Psychological and Brain Sciences - Cognitive Psychology Concentration (PhD)

Program Educational Goals:

The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) program in Cognitive Psychology is designed to train theoretically focused scientists who seek to understand the human mind and brain. The thematic focus of the program is on basic mechanisms such as perception, attention, memory, cognitive control, and higher-level cognition. Students are trained to answer scientific questions in this domain by studying human behavior and/or physiology using neuroimaging, electrophysiology, transcranial magnetic stimulation in typical populations, as well as people with brain damage and developmental disorders.

By the end of the program, graduates will be able to:

1. Demonstrate broad expertise in domains of cognition and their implications for interdisciplinary research through fluent scientific discussion, writing, and presentation.

2. Think critically. Synthesize knowledge into novel scientific insights. Constructively critique scientific theories, hypotheses, experimental procedures and results. Generate theoretically grounded hypotheses and experimental designs.

3. Effectively implement experimental designs. Collect, manage, analyze, and report data. Report outcomes in informal and formal settings that may include conferences, journal articles, invited talks and publications.

4. Learn and apply statistical and quantitative methods in the production and critical review of research. This includes descriptive procedures for summarizing data, statistical procedures for performing inferential tests, and development of appropriate data visualization.

5. Master oral and written communication for a variety of audiences, including experts (e.g. at conferences and in journal publications), undergraduate and graduate students, and the general public.

Program Policy Document:

Please see the Program Policy Document for more information.

Requirements for the Degree:

Statistics:

Six credits.

PSYC 860 - Psychological Statistics I Credit(s): 3
PSYC 861 - Psychological Statistics II Credit(s): 3

Professional Development:

Three credits.

PSYC 898 - Professional Development Seminar Credit(s): 3

Department Colloquia:

Departmental colloquia each semester, for 1 credit. Minimum of 8 credits.

PSYC 800 - Psychological and Brain Sciences Colloquia Credit(s): 1

Reasearch and Dissertation:

Minimum of 42 credits. For PSYC 868 minimum of 12 credit are required and students can be enrolled in a maximum of 6 credits in a semester. For PSYC 969 a minimum of 9 credits are required.

PSYC 868 - Research Credit(s): 1-6
PSYC 869 - Master’s Thesis Credit(s): 1-6
PSYC 964 - Pre-Candidacy Study Credit(s): 3-12
PSYC 969 - Doctoral Dissertation Credit(s): 1-12

Concentration Requirements:

The Cognitive Psychology concentration requires a minimum of 80 credits from coursework, attendance of colloquia, and research hours.

Core Courses:

15 credits.

NSCI 643 - Body and Space Credit(s): 3
PSYC 618 - Infant Cognition Credit(s): 3
PSYC 619 - Cognitive Control Credit(s): 3
PSYC 620 - Language and Cognition Credit(s): 3
PSYC 621 - Cognitive Neuroimaging Credit(s): 3
PSYC 642 - Mental Representation and Memory Credit(s): 3
PSYC 653 - Introduction to functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Credit(s): 3

Electives:

At least two 600/800 level electives, one of which needs to be outside of the concentration or Department.

Embedded MS Degree:

Psychological and Brain Sciences - Cognitive Psychology Concentration (MS)