Psychology Royal Holloway University

To everyone joining us this September, congratulations and a huge welcome!!!

We are so excited to have you with us and can’t wait to learn and have fun together📚📊🎄

From getting stuck into your studies to enjoying all the fun events, activities, and opportunities we have planned (Christmas panto, coffee catchup, …), there’s so much to look forward to!

Here’s to a brilliant new chapter - we can’t wait to see you in September🧡

There’s more to studying psychology than lectures, workshops, and research…. Sometimes there’s a little bit of glitter, dancing, and fun costume choices🎭

Our staff Christmas Panto has brought students and staff together for one of the most chaotic and much loved traditions in our department🎄🧠

We are proud to create a community where staff and students genuinely enjoy spending time together and having fun along the way🧡

Here’s to another year of wigs, face painting, glitter, dancing, singing, questionable and superb acting, and learning psychology together🥳

We are very much looking forward to seeing our students back on campus in September!

👕why do sensory-friendly clothes matter for autistic people?

Our graduate, Amanda Ferrer Knight, supervised by Dr. Deirdre Birtles, explored the physical and emotional discomfort caused by clothing-related sensory sensitivities among autistic adults and how these experiences can affect everyday life.

👉Swipe through to find out the key findings!

This science communication piece was created by our current student, Natsume Malcomson, in collaboration with Dr. Deirdre Birtles.

It’s great to see our student’s project published and another student making it further accessible and engaging for everyone⭐️

🧠Ever wondered how occasional substance use could affect your memory?

Recent research from our department uncovered a surprising finding - even occasional recreational substance use may be linked to poorer autobiographical memory, the memories of your own life experiences, which can influence your mood and everyday life.

Swipe through to discover what the research found👉

This science communication piece was created by our current student, Wania Ahmed, in collaboration with Dr. Adnan Levent, the lead author of the paper. Great to see staff and students working together to make psychological research more accessible to everyone⭐️

Can the way we see society influence how connected we feel?🌍

Recent research from our department explores social cynicism, a tendency to view societal structures with mistrust and pessimism, and how it relates to feelings of social isolation.

Swipe through to see what they found👉

This science communication piece was created by our recent graduate, Kseniya Guedroitz, alongside Dr. Izzat Morshidi, the lead author of the paper - a great example of our students and staff members working together to bring our research to a wider audience👏🏻

Why do some apologies work better than others?

Resent research from our department explores why some apologies feel more sincere than others and how the words we choose can shape how our apologies are received.

Swipe through to see what they found👉

This science communication piece was created by our current MSc student, Sophie Al Ruffai, working alongside Dr. Shiri Lev-Ari, the author of the paper. A great example of our students and staff members working together to bring our research to a wider audience👏🏻

Is feeing anxious about the future actually shaping how young people think about politics?🌎

Recent research from our department finds that future anxiety isn’t simply bad news for young people’s political engagement - it’s more complicated than that.

Swipe through to see what they found👉

This science communication piece was created by our recent graduate, Krisa Neil, working alongside Olaf Borghi, the lead author of the paper - a great example of our students and staff members working side by side to bring our research to a wider audience👏🏻

🎓Conflations to all of our graduates!!

Today we celebrate the achievements of our students across our undergraduate, MSc, and PhD programmes. We are so proud of everything you’ve achieved and can’t wait to see where your next adventure takes you.

Again, a huge well done to all of you and thank you everyone who has supported them along the way.

Here’s to celebrating this amazing milestone 🎉🥂

This year, our staff have been recognised for their outstanding contributions to teaching, research, and the student experience - and we cannot be prouder 🎉🍻

🌟Dr. Hiro Imada
•Named as the APS Rising Star by the Association of Psychological Science

•Winner of the Early Career Award by the European Association of Social Psychology

🌟Dr. Olga Luzon
•Winner of Education Excellence Award for Individual Excellence from the university

🌟Dr. Vanita Chamdal
•Winner of the You’re Valued Award from the Royal Holloway Student Union

🌟Dr. Sam Fairlamb
•Winner of the You’re Valued Award from the Royal Holloway Student Union
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Many congratulations to all👏🏻

Registration for the second Graduate Summer School on Computational Decision Sciences is open!

📅 Sept 7–11, 2026
📍 Stewart House, Central London

Talks + hands-on sessions covering mathematical psychology, computational psychiatry, neuroscience, social sciences, ML & cultural evolution.

Open to MSc, PhD, postdocs & junior P*s from diverse fields. No prior modelling experience required — just basic stats & Python/R.

Fee: £480 (includes lunch, breaks & events). Registration deadline has been extended to July 20th.

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