SWAGÊÓƵ

The Department of Psychology offers students a broad-based liberal arts education with an emphasis on community, social, and individual approaches to understanding human behavior. Students are thus exposed to a combination of theoretical, scientific, and practical approaches to solving human problems. Issues of gender, race, class, and culture are emphasized in courses throughout the curriculum. As a result of required course work and internship experiences, the department graduates students with marketable skills that prepare them for entry-level positions in social services or for graduate study in related areas. As part of this mission, the Department of Psychology offers three majors with concomitant minors in psychology, neuroscience, and animal behavior. Additionally, the department offers minors in Art Therapy and Mental Health Rehabilitation. The Mental Health Rehabilitation minor leads to a certificate from the State of Maine Department of Health and Human Services in MHRT/C. 

The psychology major introduces students to the many factors that explain human behavior, thoughts, and feelings to prepare them for a wide range of professional and academic experiences beyond college. Students will both have an opportunity to learn about current knowledge in the field broadly and to select electives that will allow them to learn more about specific specialty areas. For example, many of our students come to the major with an interest in helping others or pursuing a career in counseling or therapy. These students will have the opportunity to develop basic counseling skills and knowledge about abnormal psychology and mental health while still also exploring the other facets of psychology. The major draws on the extensive experience of our faculty in the areas of clinical, counseling, social, and cognitive psychology; human development; cognitive neuroscience; learning and memory; the biological basis of behavior; and animal modeling.

Essential to the psychology major are active and experiential learning opportunities for all students. For example, all students complete at least one internship during their time at SWAGÊÓƵ. The internship is a critical part of helping students to link the concepts they are learning in their coursework to the work they pursue after graduation. We have a well-developed network of sites that have accepted our students into their organizations for these training experiences and work with students to match them to an experience that fits their interests. Internships provide students with the opportunity to learn experientially and to explore different career directions. In fact, many of our students elect to complete a second internship as part of their degree to gain additional experience, and internships often lead to the first jobs after graduation for our students. In addition to the in-depth internship experience, all faculty in the major employ active learning opportunities within their courses. Students explore the real-world implications of the concepts they learn in the classroom starting their first year on campus.

An additional experiential opportunity that many of our students complete is participation in faculty-led research. All students, as they move through the major, learn what current research tells us about how humans engage with each other, think, feel, and behave. They also have opportunities to discover how this knowledge is obtained through the scientific process, with faculty members providing a supportive environment in which students learn the thinking skills important to reading and conducting research. Students as part of the major complete at least one small research project with a group of peers on a topic they select together. In addition, many students elect to participate in on-going professional research with a faculty member. Numerous students develop their own research questions with a faculty mentor and these faculty-supervised projects result in presentations and publications for those students.

Finally, students completing a psychology major may elect to complete a minor area of study as well. Faculty advisors work with each student to help them identify a minor that will help them to achieve their future goals. For example, many of our majors plan to provide counseling services after graduation and elect to complete a minor in either mental health rehabilitation or art therapy (both minors offered within the Psychology Department). Other students may have interest in applying their knowledge of psychology in a business setting after graduation and may decide to pursue a minor in the Business Department.

Our goal is to ensure that as students leave the major they have developed not only knowledge consistent with their interests, but also applied skills that will assist them as they move forward into careers or additional educational opportunities (e.g., graduate school in psychology, graduate work in other allied health fields).

Students wishing to pursue teacher certification in Psychology can complete a double major with Psychology and Secondary Education or a major in Secondary Education and a concentration in Psychology. For more information, see the Secondary Education catalog page.

Students in this major can participate in the pre-health graduate school preparation tracks.

A grade point average of 2.25 is necessary to be approved to add a major in Psychology, Animal Behavior, or Neuroscience, and to add a minor in Psychology, Animal Behavior, Neuroscience, Art Therapy, or MHRT/C. Double majoring or majoring and minoring within the Department of Psychology may be possible for a student. However, students interested in this option should do so with close consultation of their academic advisor to ensure that a substantial degree of overlap between the two areas does not occur.

 A minimum grade of C- must be achieved in all psychology courses used toward graduation. Students must also complete the University Core mathematics requirement by the end of the first year. The department strongly recommends that students take PSY 225 and PSY 285 in their sophomore year. The department requires that PSY 225 and PSY 285 be completed by the end of the junior year. See Undergraduate Academic Policy also.

At the completion of their bachelor's degree in Psychology, students will be able to:

1. Demonstrate fundamental knowledge and comprehension of the major concepts, theoretical perspectives, empirical findings, historical trends, and empirical findings in psychology and the ability to apply these to behavioral problems.
2. Demonstrate scientific reasoning and problem solving, including effective research methods (e.g., design, data analysis, and interpretation).
3. Recognize and/or employ ethically and socially responsible behaviors for professional and personal settings in a landscape that involves increasing diversity. 
4. Demonstrate competence in writing and in oral and interpersonal skills, including in the context of a psychological project.
5. Apply psychology-specific content and skills, effective self-reflection, project-management skills, teamwork skills, and career preparation.

A student with GPA of at least 2.25 and a major at SWAGÊÓƵ may minor in Psychology with the approval of the academic director. Declarations must occur prior to the completion of the first semester of the junior year. Major programs of study with significant course overlap with psychology minor requirements may be disallowed by the chair. Students declaring a minor in Psychology will not be allowed to double-dip credits across the minor and either major or core requirements (unless no other options are provided by the major, minor, or core requirements). A minimum of eighteen hours of approved course credit with a minimum grade of "C-" in each course is required for the minor in Psychology as follows:

We offer qualified students the option of graduating with Honors. This includes significant research, scholarship or creative activity under the direction of a faculty member. Interested students should consult with their major advisor. 

Courses completed at another accredited college can be transferred to this degree program. Transferred courses must be reasonably close in scope and content to the required courses offered at SWAGÊÓƵ in order to count as exact equivalents. Otherwise, they may transfer as general electives. All courses completed must be no older than five years. Other restrictions apply. See Undergraduate Admissions also.

See Undergraduate Admissions.

Tuition and Fees

Tuition and fees for subsequent years may vary. Other expenses include books and housing. For more information regarding tuition and fees, please consult the Financial Information section of this catalog.