Psychology Courses

PSYC 5100. Proseminar in Psycholinguistics. (3 Hours)

Serves as first-level graduate course in psycholinguistics, focusing on theoretical, experimental, and methodological issues. Includes faculty lectures, student presentations, and discussions. Requires permission of instructor for students who are not enrolled in the PhD program in psychology. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 5110. Cognitive Science. (3 Hours)

Serves as a first-level graduate course in cognitive sciences, focusing on theoretical, experimental, and methodological issues. Presents the foundation of terminology, theoretical questions, and research skills in brain and cognition to support future study. Introduces strategies for reading, evaluating, and discussing papers dealing with the brain and cognition. Provides a working vocabulary of cognitive neuroscience approaches and neuroanatomy, along with tools for honing knowledge to match specific research interests. Requires permission of instructor for students who are not enrolled in the PhD program in psychology.


PSYC 5115. Colloquium. (3 Hours)

Aims to prepare students to be active and informed participants in presented talks from invited speakers from across a wide breadth of psychology and behavioral neuroscience fields. Requires participation in weekly departmental seminars. Faculty members who host weekly visiting seminar speakers lead students in discussions about each upcoming speaker to foster critical thinking about each research topic and to prepare questions and ideas for the invited speaker. Covers topics related to giving a successful scientific talk and communicating science in general. No writing component. May be repeated once.


PSYC 5120. Proseminar in Sensation. (3 Hours)

Serves as first-level graduate course in sensation, focusing on theoretical, experimental, and methodological issues. Includes faculty lectures, student presentations, and discussion. Requires permission of instructor for students who are not enrolled in the PhD program in psychology. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 5130. Proseminar in Perception. (3 Hours)

Serves as first-level graduate course in perception, focusing on theoretical, experimental, and methodological issues. Includes faculty lectures, student presentations, and discussion. Requires permission of instructor for students who are not enrolled in the PhD program in psychology. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 5140. Proseminar in Biology of Behavior. (3 Hours)

Serves as first-level graduate course in the biological basis of behavior, focusing on theoretical, experimental, and methodological issues. Includes faculty lectures, student presentations, and discussion. Requires permission of instructor for students who are not enrolled in the PhD program in psychology. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 5150. Proseminar in Clinical Neuroscience. (3 Hours)

Serves as first-level graduate course in clinical neuroscience, focusing on theoretical, experimental, and methodological issues. Includes faculty lectures, student presentations, and discussion. Requires permission of instructor for students who are not enrolled in the PhD program in psychology. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 5170. Social and Affective Science. (3 Hours)

Serves as a first-level graduate course in social and affective sciences. Focuses on theoretical, experimental, and methodological issues. Includes faculty lectures, student presentations, and discussion. Requires permission of instructor for students who are not enrolled in the PhD program in psychology.


PSYC 5180. Quantitative Methods 1. (3 Hours)

Presents first course in a two-course sequence that surveys a variety of quantitative methods used in experimental psychology. Requires permission of instructor for students who are not enrolled in the PhD program in psychology.


PSYC 5181. Quantitative Methods 2. (3 Hours)

Continues PSYC 5180. Presents second course in a two-course sequence that surveys a variety of quantitative methods used in experimental psychology. Requires permission of instructor for students who are not enrolled in the PhD program in psychology.

Prerequisite(s): PSYC 5180 with a minimum grade of C- or PSYC 5180 with a minimum grade of D-


PSYC 5301. Research Methods in Psychological Sciences. (3 Hours)

Offers students an opportunity to obtain an in-depth understanding of one of various clinical and preclinical methods in neuroscience, psychophysiology, and psychology, with the focus alternating with the expertise of each instructor. Pairs hands-on learning with group discussions and presentations. Studies EEG, fMRI, computational modeling, neurobiological assays, animal behavioral assays, and psychophysics. May be repeated once.


PSYC 5410. Human Behavior and Sustainability. (3 Hours)

Offers a graduate-level introduction to the interdisciplinary field of human behavior and sustainability sciences. Explores an emerging literature embracing the complexity of social-ecological systems to better engage with the processes that reinforce unsustainable pathways and those that might be leveraged toward more sustainable futures. Focuses on understanding how observations about the psychology of individuals and collectives, and their relationship to institutions, have been theorized in relation to the environment and the approaches and methodologies used to test and describe such relationships.


PSYC 6962. Elective. (1-4 Hours)

Offers elective credit for courses taken at other academic institutions. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 7210. Seminar in Cognition. (3 Hours)

Offers a graduate-level seminar in cognition, diving into the work of scientists actively engaged in the study of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Readings guide presentations, discussions, and debates. Surveys and debates historical foundations of cognition and cognitive processes. Covers topics about foundational and cutting-edge techniques applied in cognitive research.


PSYC 7250. Seminar in Clinical Neuroscience. (3 Hours)

Addresses current theoretical and empirical issues in clinical neuroscience. Specific topics vary by semester. May be repeated thrice.


PSYC 7300. Advanced Quantitative Analysis. (3 Hours)

Covers selected advanced methods of quantitative analysis used in experimental psychology. Specific topics vary by semester. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 7301. Research Methodologies Psychology. (3 Hours)

Introduces students to a range of conceptual and methodological issues in the conduct of experimental psychology research by department faculty members. Specific course content depends on which faculty members conduct the course in a given semester. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 7302. Ethics and Professional Issues. (3 Hours)

Identifies and investigates ethical issues (such as privacy, fairness, social responsibility, or animal use) that research psychologists face in acquiring and using scientific knowledge. Also addresses broader professional issues relevant to pursuing a career as a research psychologist in an academic, government, or industrial setting.


PSYC 7986. Research. (0 Hours)

Offers students an opportunity to conduct full-time research under faculty supervision.


PSYC 7990. Thesis. (3 Hours)

Conducts theoretical and experimental research for the master’s degree. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 7996. Thesis Continuation - Half-Time. (0 Hours)

Continues research for the master’s degree.


PSYC 8401. Research Project. (3 Hours)

Conducts research project in selected area of experimental psychology. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 8402. Special Topics in Psychology. (3 Hours)

Offers in-depth analysis of critical topics in psychology. Specific topics vary by semester. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 9000. PhD Candidacy Achieved. (0 Hours)

Indicates successful completion of the doctoral comprehensive exam.


PSYC 9986. Research. (0 Hours)

Offers the student the opportunity to conduct doctoral research. May be repeated without limit.


PSYC 9990. Dissertation Term 1. (0 Hours)

Conducts theoretical and experimental research for the PhD degree.

Prerequisite(s): PSYC 9000 with a minimum grade of S


PSYC 9991. Dissertation Term 2. (0 Hours)

Offers dissertation supervision by members of the department.

Prerequisite(s): PSYC 9990 with a minimum grade of S


PSYC 9996. Dissertation Continuation. (0 Hours)

Continues research for the PhD degree.

Prerequisite(s): PSYC 9991 with a minimum grade of S or Dissertation Check with a score of REQ