Psychology Major
The Psychology Major curriculum is structured to ensure an exploration of the diversity of topics that compose the modern field of Psychology. It provides courses in which students can think deeply and critically about human behavior, mental life, and the nature of inquiry into the human condition. Furthermore, it is designed to provide students with a foundation in both the natural science and social science perspectives in Psychology with enough flexibility and depth to prepare undergraduates for any number of career paths.
Our discipline is a broad one in which we study human behavior from multiple perspectives, from the biological to the social/cultural. Introduction To Psychology (PSYC 100) surveys the intellectual range of the field. Majors are then required to further sample this breadth in taking one course from each of Psychology’s fundamental areas (Biological Processes; Cognitive and Behavioral Processes; and Individual, Social, and Cultural Processes). Moreover, Majors also take a required two-semester sequence of courses—Statistics (PSYC 200) and Research Methods (PSYC 201)—in which they learn the methodological tools that psychologists use to investigate psychological phenomena. Majors further investigate specific areas within the discipline with four developing interest courses, one of which must be an advanced course. The department also provides students with ample opportunity to work independently under the individual direction of their professors, including courses for advanced study (PSYC 470 Directed Readings ) and research (PSYC 480 Research Projects). Our faculty is actively engaged in research on a variety of topics, including the neurobiology of learning and memory, comparative cognition, cognitive development in children, interpersonal coordination, the neuropsychological basis of attention, social and cultural psychology, emotional dysregulation and eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive process and stigma. Psychology majors have presented papers at regional and national undergraduate and professional meetings and have published their work in professional journals.
Department Advanced Placement Policy
Students with AP credit in psychology (a score of 4 or 5) are awarded advanced placement in the curriculum and forfeit that credit if they take Introduction to Psychology (PSYC 100). AP credit counts toward the minimum number of courses required in the major. Students with AP credit in Psychology should contact the department chair to discuss enrollment in an appropriate 200-level course.
Requirements
Majors must take a minimum of 10 courses in psychology.
| Code | Title |
|---|---|
| Required courses: | |
| Introduction To Psychology | |
| Statistics | |
| Research Methods | |
| Select one course in each of the following areas: | |
| Biological Processes: | |
| Physiology and Behavior | |
| Sensation & Perception | |
| Cognitive Neuroscience | |
| Cognitive and Behavioral Processes: | |
| Animal Learning | |
| Developmental Psychology | |
| Cognition & Memory | |
| Psychology of Language | |
| Judgment and Decision Making | |
| Individual, Social, and Cultural Processes: | |
| Life-Span Development | |
| Personality and the Life Story | |
| Social Psychology | |
| Psychology of Adolescence | |
| Psychopathology | |
| Motivation and Goal Pursuit | |
| Three electives at any level including the following courses or any non-required course (e.g., any fundamental area or advanced course): | |
| Psychology & Aging | |
| Health Psychology | |
| Psychology and Law | |
| Animal Minds | |
| One elective at the 300 level: | |
| History & Theory | |
| Science, Medicine & the Holocaust | |
| Biology of Mental Disorders | |
| Drug Abuse: Brain and Behavior | |
| Neuroanatomy & Behavior | |
| Cognition Across Cultures | |
| Predictive Coding in the Brain | |
| Adolescent Health | |
| Processes in Psychotherapy | |
| Eating and Its Disorders | |
| Substance Use and Recovery | |
| Consciousness & Control | |
| Seminar: Gender-Role Development | |
| Intervention and Social Change | |
| Seminar: Language Thought and Culture | |
| Psychology of Stigma | |
| Seminar: Resilience and Development | |
| Cognitive Neuropsychiatry | |
| Psychology & Economic Behavior | |
| Psychopathology In Cinema | |
| Mindfulness Meditation Prayer | |
Note: Academic advisors can assist students in selecting courses that help provide a coherent, well-integrated program of study.