Psychology (BS)
This program was approved for students entering the university in the Summer 2022–Spring 2023 catalog year. For more information about catalog year, go to Catalog Year Information.
Bachelor of Science in Psychology
Unit: College of Arts and Sciences (AS)
Department: Psychological and Brain Sciences
Academic Plan Code(s): PSYCBS, PSYCBS_O
Program Information
The Bachelor of Science in Psychology prepares students for most bachelor's-level careers as well as graduate school in psychology, training in health or science fields (including medical school), and careers in other professional domains. Students develop the critical thinking and communication skills necessary to gather, interpret, and present data. Psychology students can become intelligent consumers of information and active investigators of the fields of cognition, behavior, and brain science and understand how each facet of psychology impacts everyday decision-making. Students can also choose to complete some of the required course work for a pre-med curriculum by taking supporting classes in natural sciences.
Completion of this degree requires work to be submitted for the department’s Learning Outcomes Measurement. For details, contact the department.
Degree Summary
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General Education Requirements 1 | 31 | |
| College/School Requirements | 13-15 | |
| Program/Major Requirements 1 | 42 | |
| Supporting Courses 2 | 12 | |
| Electives | 21-23 | |
| Minimum Total Hours | 121 | |
| 1 | Students earning the BS in Psychology will satisfy at least 10 hours of General Education Requirements by courses defined by the program. Students who take MATH 205 and also apply it to satisfy the Quantitative Reasoning requirement will satisfy 14 hours. In either case, students who satisfy General Education Requirements by courses defined by the program will require additional electives to complete the minimum hours for the degree. |
| 2 | Four (4) 300+ courses from any other social science or natural science department. |
Specific coursework information can be found on the Degree Requirements tab.
Accelerated BS Psychology/MS Experimental Psychology
Psychology majors who are considering pursuing a master's degree (MS) in Experimental Psychology can speed up the process by applying some of their undergraduate credit hours toward a master's degree. Students accepted into the accelerated BS/MS take three graduate courses (9 credit hours) as an undergraduate that apply toward both the bachelor's degree and the eventual master's degree.
Interested students must apply to the program by December 1 of their Junior year. Applicants must have completed PSYC 201, PSYC 301, PSYC 302*, and PSYC 491 prior to application. Applicants must have a minimum overall GPA of 3.0 and a 'C' grade or better in courses required for their BS. Students must maintain a GPA of greater than 2.5 during their enrollment in the BS/MS program. Students must enter the BS/MS program with no more than 24 hours remaining to complete their BS degree, and they must enter the program with 9 hours of elective credit remaining in their BS degree.
* Students may be currently enrolled in PSYC 302 when applying to the BS/MS program.
Departmental Admission Requirements
Admission to the major in Psychology requires:2
- Completion of PSYC 201 with a minimum grade of C;1
- Completion of General Education QR course with a minimum grade of C;1, 2
- Completion of PSYC 301 with a minimum grade of C;1
- Completion of PSYC 302 with a minimum grade of C;1
- Completion of 30 hours of degree-applicable credit with a minimum grade point average of 2.0; and
- A minimum grade point average of 2.0 in Psychology.
The Application for Major form can be found on the Arts & Sciences Advising Center website.
| 1 | Grades of C- are not accepted. |
| 2 | PSYC 205 does not count towards credit hours required for the Psychology major. |
General Education Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General Education Requirements * | 31 | |
| The following course is required by the program and can satisfy the respective General Education Requirement: | ||
| Introduction to Psychology - SB 4,7 | ||
*All degrees require the completion of the University-wide General Education Program (link provided above). Some General Education requirements may be met in the requirements for the major or supporting coursework, in which case additional electives may be required to complete the minimum hours for the degree.
College/School Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Arts & Sciences Requirements | ||
| GEN 100 | Student Success Center First Year Experience | 1 |
| or GEN 101 | Arts & Sciences First Year Experience | |
| Foreign Language 1 | 6-8 | |
| Electives in Humanities or Natural Sciences at 300+level 2 | 6 | |
| WR - two approved courses at the 300 level or above 3 | ||
| Minimum Total Hours | 13-15 | |
Program/Major Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences | ||
| PSYC 201 | Introduction to Psychology - SB 4,8 | 3 |
| PSYC 301 | Statistics for Psychology 5,8 | 3 |
| PSYC 302 | Research Methods for Psychology 8 | 3 |
| Core requirements | ||
| PSYC 305 | Brain and Behavior | 3 |
| PSYC 306 | Life Span Developmental Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC 307 | Cognitive Processes | 3 |
| PSYC 308 | Foundations of Psychopathology | 3 |
| Psychology CUE course (see list below) | 3 | |
| PSYC Electives (300 level or above) 6,7 | 18 | |
| Minimum Total Hours | 42 | |
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Supporting Courses | ||
| Social or Natural Sciences Electives (300 level or above) | 12 | |
| Minimum Electives | 17 | |
| Minimum Total Hours | 29 | |
Requirements for graduation include:
- Admission to the major
- A minimum grade of C minus in courses used to meet departmental requirements in the Psychology major (minimum grade of C required in PSYC 201, PSYC 301 and PSYC 302)
- A minimum GPA of 2.0 in Psychology (PSYC) coursework
At least 50 of the total minimum hours required must be at the 300 level or above.
