DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY
Master of Science Degree in Psychology
The Master of Science degree in Psychology is designed to address the needs of two groups of students: students who wish to pursue doctoral studies and desire additional coursework and research experience in order to be more competitive for admission to doctoral programs, and students who need graduate-level training in order to be competitive for jobs in behavioral, psychological, and related research settings. The program is designed to give students extensive research experience and coursework in research methodology, statistics, and the content areas of research-based psychology (e.g., social, personality, cognitive, developmental, clinical).
Program Admission Requirements. All application materials must be submitted using the University’s online application system and received by the Fall deadline. Degree-seeking students normally are not admitted for the Spring or Summer semesters due to course-sequence requirements in the program. Applicants for unconditional admission must meet University-wide admission requirements in addition to the following psychology admission requirements:
- Scores on the verbal, quantitative, and analytical writing sections of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) must be received before the application is considered complete and will be used as part of the selection criteria for admission to the program.
- Completion of a minimum of 18 undergraduate semester credit hours in psychology (12 of which must be at the upper-division level). These hours must include at least one course in statistics and one course in experimental psychology. A single course that combines instruction in statistics and experimental methodology may be accepted, pending the approval of the Graduate Committee in Psychology.
- A grade point average of at least 3.2 in the last 60 hours of undergraduate coursework and a grade point average of at least 3.2 in all psychology courses taken.
- A grade of “B” or higher in a statistics for psychology course (equivalent to PSY 2073) and a psychological research methods course (equivalent to PSY 3403).
- A description of research experience (e.g., independent study/internship, employment, etc.) in basic or applied settings must be provided before the application is considered complete. Amount and nature of experience will be considered as part of the selection criteria for admission to the program.
- A statement of professional goals and reason for interest in pursuing a Master’s in Psychology and interest in this program specifically must be provided before the application is considered complete. These statements will be evaluated and considered as part of the selection criteria for admission to the program.
- Two letters of recommendation from behavioral researchers in a position to evaluate the candidate’s academic or research potential (e.g., undergraduate instructors, research advisors) must be submitted and will be evaluated as part of the selection criteria. Recommendation forms are included in the online application materials.
The highly individualized nature of the program dictates that a limited number of students be admitted each year. As such, students who meet the minimum requirements are not necessarily guaranteed admission, and early submission of application materials is strongly encouraged. Applicants who do not meet requirements for unconditional admission may be considered for conditional admission if there are indications of unrealized potential. General information on successful applicants (grade point averages, GRE scores, etc.) can be found on the Department’s Web site (http://colfa.utsa.edu/psych/).
Degree Requirements. The minimum number of semester credit hours required for this degree, exclusive of coursework or other study required to remove admission deficiencies, is 36. Typically, students complete the program in two years (taking three courses a semester, excluding summers) or three years (taking two courses a semester, excluding summers).
Degree candidates must complete the following requirements:
- 15 semester credit hours of core courses:
PSY 5113 Professional Ethics and Standards
PSY 5213 Research Design
PSY 5413 Inferential Statistics
PSY 6113 Psychological Measurement
PSY 6213 Correlation and Regression Analyses
- 9 semester credit hours chosen from the following:
PSY 5303 Developmental Psychology
PSY 5313 Seminar in Psychopathology
PSY 5323 Individual Differences and Assessment
PSY 5333 Social Psychology
PSY 5343 Human Cognition
PSY 5353 Industrial/Organizational Psychology
PSY 5363 Health Psychology
PSY 5383 Biological Psychology
PSY 5393 Cross Cultural Psychology
- 6 semester credit hours of electives chosen from the following:
PSY 6513 Research Internship
PSY 6951-3 Independent Study
PSY 6973 Special Topics in Psychology
- Option 1 (with thesis): A master’s thesis and 6 hours of PSY 6983 Master’s Thesis.
or
Option 2 (without thesis): 3 additional hours must be completed from the course options listed in Section B and PSY 6513 Research Internship must be completed for an additional 3 hours of credit from the electives listed in Section C. Students seeking this option must notify the Psychology Graduate Program Committee of their intent at least one semester prior to their anticipated graduation date. Students should expect to take the comprehensive examination required for this option during the semester in which they plan to complete the degree. The comprehensive examination can be attempted twice but only once a semester.
Students admitted to the program should consult the Graduate Advisor of Record for specific program requirements.
The program does not require proficiency in a foreign language. A written thesis proposal, approved by the student’s thesis committee, is required before the student may register for PSY 6983 Master’s Thesis.
