Masters of Applied Positive Psychology: The MAPP Program

Delivered online and on-site, Universitat Jaume I of Castellon’s MAPPA is the first of its kind in Spain.

Endorsed by the Spanish Society of Positive Psychology (SEPP), blends theory and practical applications to explore the field and its science in-depth.

This MAPPA features a mentoring program so that students receive guidance through their studies and final project, and professional development is emphasized through both mentorship and academic training. There are also opportunities for students to pursue an internship and undertake a creativity and entrepreneurship seminar.

The modules include:

• Introduction to Positive Psychology;
• Psychological Wellbeing and Happiness;
• Psychological Strengths;
• Positive Psychological Capital;
• Positive Organizations;
• Positive Interventions in Mindfulness and Appreciative Inquiry;
• Positive Interventions in Clinical Psychology and Health;
• Positive Interventions in Socio-Emotional Intelligence;
• Positive Interventions in Coaching; and
• Positive Interventions in Education

Details:

• Entry Requirement: An undergraduate degree—ideally in Psychology or a closely related field, or students who have completed a certain amount of undergraduate study.
• Where: Online or at the Castellon Campus
• Dates: Starts in September
• Duration: One academic year
• Price: Registration is €2,300 in 2023.

Find out more about the course on their site.

Study Options in Australia

Australia, in particular, has seen a large growth in public attention on Positive Psychology. Fields such as Positive Education, Positive Psychotherapy have grown considerably, alongside the now much broader applications of Positive Psychology Interventions in myriad fields (Vella-Broderick, 2011).

The most well-known MAPP in Australia is run by the University of Melbourne, and Associate Professor Vella-Broderick is one of the Centre for Positive Psychology members behind its development.

Master of Applied Positive Psychology at Melbourne University

Melbourne University’s Applied Positive Psychology Masters explores the concepts and theories of the field, as well as various key frameworks for wellbeing, positive interventions, and ethics involved.

There is a strong emphasis on the use of Positive Psychology practices in leadership.

Strengths-based skills, for example, are taught as an important part of students’ professional development.

Run by the Melbourne Graduate School’s Centre for Positive Psychology, the team behind the course include Professor Lea Waters, Associate Professors Dianne Vella-Brodrick and Lindsay Oades, and Dr. Peggy Kern.

It’s designed for those who wish to apply positive change and leadership approaches in health, law, business, education, psychology, and economics, and takes place over either one or two years.

The three core for this MAPP include:

• Principles of Positive Psychology;
• Positive Psychology and Organizations; and
• Applications of Positive Psychology.

During the second year (part-time) or second semester (full-time), students undertake a capstone MAPP project to complete their degree.

Details:

• Entry Requirement: Either five years of professional experience or an equivalent combination of postgraduate study and work experience in a relevant field.
• Where: Melbourne University’s Parkville Campus
• Dates: Begins with a February intake and a July mid-year intake
• Duration: 1 year full-time or 2 years part-time
• Price: AUD$40,960 per year for domestic students, $56,960 for international students

Visit the Melbourne University website for more information about this Masters course.

Institute for Applied Positive Psychology

The Institute for Applied Positive Psychology (IAPP) does not offer a MAPP program at present.

However, it does provide a selection of Master Classes, Intensive Applied Positive Psychology courses, and retreats. That is, the IAPP is a Positive Psychology training provider.

The IAPP is based in Australia’s Norfolk Island and was established in 2014 to integrate academic theory with hands-on practical applications of Positive Psychology. IAPP courses are thus focused on the ‘how’ rather than the ‘what’ or ‘why’ of the field and their courses are suited, on the whole, for all kinds of practitioners.

This includes professionals wishing to learn how to apply Positive Psychology approaches and tools in teaching, healthcare, organizational settings, and in communities more broadly.

The IAPP also aims to develop a network of like-minded professionals driven by action toward personal wellbeing and development. You can learn more about the IAPP here.

Study Options in the US

If you are keen to study in the States, there are other Masters programs in Positive Psychology besides the MAPP.

Life University

This private, Atlanta-based University offers a Master of Science in Positive Psychology (MSPP), with two separate tracks that students can pursue.

These are:

• General Track – An online program with three quarters. In Quarter 1, students learn Introduction to Positive Psychology, Research Methods and Statistics, and The Science of Happiness: Approaches to the Good Life. This program offers a systematic take on the content at hand so students can graduate to apply positive psychology across different environments.
• Coaching Psychology – Another three-quarter course that equips students to work inside scholar- or scientist-practitioner frameworks. It requires them to attend residencies, and graduates receive 210 hours of coach training so that they are ready to take Approved Board Certified Coach (BCC) exams on completion.

Students’ final assessments will vary depending on the track that they’ve chosen.

Details:

• Entry Requirement: Bachelor’s degree with evidence of a 3.0 GPA
• Where: Online
• Dates: There are four yearly intakes for the Coaching Track MSPP; April (Spring), July (Summer), October (Fall), and January (Winter). Contact the University to find out more about starting dates for the specific pathway you are interested in.
• Duration: One year (General Track and Coaching Track)
• Price: You can find the various costs at this link.

Learn more about whether the Life University MSPP might suit you.

Other Study Options

Students in the African continent who wish to study an on-campus Masters can consider The North-West University’s MAPP program.

The North-West University Master of Applied Positive Psychology

The North-West University MAPP provides students with knowledge and skills for those already in a professional capacity, although this isn’t a strict prerequisite.

