Psychological Sciences (PhD)
The Department of Psychological Sciences offers a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). Typically, a Master of Science (MS) is required enroute to the Ph.D. For details please see the degree requirements for Psychological Sciences (MS).
The Department has multiple areas of concentration within the Ph.D. Program:
- Developmental Psychology
- Ecological Psychology
- Industrial and Organizational Psychology
- Language and Cognition
- Neurosciences
- Social Psychology
The Department also offers a a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, which is open only to MS students enrolled in the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program. For information about the Clinical Ph.D. program, please refer to the Clinical Psychology MS and PhD catalog copy.
Location
- Storrs Campus
Modality
- In Person
General Requirements for Ph.D. Plan of Study
The Department requires 15 credits of Doctoral Dissertation Research (GRAD 6950 Doctoral Dissertation Research or GRAD 6960 Full-Time Doctoral Research); plus 15 credits of Ph.D. content coursework, which must include nine credits of breadth courses and course requirements that vary with the student’s chosen area of concentration and division (see details below). In addition to those requirements, all Ph.D. students must complete two statistical courses: PSYC 5104 Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences I and PSYC 5105 Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences II. The Ph.D. in Psychological Sciences does not have a related area or foreign language requirement.
Ph.D. Plan of Study Psychological Sciences Department Requirements
Predissertation Research: at least one completed research project. This requirement can be met by a Master’s thesis or by a minimum of six credits of PSYC 5800 Research in Psychology when appropriate.
Department Breadth Requirements
In order to expand the student’s knowledge beyond their specific area of study, a minimum of nine credits (typically three courses) of graduate work outside the student’s area of concentration is required. Usually any graduate class outside the student’s area of concentration or the department will count as breadth, assuming it meets the following guidelines: PSYC 5104 Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences I and PSYC 5105 Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences II may not be used to fulfill the breadth requirement; no more than two quantitative courses, defined as courses that count for the Graduate Certificate Program in Quantitative Research Methods, may be used for breadth. No more than one breadth course may be taken with any one instructor, aside from the following classes: a course in grant writing; PSYC 5140 Foundations in Neuropsychology, PSYC 5285 Neurobiology of Aging: Changes in Cognitive Processes; COGS 5001 Cogntive Science Proseminar; three credit hours of PSYC 5801 Independent Study in Psychology, taken with a faculty member outside the student’s area of concentration.
Students entering the program with a master’s from a different (Psychology or non- Psychology) department or different area of concentration within the Psychological Sciences department may have up to six breadth credits waived with the approval of their advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies or the Department Head.
Quantitative Methods Requirements
All graduate students are required to take (or be exempted from) PSYC 5104 Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences I and PSYC 5105 Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences II. Each student must earn a grade of at least "B-" in both courses to meet Department requirements for the Ph.D., however, to remain in good standing students must maintain an overall GPA of "B" or higher.
Note that the six required credits of Quantitative Methods should be listed on the Ph.D. Plan of Study in the "Related Area" section and do not count towards the breadth requirement or minimum number of required Ph.D. credits and should not be listed in the Ph.D. Plan of Study "Coursework" section on page 2. Students who have taken statistics coursework prior to their enrollment in the Ph.D. program, may be eligible for a waiver of one or both of the Quantitative Methods courses.
General Examination
Students must pass a General Examination. Details vary across each area of concentration.
Dissertation Proposal
Before dissertation research is undertaken, a research proposal must be approved.
Dissertation and Final Ph.D. Oral Defense
Students must pass an oral defense and submit an approved thesis.
Degree Milestones
In addition to these general requirements, students within each area of concentration must satisfy concentration specific requirements that typically include:
- Master's Thesis and Defense (not required for Ecological Psychology Concentration): For details please see the degree requirements for Psychological Sciences (MS).
- Ph.D. Qualifying Examination
- Ph.D. Prospectus
- Ph.D. Dissertation Document and Defense
Developmental Psychology Concentration Required Courses
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Five of these seven courses by degrees end. 1 | ||
| PSYC 5420 | Cognitive Development | 3 |
| PSYC 5425 | Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience | 3 |
| PSYC 5440 | Development of Language and Related Processes | 3 |
| PSYC 5450 | Infancy and the Effects of Early Experience | 3 |
| PSYC 5460 | Social and Personality Development | 3 |
| PSYC 5470 | Current Topics in Developmental Psychology | 3 |
- 1
A “developmental related course” from another division/department can substitute for one of these courses (other than PSYC 5470 Current Topics in Developmental Psychology), as per list of pre-approved courses or by permission of Developmental Psychology faculty.
Pre-Master’s Required Courses
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| GRAD 5950 | Master's Thesis Research | 1-9 |
| GRAD 5960 | Full-Time Master's Research | 3 |
| PSYC 5104 | Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences I | 3 |
| PSYC 5105 | Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences II | 3 |
| PSYC 5400 | Research Seminar in Developmental Psychology 1 | 1 |
| PSYC 5499 | Research Team in Developmental Psychology 1 | 1 |
| Select one of the following: | 1-6 | |
| Research in Psychology 1 | ||
| Independent Study in Psychology 1 | ||
- 1
To be taken each semester.
Post-Master’s Required Courses
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| GRAD 6950 | Doctoral Dissertation Research | 1-9 |
| GRAD 6960 | Full-Time Doctoral Research | 3 |
| PSYC 5400 | Research Seminar in Developmental Psychology 1 | 1 |
| PSYC 5499 | Research Team in Developmental Psychology 1 | 1 |
| Select one of the following: | 1-6 | |
| Research in Psychology 1 | ||
| Independent Study in Psychology 1 | ||
- 1
To be taken each semester.
