Psychology focuses on understanding, predicting and solving problems related to human behavior in today's information-rich world, which makes it one of the most relevant, versatile fields of study.
Majoring in Psychology will help you employ a variety of lenses - including clinical, biological, cognitive, developmental, industrial/organizational, social, and personality - to appreciate why people do what they do while building expertise in scientific methods, critical thinking, and statistical procedures.
Understanding human behavior is an asset in any job. While many psychology majors want to seek advanced master's and doctoral-level degrees, there are many interesting jobs for individuals who graduate with a BA alone.
Students can apply for entry-level jobs in areas including:
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Research
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Mental Health
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Human Resources
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Social Services
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Market Research and Marketing
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Corrections
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Education
Students who wish to pursue P-12 teacher certification in Social Studies must apply to and be admitted to the Teacher Education Program. Once admitted, students will be matriculated into the B.A. in Secondary Education program as a second major.
Please visit the Teacher Education Program website for the required professional sequence of courses and other important Program requirements, guidelines, and procedures. Students also are strongly advised to review the Teacher Education Program Handbook. The course SASE 401 Methods of Teaching Social Studies is the departmental requirement.
The social studies teacher is expected to have a broad understanding of the cultural and environmental factors which shape the individual and society. To meet the approved program for certification in social studies, course work is required in each of the following:
- Economics
- Geography
- History
- Political Science
- Religion
A detailed description of the requirements is available in the office of the Social Studies Teacher Education Coordinator in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.
120 credits of coursework is required for the baccalaureate degree with a minimum 3.0 overall GPA. Major GPA requirements differ depending on field of study. Consult the Teacher Education Program Handbook for more information.
Psychology majors must earn a grade of C- or above in all Psychology courses. Psychology course in which grades of less than C- are earned must be repeated and brought up to a minimum grade of C- or they will not count toward the major.
For details about this program, including program description, admission requirements, and contact information, click here.
Degree Requirements Overview
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| New Student Seminar | 1 | |
| SEEDS General Education Requirements | 18-21 | |
| Major Requirements | 39 | |
| Social Studies Support Courses for Teacher Education | 21 | |
| Co-Major in Secondary Education | 36 | |
| Free Electives | 5-2 | |
| Total Credits | 120 | |
Major Requirements
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| Psychology majors must earn a grade of C- or above in all Psychology courses. Psychology courses in which grades of less than C- are earned must be repeated and brought up to a minimum grade of C- in order to count toward the major. Note: The grades for all Psychology courses, including those below C-, are included in the major GPA. **Admission to the Teacher Education Program version of this major requires admission to the Teacher Education Program. Students typically apply for admission in sophomore or junior year after completing the program. There are GPA, testing and course completion requirements that vary by certification. | ||
| PSYC 101 | Introduction to Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC 199 | Academic Success and Career Preparation in Psychology | 1 |
| PSYC 203 | Introduction to Psychological Research | 3 |
| PSYC 220 | Introduction to Statistical Methods in Psychology | 4 |
| PSYC 301 | Experimental Psychology | 4 |
| Electives | ||
| Biological Basis of Behavior | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Physiological Psychology | ||
| Perception | ||
| Drugs and Behavior | ||
| Neurocognitive Disorders | ||
| Comparative Animal Behavior | ||
| Motivation | ||
| Cognition | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Cognition | ||
| Human Learning and Memory | ||
| Psycholinguistics | ||
| Personality | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Developmental Psychology I | ||
| Psychological Foundations of Personality | ||
| Abnormal Psychology | ||
| Social/Applied | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Social Psychology | ||
| Psychology Of Work: Personnel Psychology | ||
| Psychology of Work: Organizational Psychology | ||
| Advanced Electives | ||
| Advanced Electives I | ||
| Complete 6 credits from the list below. | 6 | |
| Advanced Electives II | ||
| Complete 6 credits from the list below. | 6 | |
| Total Credits | 39 | |
Advanced Electives I
