Psychology Program of Study

Requirements for a Psychology Major or Minor (PDF)

All psychology majors begin their study with introductory psychology. Additional coursework includes both survey courses and more specialized courses referred to as research methods courses, systems courses, and foundation courses. The goal of research methods courses is for students to become knowledgeable and proficient in scientific methods. The objective of systems courses is to familiarize students with the major theories of psychology. Finally, foundation courses strive to increase students' knowledge of the major content areas in psychology. The Department's teaching philosophy and strategies emphasize the concept of active learning. The faculty believe that students learn best when they actively participate in their own learning. Our philosophy is captured in a Chinese proverb: I hear, and I forget, I see, and I remember, I do, and I understand.

Wherever possible, Psychology faculty provide opportunities for active learning. Related to the importance placed on active learning in psychology coursework at UWM, is the value placed on teaching important skills such as how to write, how to do math, and how to use a computer. In the process of learning about psychology, UWM psychology students learn invaluable skills that will serve them well throughout their lives.

Psychology faculty teach computer literacy skills in many courses. For example, in Freshman Seminars students publish their presentation on the Web and become familiar with HTML in the process. In Introductory Psychological Statistics, a computer is used to present course materials. These materials are not static overheads. Rather, the information changes as students work on the computer with the help of their lab instructor. In Advanced Psychological Statistics, a Monte Carlo program enhances student learning of probability theory. In addition, students are taught SPSSX and are taught how to communicate by e-mail and use a reflector system. In Neuropsychology, students call up graphics such as depictions of brain tumors, EEG tracings, and CAT scans. Students further develop computer literacy in at least seven other courses including Research Methods, Experimental Design, Psychophysiology, Conditioning and Learning, Cognitive Processes, Experimental Personality, and Physiological Psychology.

UWM Psychology graduates are highly literate, and moreover, they have been trained to write in more than one literacy format. Psychology majors at UWM are accustomed to writing essays and papers and are given training in the technique of concise writing within a set format as they write up research reports. This is a skill that is much valued in the commercial and business worlds. The attention paid to developing good writing skills is illustrated by the Department's formal assessment of writing proficiency in graduating seniors.

It is highly unusual to produce graduates who are simultaneously proficient with words and numbers, yet our graduates are both. Students are trained in 16 credits of required coursework to interpret data, and to understand probability statements, and they become familiar with a wide range of statistical procedures and processes. When faced with numerical information, our graduates feel competent and seek to discover what the numbers imply. And, as in the case of writing skills, graduating seniors' knowledge and proficiency in descriptive and inferential statistics is formally assessed.

Psychology's educational objectives also emphasize familiarity with major theories of psychology and schools of thought. Although students are exposed to theory in every course in Psychology, systems courses are specialized courses dealing with theories and/or processes in sub fields of psychology or the history of psychology.

The curriculum for the undergraduate major in Psychology also emphasizes scientific methods. All psychology majors take a sequence of three laboratory courses in research methods. The first (Psych 325: Research Methods in Psychology) teaches the basic techniques and ethical principles of research and introduces the research designs used in many psychological studies. The second and third research methods course builds upon this knowledge base by providing first-hand laboratory experience with research techniques in a particular area of psychology such as psychophysiology, social psychology, cognitive psychology, personality, physiological psychology, applied behavior analysis, or conditioning and learning.