Psychology
273 Social Sciences 2 Building
(831) 459-2002
https://psychology.ucsc.edu/
Program Description
Psychology majors at UC Santa Cruz are introduced to theory and scientific research in the field. Students begin with lower-division courses that include introductory psychology, precalculus, statistics, and introduction to developmental psychology. Majors take a total of eight upper-division courses. These include Psychology 100, Research Methods in Psychology; six courses in the four areas of psychology—developmental, cognitive, social, and clinical-personality psychology; and one upper-division course outside the major from an approved list.
Cognitive psychology focuses on topics such as perception; brain and behavior; motor control; learning and memory; thinking, feeling, and emotions; psycholinguistics; computational modeling, and human-computer interaction. Our cognitive psychologists extend traditional boundaries in the study of cognition to encompass bodies, physical environments, sociocultural contexts, and information technologies. Social psychology involves the study of persons embedded within social contexts. Social psychology courses at UC Santa Cruz are organized around themes of social justice. Developmental psychology is concerned with processes of cognitive, language, social, emotional, and personality development across the life span. Additionally, both developmental and social psychology are concerned with issues of diversity including race, ethnicity, culture, gender, sexual identity, social class, and family structure. Clinical-personality psychology focuses on issues of individual traits, psychological distress, well-being, and adjustment.
In addition to the general psychology major, an intensive major (described below) is also available. The department also administers a major in cognitive science (see separate listing in this catalog under cognitive science). Students primarily interested in clinical and counseling psychology should realize that training in these areas does not occur at the undergraduate level but requires professional training through an advanced degree. UC Santa Cruz does not offer advanced degrees in clinical or counseling psychology.
Students are encouraged to carry out research projects. Interested psychology majors will find research opportunities in courses, as research assistants in faculty members’ research programs, or through faculty-sponsored independent study. This research may be carried out in specialized research laboratories or in the field. Students usually join an ongoing project in which a faculty member is engaged. Students who are especially interested in a career involving empirical research should become involved in a professor’s ongoing research by their junior year. Some recent research topics include “Learning in Infancy,” “Family Conversations About Science,” “Museums As Sites of Social Change,” “Interacting With Robots,” “Sex and Social Identity,” “Family Roles and Independence in First-Generation College Students,” “How Do You Find Things Online?,” and “Gender Bias and Adolescents Motivation in Math and Science.”
Program Learning Outcomes
Students who complete the Psychology major should demonstrate competency in:
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Application of knowledge with critical thinking skills. Students should be able to use critical thinking to evaluate and interpret evidence, and to apply psychological concepts, theories, and research findings to individual, social, and cultural issues.
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Application of research methods with values and integrity. Students should be able to apply basic research methods in psychology, with sensitivity to ethical principles.
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Communication skills. Students should be able to demonstrate effective communication skills following professional conventions in psychology appropriate to purpose and context.
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Awareness of sociocultural diversity and societal inequality. Students should be able to understand the complexity of sociocultural diversity and societal inequality in the inquiry and analysis of psychological issues.
Preparation for the Major
Students interested in pursuing the psychology major should complete Psychology 1, 2, and the precalculus mathematics requirement. Psychology 1 and 2 should be taken for a letter grade. After completing these three lower-division required courses, students may petition to declare the psychology major subject to the grade requirement described in the Qualification to the Major section below.
High school students considering psychology as their university major find that the best preparation is a solid general education in English writing, mathematics at least through precalculus, biological and physical sciences, and social sciences.
Qualification to the Major
Students may petition to declare the psychology major once they have demonstrated foundational skills by completing the following:
- Mathematics Requirement: Courses: AMS 3 or 6, or Mathematics 3 or 4 or 11A or 11B; or Tests: 300+ on ALEKS Mathematics Placement or a 3, 4, or 5 on the AP Calculus AB or AP Calculus BC examination.
- Psychology 1: Introduction to Psychology, with a grade of B- or better.
- Psychology 2: Introduction to Psychological Statistics (or AMS 5 or AMS 7/L), with a grade of B- or better.
