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Course type: Certificate
Credits: 60

Credits

Credits measure the student workload required for the successful completion of a module or qualification.

One credit represents about 10 hours of study over the duration of the course.

You are awarded credits after you have successfully completed a module.

For example, if you study a 60-credit module and successfully pass it, you will be awarded 60 credits.
How long it takes: 1 year
Read more about how long it takes
Study method: Distance learning
Course cost: See Fees and funding
Entry requirements: Find out more about; Entry requirements

Postgraduate Certificate in Social and Psychological Inquiry

: Course code: K26

If you're working in a context which makes considerable use of social or psychological research or are fascinated by social research, this certificate will equip you with the knowledge, skills and confidence to appraise research and communicate your assessment to academic and non-academic audiences. Drawing together topics from criminology and psychology, it supports future study and adds value to your career by providing professional development in research literacy, managing research and conceiving of new studies.

You must complete your study by 31 December 2028. If you would like to discuss your options with one of our advisers, please contact us.

Compulsory module	Credits	Next start
Principles of social and psychological inquiry (DD801) This module aims to equip you with critical research literacy skills that provide a crucial foundation for your continuing postgraduate studies within psychology and the social sciences. See full description Register	60	04 Oct 2025

Compulsory module

Credits

Next start

Principles of social and psychological inquiry (DD801)

This module aims to equip you with critical research literacy skills that provide a crucial foundation for your continuing postgraduate studies within psychology and the social sciences.

See full description

04 Oct 2025

Credit transfer

For this qualification, we do not allow you to count credit for study you have already done elsewhere.

On completion

On successful completion of the required module you can be awarded a Postgraduate Certificate of Social and Psychological Inquiry entitling you to use the letters PG Cert SPI (Open) after your name.

You can progress from this Postgraduate Certificate in Social and Psychological Inquiry to our MA in Crime and Justice (F75), MSc in Forensic Psychological Studies (F73) or MSc in Psychology (F74)

Regulations

As a student of The Open University, you should be aware of the content of the qualification-specific regulations below and the academic regulations that are available on our Student Policies and Regulations website.

Postgraduate Certificate in Social and Psychological Inquiry

We regularly review our curriculum; therefore, the qualification described on this page – including its availability, its structure, and available modules – may change over time. If we make changes to this qualification, we’ll update this page as soon as possible. Once you’ve registered or are studying this qualification, where practicable, we’ll inform you in good time of any upcoming changes. If you’d like to know more about the circumstances in which the University might make changes to the curriculum, see our Academic Regulations or contact us. This description was last updated on 18 March 2025.

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Postgraduate Certificate in Social and Psychological Inquiry

Modules

Learning outcomes, teaching and assessment

Credit transfer

On completion

Regulations

How long it takes

Career relevance

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