King's College London

You are viewing a course in < Psychiatry, psychology and neuroscience

Postgraduate degree

Overview

Scholarships available, see Fees & Funding section for more information.

Evidence from clinical practice, as well as research, has revealed patients with mental health disorders often also experience physical symptoms. Stress can trigger or exacerbate mental and physical disorders, leading to depression, as well as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Equally physical symptoms and diseases can affect a person's psychological state. Patients with recurring or chronic physical symptoms are more vulnerable to develop mental health pathologies, such as depression or anxiety. Therefore, understanding how the mind and body communicate have become fundamental questions both within the scientific community, as well as among clinicians.

Join us to unravel how the mind and body interact in powerful ways that affect our health. King's has been at the forefront of Mind-Body Interface research for years, and it is now offering this comprehensive programme that integrates theoretical and practical knowledge on both the psychology and neuroscience underlying brain/mind processes, and their connection with physical symptoms. The course offers clinical and research placements to provide you with practical experience to enhance your current career or to prepare you for clinical roles, academia, or industry.

Key benefits

Provides both theoretical and practical knowledge of the psychology and neuroscience aspects of the Mind-Body interface.
This course is the first of its kind and will place you at the forefront of this cutting-edge area of research which is unlocking fundamental questions around the link between mind and body - and what this means for how we treat patients.
Enhance your clinical experience through placements at the South London & Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM) - the largest mental health Trust in the UK, and King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
You’ll have a wide range of research dissertation opportunities across research laboratories at the IoPPN, including within the departments of Psychological Medicine, Psychosis, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Neuroimaging, and Social Genetic & Developmental Psychiatry supervised by leading researchers and clinicians at the IoPPN.
Become part of the community at the IoPPN, a faculty ranked 2nd in the world for psychology and psychiatry (US News, Best Global Universities), and home to one of the world's largest centres for neuroscience research.
Based on the same site as the Maudsley Hospital and with access to state-of-the-art equipment at the Centre for Neuroimaging Sciences; MRC Social Genetic & Developmental Psychiatry Centre; Maurice Wohl Neuroscience Centre; NIHR Biomedical Research Centre.
Prepare for a wide range of opportunities, from further study, research, and clinical practice to roles in scientific publishing or pharmaceutical organisations.

Overall this course will give you the opportunity to develop a more comprehensive understanding of the complexity of Mind-Body Interface, and ultimately to contribute to improving lives of patients suffering from mental health disorders with comorbid physical symptoms

Dr Alessandra BorsiniCourse Leader

Contact information

If you would like to ask for more details about the course please do get in touch with the Course Leader Dr Alessandra Borsini, alessandra.borsini@kcl.ac.uk.

Course aims

Develop a theoretical and practical understanding of the interaction between psychological processes, the nervous system, and the stress and immune system.
Expand basic science knowledge while having the opportunity to learn about clinical symptoms and treatment approaches.
Focus on clinical and molecular mechanisms of the brain and the mind, as well as interaction with body disorders and their underlying mechanisms.
Understand how to translate basic science into clinical practice.
Learn how to recruit patients, handle samples and carry out experiments – all skills which are highly valuable in academia and industry.

Key Information

Course type:

Master's

Delivery mode:

In person

Study mode:

Full time / Part time

Duration:

One year full-time, two years part-time

Credit value:

UK 180/ECTS 90

Application status:

Open

Start date:

September 2026

Taught in

Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience

Department of Basic & Clinical Neuroscience

Department of Neuroimaging

Administrative bodies

Regulating body

Application closing date guidance

Base campus

Students outside the main building at Denmark Hill

Denmark Hill Campus

Denmark Hill, in Southwark, London, is a vibrant area known for its historical landmarks and green spaces. Home to King's College and the Maudsley Hospitals, it also features Ruskin Park, named after John Ruskin, and the Camberwell College of Arts.