Degree Options on Psychology

The Bachelor of Arts degree (B.A.) is designed to expose the student to the core areas in the science of psychology and to provide the maximum number of electives in the major. The B.A. degree will give the students a broad base from which to seek employment or, with appropriate selection of courses, a sound background for graduate study at the Masters or Doctoral level.

The Bachelor of Arts degree is typically selected by students who plan to pursue a Master's degree in counseling, who are obtaining certification to teach, or are planning to apply to law school.

The Bachelor of Science degree (B.S.) is designed to prepare the student for graduate school at the Doctoral level, particularly for Ph.D. programs in clinical psychology, experimental psychology, cognitive science, and neuroscience. The B.S. major requires more research experience and provides fewer electives than the B.A. major. The B.S. degree major also requires six mathematics and/or physical science courses.

The Bachelor of Science degree is typically selected by students who are planning to apply for Ph.D. programs, who double major in Psychology and Biology, and who plan to apply to medical school with a Psychology major.

Concentration in Human Development-Professor Jan Lynch, Coordinator
The Concentration in Human Development has two purposes:
(1) to provide focused coursework for students who plan to pursue a post-graduate degree in counseling psychology or school psychology
(2) to prepare students for entry-level positions in a variety of careers that involve designing and/or implementing programs for children, adolescents, and/or the elderly

Successful Completion of the following seven courses is required:
     PSYC 101 (Introduction to Psychology)*
     PSYC 200 (Research Methods) or SOCI 351 or
                   CJUS/POLI245
     PSYC 210 (Child Development)
     PSYC 211 (Adolescent Development)
     PSYC 212 (Adult Development and Aging)

Two courses chosen from:
     PSYC 300 (Tests and Measurements)
     PSYC 315 (Personality)
     PSYC 316 (Internship)
     PSYC 325 (Social Psychology)
     PSYC 340 (Cognition)

Core Requirements
of the
Psychology B. A. and B. S. Majors

PSYC 101 Introduction to Psychology

Introduction to Psychology is a survey course in which an overview of the science and profession of Psychology is presented. It is the first course taken in Psychology, usually in the freshman year, and serves as a pre-requisite to all other courses in the Psychology curriculum.

Students in PSYC 101 have the option of participating as research subjects for studies conducted by Psychology faculty and upper-level students; this experience gives the student a view of psychological research from the participant/subject’s perspective. PSYC 101 also fulfills one of the Social Science General Education requirements. Some students are granted Competency in PSYC 101 based on advanced placement tests (the criteria are given in the Roanoke College Catalog).

PSYC 200 Research Methods

The Research Methods course has a 1 and 1/2-hour laboratory in addition to the three hours of lecture. It should be taken in the sophomore year (or as soon as possible when one transfers from another college). This course focuses on correlational, experimental, and quasi-experimental research designs, the statistics used to analyze data in psychological research, and the ethical guidelines when conducting studies with human participants. Students learn to write a research proposal, design and conduct studies, analyze data, and write a research report in the format prescribed by the American Psychological Association (APA). Computers are used for data collection, statistical analysis, and word processing. PSYC 200 serves as a pre-requisite to Research Seminar.

PSYC 420, 430, 440 Research Seminar

In the junior and/or senior year, each student will select a Research Seminar based on his or her interests and previous courses. Research Seminar gives students the opportunity to apply the methods that were learned in PSYC 200 to a topic in Psychology which they have studied in depth in a 300-level course.

PSYC 420 is the Research Seminar in Social and Personality Psychology; its pre-requisites are PSYC 200 and either PSYC 315 Personality or PSYC 325 Social Psychology.

PSYC 330 is the Research Seminar in Physiological Psychology; its pre-requisites are PSYC 200 and PSYC 330 Physiological Psychology.

PSYC 440 is the Research Seminar in Cognition; its pre-requisites are PSYC 200 and PSYC 340 Cognition.

In each Research Seminar, students read research reports in scientific journals, discuss the research literature, and design one or more studies to conduct. Students work individually and in research teams to write research proposals, conduct studies, analyze data, write research reports, and present the research findings orally to the class. There is no scheduled laboratory for Research Seminar, so that much of the "hands-on" work is done outside of class time. B. A. Psychology majors take one Research Seminar, and B. S. Psychology majors take two.

PSYC 450 History of Psychology

History of Psychology is the senior capstone course for all Psychology students. In this course, students examine the significant historical developments which have led to the science and profession of Psychology today. The course focuses on the origins of scientific Psychology in philosophy and physiology, the important "schools" of Psychology in the 19th and 20th centuries, and the individuals who made significant contributions to the advancement of Psychology.