Industrial and Organizational Psychology Concentration M.A. Required Courses
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| GRAD 5950 | Master's Thesis Research | 9 |
| PSYC 5104 | Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences I | 3 |
| PSYC 5105 | Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences II | 3 |
| PSYC 5123 | Occupational Health Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC 5600 | Research and Practice of Industrial/Organizational Psychology | 1 |
| PSYC 5614 | Personnel Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC 5615 | Human Factors | 3 |
| PSYC 5699 | Research Team in Industrial/Organizational Psychology | 1-3 |
| PSYC 5701 | Experimental Social Psychology | 3 |
| MENT 6203 | Contemporary Research in Organizational Behavior | 3 |
Doctor of Philosophy Required Courses
Four courses in Industrial and Organizational Specialization Seminars by degree’s end; nine credits in Departmental Breadth Seminars; 15 credits of GRAD 6950 Doctoral Dissertation Research; GRAD 6930 Full-Time Directed Studies (Doctoral Level); PSYC 5600 Research and Practice of Industrial/Organizational Psychology, PSYC 5699 Research Team in Industrial/Organizational Psychology; and Field Research Experience or equivalent.
Doctor of Philosophy Degree Milestones
Master’s Defense; General Examination; Dissertation Proposal; and Dissertation Defense.
Ecological Psychology Concentration Required Courses
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| PSYC 5104 | Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences I | 3 |
| PSYC 5553 | Introduction to Nonlinear Dynamics | 3 |
| PSYC 5554 | Advanced Nonlinear Dynamics for the Behavioral Sciences | 3 |
| PSYC 5571 | Sensation and Perception I | 3 |
| PSYC 5574 | Control and Coordination of Action | 3 |
| STAT 5665 | Applied Multivariate Analysis | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | ||
| Current Topics in Cognitive Science 1 | ||
| Applied Time Series | ||
- 1
When taught as Current Topics in Cognitive Science: Developmental Systems, or Introduction to Complex Systems, or Longitudinal Data Analysis.
Language and Cognition Concentration Required Courses
PSYC 5567 Cognition, PSYC 5568 Psychology of Language; four courses taught by the Language and Cognition faculty; three breadth courses taught outside the Language and Cognition division; a two course sequence in statistics, including PSYC 5104 Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences I or PSYC 5105 Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences II.
Neuroscience Concentration Required Courses
PSYC 5104 Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences I, PSYC 5105 Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences II; four semesters of Behavioral Neuroscience (BNS) seminars; two graduate-level BNS courses from two different areas of expertise, taught by different BNS psychology professors; at least six credits of graduate research. For the Ph.D., students must obtain at least 24 total credits in addition to any credits going towards the master’s degree.
Neuroscience Concentration, Master’s Only Option Required Courses
At least 30 total credits, including no more than six at the undergraduate level; PSYC 5104 Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences I; two to four semesters of Behavioral Neuroscience (BNS) Seminar; for terminal Master’s students, two semesters are required, but it is recommended that the student enroll each semester in the program up to the fourth semester. For Ph.D. students who are initially obtaining a master’s, four semesters are required; two BNS courses with at least one graduate content course from each of two different areas of expertise taught by different BNS psychology professors; and at least six credits of graduate research.
“Plan A” Additional Requirements
A master’s thesis, with an oral defense and a committee of three faculty members. At least three to four semesters in the program are recommended.
“Plan B” Additional Requirements
A written master’s examination is required, consisting of either three questions from different faculty members (at least two in Behavioral Neuroscience), which each serve as the basis for a 10-15 page paper to be completed in 7-10 days.; or a research report or literature review, which is reviewed by the master’s committee.
Social Psychology Concentration Requirements
Students must take at least one seminar from three different social psychology faculty members across their tenure in the program.
Pre-Master’s Required Courses
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| PSYC 5104 | Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences I | 3 |
| PSYC 5105 | Foundations of Research in the Psychological Sciences II | 3 |
| PSYC 5700 | Proseminar in Social Psychology | 1 |
| PSYC 5701 | Experimental Social Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC 5703 | Advanced Social Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC 5799 | Research Team in Social Psychology | 1-3 |
| Select at least one each semester of the following: | 1-9 | |
| Research in Psychology | ||
| Master's Thesis Research | ||
| Full-Time Master's Research | ||
Post-Master’s Required Courses
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| PSYC 5770 | Current Topics in Social Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC 5799 | Research Team in Social Psychology | 1-3 |
| Select at least one each semester of the following: | ||
| Doctoral Dissertation Research (Select one each semester of the following:) | ||
| Full-Time Doctoral Research | ||
| Research in Psychology | ||
Post-Master’s Social Breadth Requirement
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Students select three courses from: | 9 | |
| Health Psychology | ||
| Current Topics in Psychology | ||
| Current Topics in Social Psychology | ||
| Attitude Organization and Change | ||
| Social Cognition | ||
| The Social Psychology of Stigma | ||
| Intergroup Relations | ||
Learning Objectives
- Knowledge: Demonstrate appropriate breadth and depth of disciplinary knowledge and comprehension of the major topics, theories, and issues of the discipline, including demonstration of specialized knowledge of a sub-field sufficient to carry out substantive independent research or creative pursuits
- Research/applied skills: Use disciplinary methods and techniques to apply knowledge, critically analyze, and, as appropriate to the degree, create new knowledge or achieve advanced creative accomplishments, and mentoring other students.
- Communication: Communicate proficiently and effectively to a specialist and non- specialist audience, verbally and in writing, a structured, coherent academic presentation, representation, or argument that cogently summarizes their research or creative pursuit, relevant literature, and its significance at the level appropriate to discipline
- Ethics/Professional behavior: Conduct themselves in accordance with the highest ethical and responsible standards, values, and, where these are defined, the best practices of the discipline