The Master of Science Program in Psychological Science provides graduate level training in psychological theories and methods. In the thesis-based track, students focus research and courses on a specific area of psychology (e.g., social psychology); this option is available to students enrolled in the Psychology PhD program as well as students enrolled in a 4+1 program.
- 24 graduate credits in Psychology (8 graduate courses)
- PSYC 6090 Univariate I (3 c.h.)
- At least 3 credits in core courses (eligible courses: PSYC 7000-7090)
- Empirical Master’s thesis (6 credits of PSYC 9980 Masters Research (3 c.h.))
- Prospectus meeting (Held before October 1 for students entering in August and February 15 for students entering in January)
- Successful Master’s thesis defense (Held before April 15 for May degree, August 5 for August degree, and December 5 for December degree)
In the course-based track, which is only available to students in the 4+1 program, students take a graduate-level curriculum that covers a broad range of psychology sub-fields.
- 30 graduate credits in Psychology (10 graduate courses)
- PSYC 6090 Univariate I (3 c.h.)
- At least 3 credits in a statistics course beyond PSYC 6090 Univariate I (3 c.h.) (eligible courses: PSYC 6110 Psyc Appl Univar Stat II (3 c.h.), PSYC 6130 Psyc Appl Multivar Stats (3 c.h.))
- At least 6 credits in core courses (eligible courses: PSYC 7000-7090)
- At least 3 credits in biological underpinnings of behavior (from approved course list)
- At least 3 credits in social, cultural, or developmental psychology (from approved course list)
Required graduate courses include courses in core areas of psychology (e.g., social psychology), quantitative methods, and other approved courses to provide depth and breadth. Students in the thesis track complete 24 course credits and also produce a Master’s thesis comprising an empirical study in psychology. Students in the course-based track, which is only available for students in the 4+1 program, complete 30 course credits.
Non-Thesis Track
General Curriculum:
- 30 graduate credits (10 graduate courses)
- PSYC 6090 Univariate I (3 c.h.))
- At least 3 credits in a statistics course beyond PSYC 6090 (eligible courses: PSYC 6110 Psyc Appl Univar Stat II (3 c.h.), PSYC 6130 Psyc Appl Multivar Stats (3 c.h.))
- At least 3 credits in social, cultural, or developmental psychology (see Appendix)
- At least 3 credits in biological underpinnings of behavior (see Appendix)
- At least 6 credits in core courses (eligible courses include: PSYC 7000-7090)
- No more than 3 credits from courses outside of Psychology
- No more than 3 credits in a Psychology independent study or special topics graduate course
Notes:
- Students are strongly encouraged to take one to two 6000+-level PSYC graduate courses during their senior year.
- Some courses fulfill multiple requirements (e.g., PSYC 7020 Developmental Psychology meets the requirement of one core course, but it also satisfies the social, cultural, or developmental psychology requirement).
Other requirements:
- All courses counting towards the 30 credits must have a B- or higher grade. Grades below a B- do not count towards the degree.
- The minimum grade point average calculated over the 30 credits counted toward the degree must be greater than 3.0.
- No more than 6 credits can count towards both the Bachelor’s and the Master’s degree.
- No more than 6 credits taken as an overload during undergraduate studies can count toward the Master’s degree.
- Application for degree and submission of degree fees to the School of Science and Engineering is required.
Appendix
Eligible classes for social/developmental psychology and cognitive/behavioral neuroscience general curriculum requirement:
Social, cultural, or developmental psychology
- PSYC 7000 Social Psychology (3 c.h.)
- PSYC 7010 Personality (3 c.h.)
- PSYC 7020 Developmental Psychology (3 c.h.)
- PSYC 7070 Culture and Cognition (3 c.h.)
- PSYC 7150 Advanced Adolescent Psyc (3 c.h.)
- PSYC 7160 Children of Color (3 c.h.)
- PSYC 7170 Intergroup Relations (3 c.h.)
- Special topics by approval
Cognitive/behavioral neuroscience
- PSYC 6060 Behavioral Endocrinology (3 c.h.)
- PSYC 6330 Neurobiol Learn & Memory (3 c.h.)
- PSYC 6530 Psychopharmacology (3 c.h.)
- PSYC 7030 Cog. Neurosc. Grad. Sem. (3 c.h.)
- PSYC 7040 Evol Models In Psych (3 c.h.)
- PSYC 7090 Physiological Psychology (3 c.h.)
- Special topics by approval
Thesis Track
General Curriculum:
- 24 graduate credits in Psychology (8 graduate courses)
- PSYC 6090 Univariate I (3 c.h.)
- At least 3 credits in core courses (eligible courses: PSYC 7000-7090)
- No more than 3 credits from courses outside of Psychology
- No more than 3 credits in a Psychology independent study or special topics graduate course
- Empirical Master’s thesis (6 credits of PSYC 9980 Masters Research (3 c.h.))
- Prospectus meeting (Held before October 1 for students entering in August and February 15 for students entering in January)
- Successful Master’s thesis defense (Held before April 15 for May degree, August 5 for August degree, and December 5 for December degree)
Other Requirements:
- All courses counting towards the 24 credits must have a B- or higher grade. Grades below a B- do not count towards the degree.
- The minimum grade point average calculated over the 24 credits counted toward the degree must be greater than 3.0.
- No more than 6 credits can count towards both the Bachelor’s and the Master’s degree.
- No more than 6 credits taken as an overload during undergraduate studies can count toward the Master’s degree.
- Application for degree and submission of degree fees to the School of Science and Engineering is required.
- Submission of thesis to the School of Science & Engineering is required.