Students who wish to double major in the BS in Psychology and the BS in Neuroscience degrees must complete 18 credit hours toward the Psychology (PSYC) degree that do not count towards meeting the Neuroscience (NS) degree requirements. These 18 credit hours must include the following courses: PSYC 306, PSYC 307 and PSYC 308. If these courses are taken as electives for the NS degree, additional PSYC courses must be taken in their place. Students must also complete one PSYC CUE course and one NS CUE course. For elective courses that can count toward either degree, the student must specify whether each course will count for NS or PSYC.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Culminating Undergraduate Experience (Graduation requirement) | ||
| Requirement fulfilled by completing one of the following: | ||
| Psychology Research and Public Communication - CUE | ||
| Community Internships in Psychology - CUE | ||
| International Service Learning and Research - CUE | ||
| Giving Psychology Away: Critical Thinking and Public Communication - CUE | ||
| Modifying Behavior - CUE | ||
| Family Risk, Resilience and Mindfulness - WR, CUE | ||
| Child Psychopathology - WR, CUE | ||
| History of Psychology: A Socio-Cultural Perspective - CUE, WR | ||
| Human Expertise and Achievement - CUE | ||
| Psychology of Peace & Ethnic Relations - CUE | ||
| Music Perception and Cognition - CUE | ||
| Aging: Science and Stories - CUE, WR | ||
| Psych of Trauma - WR, CUE | ||
| Exploration of Self: Theory and Research - CUE, WR | ||
| Undergraduate Psychology Research - CUE | ||
| Honors Psychology Thesis - WR, CUE | ||
| 1 | Completion of the second semester of a single foreign language; hours will vary depending on the language taken |
| 2 | In addition to courses counted toward Cardinal Core |
| 3 | May be incorporated into other degree requirements |
| 4 | Fulfills a Cardinal Core Requirement. |
| 5 | Students should confirm any substitute class with the department prior to enrollment. Students who substitute a statistics course from another department will need to take an additional Psychology elective to complete the required number of Psychology hours for the program. |
| 6 | At least 50 of the total minimum hours required for the degree must be at the 300 level or above. |
| 7 | Students who satisfy Cardinal Core Requirements by courses defined by the program will require additional electives to complete the minimum hours for the degree. |
| 8 | Grades of C minus or below are not accepted |
Flight Plan
| Year 1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | |
| GEN 100 or GEN 101 |
Student Success Center First Year Experience or Arts & Sciences First Year Experience |
1 |
| ENGL 101 | Introduction to College Writing - WC | 3 |
| PSYC 201 | Introduction to Psychology - SB | 3 |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Social & Behavioral Sciences Historical Perspective - SBH | 3 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Quantitative Reasoning - QR | 3 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Natural Sciences - S | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Spring | ||
| ENGL 102 | Intermediate College Writing - WC | 3 |
| Foreign Language 1 | 3-4 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Arts & Humanities US Diversity - AHD1 | 3 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Natural Sciences with Lab - S and SL or B | 4 | |
| Hours | 13-14 | |
| Year 2 | ||
| Fall | ||
| PSYC 301 | Statistics for Psychology (minimum grade of C) | 3 |
| PSYC 305 | Brain and Behavior | 3 |
| PSYC 306 | Life Span Developmental Psychology | 3 |
| Foreign Language 2 | 3-4 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Oral Communication - OC | 3 | |
| Hours | 15-16 | |
| Spring | ||
| PSYC 302 | Research Methods for Psychology (minimum grade of C) | 3 |
| PSYC 307 | Cognitive Processes | 3 |
| PSYC 308 | Foundations of Psychopathology | 3 |
| PSYC elective (300-level or above) | 3 | |
| Social or Natural Science Elective (300+ level) | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Year 3 | ||
| Fall | ||
| Social or Natural Science elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| Psychology elective (300+ level) | 3 | |
| Psychology elective (300+ level) | 3 | |
| Psychology elective (300+ level) | 3 | |
| Humanities or Natural Science elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| Psychology elective (300+ level) | 3 | |
| Social or Natural Science elective (300+ level) | 3 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Arts & Humanities Global Diversity - AHD2 | 3 | |
| Humanities or Natural Sciences elective (300+ level) | 3 | |
| General elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Year 4 | ||
| Fall | ||
| Psychology elective CUE/WR or WR | 3 | |
| Social or Natural Science elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| General elective | 4 | |
| General elective | 3 | |
| General elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Spring | ||
| Psychology elective CUE/WR or WR | 3 | |
| General elective | 4 | |
| General elective | 3 | |
| General elective | 3 | |
| General elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Minimum Total Hours | 121-123 | |
Degree Audit Report
Degree Audit reports illustrate how your completed courses fulfill the requirements of your academic plan. What-if reports allow you to compare the courses you have completed in your current academic plan to the courses required in another academic plan. Should you have questions about either report, please consult with your academic advisor.
To create either report:
- Log into your ULink account.
- Click on the Academic Progress tile.
- Next, click on "View my Degree Audit" to run a Degree Audit report in the Undergraduate Advising area.
- To create a What-if report, click on "Create a What-if Advisement Report."
Click here to run a Degree Audit report, or create a What-if report.
Flight Planner
Based on your major, the Flight Planner tool may be available for you to create a personalized Flight Plan. The Flight Planner can be found in the ULink Student Center. Consult with your advisor for assistance with the Flight Planner.
