitely rewarding in numerous ways. With the high earnings of psychologists, a shortage of them, and the rise of people wanting to take care of their mental health, the field of psychology is becoming more and more lucrative. Moreover, you get to learn information that can be implemented to help others.
If you are currently in your third year, please remember that you can still apply with your June exam marks at most of the universities listed (and more). We wish you nothing but good luck your pursuit of career in psychology.
Varsity Living.