Students who pass these courses but do not achieve the required level of proficiency in Psychology 1 or Psychology 2 (i.e., who receive a grade of C, C+, or P) have alternative means of demonstrating foundational skills:
- If the student did not receive a B- or higher in Psychology 1, they can complete course 10 with a grade of B- or higher.
- If the student did not receive a B- or higher in Psychology 2, they can complete Applied Mathematics and Statistics 5 or 7/L with a grade of B- or higher.
- If the student did not receive a grade of B- or higher in Applied Mathematics and Statistics 5 or 7/L, completing Psychology 2 with a grade of B- or higher.
Every student who satisfies qualification to the major and who petitions to declare the major by the campus declaration deadline will be admitted to the major. Students who satisfy the qualification to the major but who petition to declare the major after the deadline will be considered on a case-by-case basis for admission to the major; admission is not guaranteed. Students who did not satisfy the major admission requirements but believe that there are extenuating circumstances concerning their performance in the foundational courses may file a written appeal describing these circumstances; however, such appeals are rarely granted.
Academic Advising
Students are encouraged to approach faculty in their area of interest for further advising no later than the first quarter of their junior year to discuss an upper-division program of study and to plan for graduate training in psychology. As a supplement to academic advising offered by faculty members, the Psychology Department has an advising office located at 273 Social Sciences 2 Building, (831) 459-2002. The advisers assist students in obtaining information regarding major requirements and petitions, course planning, substitution of transfer courses for advance enrollment, careers, and graduate schools. Students are encouraged to take advantage of the advising office throughout their college career.
Transfer Students
Junior transfer students should express an interest in psychology on their UC Santa Cruz application for admission.
It is expected that prospective transfer students will have completed most, if not all, of the lower-division requirements. The lower-division requirements include Psychology 1, 2, and AMS 3 (or equivalent); it is recommended that Psychology 10 is completed prior to transfer, but this is not required. The psychology faculty recommends that all lower-division requirements be completed by the end of the sophomore year. In order to declare the major, transfer students must meet the grade requirement described in the "Qualification to the Major" section above.
Students who want to fulfill requirements with courses taken at other colleges must petition for the substitution of their transfer courses at an orientation session or at an appointment with the department adviser. Psychology 100, Research Methods in Psychology, must be taken at UC Santa Cruz. Students planning to transfer to UC Santa Cruz should check with the advising office of their present college, or refer to www.assist.org.
Transfer students are strongly encouraged to speak with an academic adviser at the Psychology Department office prior to enrolling in classes in order to determine their status and begin the actual declaration of major process.
General Psychology Major
Twelve courses are required for the general major: four lower-division courses in preparation for the major and eight upper-division courses. The lower-division courses are prerequisites for virtually all of the upper-division courses and should be completed as early as possible, or by the end of the sophomore year. Some upper-division courses have additional prerequisites.
Lower-Division Requirements
Psychology
- Psychology 1, Introduction to Psychology (or equivalent)
- Psychology 2, Introduction to Psychological Statistics (or equivalent, including Applied Mathematics and Statistics 5 or 7/L)
- Psychology 10, Introduction to Developmental Psychology
- Applied Mathematics and Statistics 3, or Mathematics 3 or 11A (or equivalent)
Upper-Division Requirements
Students must complete at least eight upper-division courses (a minimum of 42 credits), including appropriate substitutions noted below. Students can access a full list of courses on the department’s website.
- Psychology 100, Research Methods in Psychology
- Two courses each in two of the following subfields, and one course each in the two remaining subfields:
- Developmental (courses numbered 101-119)
- Cognitive (courses numbered 120-139)
- Social (courses numbered 140-159)
- Clinical-Personality (courses numbered 160-179)
(Upper-division courses and their catalog descriptions are grouped within each of the subfields.)
One of the upper-division courses must be an upper-division seminar; these courses are identified within the General Catalog by the phrase “satisfies seminar requirement.”
No more than two psychology courses numbered 183, 191A, 193, 194, and 195 may be used toward the upper-division requirements; however, a student must take at least one 101-179 course in each subfield.
