Program Overview

Overview

The Human Development major is open to students in the College of Human Ecology. Students interested in pursuing a Human Development major will gain an understanding of Psychological Science broadly, building a strong theoretical and empirical foundation in the behavioral sciences while exploring the social, cultural, biological, and cognitive development of humans across the life course. The major also emphasizes translational research and community engagement concerning health and well-being, social and environmental factors (e.g., schools and neighborhoods), and decision-making on context (e.g., legal settings).

Admission to the Major

Most students apply to the major during the regular admissions process for the College of Human Ecology and start their time as first-year students. Those students who change major from within the College of Human Ecology simply need to meet with the Student Services Coordinator in the major and submit a change of major form. Students from outside the college will need to do an internal transfer into the college and the major. We recommend that students change major before their Junior Year, though, depending on previous coursework, exceptions have been made to this deadline.

General Requirements for Students Entering the Major Starting in or After Fall 2023

1. Completing a total of 40 credits in human development (including prerequisites). Students must earn a grade of C- or better in each course. Courses, except for HD 4010 Empirical Research, must be taken for a letter grade. First-year Writing Seminars (FWS) or AP courses cannot be counted towards the credit requirements.
2. Demonstration of proficiency in statistics before the beginning of the senior year by passing PSYCH 2500 Statistics and Research Design with a C- or better, by passing an approved course or course sequence in statistics in some other department at Cornell, or by passing an exemption examination by arrangement with Professor Thomas Cleland.
3. Demonstration of proficiency in research methods or scientific literacy before the beginning of the senior year by passing any of the following courses with a C- or better:

• HD 2830/PSYCH 2830 Research Methods in Human Development
• HD 2930/PSYCH 2930, Data Science for Social Scientists I
• PSYCH 3020, Methods in Neuroscience
• PSYCH 3420, Behavioral Neuroscience Laboratory
• HD 4765 How to Think Like a Scientist
• COMM 2820 Research Methods in Communication Studies
• GOVT 3999 How Do You Know That?
• STS 2011 What is Science?
• BIOG 1500 Investigative Biology Laboratory

4. Completing HD 1130 Introduction to Lifespan Development
5. Completing two courses in developmental psychology:

• PSYCH 2090 Mechanisms in Developmental Psychology
• HD 2150 Infancy and Childhood
• HD 2170 Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood
• HD 2180 Adulthood and Aging
• HD 2510 Social Gerontology; Aging and the Life Course
• HD 2610 Development of Social Behavior

6. Completing one course that emphasizes one of the following areas:

• Translational Research (i.e., moving basic scientific findings into practice)
• Social and Environmental Influences (e.g., neighborhoods, communities)
• Cross-Cultural Perspectives (both within and across nations)
• The Person in Context (individuals within legal, educational, medical settings, etc.)
• Engaged Learning (partners with a community organization)

7. To ensure depth, students are required to take at least one content course from the 3000 level and one course from the 4000 level. Independent Study courses will not fulfill this requirement.
8. Students are encouraged to take independent study or field work (HD 4010 Empirical Research; research conducted under the supervision of a professor). Up to 12 of these credits may be counted towards the major.

Notes

• Students should refer to the list of our current and upcoming courses
• With the permission of the CHE registrar, courses in other departments or at other universities (such as through Cornell Abroad) may be accepted toward fulfilling the major requirements. If the latter, students should be prepared to produce a syllabus.

Advising

Are you a new student? Psychology advising will help you plan the years ahead.

Freshmen - First Semester

We strongly recommend the following courses:

• HD 1130 Introduction to Human Development (required)
• An introductory course in Biology - If you are NOT a pre-med student, enroll in BIOG 1140: Foundations of Biology. This course is offered only in the Fall semester, so we suggest you take it in your first semester, if you can. (Pre-health students should review the Scheduling Tips at this link: Academic Preparation and consider taking BIOMG 1350, BIOG 1440, or BIOG 1445)
• First-Year Writing Seminar
• HD Curriculum Sheet requirement, such as a non-HD CHE course (DEA, FSAD, NS, PUBPOL) or Social Science (SOC 1101 or ECON 1110)
• A physical education class (recommended to complete freshman year)

Special Advice for Pre-meds

• Explore the website of Cornell's excellent Health Professions Advising Center which provides information beginning with First Year Student Resources all the way to assistance with professional school applications near the end of your time at Cornell.

General Requirements for Students Who Entered the Major Before Fall 2023

These students have the option of following the breadth requirement OR the new requirements described above.

Human Development majors must take at least ONE class in EACH of the two areas listed below. Classes marked with * (a star) may count for either area but only count once. A minimum of six credits must be taken to fulfill this requirement. Courses taken to fulfill the Breadth requirement cannot also be used to fulfill the 3000/4000 level requirement.

