Psychology B.S. Degree Requirements

Degree Requirements, Bachelor of Science in Psychology

Students interested in becoming psychology majors should see Dr. Croxton, the interim chairperson of the Psychology Department, who will make a decision on each student's request for admission to the department. Upon approval, the student's academic records will be kept in the Psychology Department's main office, Thompson W357.

Click here for an example Degree Map of 4 years of study for students entering Fredonia prior to Fall 2018.  A new Degree Map is forthcoming for students who entered Fredonia Fall 2018 or later.

Students may also elect to complete a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology. The department also offers three minors in Psychology, the General Psychology Minor, the Industrial-Organizational Minor, and the School and Counseling Psychology Minor.

Below are the requirements for the Bachelor of Science in Psychology.

• 41 hours in psychology (with at least a 2.0 grade point average) as follows:
  • Core Group - all required The core courses are to be completed by the end of the junior year.
    • PSY 129 - Foundations of Psychology
    • PSY 130 - Psychology Laboratory
    • PSY 200 - Statistics for Psychology
    • PSY 315 - Research Methods
    • PSY 415 - Advanced Research Methods
    • PSY 481 - Mentored Research - Students must complete this course with 6 credit hours total to satisfy the degree requirement; no more than 12 credits of PSY 481 may count towards the major.
  • Group A - Psychophysiology - one of the following
    • PSY 342 - Perception
    • PSY 351 - Physiological Psychology or
    • PSY 361 - Cognitive Neuroscience or
    • PSY 363 - Psychopharmacology
  • Group B - Cognitive - one of the following:
    • PSY 343 - Cognitive Psychology or
    • PSY 344 - Psychology of Language or
    • PSY 364 - Cognitive Development
  • Group C - Social/Personality - one of the following:
    • PSY 246 - Personality or
    • PSY 345 - Social Psychology or
    • PSY 365 - Social Development
  • Group D - Clinical/Counseling - one of the following:
    • PSY 356 - Psychological Disorders (formerly Abnormal Psychology) or
    • PSY 379 - Child Psychological Disorders (formerly Child Psychopathology) or
    • PSY 447 - Introduction to Counseling
  • Related Science Courses (13-15 credits)
• Completion of one 3-4 credit course with a MATH or STAT prefix at the 099 level or above, and either the Biology, Chemistry, or Data Science Focus
  • Biology Track:
    • BIO 131 - Introduction to Ecology and Evolution (3 credits)
    • BIO 132 - Introduction to Ecology and Evolution Lab (1 credit)
    • BIO 133 - Introduction to Cell and Molecular Biology (3 credits)
    • BIO 134 - Introduction to Cell and Molecular Biology Lab (1 credit)
    • CHEM 115 - General Chemistry I Lecture (3 credits)
  • Chemistry Track:
    • CHEM 115 - General Chemistry I Lecture (3 credits)
    • CHEM 125 - General Chemistry I Lab (1 credit)
    • CHEM 116 - General Chemistry II Lecture (3 credits)
    • CHEM 126 - General Chemistry II Lab (1 credit)
    • BIO XXX - Biology Course (3 credits)
  • Data Science Track*:
    • CSIT 121 - Computer Science I (3 credits)
    • STAT 260 - Introduction to Data Science (3 credits)
    • STAT 360 - Topics in Data Science (3 credits)
    • STAT 405 - Statistics Seminar (1 credit)

*Note: Students who choose the Data Science track are also allowed to complete the minor in Data Science. If they elect to do so, they will need to complete 9 unique credits. They will do this by taking CSIT 455 or CSIT 473 and by selecting two electives from the list specified for the minor that do NOT have a PSY prefix.

Also required:

• One course of a developmental focus. PSY 364, PSY 365, PSY 366 or PSY 379 may count here as well as in the groupings above. PSY 289 (Lifespan Human Development), PSY 349 (Child Psychology), EDU 224 (Adolescent Development), or EDU 225 (Child Development EC/CH) also meet this requirement.
• 6-10 additional hours in psychology, to bring the total to 41 hours in Psychology
• 66 credits must be outside of Psychology
• For students entering Fredonia in Fall 2015, a minimum of 45 hours (from any department, including Psychology) at the upper level (300 or 400 level) are required. For students entering prior to Fall 2015, a minimum of 36 hours is required.
• In addition to the minimum of 45 total hours of upper-level credits, Psychology majors entering Fredonia in Fall 2022 or later are required to take at least 24 upper-level credits in their major.

Besides these Psychology Department requirements, keep in mind general college requirements for graduation including the College Core Curriculum/Fredonia Foundations. Click here to go to the 2022-23 official catalog listing for the Bachelor of Science in Psychology.