Psychology (BS)
This program was approved for students entering the university in the Summer 2018–Spring 2019 catalog year. For more information about catalog year, go to Catalog Year Information.
Bachelor of Science in Psychology (PSYCBS)
Unit: College of Arts and Sciences (AS)
Department: Psychological and Brain Sciences
Program Information
This degree program is designed to accommodate the needs of majors who intend to pursue careers health or science fields and includes most of the required course work for a pre-med curriculum. This program requires a demanding sequence of supporting classes in biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics beyond the introductory level, as well as increased hours of electives in the major.
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 | 75-77 | |
| 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 use take MATH 205 and also apply it to satisfy the Quantitative Reasoning requirement will satisfy 13 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. |
Specific coursework information can be found on the Degree Requirements tab.
Departmental Admission Requirements
Admission to the major in Psychology requires:
- Completion of PSYC 201 with a minimum grade of C;
- Completion of MATH 111 or higher level Math course;
- Completion of PSYC 301 (or approved substitute) with a minimum grade of C;
- 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: louisville.edu/artsandsciences/advising/apply.
General Education Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General Education Requirements * | 31 | |
| The following courses are required by the program and can satisfy the respective General Education Requirement: | ||
| Introduction to Psychology - SB | ||
| Unity of Life - S | ||
| Principles of Biology Laboratory - SL | ||
| General Chemistry I - S | ||
| Calculus I - QR 8 | ||
*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 Orientation | 1 |
| or GEN 101 | Arts and Sciences Orientation | |
| 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 | 3 |
| PSYC 301 | Statistics for Psychology 5 | 3 |
| PSYC 302 | Research Methods for Psychology | 3 |
| Core requirements | 12 | |
| Brain and Behavior | ||
| Life Span Developmental Psychology | ||
| Cognitive Processes | ||
| Abnormal Psychology | ||
| Psychology CUE course (see list below) | 3 | |
| PSYC Electives 6,7 | 18 | |
| Supporting Courses | ||
| BIOL 240 | Unity of Life - S | 3 |
| BIOL 242 | Diversity of Life | 3 |
| BIOL 244 | Principles of Biology Laboratory - SL | 2 |
| CHEM 201 | General Chemistry I - S | 3 |
| CHEM 202 | General Chemistry II - S | 3 |
| CHEM 207 & CHEM 208 | Introduction to Chemical Analysis I - SL Introduction to Chemical Analysis II - SL | 2 |
| CHEM 209 | Introduction to Chemical Analysis III | 1 |
| MATH 205 | Calculus I - QR 8 | 4 |
| PHYS 221 & PHYS 223 | Fundamentals of Physics I - S Fundamentals of Physics Lab I - SL | 4 |
| PHYS 222 & PHYS 224 | Fundamentals of Physics II - S Fundamentals of Physics Laboratory II - SL | 4 |
| Minimum Electives 6,7 | 4-6 | |
| Minimum Total Hours | 75-77 | |
Requirements for graduation include:
- Completion of PSYC 302 with a minimum grade of C
- A minimum grade of C-minus in all courses used to meet departmental requirements in the Psychology major
- A minimum GPA of 2.0 in Psychology (PSYC) coursework
Only 60 hours in the major department may be applied toward the Bachelor of Science degree.
At least 50 of the total minimum hours required must be at the 300 level or above.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Culminating Undergraduate Experience (Graduation requirement) | ||
| Requirement fulfilled by completing one of the following: | ||
| Psychology Research and Public Communication | ||
| 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 - CUE, WR | ||
| History of Psychology: A Socio Cultural Perspective - CUE | ||
| Psychology of Peace & Ethnic Relations - CUE | ||
| Music Perception and Cognition - CUE | ||
| Aging: Science and Stories - CUE, WR | ||
| Exploration of Self: Theory and Research - CUE, WR | ||
| Undergraduate Psychology Research - CUE | ||
| Honors Psychology Thesis - CUE, WR | ||
| 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 General Education |
| 3 | May be incorporated into other degree requirements |
| 4 | Fulfills a General Education Requirement. |
| 5 | 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 General Education Requirements by courses defined by the program will require additional electives to complete the minimum hours for the degree. |
| 8 | Or higher level course |
Flight Plan
| Year 1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | |
| GEN 100 or GEN 101 |
Student Success Center Orientation or Arts and Sciences Orientation |
1 |
| ENGL 101 | Introduction to College Writing - WC | 3 |
| BIOL 240 | Unity of Life - S | 3 |
| PSYC 201 | Introduction to Psychology - SB | 3 |
| CHEM 201 | General Chemistry I - S | 3 |
| CHEM 207 | Introduction to Chemical Analysis I - SL | 1 |
| CHEM 208 | Introduction to Chemical Analysis II - SL | 1 |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| ENGL 102 | Intermediate College Writing - WC | 3 |
| BIOL 242 | Diversity of Life | 3 |
| BIOL 244 | Principles of Biology Laboratory - SL | 2 |
| MATH 205 | Calculus I - QR | 4 |
| CHEM 202 | General Chemistry II - S | 3 |
| CHEM 209 | Introduction to Chemical Analysis III | 1 |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Year 2 | ||
| Fall | ||
| PSYC 301 | Statistics for Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC 305 | Brain and Behavior | 3 |
| PSYC 306 | Life Span Developmental Psychology | 3 |
| Foreign Language 1 | 3-4 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Oral Communication - OC | 3 | |
| Hours | 15-16 | |
| Spring | ||
| PSYC 302 | Research Methods for Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC 307 | Cognitive Processes | 3 |
| PSYC 308 | Abnormal Psychology | 3 |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Social & Behavioral Sciences Historical Perspective - SBH | 3 | |
| Foreign Language 2 | 3-4 | |
| Hours | 15-16 | |
| Year 3 | ||
| Fall | ||
| PHYS 221 | Fundamentals of Physics I - S | 3 |
| PHYS 223 | Fundamentals of Physics Lab I - SL | 1 |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Arts & Humanities US Diversity - AHD1 | 3 | |
| Psychology elective | 3 | |
| Psychology elective | 3 | |
| Humanities or Natural Science elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Spring | ||
| PHYS 222 | Fundamentals of Physics II - S | 3 |
| PHYS 224 | Fundamentals of Physics Laboratory II - SL | 1 |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Arts & Humanities Global Diversity - AHD2 | 3 | |
| Psychology WR elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| Psychology elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| Humanities or Natural Sciences elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Year 4 | ||
| Fall | ||
| Psychology elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| Psychology WR elective | 3 | |
| General elective | 3 | |
| General elective | 3 | |
| General elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| Psychology elective CUE | 3 | |
| Psychology elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| General elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| General elective | 3 | |
| General elective | 1 | |
| Hours | 13 | |
| Minimum Total Hours | 121-123 | |
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. For both reports, please consult with your advisor before editing your course schedule.
To create either report:
- Log into your ULink account.
- Click on the Student Services tab.
- Next, click on "View my Academic Advisement Report" 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.