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Requirements:

Psychology Core Courses (all required)

PSYC 101 (Introduction to Psychology)*
PSYC 200 (Research Methods and Methods Laboratory)
PSYC 420, 430, or 440 (Research Seminar)
PSYC 450 (History of Psychology)

Group A (2 courses)

PSYC 210 (Child Development)
or PSYC 211 (Adolescent Development)
or PSYC 212 (Adult Development and Aging)
PSYC 230 (Abnormal Psychology)
PSYC 290 (Learning)

Group B (2 courses)

PSYC 315 (Personality)
or PSYC 325 (Social Psychology)
PSYC 330 (Physiological Psychology)
PSYC 340 (Cognition)

Electives (3 courses)

Electives may be chosen from all Psychology courses offered, with the following stipulations:

Only one Internship (PSYC 316-317) may be applied to the Major.
Only one Research Practicum (PSYC 318-319) may be applied to the major
Only one Special Topics course (PSYC 240) may be applied to the major
Only one Psychology Intensive Learning course (IL/PSYC) may be applied to the major

PSYC 495, 496, 497 (Honors Project in Psychology) does not count as one of the 11 required courses

*Competency in PSYC 101 does not count as a credit in the Major

Other Courses Recommended for B.A. Majors:

Science/Math (3 courses required)

BIOL 101 (Life on Planet Earth)
or BIOL 120 (Principles of Biology)
CPSC 101 (Introduction to Computers)
or CPSC 120 (Fundamentals of computer Science I)
STAT 101 (Introduction to Statistics)

Social Science (2* courses required)

SOCI 101 (Introduction to Sociology)
or SOCI 102 (Anthropology)

*PSYC 101 fulfills one of these requirements

General Elective (An additional laboratory science)

BIOL 120 (Principles of Biology)
or CHEM 101 (The Chemical Science)
FREN, GERM, or SPAN 201 & 202 if interested in possible election to Phu Beta Kappa

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Requirements:

Psychology Core Courses (all required)

PSYC 101 (Introduction to Psychology)*
PSYC 200 (Research Methods and Methods Laboratory)
PSYC 290 (Learning)
Two courses from PSYC 420, 430, and 440 (Research Seminars)
PSYC 450 (History of Psychology)
BIOL 120 (Principles of Biology)
STAT 101 (Introduction to Statistics)

Group C (3 courses)

PSYC 315 (Personality)
PSYC 325 (Social Psychology)
PSYC 330 (Physiological Psychology)
PSYC 340 (Cognition)

Electives (2 courses)

Electives may be chosen from all Psychology courses offered, with the following stipulations:

Only one Internship (PSYC 316-317) may be applied to the Major.
Only one Research Practicum (PSYC 318-319) may be applied to the major
Only one Special Topics course (PSYC 240) may be applied to the major
Only one Psychology Intensive Learning course (IL/PYSC) may be applied to the major

PSYC 495, 496, 497 (Honors Project in Psychology) does not count as one of the 11 required courses

* competency in PSYC 101 does not count as a credit in the Major

Group D (4 courses) Other Science Courses:

Courses may be chosen from the following list. Some courses have pre-requisites, and some have restrictions about credit granted in a lower-numbered course if a higher-numbered course has been taken. These pre-requisites and restrictions apply.

Many of these courses can be used for General Education requirements in Science/Math and many can count in a double major or a minor.

From Biology

BIOL 125 (Biodiversity)
BIOL 215 (Components of Life)
BIOL 230 (Human Anatomy & Physiology )
BIOL 260 (Human Anatomy & Physiology II)

From Chemistry

CHEM 111 (General Chemistry I)
CHEM 112 (General Chemistry II)
CHEM 201 (Organic Chemistry I)
CHEM 202 (Organic Chemistry II)
CHEM 308 (Biochemistry)

From Physics

PHYS 103 (Fundamental Physics I)
PHYS 104 (Fundamental Physics II)

From Mathematics

MATH 111 (Mathematical Models for Management Sciences)
MATH 112 (Concepts and Techniques of Calculus)
MATH 121 (Introductory Calculus I)
MATH 122 (Introductory Calculus II)

From Computer Science

CPSC 101 (Introduction to Computers)
CPSC 120 (Fundamentals of Computer Science I)
CPSC 170 (Fundamentals of Computer Science II)

From Statistics

STAT 202 (Probability)
STAT 301 (Statistical Methods)
STAT 403 (Experimental Design)