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| PSYC 100-499 (except for courses used in the major core or other elective categories) | ||
| PCOM 100-299 | ||
| LNGN/CSIT/PHIL 288 | Introduction to Cognitive Science | 3 |
| BIOL 319 | Genes, Brains, and Behavior | 4 |
| BIOL 320 | Social Neurobiology | 3 |
Advanced Electives II
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| PSYC 300-499 (except PSYC 301 or courses used in other elective categories) | ||
| PCOM 300-499 | ||
| BIOL 319 | Genes, Brains, and Behavior | 4 |
| BIOL 320 | Social Neurobiology | 3 |
| LNGN 488 | Seminar in Cognitive Science | 3 |
Social Studies Support Courses for Teacher Education
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| EAES 170 | World Geography | 3 |
| ECON 101 | Applied Macroeconomics | 3 |
| or ECON 102 | Applied Microeconomics | |
| HIST 103 | Gods, Empires, Crusades Plague | 3 |
| HIST 114 | Early Latin American History | 3 |
| HIST 117 | Foundations of America | 3 |
| HIST 118 | Emergence of the Modern United States | 3 |
| HIST 141 | Emergence of the Modern World | 3 |
| Total Credits | 21 | |
Co-Major in Secondary Education
New Student Seminar
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Students in the Adult Learner program must take GNED 100. | ||
| Complete one course from the following. Some courses may be restricted by major. Consult with an academic advisor. | 1 | |
| Pathways to Success | ||
| Freshman Seminar in Chemistry | ||
| First Year Seminar | ||
| Adult Academic Success Seminar | ||
| New Student Seminar | ||
| Freshman Seminar in Health and Physical Education | ||
| Pathways to Adult Learning | ||
| New Student Seminar | ||
| New Student Experience for Mathematical Sciences | ||
| Freshman Seminar for Music Majors | ||
| Introduction to Nursing | ||
| Freshman Seminar in Political Science and Law | ||
SEEDS General Education Requirements
Click here for a list of courses that fulfill the SEEDS requirements.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Foundations | ||
| Effective Writing I | ||
| Complete one Effective Writing I course. | 3 | |
| Effective Writing II | ||
| Complete one Effective Writing I course. | 3 | |
| Interactive Communication | ||
| Complete one Interactive Communication course. | 3 | |
| Quantitative Reasoning | ||
| Fulfilled by PSYC 220 in the major. | ||
| Political and Civic Life | ||
| Fulfilled by SASE 210 in the co-major. | ||
| World Languages | ||
| Complete two sequential classes in one World Language when starting at the Beginner I or Beginner II level. Complete one class when starting at the Intermediate/Advanced Level. | 3-6 | |
| Exploration | ||
| Complete one course from four different Exploration categories. | 6 | |
| Analyzing Cultures and Societies | ||
| Fulfilled by PSYC 101 in the major. | ||
| Creative Expression | ||
| Ethical Inquiry | ||
| Historical Thinking | ||
| Fulfilled by HIST 117 in the major. | ||
| Literary and Artistic Analysis | ||
| Scientific Reasoning | ||
| Total Credits | 18-21 | |
Recommended Roadmap to Program of Study Completion
This recommended degree plan is provided as an outline for students to follow in order to complete their program of study requirements within four years and 120 credits. This plan is a recommendation and must be used in consultation with their academic advisor. Important note: Students should be aware this plan assumes no pre-requisite coursework is required. If pre-requisite coursework is needed, students may have additional requirements to fulfill which do not appear on the plan.
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| New Student Seminar | 1 | PSYC 203 | 3 |
| PSYC 101 (Fulfills SEEDS: Exploration 1 – Analyzing Cultures and Societies) | 3 | SEEDS: Effective Writing II | 3 |
| SEEDS: Effective Writing I | 3 | SEEDS: World Language II or Free Elective | 3 |
| SEEDS: World Language I | 3 | SASE 210 (Fulfills SEEDS: Political and Civic Life) | 3 |
| SEEDS: Interactive Communication | 3 | EDFD 200 or FSHD 216 | 3 |
| HIST 103 (Social Studies Support course) | 3 | ||
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| PSYC 199 | 1 | PSYC Advanced Elective 1 | 3 |
| PSYC 220 (Fulfills SEEDS: Quantitative Reasoning) | 4 | PSYC 301 | 4 |
| PSYC Personality Elective | 3 | PSYC Social/Applied Elective | 3 |
| HIST 117 (Social Studies Support course - Fulfills SEEDS Exploration 1: Historical Thinking) | 3 | HIST 114 (Social Studies Support course. Fulfills SEEDS Exploration 2: Analyzing Cultures and Societies) | 3 |
| EAES 170 (Social Studies Support course) | 3 | HIST 141 (Social Studies Support course) | 3 |
| HIST 118 (Social Studies Support course) | 3 | ||
| 17 | 16 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| PSYC Biological Basis of Behavior Elective | 3 | PSYC Cognition Elective | 3 |
| PSYC Advanced Elective 2 | 3 | PSYC Advanced Elective 3 | 3 |
| SEEDS: Exploration 3 | 3 | SEEDS Exploration 4 | 3 |
| SASE 320 | 3 | SASE 322 | 3 |
| SASE 321 | 3 | ECON 101 or 102 (Social Studies Support course) | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| PSYC Advanced Elective 4 | 3 | SASE 452 | 3 |
| SASE 401 (Teaching Professional Sequence) | 3 | SASE 453 | 9 |
| SASE 450 (Teaching Professional Sequence) | 3 | ||
| SASE 451 (Teaching Professional Sequence) | 3 | ||
| Free Elective | 2 | ||
| 14 | 12 | ||
| Total Credits 120 | |||