Psychology Concentration (A.A.)

Associate in Arts

Program Advisor: Dr. Wayne Klug

The Liberal Arts Psychology concentration closely parallels freshman and sophomore studies at colleges offering liberal arts baccalaureate degrees in psychology. Graduates of this concentration will transfer with junior status to four-year colleges and universities, and in most cases will be able to complete their baccalaureate degrees there in two years.

This is a MassTransfer eligible program.

Degree: Associate in Arts, Liberal Arts. Concentration/Option/Track: Psychology

Expected Outcomes

Graduates of this program should be able to:

Demonstrate a knowledge base in psychology by describing key concepts, principles and themes; and gain a working knowledge of content in the abnormal, developmental, biological and social domains;
Demonstrate familiarity with scientific inquiry and critical thinking by using scientific reasoning to interpret psycho- logical phenomena, and by gaining a working knowledge of research methods in psychology;
Demonstrate awareness of ethical and social responsibility by applying ethical standards to evaluate psychological science and practice, and by adopting values that build com- munity at local, national and global levels; and
Demonstrate communication proficiency through effective writing and presentation skills for different purposes, and through effective interaction with others.

Graduation Requirements

Program Courses

PSY-107	Introductory Psychology	3
PSY-204	Human Growth & Development	3
PSY-206	Adolescent Psychology	3
PSY-207	Social Psychology	3
PSY-226	Abnormal Psychology	3
-	Professional Electives	6
-	Free Elective	3
Total Credit Hours:		24

Professional Electives: See footnote 1

General Education Courses

BIO-175	Brain, Mind & Behavior: An Introduction to Biopsychology	3
COM-	Communication	3
ENG-	English Composition/Writing	6
ENG-	Literature	6
HIS-121	World History to 1500	3
HIS-122	World History Since 1500	3
MAT-	Mathematics	3
SOC-105	Introductory Sociology	3
-	Humanities	3
-	Natural or Physical Science	4
-	Environmental Studies	3
Total Credit Hours:		38

ENV-127: See footnote 3
Natural or Physical Science: See footnote 3

Additional Requirements

Core Competencies Portfolio	4 items
Forum	4 units
Health/Fitness	30 hours
Minimum Cumulative Average Overall	2.000

Suggested Pathway to Graduation

The following is a suggestion for completing this concentration in two years. The actual time needed to complete it will vary according to each student’s individual needs.

First Semester

HIS-121	World History to 1500	3
MAT-	Mathematics	3
COM-	Communication	3
PSY-107	Introductory Psychology	3
ENG -	English Composition	3
Total Credit Hours:		15

MAT Mathematics: See footnote 2

Second Semester

HIS-122	World History Since 1500	3
BIO-175	Brain, Mind & Behavior: An Introduction to Biopsychology	3
SOC-105	Introductory Sociology	3
-	Humanities & Fine Arts	3
ENV-127	Environmental Awareness & Responsibility	1
ENG -	English Composition	3
Total Credit Hours:		16

ENV-127: See footnote 3

Third Semester

ENG-	Literature	3
PSY-204	Human Growth & Development	3
PSY-207	Social Psychology	3
-	Natural or Physical Science	4
-	Professional Elective	3
Total Credit Hours:		16

Natural or Physical Science: See footnote 3
Professional Elective: See footnote 1

Fourth Semester

ENG-	Literature	3
PSY-206	Adolescent Psychology	3
PSY-226	Abnormal Psychology	3
-	Professional Elective	3
-	Free Elective	3
Total Credit Hours:		15

Professional Elective: : See footnote 1

Footnotes

Professional Electives are chosen from PSY-208, PSY-210, PSY-215, PSY-297, SOC-136, SOC-208, and BIO-180. Additional Professional Electives must be approved by the Psychology Concentration program advisor.
MAT-123 (Elementary Statistics) is strongly recommended as preparation for “Statistics in Psychology” at the transfer institution.
The Natural or Physical Science requirement: must take one 4-credit lab science course. Completion of an environmentally-focused laboratory science, such as BIO-109