Postgraduate Prospectus

Driver Behaviour MSc/PgDip/PgCert

Driver Behaviour and Education MSc

Suitable for practising road, fleet or health and safety managers or driver trainers who wish to develop their career by enhancing their skills and knowledge of the human factors in driving. The course is also suitable for students wishing to pursue a professional career in road safety or a research career in traffic and transportation psychology.

Takes you on to career opportunities that range across the traffic and transport management arena with considerable demand for specialists in the subject of driver behaviour and education. These include fleet management, transport management and the driver training industry. Automotive manufacturers and passenger services will also benefit from this qualification. Students may also wish to pursue a research career in driver behaviour or traffic psychology using this course as a foundation for further studies or research positions.

You will be taught by a team of full-time academic staff and guest lectures with a range of expertise in many aspects of driver behaviour.  Our staff are both experienced practitioners and/or researchers and have an international reputation in the human factors field.

Course description

Whether it’s driving for leisure or work in specialist vehicles such as fire appliances, ambulances, police vehicles and trucks, human error is a frequent contributor to road traffic accidents.

If you have a professional interest in reducing the cost, environmental impact and risk of road traffic collisions, Cranfield's MSc in Driver Behaviour will advance your understanding of the human factors in driving.

The first course of its kind to combine theoretical advances with practical demonstrations from leading experts in the Traffic Psychology field, the teaching programme of the MSc, PgDip and PgCert offers qualifications in your field of work. You will cover modules concerned with the role of the driver educator in managing driver risk along with human performance abilities and limitations. You will learn how to apply techniques for the prediction and reduction of driving error and deliver educational interventions according to driver needs.

The flexibility of both full-time and part-time options means that you can tailor the course to your own particular interests, the needs of your organisation and your career aspirations.

Modules:

To achieve a PgCert qualification, students study the following modules:

  • Introduction to Human Factors
  • Human Performance and Error
  • Driver Education
  • Individual Differences in Driver Behaviour
  • Influencing Driver Behaviour
  • Driver Stress and Fatigue

To achieve a PgDip qualification, students study a further four modules:

  • Research Methods and Statistics
  • Cognitive Development and Driver Skill
  • Drug and Drink Driving
  • Road, Traffic and Accident Analysis

Students also submit a research-based report for the PgDip.

For the MSc, students undertake the above modules plus an independent research project which requires them to plan, execute, report and present a substantial thesis that contributes to knowledge in the field.

Entry requirements

1st or 2nd class UK honours degree (or equivalent) is preferred. A recognised professional qualification plus a substantial period of relevant working experience, preferably in a management or educational capacity may be accepted as equivalent.

Duration

1 year full-time. 2-4 years part-time (dependant on level of qualification eg PgCert, PgDip, MSc).

Start date

October.

Number of places

30.

Assessment

Coursework assignments, group projects and examinations. In addition for the PgDip and MSc students, an individual research project (thesis and presentation).

Further details & applications

Contact

SoE Admissions - Psych
T: + 44 (0)1234 758224
E: soe_psych@cranfield.ac.uk

Application process
By completion of an application form for postgraduate study.
Online application

Driver Behaviour

Teaching location

Cranfield campus, School of Engineering.