Positive Psychology and Well-being

Program and courses

Positive psychology is the scientific study of the strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive in their personal life, schools and universities, companies, and mental health care. You focus on people's strengths and talents and study concepts like creativity, happiness, developing talents and strengths, adaptive power and psychological well-being. You will study these concepts in the context of individuals, personal life, health, education, entrepreneurship and society in general. 

• Become part of a small-scale, interactive program with much personal attention.
• Become trained in interventions to establish happiness and behavioral change by identifying and developing people’s strengths and talents.
• This program is a broader than the other three clinical tracks of the Master's program in Psychology (Clinical Psychology, Clinical Forensic Psychology, and Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology), because children, adolescents and adults with psychological problems also have healthy and strong features which this program focuses on. 
• This Master's track uses the scientist-practitioner model, with a strong link between theory and practice. You learn to conduct independent research and you put what you have learned into practice during an internship. You also attend guest lectures from professional practice. 

Please note that this Master’s track does not provide the qualification required for the Dutch post-Master's program to become a GZ psychologist or psychotherapist. For more information, visit the website: Bewijsstukken voor aanvragen LOGO verklaring.

Typical courses are:

• Introduction and Theories about Positive Psychology 
• Personal Development, Growth and Resilience 
• Positive Institutions 
• Assessment and Interventions 

More on the program and courses

Career prospects

As a positive psychologist, you focus on positive outcomes, like well-being, happiness and competence, instead of abnormal behavior and psychopathology. Being able to guide positive change processes on an individual, interpersonal and organizational level (HR-departments or training and consultancy firms), positive psychologists can be employed in the broad domain of schools, companies and mental health services.

• Identify and stimulate talent development and motivation in schools and universities, as coach, trainer or consultant.
• Help employees and companies to recruit the right people in the right positions, by gaining insight into their talents and strengths, or by establishing a suitable work environment for people with disabilities. 
• Contribute to mental health care with a strength-oriented approach instead of a disorder-based approach. Psychologists are often one-sidedly trained in diagnosing and treating disorders, focusing on the co-morbidities and thus ignoring the fact that people with complaints are also people with talents and co-vitalities.

Alumni facts

• On average 2 months until first paid job
• 96% of our alumni find a job within 6 months after graduation
• Gross monthly income one year after graduation: € 2,929 
• 100% of the graduates is (very) satisfied with the program

Source: National Alumni Survey, 2021| n=26

More on your career prospects

Application and admission

This master's program starts:

End of August

Best preparatory programs:

Psychology with a specialization in, for example, cognitive neuropsychology, forensic psychology, clinical psychology, medical psychology, lifespan and developmental psychology.

Tuition fees and scholarships

International students, please find all information about the tuition fees and the scholarships available.

Interested in this Master's track?

Check your eligibility

Related Master’s programs

• Cognitive Neuropsychology
• Human Resource Studies
• Klinische Psychologie (in Dutch)
• Klinische Forensische Psychologie (in Dutch)
• Klinische Kinder- en Jeugdpsychologie (in Dutch)
• Research Master in Psychology: Individual Differences and Assessment