Honors Program
Prerequisite
- Overall UCSD GPA of 3.3 (3.5 transfer GPA for first year transfer students).
- Grade of B or better in Psyc 60 (or its equivalent).
- Completion of all lower division courses strongly recommended for major. Contact Psychology Student Affairs Office if work is not complete.
Honors Information Session
We will be holding Honors Information Sessions for the 2016-17 Cohort during Spring Quarter 2015 and in early October of 2015. Please check back for more updates.
Applying to Program
Deadline is October 31, 2015
Application can be downloaded or a hard copy can be picked up from the Psychology Student Affairs Office. Students must submit application, a personal statement and list 2 references (at least 1 academic).
Personal Statement should describe student's interest in psychology and possible research topics or areas of interest.
Applications will be reviewed by the undergradute advisors and Honors Coordinator. Students will be contacted before the end of Fall quarter with final decision. Students should not wait to register in Winter courses. If admitted into the program students can change their schedule to enroll in Honors courses.
Overview of Program
Junior year
Winter quarter courses:
Psyc 110. Junior Honors Research Seminar
Psyc 111A. Advanced Statistics and Research Methods
Spring quarter course:
Psyc 111B. Advanced Statistics and Research Methods
Senior year
Psyc 194A, B, C (F, W, S). A year-long independent research project under the mentorship of a faculty advisor. This research culminates in an thesis and a poster presentaton during the Spring quarter.
During the Junior/Senior Year
a. For the B.A. with Honors
At least one laboratory course (Psychology 107, 109, 114, 115, 119, 121, 140) or, one Psychology 199 Independent Study (199s, however, do not count as upper division credit towards the major).
b. For the B.S. with Honors
Because the B.S. degree already requires two research experiences, there is no additional laboratory requirement to participate in the honors program. The 194ABC series fulfills one of the two requirement.
Successful completion of the honors program requires a grade of at least an A- in Psychology 194 and a minimum GPA of 3.5 in the upper division courses taken for the major. The honors program is strongly recommended for all students interested in graduate school.
Honors Seminar, Psychology 110
This is a series of lectures where faculty members present their research. Students in Psych 110 prepare themselves for each lecture by reading articles published by the various faculty members. These articles are made available in the form of a reader. The course will allow personal contact with faculty and enable students to discuss the future senior thesis project with potential supervisors. The grade for Psych 110 is based on participation and several short papers.
Honors Thesis Courses, Psychology 194 ABC
It is important to identify a thesis advisor during or after Psych 110. It is possible to do the project outside UCSD, i.e., in the VA or Children Hospital, etc. The sponsor in this case would be the program coordinator. In the introductory meeting, the program coordinator will give guidance regarding the whole procedure of Psych 194 A,B,C. Briefly: the first quarter is reserved for setting up the research project and writing of the research proposal. The proposal must be handed in at the end of the quarter and will be graded with a letter grade. The second quarter is dedicated to data collection and analysis. The grade for this course will be IP (in progress). It will change to a letter grade upon completion of the project at the end of the third quarter. The thesis will be read by student's advisor, an outside faculty member in student's area of research, and the program coordinator. He will assist students with setting up the poster-session at the end of the quarter, to which students' instructors, friends, and families are invited. At this session students will answer questions regarding their research project.
The Psychology Student Affairs Office carries copies of Honors theses from past years. Students are welcome to study what other honors students have worked on and what methods they employed for research and written presentation.
Honors Program Coordinator:
Dr. Gail Heyman
For more information regarding the Honors Program, contact an undergraduate advisor at the Psychology Student Affairs Office.