The Psychology Major, B.A. or B.S.—Students are required to take 11 semester courses in psychology and one in biology (either BIOL140L or BIOL182L) 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:
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PSYC 101.
General Psychology, PSYC 221L. Research Design and Analysis, PSYC 261. Brain and Behavior, and either BIOL 140L. Biological Systems or BIOL 182L. Biology II: 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.
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Students must complete three core courses, two of which must include a laboratory. The labs of PSYC261 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 PSYC270 and PSYC 273 as core courses. The following core courses count for this requirement:
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PSYC
226.
Social Psychology*
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PSYC
255.
Cognitive Psychology*
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PSYC
256.
Learning and Memory
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PSYC
270.
Clinical Psychology
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PSYC
273.
Abnormal Psychology
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PSYC
293.
Perception*
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PSYC
295.
Child Development*
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*These courses are ordinarily offered with laboratories.
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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:
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A.
Neuroscience
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PSYC 302. Behavioral Neuroscience
(261)
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PSYC 330. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory
(261)
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PSYC 356. Cognitive Science
(261)
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PSYC 360. Cortical Plasticity
(261)
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PSYC 365. Cognitive Neuroscience
(261)
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PSYC 392. Human Neuropsychology
(261)
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PSYC 452. Cognitive Disorders (261)
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PSYC 464.
Neuropsychopharmacology
(261)
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B.
Social
/
Personality
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PSYC
324. Stereotypes, P
rejudice, and Discrimination
(226)
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PSYC
326. Advanced Topics in Social Psychology: Social Psych
ology of Educational Systems
(226)
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PSYC
415.
Development and Culture
(226)
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PSYC 426. A
dvanced Topics in Social Psychology:
Cultural Psychology
(226)
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C.
Cognition
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PSYC 356.
Cognitive Science
(255 or 256 or 293)
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PSYC 360.
Cortical Plasticity
(255 or 261)
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PSYC 365.
Cognitive Neuroscience
(255 or 256)
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PSYC 391.
Psychology of Language
(255 or 256 or 293)
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PSYC 392.
Human Neuropsychology
(255 or 256)
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PSYC 452. Cognitive Disorders (255 or 256)
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PSYC 454. Applications of Human Cognition Research (255 or 256 or 293)
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PSYC
493
.
The Ecological Approach to Psychology
(255 or 256 or 293)
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D.
Development
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PSYC 395.
Cognitive and Social Development
(295)
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PSYC 415. Development and Culture
(295)
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E.
History
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PSYC 414.
History of Psychology
(five courses in psychology)
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F.
Clinical
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PSYC 375.
The Psychology of Human Sexuality
(270 or 273)
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PSYC
442. Evaluation and Treatment of
Addictive Behavior (270 or 273)
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PSYC 471.
Psychotherapy
(270 or 273)
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G.
Assessment
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PSYC 332L.
Psychological Assessment
(
221L and four other courses in psychology)
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H.
Perception
/Cognition
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PSYC 493.
The Ecological Approach to Psychology
(PSYC 255 or 256 or 293)
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Students must complete one specialized course from among the following options.
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PSYC 223.
Psychosocial Perspectives of Asian Americans
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P
SYC
236.
Adolescent Psychology
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PSYC 237.
Health Psychology
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PSYC 246. Community Psychology
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PSYC 265.
Drugs and Behavior
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PSYC 275. Introduction to the Psychology of Human Sexuality
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PSYC 310.
Psychology of Gender Differences
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PSYC 397.
Psychology of Art
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PSYC 399.
Independent Study
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PSYC 490.
Research Assistantship
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CPSC
352.
Artificial Intelligence
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ENGR
411.
Electrophysiology of the Central Nervous System
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HFPR
201.
Health Fellows Program: Topics in Health Care
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NESC 101.
The Brain
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NESC 262. Introduction to Animal Behavior
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PHIL 220.
Introduction to Cognitive Science
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PHIL 328.
Freud
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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.
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 Haberlandt, 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:
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PSYC
221L.
Research Design and Analysis
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PSYC
255.
Cognitive Psychology
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PSYC
293.
Perception
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PSYC
332L.
Psychological
Assessment
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PSYC
356.
Cognitive Science
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PSYC 454. Applications of Human Cognition Research
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CPSC
352.
Artificial
Intelligence
Neuroscience Major—Students interested in the neuroscience major should consult the relevant pages in the Bulletin.