Considering a graduate degree in the psychology department? The department of psychology supports high standards of scholarship to inform and improve a changing world. The graduate programs are distinguished by an emphasis on faculty-mentored basic research and the application of research to solving practical problems in families, schools, industry, government, and health care settings.
Research by faculty and students in the department has earned national respect as demonstrated by awards and, over the past several years, greater than $5.5 million in grants, over 185 conference presentations, and more than 180 articles and book chapters annually. The faculty are editors and associate editors for 11 different journals with new appointments annually.
The goal of the doctoral program is to train students in the principles and applications of psychology. The program provides knowledge of the basic content areas in psychology and practical experience in applying this knowledge to solving human problems in life, work, and school.
The Ph.D. program in Human Factors and Applied Cognition provides instruction and research training for students wishing to pursue careers in the academic, public, and private sectors. Across all areas, a strong emphasis is placed on students developing a good understanding of cognitive theory, acquiring advanced methodological and statistical skills, and learning how to apply these tools to real-world human factors problems.
The master’s degree in psychology has concentrations in applied developmental psychology, cognitive and behavioral neuroscience, human factors/applied cognition, industrial/organizational psychology, and previously, school psychology and the school psychology graduate certificate. The department does not offer a master’s degree in clinical or counseling psychology, but a master’s degree in psychology with a concentration in clinical psychology is available for students who have been admitted to the doctoral program concentration in clinical psychology. An accelerated master’s option with a CBNR concentration is available to students in the psychology bachelor’s program (BS or BA).
Students in our MA program can elect to focus on either professional training or preparation for a doctoral program. Both tracks stress the analytic and empirical methodologies that are used in all phases of interactive systems design (where this is broadly defined to include any human-machine system). The power and interpretation of these techniques reside in their close ties to cognitive theory. The professional training track emphasizes coursework and practical experience; the doctoral preparation track involves students in ongoing research projects.
The Department of Psychology offers a graduate certificate in transportation human factors under the auspices of the program in Human Factors and Applied Cognition. This certificate program is designed for students that are seeking to gain an in-depth understanding of the role of human factors in transportation. This program typically takes one year to complete and may be pursued on a part-time or full-time basis.
The Department of Psychology offers a graduate certificate in usability under the auspices of the program in Human Factors and Applied Cognition. Students enrolled in this program have the opportunity to gain both academic and applied experience in usability. A wide variety of skills including usability techniques, user testing, and task analyses are acquired through this program. This program typically takes one year to complete and may be pursued on a part-time or full-time basis.