One five-credit UCSC course outside of psychology chosen from a list of courses approved by the department. These lists of approved non-psychology courses are posted on the Psychology Department web site.
At least six of the eight courses (including Psychology 100, Research Methods in Psychology), must be taken through the psychology program at UC Santa Cruz, not transferred from elsewhere.
After all substitutions have been made, students must satisfy the fundamental requirement that they take at least one upper-division UC Santa Cruz psychology course from each of the four subfields.
Disciplinary Communication (DC) Requirement
Students of every major must satisfy that major's upper-division Disciplinary Communication (DC) requirement. The DC requirement in psychology is satisfied by completing Psychology 100, Research Methods in Psychology, and a seminar. Seminar courses are designated in the campus catalog with the text “satisfies seminar requirement.”
Program Planning Notes
Because some upper-division courses have additional prerequisites, students should read the descriptions of the upper-division courses carefully, noting the prerequisites for courses of interest to them.
Psychology Major Planners
Following are two recommended academic plans. Plan One is a suggested guideline for students who are committed to the major early in their academic career. Plan Two is for students who are considering the major or who need more preparation. Students should note that Applied Mathematics and Statistics 3 is a requirement for the major and is a prerequisite for Psychology 2 and Psychology 100.
Plan One
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Fall |
Winter |
Spring |
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1st |
AMS 3 |
PSYC 2 |
PSYC 10 |
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PSYC 1 |
|
|
|
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2nd |
PSYC 20 |
|
PSYC 100 |
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3rd |
UD Cog |
UD Dev |
UD Soc |
|
4th |
UD Clinical/Pers |
UD PSYC elective (Seminar) |
UD PSYC |
Plan Two
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Fall |
Winter |
Spring |
|
| 1st (frosh) |
MATH 2 |
|
PSYC 1 |
| 2nd (soph) |
AMS 3 |
PSYC 2 |
PSYC 10 |
| 3rd (junior) |
PSYC 100 |
UD Cog |
UD Dev |
| 4th (senior) |
UD Soc |
Out of Dept Course | UD PSYC Elec |
|
UD PSYC Elec |
UD Clinical/Pers |
Transfer Planner
|
|
Fall |
Winter |
Spring |
|
3rd |
PSYC 100 |
UD Cog |
UD Dev |
|
PSYC 10 |
|
|
|
|
4th |
UD Soc |
Out of Dept Course |
UD PSYC elective |
|
UD PSYC elective |
UD Clinical/Pers |
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The Intensive Psychology Major
The intensive major is an option that any psychology major may choose to undertake. The intensive major would be advantageous for a student intending to go on to a graduate program in any area of psychology. Students intending to take the intensive major should declare this on their proposed study plan during the junior year, outlining their plan for completing the requirements. The intensive major requires 18 courses. Note: the intensive major designation appears on the transcript but it does not formally appear on students’ diplomas.
Requirements for the Intensive Major
Lower-Division Requirements
- Psychology 1, Introduction to Psychology (or equivalent)
- Psychology 2, Introduction to Psychological Statistics (or equivalent, including Applied Mathematics and Statistics 5 or 7/L)
- Psychology 10, Introduction to Developmental Psychology
- Applied Mathematics and Statistics 3, or Mathematics 3 or 11/A (or equivalent)
Upper-Division Requirements
Fourteen upper-division courses are required for the intensive major:
- Psychology 100
- Two courses from each of the following four subfields
- Developmental (courses numbered 102–119)
- Cognitive (courses numbered 120–139)
- Social (courses numbered 140–159)
- Clinical-Personality (courses numbered 160–179)
(Upper-division courses and their catalog descriptions are grouped within each of the subfields.)
No more than two psychology courses numbered 183, 191A or 193, may be used toward the upper-division requirements; however, a student must take at least one 101-179 course in each subfield.
- Psychology 181, Psychological Data Analysis, Psychology 182, Advanced Research Methods, or an equivalent course approved by the department
- Two quarters of Psychology 194, Advanced Research or 195, Senior Thesis
- Two upper-division courses from one or more related areas outside of psychology from lists of courses pre-approved by the Psychology Department and posted on the department’s website. (These courses may not include psychology courses cross-listed with other programs or taught by psychology faculty.) These courses also cannot be counted twice in cases of double majors or minors.
