Psychology Major
The Psychology major is designed to provide the student a broadly based program in behavioral science. The psychology major may be pursued as a component of a general liberal arts background, as preparation for a variety of service oriented occupations, or as a basis for graduate study in psychology and related fields. Starting in 2019-20, Psychology is offered as Bachelor of Science (BS) or Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) degree. The Psychology Major is the same in both the BS and BAS degrees.
- Psychology Major Core Courses
- Procedures for Applying for a Psychology Major for students catalog years 2010-2015
- Requirement for students starting catalog year 2016+
- Psychology Alumni Satisfaction & Career Paths
B.S./B.A.S. DEGREE IN PSYCHOLOGY
For a BS in Psychology a total of 180 credits are needed, comprised of 56 credits in psychology, 55 credits of general education requirements, 27 credits for an optional minor, and 42 credits of general electives.
For students completing the BS degree, in addition to the major, the student is encouraged to select a minor (typically 27 credit hours) in a field that will support and broaden one’s intended use of psychology. Specific courses in the minor are selected with the help of an advisor in the minor field.
Students earning the BS degree in psychology are also required to take MTH 105 or higher.
| General Education Courses | 55 |
| Psychology Major | 56 |
| Electives/Other Requirements | 42 |
| Minor | 27 |
| Total Degree | 180 |
Students earning an BAS degree follow specific BAS degree requirements. For more information, see your psychology advisor.
REQUIREMENTS FOR PSYCHOLOGY MAJOR
The psychology major requires a total of 56 credit hours, including a 36-hour core and 20 hours of electives. Of the 56 credits, 40 credits must be upper division (maximum 16 credits of lower division) taken in psychology or selected gerontology courses.
Required Core – 36 hrs –(required of all psychology majors)
| PSY | 201Z & 202Z | Introduction to Psychology I and II | 8 |
| PSY | 367 | Introduction to Research Methods | 4 |
| PSY | 311 | Developmental Psychology | 4 |
| PSY | 334 | Social Psychology | 4 |
| PSY | 360 | Cognitive Psychology | 4 |
| PSY | 467 | Quantitative Methods | 4 |
| PSY | 468 | Research Methods | 4 |
| PSY | 443, 445, 446, 447, 448 or 449 | Industrial Organizational Psychology (choose 1) | 4 |
| TOTAL | 36 |
Additional Electives – 20 hrs
Students should choose these additional 20 hours with an advisor’s assistance. Maximum 4 credits of P/NC coursework can count as electives in the psychology major. PSY 410 cannot be counted as an elective in the psychology major. (See Course descriptions to find out more about individual courses)
PROCEDURE FOR STUDENTS DESIRING A PSYCHOLOGY MAJOR
1. For students catalog years 2013-2015, students must apply and be approved for admission to the Psychology Major. Please consult your psychology advisor for more information or to set an appointment.
To be admitted, students must provide evidence that they have:
a. Sophomore standing
b. Completed PSY 201Z, 202Z, and 367 or equivalent courses
c. A G.P.A. of 2.67 or higher in all psychology courses
d. An overall G.P.A. of 2.50 or higher
2. For students starting in catalog year 2016 +, the requirements are as follows. There is no formal application to the Psychology major. Psychology majors must have a grade of C- or better in courses used to satisfy the major requirements. Note that there are different math and computer science requirements depending on catalog year. For more information, see your psychology advisor.
3. It is extremely important to consult with an advisor in psychology to plan the most appropriate and efficient sequence of courses.
STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS
Psi Chi, the National Honorary Society in Psychology, is open to qualified majors and minors in psychology. See the Psi Chi advisor for more information.
Psychology Alumni Satisfaction & Career Paths
The goal of the Psychology major is to prepare students for success in their career and any future education goals. To find out about alumni satisfaction with their experiences and career paths, we surveyed majors who graduated from our program between 2000-2021.
Overall Satisfaction: Alumni were satisfied with their experiences in the Psychology major at WOU with highest satisfaction for Overall Quality of the Instruction, Overall Interactions with Faculty, Accessibility of Faculty, Variety of Courses, and Overall Experience with the Psychology Major.
Alumni provided the following top 5 strengths of the WOU Psychology program:
1) Close, supportive, mentoring relationships with faculty
2) Opportunities for applied experiences outside the classroom (i.e., being an RA, TA, WOUPSA, AES, WPA)
3) Small class size that allowed for relationships between students and sense of community
4) Outstanding faculty, high quality teaching
5) Variety of interesting courses available
Career Paths and Employment: When asked about employment, 88% of Alumni indicated that they were working for pay, with the majority (83%) employed full-time (i.e., at least 30 hours per week), The most frequently reported salary ranges were $50,000-$59,000, and $100,000 or more.
The largest percentage of alumni were employed in Mental Health/Social Services (24%), Education (21%) and Health/Medicine (15%), however many alumni were working in unique career fields (i.e., utility industry, food industry, financial services).
Alumni reported diverse job titles including HR Specialist – Human Relations, Mental Health Therapist, Product Data Manager, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Disability Analyst, School Psychologist, Community Health Worker, Registered Nurse, Research Analyst, Qualified Mental Health Associate, and Rehabilitation Counselor.
When asked about further education, 22% were currently enrolled in a graduate program, and 43% had attended graduate school, with the majority completing a master’s degree. Alumni pursued graduate training in Social Work, Counseling, School Counseling, Marriage and Family Therapy, Education, Special Education, Rehabilitation Counseling, Occupational Therapy, Business Administration, Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, or the Law.
Combined, these results suggest that the WOU Psychology major successfully prepared students to take on a wide range of career and graduate school opportunities.
