The mission of the Master of Psychology: Research Concentration is to prepare students for careers in research and teaching. Using a mentoring model in which each student works closely with a faculty sponsor, we allow the student to gain experience relevant to pursuing a career in psychology. This mission is accomplished by addressing three specific goals. First, we prepare students with research skills that enable them to assist in the design and analysis of behavioral data. Second, we allow students to work in a collaborative fashion with experienced research scientists to gain first-hand knowledge of the demands of research. This task is often accomplished through service learning activities connecting the student with projects in the community. Third, we teach our students to teach others, and provide them with opportunities to gain supervised experience conducting classes in the Department of Psychology, including laboratory supervision through teaching a self-contained undergraduate course.
The Research concentration is designed for students who wish to pursue graduate study of topics other than I-O or clinical psychology. The objective of the research program is to provide students with in-depth knowledge and research experiences that will prepare them for doctoral work or applied research positions.
Specialty areas related to the interests and backgrounds of primary supervising faculty are offered. A list of current faculty and their research interests is available from the research program coordinator. Because of the tutorial nature of the program, students whose interests and abilities closely approximate the areas of interest of the primary supervising faculty will be most able to profit from the program. Students should contact the coordinator of the research concentration for discussion of the specialty areas which are offered and review the departmental web site and faculty publications. This is an important process because the research concentration is based on a “mentoring model” whereby each student works closely with an individual faculty member throughout his/her course of study within the department. This person is the student’s faculty sponsor; this sponsor often becomes the student’s academic advisor and may chair the student’s thesis committee. Sponsorships will be determined through reviews of the applications of students who are academically qualified by virtue of their undergraduate work and GRE scores and whose research interests match current faculty interests and availability. Applications should include a personal statement that clearly identifies research interests and potential faculty sponsors.
Students in the program will acquire the variety of statistical and methodological skills required for conducting research in psychology. Opportunities for intensive individual study in the chosen specialty area will be provided. Students will be given research experience under the supervision of a faculty adviser. This research experience will culminate in the preparation of a thesis.
A full-time student can complete the degree in four semesters. Some of the courses are offered in the evening.
The following courses are prerequisite for this degree program:
General Psychology
Introductory Statistics
Research Methods in Psychology
The typical program of courses for the research concentration is listed below. This is a tentative program, which may be modified to suit the needs of the individual student. It is expected that each student will develop a complete program after consultation with a faculty adviser and the coordinator of the program. All elective course choices must be approved by the coordinator and the faculty adviser. All students must complete PSY 5100 and PSY 5140 . Three seminar courses are required; these seminars are labeled Psychology 5950 and 5960. Students must take 6 hours of one and 3 hours of the other. In addition, all students must take at least 6 hours of PSY 5999r (thesis) and successfully complete and defend a thesis.
