Catalog Information
Professors: Jill
G. Morawski, Scott Plous, John G. Seamon, Robert S. Steele,
Ruth Striegel-Moore, Chair
Associate
Professor: Lisa Dierker, Andrea L. Patalano
Assistant
Professors:
Hilary Barth, Henry A. Danso,
Barbara Juhasz,
Matthew Kurtz, Anna Shusterman, Steven Stemler
Adjunct
Professor: Philippa Coughlan,
Director, Office of
Behavioral Health for Students
Undergraduate
Program
Departmental Advising Experts 2008-2009: Matthew
Kurtz, Anna Shusterman
Department/Program
Home Page
The Psychology Department
offers introductory courses to provide a general overview of the entire field.
Statistics and research methods courses familiarize students with research tools
and techniques. The breadth requirement courses assure that students take an
array of medium-level courses that provide an intensive exposure to the
theories, practices, and results associated with important investigative areas.
Admission.
Prospective majors
are required to earn a B or better in two psychology courses taken at Wesleyan
and declare psychology as their major not later than by the first week of
classes in their junior year. (Transfer students are exempted from the
requirement that the psychology courses have to have been taken at Wesleyan.)
Please refer to the department's
Web site for for more detail.
Major requirements. Ten
credits are required to fulfill the major. Nine of the 10 credits needed for the
major must be graded. (Introductory and statistic courses must be taken graded.)
Introductory psychology.
These
courses provide a broad overview of psychology. Either Psychological Science
(PSYC101) or Foundations of Contemporary Psychology (PSYC105) is
required. An AP course plus a Breadth
Requirement course will also fulfill the introductory requirement.
Psychological statistics.
These courses provide an introduction to data
analysis in psychology. Either Statistics: An Activity-Based Approach
(PSYC200) or Psychological Statistics (PSYC201) is required.
Research methods. These
courses provide specific skills with which to evaluate and perform research. One
course in methods of research is required. These courses are numbered
PSYC202-219. Alternatively, this requirement can be fulfilled by taking
one of the Advanced Research courses (PSYC380-399).
Breadth requirement. Students
must choose a minimum of one course from each of the three columns:
|
COLUMN 1 |
COLUMN 2 |
COLUMN 3 |
|
PSYC220
Cognitive Psychology |
PSYC230
Developmental Psychology |
PSYC260
Social Psychology |
|
PSYC221
Human Memory |
PSYC245
Psychological Measurement |
PSYC261
Cultural Psychology |
|
PSYC222
Sensation and Perception |
PSYC251
Understanding Psychopathology |
PSYC263
Exploring Social Psychology |
|
PSYC225
Cognitive Neuroscience |
PSYC270
The Psychology of Women |
PSYC268
Organizational Psychology |
|
PSYC228
Clinical Neuropsychology |
PSYC259
Discovering the Person |
PSYC277
Psychology and the Law |
|
PSYC240
Behavioral Neurobiology |
PSYC271
Lifespan Development |
|
Specialized. These courses (PSYC300-398) aim to ensure that students study at least one subfield of psychology in depth. A student must take one specialized course that deepens the knowledge she or he gained in a Breadth Requirement course.
Electives. Any other courses, tutorials, or teaching apprenticeships offered by the department, or any courses approved by the chair, may also be counted toward completion of the requirements.
Honors Thesis in Psychology. By the beginning
of their spring semester junior year, Psychology majors who have earned at least
a B+ average in all psychology courses, and have earned at least a B average in
all non-psychology courses, may pursue Honors in psychology by writing a thesis.
Honors will be awarded only if both readers evaluate the thesis worthy of
Honors.
High Honors Thesis in Psychology.
In addition to the above, Psychology majors must also have met the University’s
General Education requirements, in order to pursue High Honors in Psychology by
writing a thesis. High Honors will be awarded only if both readers evaluate the
thesis as truly exceptional, i.e., worthy of High Honors.
To evaluate eligibility, grades are needed for all courses, including transfer courses. Please refer to the department's
Web site for the formula to calculate GPAs.
Transfer credits. No more than three transfer credits from other departments or institutions can be applied to fulfill requirements for the major. These must be approved by the chair. Even though a transfer credit may have been approved toward a university credit, it must also be specifically approved toward the psychology major. Transfer credits cannot be counted toward admission to the program unless you are a transfer student.
Teaching Apprentice credits. No more than two teaching apprentice credits can be counted toward the major.
Tutorial credits. No more than four tutorial credits can be counted toward the major, or six including the senior thesis tutorials.
Advanced Placement credit. Students who receive a score of 5 or 4 and complete a full-credit Breadth Requirement course may receive 1.00 credit.
This credit may fulfill the introductory course requirement. AP credits may not be counted toward admission to the major.
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