Cognitive Science Major
The Psychology Department is the administrative home for the cognitive science major. Requirements for the cognitive science major may be reviewed under its separate entry in this catalog.
Comprehensive Requirement
UCSC requires that every student satisfy a senior exit/comprehensive requirement prior to graduation. Psychology students will satisfy this requirement by receiving a passing grade in one of our seminars. Passing a seminar course is also required for the major. Courses that meet this requirement are designated as seminars in the campus catalog as “satisfies seminar requirement.”
Senior Thesis
Students with adequate substantive and methodological preparation and a consistent record of strong academic performance may be eligible to apply to write a senior thesis. Students should initiate plans for a thesis no later than the first quarter of their senior year. Most faculty prefer to sponsor senior theses that are integrated with faculty research, so students are encouraged to talk with faculty before choosing a senior thesis topic. Information and applications are available in the department office, 273 Social Sciences 2.
Honors
Honors in the psychology major are awarded to graduating seniors whose UCSC grade point average is a 3.6 or higher in psychology courses (1-189).
Highest honors in the major are reserved for students who meet the honors criteria as well as successful completion of a senior thesis, or whose UCSC grade point average is a 3.9 or higher in psychology courses (1-189).
Psychology Field-Study Program
The Psychology Field-Study Program provides qualified students an opportunity to apply classroom learning to direct experience in a community agency. Each year about 200 students develop new skills and clarify personal and professional goals by working as interns in schools, corporations, law enforcement agencies, research organizations, mental health services, and other social service agencies where they are supervised by professionals. Psychology faculty members sponsor the students’ field study helping them to integrate their field experience with coursework and guiding them in related academic projects.
The two-quarter program is open to junior and senior psychology majors who must apply at least one quarter in advance. There are information meetings and individual meetings to help students develop a learning plan, select a placement, and choose an academic project. Application information is included in the information meetings.
Graduate Program
The psychology program offers three areas of specialization leading to the doctoral degree: cognitive, developmental, and social psychology. The program prepares students for research, teaching, and administrative positions in colleges and universities as well as for positions in schools, government, and other public and private institutions. Each student is primarily associated with one of the three research areas and participates in the courses and research forums sponsored by the faculty in that area. The program requires full-time enrollment as a graduate student. Although applicants for a master’s degree are not accepted, students in the doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) program may obtain a Master of Science (M.S.) degree by fulfilling specific requirements. Note that the program does not offer courses, training, or supervision in clinical psychology.
The cognitive psychology graduate program focuses on research of "Minds, Brains, and Beyond," offering a blend of traditional topics and new directions in cognitive science. With core strengths in language, memory, perception, and human-computer interaction, we are exploring topics such as: faces, speech, body movements, and embodied cognition; mechanisms of remembering and forgetting; metaphors and analogies; cognitive aesthetics and creativity; natural language use in conversation; cognition and technology; human-robot interaction; human performance and information processing. Our graduates find careers in academia, tech industries, and more.
The developmental psychology graduate program focuses on research that integrates cultural, interpersonal, and individual aspects of human development. The program focuses especially on issues of diversity in relation to culture, ethnicity, race, gender, sexuality, and social economic opportunity, as people engage across contexts of family, peers, school, community, technology, and media. Among the topics studied are: moral and emotional development; neurodiversity; language and cognitive development; learning through observation and social interaction; children and playable media; personal and social identities; family and peer relationships; communication technologies; prejudice and discrimination; gender development; adolescent development; the transition to adulthood; school climate and motivation; and diversity issues in university outreach programs. Our interdisciplinary collaborations with other programs (such as Computer Engineering, Computational Media, Education, Latin American/Latino Studies, Linguistics, and Philosophy) help nurture students’ research and prepare them for a wide variety of careers. Graduates of our program have accepted positions in academia, research institutions, and community organizations.
