Daytime Teaching: MSc/MA Cognition and Computation
Aimed at graduates of either the computational sciences or the psychological sciences, this Master's degree in cognition and computation is an ideal foundation for a research career in the cognitive sciences.
It studies the cognitive processes and representations underlying human thought, knowledge and behaviour, and integrates a wide range of disciplines and methodologies with the core assumption that human cognition is a computational process, implemented in neural hardware.
Key topics include: the nature of computational explanation; general principles of cognition; methodology of computational modelling; theories of the cognitive architecture; symbol systems; connectionism; neural computation; and case studies in computational cognitive modelling.
The course will give you intensive training in experimental design and methodology. You will build computational models and carry out a substantial piece of original research.
On this degree we offer different module combinations to give you the choice of studying for an MA or MSc.
HIGHLIGHTS
- We have an outstanding research tradition in psychological sciences, with an international reputation in all aspects of cognitive neuroscience, especially developmental cognitive neuroscience. You will have the opportunity to attend research seminars and to meet and network with world-class researchers, both in the department and at other leading research centres and institutes at Birkbeck and in the Bloomsbury area.
- In the 2023 National Student Survey, Birkbeck's School of Psychological Sciences ranked 5th in the UK for teaching.
- We are consistently regarded as one of the top instititutions teaching psychological sciences in the UK. In the 2021 Research Excellence Framework, and for the third time, we were ranked in the top ten universities in the UK.
- If you have a strong academic record but require financial support to take this course, you may be eligible for the Kenway Legacy Scholarship which will cover the cost of your tuition fees.
- ESRC funding may be available in conjunction with PhD study.
- Watch Professor Rick Cooper give a detailed description of what this course entails.
ATTENDANCE
This course is offered with the option to study full-time or part-time. Please note that some option modules are taught in the evening.
When you will study 2024-25 entry
Timetable information is for the current academic year only. Timetables for 2025/26 are to be confirmed.
Full-time
- Autumn term, Monday mornings, Monday and Wednesday afternoons and Tuesday evenings
- Spring term, Monday and Wednesday mornings and Monday and Tuesday afternoons
Part-time
- Autumn term, Tuesday evenings and Wednesday afternoons
- Spring term, Tuesday afternoons and Wednesday mornings
MODULES AND FEES
View the modules, fees and full course description