Mar 28, 2024  
2022-2023 Catalog 
    
2022-2023 Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]


Psychology, B.A.



In addition to adhering to General Education  and School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts Requirements , the Psychology major requires 49 units (some of which simultaneously fill General Education Requirements as indicated below). Courses in the major emphasis must be taken for a letter grade, and may not be taken on a pass/no pass basis unless the course is offered only on a pass/no pass basis.

Psychology, B.A. Four-Year Course Plan  

Lower Division Major Requirements [17 Units]


Lower Division Major Core Requirement [13 units]


Complete the following courses:

Introductory Course Requirement [4 units]


Complete one introductory course chosen from the following list. Meets Social Science course outside of major General Education requirement.

Upper Division Major Requirements [32 Units]


Writing Requirement [4 units]


Complete the following writing course:

Group Requirements [12 units]


Group A: Cognition, Brain and Behavior [4 units]


Complete at least one course from Group A (Cognition, Brain and Behavior): PSY 160-169, PSY 180-189, or any upper division COGS course

Group B: Social-Personality, Development [4 units]


Complete at least one course from Group B (Social-Personality, Development): PSY 130-139 or PSY 150-159

Group C: Applied Psychology [4 units]


Complete at least one course from Group C (Applied Psychology): PSY 120-129, PSY 140-149, or PSY 170-179

Advanced Psychology Requirement [8 units]


Complete at least two upper division Advanced Psychology courses. These must be different courses than those used to meet the three groups requirement. Any course that has PSY 015  as prerequisite is an upper division advanced course.

Upper Division Psychology Requirement [8 units]


Complete at least two additional Upper Division Psychology Courses, which may also include  PSY 191: Psychology Culminating Experience .

Transfer Students


Transfer students who wish to major in Psychology should complete the IGETC at their community college.Transfer students may not be admitted to the Psychology major without specific major preparation. Below are the current Transfer Selection Criteria for the Psychology Major.

Transfer Selection Criteria


To be admitted to the Psychology major transfer students must meet the following requirements:

Applicants will, at the time of admission have completed at minimum each of the following courses (or their equivalent) with a “C‐” or better:

Psychology Honors Program


UC Merced Psychology majors may petition to join the Psychology Honors Program, which will have additional requirements beyond the standard Psychology major. Undergraduate majors who are accepted and successfully complete the Honors Program will receive a notation to that effect upon their diploma and on their undergraduate transcript thereafter.

To be eligible for the Honors Program, a Psychology major must achieve an overall GPA of 3.3, be in good academic standing, and have a minimum GPA of 3.5 in the major. Applicants must have taken PSY 010  and PSY 015  before enrolling in  PSY 193H: Honors in Psychological Sciences I  for fall and  PSY 194H: Honors in Psychological Sciences II  for spring. Students who do not meet the minimum GPA requirement may request an exception from the Honors Program course Instructor of Record. Students admitted to the Psychology Honors Program will be expected to enroll in  PSY 199: Upper Division Individual Study  during the completion of their Honors Project, which requires enrollment in PSY 193H  and PSY 194H  during the student’s senior year. Please contact SSHA Advising for more information.