The Psychology Major
The Psychology Major: The bachelor of science degree consists of a balanced program that includes psychology, mathematics, natural sciences, behavioral and social sciences, arts and humanities, and a large number of free electives. The program is designed as a broad liberal arts degree, including preprofessional preparation for graduate training in psychology. The curriculum's flexibility permits you to mold a curriculum toward one or more possible career goals: a) postgraduate study in an area outside psychology, b) a semiprofessional job in psychological settings or related human services areas, or c) entry into the graduate study of psychology. You also can combine your degree with a second major or minor in another field.
A Second Major: If you are enrolled in another program at Colorado State, and, by the time of graduation you can meet all the requirements of the psychology major in addition to the requirements of your designated major, your diploma will carry the indication of the second major in psychology.
Elective Coursework: You may choose various psychology courses as electives while majoring in any other department. There is usually space for non-majors in a wide range of undergraduate course offerings.
Faculty: The Department of Psychology has approximately 30 psychologists on its teaching staff, including several who are internationally known in their specialties. All hold the doctoral degree and their research, service, and teaching interests cover a wide range of topics. Although part of their time is spent in research activities and in training graduate students, the department provides high-quality teaching and advising to undergraduates. Several faculty members have won awards for excellence in teaching.
Career Opportunities: About 40 percent of psychologists in the United States work in college and university settings. Clinics, hospitals and schools employ another 23 percent, while about 14 percent of America's psychologists work for governmental agencies. The rest are either self-employed or are associated with business and industry. For more information, please see our web page: "What can I do with a degree in psychology?"
The major work activities of psychologists consist of research, teaching, or psychotherapy and counseling, with many engaged in some combination of these activities. Some are involved in administrative or consulting work. What a given psychologist does depends on his or her specialty, training, interests and the work setting. Each year, a number of our seniors are accepted into graduate schools and begin a specialization in clinical, counseling, experimental, industrial/organizational or one of several other areas of psychology.
Although you will need an advanced degree to become a psychologist, many opportunities exist for graduates with a bachelor's degree in psychology, including working in mental health and other human service fields. Psychology may also be used as a background for careers in law enforcement or other positions in industry, public service, business, government and other professions.
The Psychology Major Requirements
General Requirements: The University has certain core courses that are required of all students regardless of their majors. These courses are called the All University Core Curriculum (AUCC). In addition to these core courses, the Department of Psychology has a program of study required for a Bachelors of Science Degree in Psychology. Both the AUCC core courses and psychology requirements are incorporated in the DARS system at Colorado State University so that students have only one place to look for all their course requirements.
In order to receive a degree at Colorado State University, a student must complete a minimum of 120 credits that must include 42 upper division credits. Upper division credits are given for those courses numbered 300 or higher. A minimum of 30 credits has to be completed in residency at CSU. Basically, this means that if a student transfers into CSU from another university and transfers in enough credits to be close to the 120 required, they will still have to complete 30 credits here at CSU before a degree will be conferred. Students must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.0 in order to graduate.
Math and Composition Placement Exams
Math Placement Exam
The University requires all students to satisfactorily complete a minimum of three credits of math. The Department of Psychology requires students to complete the college algebra sequence MCC 117, MCC 118, MCC 124 (all three courses are for one credit each). Since college algebra is a prerequisite for other required courses, it is preferred that students complete the math during their first year. All students must successfully pass the Math Placement Exam before they will be allowed to register for any math course. Detailed instructions on how to prepare for the exam, times, and places can be found on the Math Department's web page.
Note: Three credits of math must be completed by the end of the sophomore year or the University will place a “Hold” on registration.
Composition Placement
Students who score 500 or higher on the SAT verbal or 20 or higher on the ACT English section of the exam are eligible to take COCC 150 and should sign up for the course their first or second semester at Colorado State University.
Students who score lower than 500 on the SAT verbal or lower than 20 on the ACT English, must take the Composition Challenge Exam to be placed in a composition course.
For information regarding this exam, contact the English Department, Room 359 in the Eddy Building (491-6428).
Note: COCC150 must be successfully completed by the end of the sophomore year or the University will place a “Hold” on registration.
Repeat/Delete Policy
The Repeat/Delete Policy is a one-time per course grading option that may be used by undergraduate students who want to repeat a course. The following rules apply to the Repeat/Delete option:
- The grade received in the repeated course (Repeat/Delete) will be used in calculating the student's GPA, regardless of whether the repeated grade is higher, the same as, or lower than the initial grade received.
- The initial grade will remain on the transcript, but will not be used in calculating the GPA when the Repeat/Delete option is applied.
- It is the student's responsibility to request the Repeat/Delete option from the Registrar (Room 100 Administrative Annex Building) before the expiration of the W-drop period for the course in the semester in which the course is first repeated. Note: It is imperative that you fill out the paperwork. It is recommended that psychology majors do the paperwork the first week of the semester so that you don't get busy and miss the deadline.
- The Repeat/Delete option may be used for maximum of ten (10) credit hours for no more than three (3) courses.
- If the course is repeated at any time subsequent to the use of the Repeat/Delete option, all grades in that course, except the initial grade, are used in computing the student's GPA.
- Although a course may be repeated as often as a student chooses, the Repeat/Delete option can be used only the first time a course is repeated.
Courses that Require a Grade of "C-" or Higher
The Department of Psychology requires all psychology majors to obtain a minimum grade of “C-” or higher in each of the following courses:
PSYCC 100 General Psychology
PSY 210 Psychology of the Individual in Context
PSY 250 Research Methods in Psychology
PSY 252 Mind, Brain, and Behavior
PSY401 History and Systems of Psychology
Three PSY lecture-lab pairings
- Files are in PDF format!
Please review this file of the course requirements for the Psychology Major: Psychology Majors Starting Summer 2007 or later.
Please review this file of the course requirements for the Psychology Major if you started prior to Summer 2007: Psychology Majors Starting Previous to Summer 2007.
Please review this file for Mind, Brain and Behavior concentration: Mind, Brain and Behavior concentration.
The DARS system at Colorado State University is designed to give student an up-to-date look at their completed course requirements. To access the DARS system, visit: https://ramweb.colostate.edu/. Under the Records heading, click on Degree Audit Submit, or Degree Audit View to access the DARS system.