Applied vs. Experimental

Planning your undergraduate courses

Our majors have been successful at admission to graduate programs in experimental and in applied areas of psychology.  The advice to any psychology majors, on campus or online, should be to work with a faculty adviser in order to select a sequence of coursework that satisfies EOU’s major requirements and provides students with solid preparation for their intended graduate school training and/or careers.

If you are interested in experimental psychology

Psychology, as an academic discipline, is grounded in scientific research.  Students who are interested in graduate training in any of the subdisciplines in psychology might choose to pursue a masters or doctoral degree.  Graduate programs will seek candidates who have a strong undergraduate preparation in psychology, including breadth of learning across the major subdisciplines and a solid foundation in psychological research.

Example 1:

A student is interested in pursuing a graduate degree in neuroscience. In EOU’s Psychology curriculum, the student might be advised to consider:

PSY 201, 202, 222, 223, STAT 327, PSY 303, PSY 335, 342, 343, 344, 357, 433, 442, 451 and the capstone course (460/461 or 403 recommended), along with relevant courses from other disciplines [campus students might consider substituting 330 for 344]

If you are interested in applied psychology

Students who are interested in applied psychology and careers such as counseling or social work should consider that many graduate programs in psychology, including Masters programs in counseling and clinical psychology, emphasize the scientist-practitioner model of training at the graduate level.  This training model emphasizes a background in scientific research for students training for applied practice. Successful applicants will have a strong undergraduate preparation in psychology, including breadth of learning across the major subdisciplines and a solid foundation in psychological research.  Experience in the community (for example, practicum) is also an advantage in preparation for these graduate programs.

Example 2:

A student is interested in pursuing a Masters degree in clinical or counseling psychology with an emphasis on marriage and family.   In EOU’s Psychology curriculum, the student might be advised to consider the following course sequence:

PSY 201, 202, 222, 223, STAT 327, PSY 303, 311, 343, 350, 360, 370, 424, 451, 473, and the capstone course ( 460/461 or 403 recommended ), along with relevant courses from other disciplines [online students might consider substituting 473 for 424]

Example 3:

A student is interested in interested in pursuing a Masters degree in Applied Behavior Analysis.   In EOU’s Psychology curriculum, the student might be advised to consider:

PSY 201, 202, 222, 223, STAT 327, PSY 303, 335, 342, 343, 350, 360, 424, 451, 453 and the capstone course ( 460/461 or 403 recommended ), along with relevant courses from other disciplines [online students might consider substituting 473 for 424]