The psychology major, B.A. or B.S.---Students are
required to take 11 semester courses in psychology and one in biology (either
BIOL 140 or BIOL 182L) and
earn a grade of C- or better in each. Any student who must repeat a required
course to attain the required grade of at least C- will be allowed only one
opportunity to do so. Students should consult with their adviser to choose a
set of courses that is consistent with the student's goals and that offers
broad exposure to the discipline of psychology, as well as depth in one or more
of the diverse sub-areas. Psychology majors are strongly encouraged to take
other courses in the natural and social sciences. Students are expected to arrange
their course work according to the following system:
-
PSYC 101. General Psychology,
PSYC 221L. Research Design and Analysis,
PSYC 261. Brain and Behavior, and either
BIOL 140. Biological Systems or
BIOL 182L. Evolution of Life are required
foundation courses. Students are advised to complete these courses by
the end of their sophomore year, but must have taken
PSYC 261 by the end of their junior year.
- Students must complete three core courses, two of which must include
a laboratory. The labs of PSYC 261 and
PSYC 332 may be counted toward the lab
requirement. (See the reference to laboratory courses under the
section for advanced courses below.) The core course requirement
is designed to provide students with a multifaceted perspective
on human behavior. Thus, students are encouraged to sample courses
from different sub-areas of psychology. Students may not count
both PSYC 270 and
PSYC 273 as core courses. The following
core courses count for this requirement:
- PSYC 226. Social Psychology*
- PSYC 255. Cognitive Psychology*
- PSYC 256. Learning and Memory
- PSYC 270. Clinical Psychology
- PSYC 273. Abnormal Psychology
- PSYC 293. Perception*
- PSYC 295. Child Development*
- *These courses are ordinarily
offered with laboratories.
- Students must complete three advanced courses that have as prerequisites
core courses from the section immediately above. Students are required to
select these courses from three different categories listed below (listed A
through H). A course may appear in more than one category. The psychology
prerequisites that apply to an advanced course within a specific category
are in parentheses. The Writing Intensive Part II requirement is fulfilled
by one of the following advanced courses in categories A through H below.
The following advanced courses apply:
- A. Neuroscience
- PSYC 302. Behavioral Neuroscience (261)
- PSYC 339. Developmental Psychopathology (261)
- PSYC 365. Cognitive Neuroscience (261)
- PSYC 392. Human Neuropsychology (261)
- PSYC 464. Neuropsychopharmacology (261)
- B. Social/Personality
- PSYC 324. Stereotypes, Prejudice, and Discrimination (226)
- PSYC 328. Applied Social Psychology (226)
- PSYC 340. Social Cognition (226)
- PSYC 415. Development and Culture (226)
- PSYC 426. Advanced Topics in Social Psychology: Cultural Psychology (226)
- C. Cognition
- PSYC 340. Social Cognition (255)
- PSYC 365. Cognitive Neuroscience (255)
- PSYC 392. Human Neuropsychology (255)
- PSYC 454. Cognition in the Real World (255 or 293)
- PSYC 493. The Ecological Approach to Psychology (255 or 293)
- D. Development
- PSYC 339. Developmental Psychopathology (295)
- PSYC 395. Cognitive and Social Development (295)
- PSYC 415. Development and Culture (295)
- E. History
- PSYC 414. History of Psychology (five courses in psychology)
- F. Clinical
- PSYC 339. Developmental Psychopathology (270 or 273)
- PSYC 442. Evaluation and Treatment of Addictive Behavior (270 or 273)
- PSYC 471. Psychotherapy (270 or 273)
- G. Assessment
- PSYC 332L. Psychological Assessment (221L
and four other courses in psychology)
- H. Perception/Cognition
- PSYC 454. Cognition in the Real World (255 or 293)
- PSYC 493. The Ecological Approach to Psychology (255 or 293)
- Students must complete one specialized course from among the following options.
- PSYC 223. Intersecting Identities: The Asian American Experience
- PSYC 236. Adolescent Psychology
- PSYC 237. Health Psychology
- PSYC 240. Parenting, Interpersonal Relations, and Mental Health
- PSYC 246. Community Psychology
- PSYC 265. Drugs and Behavior
- PSYC 275. Introduction to the Psychology of Human Sexuality
- PSYC 310. Psychology of Gender Differences
- PSYC 397. Psychology of Art
- PSYC 399. Independent Study
- PSYC 490. Research Assistantship
- CPSC 352. Artificial Intelligence
- ENGR 311. Electrophysiology of the Central Nervous System
- HFPR 201. Health Fellows Program: Topics in Health Care
- NESC 101. The Brain
- NESC 262. Introduction to Animal Behavior
- PHIL 220. Introduction to Cognitive Science
- PHIL 328. Freud
- To fulfill the senior exercise requirement, students must
complete a senior seminar (PSYC 401 or
402) or a senior thesis.
In exceptional cases the chair may allow students to substitute
for these options an internship in which they engage in research.
Students who choose the internship option must secure written
approval from the chair and the faculty internship supervisor
before commencing this activity.
From
time to time new courses will be added or substituted for those
in the above listings. Students should consult with the chair
concerning courses taken at other institutions or other matters
pertinent to requirements for the major.
Senior seminar---Each
senior seminar will adopt an integrative perspective to examine major
issues in several different subdivisions of psychology. For example,
the seminar in developmental psychology will treat issues that touch
on physiology, psychopathology, social psychology, memory, cognition,
perception, and motivation. The purpose of the seminar is to give
students the opportunity to discern common themes that give coherence
to psychology. To be properly prepared, students should have completed
the three core courses and most of the other requirements of the major.
Students must sign up for a senior seminar in the department's
administrative office at an announced time during preregistration in
the spring semester of their junior year.
Thesis---The senior
thesis is a two-semester research project sponsored by a member of
the psychology department.
Honors---Students with
at least a B+ average in psychology, an overall grade point average of
B or better, and six courses (of at least one credit each) toward the
psychology major with a grade of A- or better (excluding
PSYC 498-499) are eligible for a program in
which they might earn the distinction of honors in psychology. To
graduate with honors, students must enroll in
PSYC 498-499 and earn a grade of A- or better.
Honors students will present a summary of their thesis at a departmental
meeting during the spring semester. Students who believe that they have
attained eligibility for honors should consult with their adviser during
the spring semester of their junior year to plan for enrollment in
PSYC 498-499. The two course credits earned
from this sequence fulfill the requirements for the senior exercise and
the specialized course.
Study Abroad---The
Psychology Department encourages its majors to study abroad. With careful
planning it should be possible for most students to study abroad, if they
so choose. Students wishing to count psychology courses from an approved
study abroad site must get the approval of the chair of the Psychology
Department. Typically, the department will allow up to two courses to be
counted toward the major - one course from the core category and one course
from the specialized category.
Interdisciplinary computing major in psychology---See
the "Interdisciplinary computing major" section of the
Bulletin. Students interested in the
interdisciplinary computing major in psychology should contact Professor
Mace, who will assist them in setting up a plan of study.
Interdisciplinary computing majors should take psychology courses with
an explicit connection to computing. Six courses may be selected from
the following set:
- PSYC 221L. Research Design and Analysis
- PSYC 255. Cognitive Psychology
- PSYC 293. Perception
- PSYC 332L. Psychological Assessment
- PSYC 356. Cognitive Science
- PSYC 454. Cognition in the Real World
- CPSC 352. Artificial Intelligence
Neuroscience major---Students
interested in the neuroscience major should consult the relevant pages
in the Bulletin.