Celebrating 100 years of psychology at Reading

The School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences (SPCLS) is celebrating one hundred years of teaching psychology at Reading. It is an exciting milestone that marks the run up to the University’s Charter Centenary in 2026. 

SPCLS's history can be traced back to 1921 with the appointment of a single lecturer in Experimental Psychology – Albert Wolters. As one of the first psychology departments in the UK, PCLS have enjoyed a long and distinguished history. Now, one hundred years later, the School is an established world leader in the delivery of teaching, research and training in psychology.

To celebrate this tremendous milestone, the School is holding a week of events for students, staff, alumni, looking at the possibilities of what the next 100 years of psychology will bring.

Events run from the 21-25 June and feature a range of guest speakers exploring key topics within psychology.

• Monday 21 June:  we delve into bringing diversity to our discipline, with two separate events looking into diversity can be further supported within psychology.
• Tuesday 22 June: brings Professor Alison Gopnik to the University of Reading. Alison will deliver her inaugural public lecture.
• Wednesday 23 June: we explore reproducibility and how to do science that can be trusted.
• Thursday 24 June: we’re holding two events supporting wellbeing in the post COVID-19 world. These discussions investigate pathways to support wellbeing, and the launch of the Reading Resilience Network.
• Friday 25 June: In the morning we investigate psychology around the world, with panellists discussing what the next generation of psychologists should be working on in the future.

For more information and to book events visit: https://www.reading.ac.uk/pcls/centenary