The social psychology graduate program at UCSC has a unique mission and focus. We use Kurt Lewin’s model of “full-cycle” social psychology (theory-application-action) to study a broad range of topics related to social justice. In this way, knowledge gained in action-oriented research leads, in turn, to the development of new theory. Accordingly, our students learn to apply psychological theories and data to the analysis and solution of a wide range of social problems. We use a variety of research methods to examine justice-related issues in different cultural, political, and policy contexts. Our students are trained in laboratory, field, and survey methods; they are encouraged to attend to issues of race, class, sexuality, ethnicity, gender, and physical ableness; and, in addition to traditional social psychological approaches, are steeped in critical theoretical perspectives such as feminist theory. Our graduates go on to successful careers in academia as well as in community, government, and non-profit settings. Our approach to research and training, combined with the quality and competencies of our faculty, make our program among the nation’s best for the psychological study of social justice issues. Current faculty research interests include aggression and trauma; culture and the self; educational access; achievement and disparities; feminisms; health and health disparities; institutional analysis; intersectionality; narrative and identity; political conflict, violence, and peace-building; political psychology; poverty and economic justice; power and oppression; psychology and law; sexual identity and society; sexuality; social identity; social policy analysis; and structural inequality.
Graduate students in psychology may obtain a designated emphasis on the psychology Ph.D. diploma indicating that they have obtained additional training in another discipline such as feminist studies, Latin American and Latino studies, or sociology. For the full list of programs that offer a designated emphasis, see the Fields of Study section of the catalog. For specific requirements for a designated emphasis in a program, please refer to the program statement for that department.
Details on the policies for admission to graduate standing and requirements for the Ph.D. degree, as well as the online application can be found on the Division of Graduate Studies web site. The department’s graduate program brochure, and faculty research are available on the department web site.
Students enrolled in the psychology graduate program will complete a first-year and second-year research project. All students must enroll and participate in the colloquium series each quarter (Psychology 230 for cognitive, Psychology 242 for developmental, and Psychology 231 for social). First-year students must take two courses in statistics (Psychology 204 and Psychology 214A) and a two-quarter proseminar sequence during fall and winter quarters. (Psychology 224A and 224B for cognitive, Psychology 244A and 244B for developmental, and Psychology 211A and 211B for social.) Students are also required to serve as a teaching assistant for at least two courses during their graduate career (one of which must be Psychology 10 for developmental and Psychology 40 for social).
Additional requirements for the cognitive area include: three advanced cognitive graduate courses, a graduate course in developmental psychology, a graduate course in social psychology, and a substantive advanced course in a discipline other than psychology.
Additional requirements for the developmental area include: Psychology 225A-B-C series, Psychology 246, one other advanced developmental graduate seminar course, a graduate course in cognitive psychology, a graduate course in social psychology, and a substantive advanced course in a discipline other than psychology. Developmental graduate students are also required to complete a professional practicum between the end of their second year and end of their third year.
Additional requirements for the social area include: Psychology 210 and Psychology 248; either Psychology 249 or Psychology 255 or Psychology 261; one other advanced social graduate seminar; a graduate course in cognitive psychology; a graduate course in developmental psychology; and a substantive advanced course in a discipline other than psychology.
Students are required to take their graduate courses as satisfactory/unsatisfactory.
After satisfying the formal course and research requirements, psychology graduate students must take an oral examination to qualify as a candidate for the Ph.D., ideally by the end of their third year. The qualifying examination is intended to assess a student’s knowledge of psychology and competence to conduct the dissertation research. For the qualifying examination, students write a major paper that reflects a conceptual analysis of their main research area, prepare a list of readings representative of their expertise in three areas of psychology, and satisfactorily complete an oral qualifying examination.
Within a year of advancing to candidacy, students will prepare a written dissertation proposal that should demonstrate the student’s in-depth knowledge of some research topic, along with a detailed outline of the empirical research to be conducted for the dissertation. The student’s dissertation committee reviews the proposal, and the student will orally defend the proposal for approval by the committee. After the final draft of the dissertation has been completed and submitted to the faculty committee members, students must defend their thesis in an oral exam.
The Ph.D. degree is awarded upon successful completion and submission of the dissertation.
Revised: 07/15/18