• Mind, Health & Emotion:
  • HD 2180 Human Development: Adulthood and Aging *
  • HD 2520 Narratives of Women's Lives
  • HD 2510 Social Gerontology: Aging and the Life Course
  • HD 2580 Six Pretty Good Books: Explorations in Social Science *
  • HD 2600 Introduction to Personality
  • HD 2610 Development of Social Behavior *
  • HD 2650 Psychology and Law *
  • HD 2710 The Black Family and Socialization of Black Children *
  • HD 2800 Cultural Psychology *
  • HD 2820 Community Outreach
  • HD 3270 Field Practicum I
  • HD 3280 Field Practicum II
  • HD 3290 Self-Regulation Across the Life Span *
  • HD 3300 Developmental Psychopathology
  • HD 3310 Psychology of Gender
  • HD 3320 Gender and Psychopathology
  • HD 3450 The Nature of Leadership
  • HD 3460 Serious Fun! The Role of Play Throughout Development *
  • HD 3490 Positive Psychology
  • HD 3510 Racial and Ethnic Identity Development
  • HD 3570 Social Inequalities in Physical and Mental Health
  • HD 3620 Human Bonding
  • HD 3650 Developmental Human Sexuality
  • HD 3660 Affective and Social Neuroscience *
  • HD 3700 Adult Psychopathology
  • HD 4070 The Origins of Us vs. Them
  • HD 4120 Aging Policy
  • HD 4230 Research in Children's Testimony: Exploring Social and Cognitive Mechanisms *
  • HD 4240 Stress, Emotion, and Health
  • HD 4280 Research on Health Aging Lab
  • HD 4310 Mind, Self, and Emotion *
  • HD 4390 Positive Psychology in Prison
  • HD 4410 Human-Environment Relations *
  • HD 4420 Intimate Relationships
  • HD 4430 Navigate the Social World
  • HD 4490 Children's Learning in Social Context *
  • HD 4500 Social Networks *
  • HD 4520 Culture and Human Development
  • HD 4570 Health and Social Behavior
  • HD 4580 The Science of Social Behavior
  • HD 4590 Transitions Across the Life Span
  • HD 4690 Research on Adult Attachment Phenomena Lab
  • HD 4770 Psychopathology in Great Works of Literature
  • HD 4790 Contemporary Perspectives on Human Development *
  • HD 4850 Translational Research Lab
  • HD 4860 Nearest Neighbor
• Cognition, Brain & Behavior:
  • HD 2180 Human Development: Adulthood and Aging *
  • HD 2200 The Human Brain and Mind: An Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience
  • HD 2300 Cognitive Development
  • HD 2350 Multilingualism and Multiculturalism in Early Childhood
  • HD 2580 Six Pretty Good Books: Explorations in Social Science *
  • HD 2610 Development of Social Behavior *
  • HD 2650 Psychology and Law *
  • HD 2710 The Black Family and Socialization of Black Children *
  • HD 2800 Cultural Psychology *
  • HD 3110 Educational Psychology
  • HD 3190 Memory and the Law
  • HD 3210 Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
  • HD 3250 Neurochemistry of Human Behavior
  • HD 3290 Self-Regulation Across the Life Span *
  • HD 3330 Children and the Law
  • HD 3460 Serious Fun! The Role of Play Throughout Development *
  • HD 3660 Affective and Social Neuroscience *
  • HD 4230 Research in Children's Testimony: Exploring Social and Cognitive Mechanisms *
  • HD 4250 Translational Research on Decision Making
  • HD 4260 Translational Research on Memory and Neuroscience
  • HD 4290 Psychology and the Law: Experimental and Correlational Research
  • HD 4300 Concepts and Theories in Childhood
  • HD 4310 Mind, Self, and Emotion *
  • HD 4340 Current Topics in Cognitive Development
  • HD 4380 Language and Thought Throughout Development
  • HD 4410 Human-Environment Relations *
  • HD 4440 The Nature of Human Intelligence
  • HD 4450 Ethical Challenges in Behavioral and Brain Sciences
  • HD 4470 Psychology of Imagination
  • HD 4490 Children's Learning in Social Context *
  • HD 4500 Social Networks *
  • HD 4540 Creativity and Its Development
  • HD 4620 Research Seminar: Brain Activity and Cognition Lab
  • HD 4630 Introduction to Functional MRI Analysis for Human Neuroimaging
  • HD 4720 Research in Emotion, Cognition, and Brain Lab
  • HD 4765 How to Think Like a Scientist
  • HD 4790 Contemporary Perspectives on Human Development *