Psychology
Message from Head of the Department
Associate Prof. Dr. Saher Alsabbah
The field of psychology offers an exhilarating academic path that fosters a deeper understanding of human behavior, both within oneself and among others. Our psychology program encompasses a broad range of subjects and is delivered in intimate classroom settings by passionate and committed educators. We are proud to offer a variety of opportunities for students to become involved in research projects or develop their clinical skills. Our students have the opportunity to gain hands-on clinical experience in a variety of settings, including psychology statistics lab, students club, local community mental health organizations, nearby schools, and rehabilitation clinics.
In our psychology program, students have a unique opportunity to actively engage in and take the lead in various initiatives and activities within the college through the Students Psychology Club. Many of our students collaborate closely with faculty members on research projects spanning diverse areas such as sleep patterns, social media affect on personality, the interplay between physical activity and cognitive function, eyewitness memory, and the impact of stress on cognition.
I encourage you to explore our website, where you can discover the wide-ranging expertise of our faculty members, as well as the wealth of opportunities awaiting you in our psychology program.
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List of Programs and Local Accreditation Status
BSc Psychology
In 2019, the Psychology department at FCHS secured its initial accreditation from the CAA. Currently, the department is leading its first group of students through the rigorous four-year program. The program currently has 50 enrolled students, maintaining an impressive staff-to-student ratio of around 10:1. This Psychology program has been carefully crafted to provide students with the essential skills needed to attain a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology (BSc), empowering them to pursue a wide range of science and research-focused career opportunities at the undergraduate level. It also prepares them for further advanced studies in the field of human behavior.
Furthermore, the psychology program offers students a diverse range of extracurricular activities, including workshops, event participation, community engagement initiatives, poster presentations, statistical and data analysis training, and much more.
Program Learning Outcomes
Below are the program learning outcomes achieved at graduation from the bachelor’s degree in psychology. At the end of the degree, students will gain expertise in five main areas:
KNOWLEDGE BASE- Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.
- Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains
- Describe applications of psychology
- Use scientific reasoning to interpret psychological phenomena
- Be able to demonstrate psychology information literacy
- Engage in innovative and integrative thinking and problem solving
- Interpret, design, and conduct basic psychological research
- Incorporate sociocultural factors in scientific inquiry
- Apply ethical standards to evaluate psychological science and practice
- Build and enhance interpersonal relationships
- Adopt values that build community at local, national, and global levels
- Demonstrate effective writing for different purposes
- Exhibit effective presentation skills for different purposes
- Interact effectively with others
- Apply psychological content and skills to career goals
- Exhibit self-efficacy and self-regulation
- Develop and Refine project-management skills
- Enhance teamwork capacity
- Develop meaningful professional direction for life after graduation
Curriculum Structure, Credit Hours, and Graduation Requirements
To graduate students will need to complete courses with a total of 122 credit hours. A typical study plan is shown in section 5. The psychology program courses are categorized as the following:
Students will take general education courses in sciences and humanities in addition to, other introductory major course to gain an understanding of basic concepts, methods and theories in psychology.
GRD 271 Islamic Studies
GRD 101 Biology
GRD 102 Biology Lab
GRD 171 Introduction to Psychology
GRD 161 Academic Writing 1
GRD 251 Introduction to Research & Biostatistics
GRD 133 Foundations of Health
GRD 301 Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Total
The courses mentioned below are mandatory for all FCHS students:
GRD 100 First Year Seminar
GRD 111 Anatomy and Physiology A
GRD 112 Anatomy and Physiology A Lab
GRD 261 Academic Writing 2
GRD 121 Anatomy and Physiology B
GRD 122 Anatomy and Physiology B Lab
GRD 361 Research Methodology
Total
Students will select one course from another discipline to complete a minimum of 3 credit hours. Students will choose from a variety of College Elective Courses (CER) offered by all the programs at FCHS such as Innovation in Health Sciences, Health Care Management, Epidemiology, Transition to Health Practice amongst other.
| CER XXXX | College Elective Course* | |
| Total |
Students must complete all courses mentioned in this table:
PSY 111 Psychology in Everyday Life
PSY 122 Lifespan Developmental Psychology
PSY 133 Introduction to Social Psychology
PSY 211 Introduction to Counselling
PSY 212 Health & Wellbeing Psychology 1
PSY 213 Cultural Psychology
PSY 224 Cognitive Psychology
PSY 225 Educational Psychology
PSY 226 Health & Wellbeing Psychology 2
PSY 227 Psychology of Special Needs Education
PSY 238 Behavioural Neuroscience
PSY 311 Counselling Psychology in Context
PSY 312 Statistics for Psychology 1
PSY 313 Abnormal Psychology
PSY 324 Statistics for Psychology 2
PSY 325 Clinical Psychology
PSY 326 Emotions & Motivations
PSY 327 Sensation & Perception
PSY 411 Internship*
PSY 412 Research Project 1
PSY 423 Clinical Neuropsychology
PSY 424 Research Project 2
Total
Internship: Students will have the opportunity to apply for either an undergraduate educational placement for one semester of study at a local institution or an overseas partner institution.
Each student will select 6 courses with a total of 18 credit hours from the major elective courses:
PEC 501 Psychometric Assessments
PEC 502 Cyberpsychology
PEC 503 Psychology of Language & Vision
PEC 504 Forensic Psychology
PEC 505 Applied Behavioural Analysis
PEC 506 Critical Social Psychology
PEC 507 Abnormal Child Psychology
PEC 508 Occupational Psychology
Total
Cost of Studying the Program
Faculty Information
| Staff | Title | Campus | Degree | Specialization | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dr. Saher Al Sabbah | Head and Associate Professor | Abu Dhabi | PhD | saher.alsabbah@fchs.ac.ae | |
| Dr. Dina Joksimovic | Senior Instructor | Abu Dhabi | PhD | Clinical Psychology | dina.joksimovic@fchs.ac.ae |
| Dr. Nida Khan | Instructor | Abu Dhabi | PhD | Counselling in Psychology | nida.khan@fchs.ac.ae |
| Dr. Amani Dawlish | Instructor | Abu Dhabi | Ph.D | Inclusive and Special Education | amani.darwish@fchs.ac.ae |
| Dr. Afreen Faiza | Lab Specialist | Abu Dhabi | PhD | Psychology | afreen.faiza@fchs.ac.ae |
| Ms. Reem Ali Ahmed Ali Alharthi | Teaching Assistant | Abu Dhabi | BSc | Psychology | reem.alharthi@fchs.ac.ae |