Psychology

Dr. Gretchen Wehrle, Chair, (650) 508-3659, gwehrle@ndnu.edu

The Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology is offered by the Department of Psychology and Sociology. The degree is offered as both a traditional day and a part-time evening major. The evening psychology major does not differ from the day curriculum in any way, although some evening courses are offered in accelerated format for qualified students.

Psychology is the branch of science that studies human behavior and mental processes.  The department offers a strong general psychology curriculum, as recommended by the American Psychological Association.  The core curriculum consists of basic coursework spanning the different subfields of psychology, from the clinical to the social to the experimental.

Special emphasis is placed on helping the psychology student to develop analytic skills and interdisciplinary perspectives, through lively classroom work, individual research, and community-based learning experiences. Students are encouraged to develop their own personalized curriculum after fulfilling the core courses, to equip them to bring innovation and interpersonal knowledge to their initial employment, or to go on to further graduate work. Undergraduate Psychology offers special articulated programs with NDNU's graduate programs in Art Therapy and Clinical Psychology, and with NDNU's Special Education degree programs. Articulated programs allow qualified students in their last year of undergraduate work to begin study for the master's degree, while completing the bachelor's degree. They are allowed to enroll in up to six units of selected graduate coursework, that fulfills the undergraduate psychology elective requirements, while also counting toward the master's degree.

Bachelor of Arts: Psychology

In addition to major requirements, students must meet Core Curriculum Requirements and General Degree Requirements.
Prerequisites		Units
MTH2502	Statistics	3
PSY1001	Introduction to Psychology	3
Total Prerequisites		6
Major Requirements		Units
PSY2101	Personality Theory	3
PSY2109	Research Methods	4
PSY2117	Psychobiology	3
PSY2125	Cognitive Psychology	3
PSY2133	Social Psychology	3
PSY2141 or PSY2149	Developmental Psychology (3) Developmental Psychology in the Classroom and Community (4)	3
PSY2157 or PSY2157W	Abnormal Psychology(3) Abnormal Psychology (Writing Intensive) (4)	3
PSY2180W	History and Systems of Psychology (Capstone class/Writing Intensive)	4
Upper-division Psychology courses (electives)		9
Total Major Requirements		35
Other Degree Requirements* and General Electives * Other degree requirements include Core Curriculum Requirements and General Degree Requirements (e.g., Career Development, U.S. History). Note: Certain psychology courses help fulfill the Career Development Requirement, e.g., PSY2149, PSY2309. See course descriptions for the number of units satisfying the Career Development Requirement.		83
Total Unit Requirement		124

Minor Requirements: Psychology

Required Courses		Units
PSY1001	Introduction to Psychology	3
Upper-division units in Psychology (PSY2101 Personality Theory is recommended)		12
Total Unit Requirement		15

Courses listed below can be used as electives for the Psychology major:

• BIO2124 Forensic Science
• PSC2410 Political Psychology
• PHL2405 Philosophy of Mind
• REL2415 Discovering Values
• SOC1501 The Inner City: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
• SOC1502 Exploring the Inner World of the Inner City
• SOC1503 Lifestyles of the Poor and Infamous
• SOC1504 The Promise of the Inner City
• SOC2201 Social Change through Social Service I
• SOC2205 Social Change through Social Service II
• SOC2301 The Family
• SOC2317 Deviant Behavior
• SOC2325 Love and Violence
• SOC2333 Social Issues in the Community
• SOC2341 Crime in American Society
• SOC2349 Youth, Crime, and Society
• SOC2357 Careers in Community and Criminal Justice
• SOC2365 Careers in Sociology and Social Work
• SOC2417 Interpersonal/Intercultural Communication
• SOC2425 Cultures, Communities, and Criminality
• SOC2501 The Inner City: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
• SOC2502 Exploring the Inner World of the Inner City
• SOC2503 Lifestyles of the Poor and Infamous
• SOC2504 The Promise of the Inner City
• SOC2512 Sports, Service, and Society
• SOC2601 Animals in Society
• SOC2609 The Animal-Human Bond
• SOC2617 Teaching, Learning, and Healing through Animals