BA in Psychology

Program Requirements

A minimum total of 120 credit hours is required for the BA in psychology. In addition to meeting the requirements of the WSU General Education Program and the requirements of Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, students must meet the following requirements:

The major for the Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree consists of a minimum of 31 credit hours in psychology, at least 9 of which are earned at Wichita State.

Course Title Hours
General Education
Select courses to meet General Education requirements 134-35
College Requirements
Select courses to complete all LAS Competency Areas 136
Major Requirements
General Survey Course
PSY 111General Psychology 23
Research Methods Core Courses
PSY 301Psychological Statistics3
PSY 311Research Methods in Psychology4
Core Content Courses
Select 15 credit hours from the following15
PSY 320
Biological Psychology
PSY 321
Psychology of Learning
PSY 322
Cognitive Psychology
PSY 323
Social Psychology
PSY 324
Psychology of Personality
PSY 325
Developmental Psychology
PSY 327
Systems and Theories in Psychology
PSY 328
Psychological Testing and Measurement
Major Electives
Select an additional 6 credit hours of psychology electives from courses numbered 300 or above (excluding PSY 481) 6
Open Electives
Select enough electives to reach 120 credit hours18-19
Total Credit Hours120
1

Required major courses may also count towards General Education and/or LAS Competencies. Students will need to select additional electives to reach 120 credit hours required for graduation with assistance from an advisor.

2

PSY 111 is prerequisite for all higher number psychology courses.

Departmental Honors

Honors Admission

Scholarship and research are encouraged at the undergraduate level. Students who meet the requirements should explore adding the departmental honors program to their undergraduate major. The process is competitive, and not all applicants who meet the admission requirements each year may be accommodated. There is no fee associated with the psychology honors program.

Honors admission requirements include: 

  1. Admission to the psychology undergraduate major; 
  2. An overall GPA of 3.500 in psychology coursework; 
  3. A one-page, single-spaced letter describing reasons for applying to the honors track, goals and potential benefits to participating in the program;  
  4. An identified psychology faculty member to mentor the senior thesis;
  5. Completion of all required courses (10 credit hours)
    Course Title Hours
    PSY 111General Psychology3
    PSY 301Psychological Statistics3
    PSY 311Research Methods in Psychology4
  6. Completion of three of the core courses: 
    Course Title Hours
    PSY 320Biological Psychology3
    PSY 321Psychology of Learning3
    PSY 322Cognitive Psychology3
    PSY 323Social Psychology3
    PSY 324Psychology of Personality3
    PSY 325Developmental Psychology3
    PSY 327Systems and Theories in Psychology3
    PSY 328Psychological Testing and Measurement3

Honors Requirements

Students admitted to the departmental honors in psychology program must complete the following: 

  1. Commit to working in the research lab of the faculty mentor for a minimum of two semesters; 
    1. This includes enrolling in PSY 608 Special Investigation for at least 1 credit hour each semester (number of credit hours is to be negotiated between faculty mentor and student).
  2. Maintain a 3.500 cumulative GPA in psychology coursework; 
  3. Complete honors assignments in four core or elective psychology courses;  
  4. Be a participating member of the Psi Chi student organization;
  5. Apply for funding to support the senior thesis (e.g., WSU Undergraduate Research Award or Psi Chi Undergraduate Research Grant); 
  6. Complete a mentored senior thesis; and
  7. Present the mentored thesis at a local, regional or national conference (e.g., WSU psychology department’s Research Roundup, WSU Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Forum, external academic conference [e.g., SWPA]) prior to graduation. 

Applied Learning

Students in the BA in psychology program are required to complete an applied learning or research experience to graduate from the program. The requirement can be met by completing PSY 311.