The learnings will equip graduates with Positive Psychology expertise to apply in fields such as social work, charity, education, business, health, and public service, amongst others. It is a good foundation for those looking to pursue a Ph.D. in the field.

This program involves several sessions at the University’s Potchefstroom Campus during the first year of the Master’s. After this, students undertake assignments; in the second year, they do a mini-dissertation.

Modules featured in this MAPP are:

• Introduction to Positive Psychology;
• Research Methods in Positive Psychology;
• Assessment and Basics of Interventions;
• Advanced Positive Psychology; and
• A research mini-dissertation in Positive Psychology.

Details:

• Entry Requirement: An honors degree or its equivalent qualification with an average mark of 65% or above; this can be in Psychology or a related discipline.
• Where: North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, South Africa.
• Dates: Selection occurs during October and November.
• Duration: Two years
• Price: Not specified

Find out more about this MAPP here.

Distant Learning Options

A host of distant learning options are now available for all kinds of subjects in general. This includes Positive Psychology, and distance learning is opening up the field to students on a worldwide scale. Online Master’s programs offer professionals the flexibility to cover the course material at a time that works best for the individual, as they don’t require physical on-site attendance at lectures and similar.

A Few Notes on Distance Learning

One of the key advantages of a Distance Learning Masters is that there are no geographical limits on attendance.

Course content in distance learning courses is generally a combination of online lectures and interactive tutorials, delivered through the University’s Learning Management System (LMS). Students can usually ask questions and receive feedback through emails with tutors, and lectures themselves tend to be made available for download to maximize the convenience of e-learning.

Assessments are often submitted online as Word Documents or similar, using platforms such as TurnItIn.

Distance learning, in general, is often more economical than attending on-campus classes, however, they offer limited—if any—opportunities for face-to-face interaction.

Here is one of the better-known online MAPPs available.

Master of Applied Positive Psychology – CQ University Australia

While Central Queensland University is based in Australia, the CQU Master of Applied Positive Psychology is an online course. Students will consider the goals and applications of PP tools in different fields, with the course content integrating aspects from coaching, health psychology, counseling, community development, social innovation, and more.

The overall aim is to equip (post)graduates with tools and skills for increasing wellbeing in others, both at a community and individual level. The applications of PP interventions and tools are considered at a broader, societal level, too, as this MAPP takes a holistic approach.

Ten core units make up this MAPP:

1. Introduction to Positive Psychology: Perspectives on Wellbeing;
2. Inter-disciplinary Approaches to Positive Psychology;
3. Applied Positive Psychology;
4. Positive Psychology: Research Methods;
5. Group Facilitation and Coaching Skills;
6. Building Wellbeing and Resilience: Interconnected Factors;
7. Coaching Individuals for Positive Change;
8. Wellbeing Initiatives: Local and Global Scales;
9. An Applied Positive Psychology Project A; and
10. An Applied Positive Psychology Project B – these latter two are thesis-related projects.

Details:

• Entry Requirement: Bachelor’s degree from an Australian College or University—in any field.
• Where: Online/Distance Learning.
• Dates: Term 1 begins March, Term 2 in July, and Term 3 in November.
• Duration: Full-time 2 years, part-time 4 years
• Price: Fees for Australian students are around AUS$25,416.

Find the official information for this program here at this page.

Jobs and Careers

A good description of Positive Psychology comes from Seligman himself, and he describes it as:

“The scientific study of what makes life most worth living.”

To that end, the applications of Positive Psychology are extensive, whether you’re a dedicated practitioner or using the principles in another line of work. Having a Master of Applied Psychology can increase your employability in fields where human growth, development, wellbeing, and flourishing are important. This is especially true if your MAPP is specialized in a specific area.

Common examples of such fields, or the fastest-growing fields where Positive Psychology plays a role, include:

Social Work

A quick glance at any of the Positive Psychology conference symposia will reveal a huge uptick in the use of PP approaches. Examples can be seen in voluntary or charity-based sectors, where resilience techniques and frameworks are applied in community or social wellbeing initiatives (e.g. Van Breda, 2018).

Counseling, of course, often involves applying Positive Psychology tools to help individuals and groups facing adversity, or in crisis management.

Positive Education

Positive Education combines traditional education with the study of Positive Psychology concepts, such as wellbeing and happiness.

Curricula are now expanding beyond what are sometimes called ‘hard skills’, or core subjects such as Maths. More and more schools are encompassing PP-related aspects both into classroom management and teaching practice.

As well as this, the concept of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is fast becoming part of curricula, with emotional intelligence at the fore of the movement. With Columbia University researchers finding a remarkably high ROI for investments on SEL at schools, demand for Positive Psychology skills can likely be expected to rise (Brotto, 2018).

Coaching

On the sports coaching side of things, Positive Coaching involves using science-based PP techniques and approaches to coach and develop athletes (Pidgeon, 2019). For most coaches, a MAPP can thus be a means of enhancing their existing practices, while expanding their professional toolkits.

Off the playing field, Positive Psychology can play a huge role in coaching individuals, teams, and employees in organizations. Seligman has written on the subject of coaching more broadly, saying:

“One need not be a licensed psychologist, or even a psychologist, to practice positive psychology or to practice coaching.”

Nonetheless, there are now various MAPP pathways that can lead to accreditation, and help aspiring coaches to practice independently with a license. Some are included above, and we will update this page as more MAPP programs are introduced.

If you know of a Masters of Applied Positive Psychology that hasn’t been included in this article, please let us know. Or, if you are looking for a different academic pathway to grow your PP skill set, have a look at our page on Positive Psychology Courses.

ED: Updated December 2022

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