Program Overview

---

Psychology - Bachelor of Arts (BA)

The psychology major provides a fundamental understanding of the principles of human cognition, emotion, behavior, social interactions, and mind-brain relationships. Our distinguished faculty also teach specialized upper-division courses in behavioral genetics, neuroscience, cognitive psychology, clinical psychology, child development, social psychology, and judgment and decision making.

Requirements

Prerequisites

It is policy to enforce the course prerequisites listed in the course descriptions. If you have not either taken and passed (C- or better) the prerequisites for a course or obtained permission from the instructor to take the course based on equivalent preparatory coursework, you may be administratively dropped from the course.

Degree Requirements

Students must complete the general requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences and the requirements for the major, listed below.

A major in psychology requires a minimum of 36 credit hours in psychology courses. At least 20 of these credit hours must be in upper-division PSYC or NRSC coursework that includes a minimum of 10 credit hours at the 4000 level. Students must complete a minimum of 12 upper-division credit hours of psychology coursework on the Boulder campus with a C- or better. Of those 12 credit hours, one laboratory and methods course must be included.

All required major courses and all required ancillary courses must be passed with a C- or better and cannot be taken pass/fail. Students must have a GPA of at least 2.000 in the major in order to graduate, and no more than 45 credits in PSYC may be applied to overall graduation requirements.

Required Courses and Credits

• Psychology Core
  • PSYC 1001: General Psychology (3 credit hours)
  • PSYC 2111: Psychological Science I: Statistics (4 credit hours)
  • PSYC 3111: Psychological Science 2: Research Methods in Psychology (4 credit hours)
• Required Courses
  • Select 4 out of 5 from the following options: (12 credit hours)
    • PSYC 2012: Biological Psychology
    • PSYC 2145: Introductory Cognitive Psychology
    • PSYC 2606: Social Psychology
    • PSYC 3102: Behavioral Genetics
    • PSYC 3303: Clinical Psychology: Psychological Disorders
• Laboratory and Methods Course
  • Select at least one upper-division course from the following: (4 credit hours)
    • PSYC 4136: Judgment and Decision Making
    • PSYC 4145: Advanced Cognitive Psychology
    • PSYC 4152: Research Methods in Behavioral Genetics
    • PSYC/NRSC 4155: Cognitive Neuroscience/Neuropsychology
    • PSYC 4165: Psychology of Perception
    • PSYC 4376: Research Methods in Social Psychology
    • PSYC 4377: Research Methods in Positive Psychology
    • PSYC 4378: Research Methods in Conservation Psychology
    • PSYC 4399: Qualitative Research Methods in Psychology
    • PSYC 4443: Research Methods in Clinical Psychology
    • PSYC 4655: Community-based Research and Design
• Upper-Division Major Electives
  • Complete 9 credits of applicable electives, including:
    • 3 credits of upper-division elective in PSYC or NRSC (3000 or 4000-level)
    • 3 credits of 4000-level elective in PSYC or NRSC
    • 3 credits of 4000-level elective either in PSYC/NRSC or from an approved list of external elective courses
• Total Credit Hours: 36

Graduating in Four Years

Consult the Four-Year Guarantee Requirements for information on eligibility. The department recommends taking PSYC 1001, PSYC 2111, and three of the four required courses by the end of the sophomore year. It is recommended that the math prerequisite for PSYC 2111 be taken by the end of the first year.

Recommended Four-Year Plan of Study

This is a four-year plan that provides one option to complete the BA in Psychology. There are other possible pathways, depending on the timing of the Psychological Science 1 and 2 sequence (PSYC 2111 and PSYC 3111). Meeting routinely with a departmental advisor is recommended to develop a four-year plan most applicable to students' individual circumstances and goals.

Learning Outcomes

By the completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Achieve a fundamental understanding of the principles of human cognition, emotion, behavior, social interactions, and mind-brain relationships; including the scientific basis for this knowledge and methods by which this knowledge is obtained.
• Learn the principles and application of psychological statistical analysis including how to analyze and report experimental results.
• Learn the principles and application of psychological research design.
• Learn how to evaluate and interpret relevant primary literatures.
• Learn how to apply knowledge of psychological principles and the study of human behavior.