Pathways

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Psychology Pathways & Curriculum Planner

What makes majoring in psychology at USF unique is that it prepares you for work in many different fields while providing you with a global, multicultural, and diverse perspective on human thought and behavior. Psychology majors can choose from multiple career tracks some of which are suggested below, with course offerings from within the department and other departments throughout USF:

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Strongly recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  •  Abnormal Psychology (PSYC 313)
  •  Psychology Practicum (PSYC 396)

Recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Clinical Psychology (PSYC 321)
  • Social Psychology (PSYC 310)
  • Theories of Personality (PSYC 318)
  • Cognitive Psychology (PSYC 319)
  • Learning and Memory (PSYC 326)
  • Psychology of Sexuality (PSYC 331, diversity course)
  • Any other diversity course (PSYC 301, 302, 305, 307, 316, 317, 335)
  • Advanced Research Topics/Methods (PSYC 387/388), for example: 
    •    ART: Evidence-Based Therapies
    •    ART: Religion, Spirituality, & Health
    •    ART: Cognitive Neurotherapies
    •    ART: Neuropsychology of Aging
    •    ARM: Clinical Neuroscience

Experiences beyond the classroom:

  • Research lab involvement
  • Psi Chi involvement
  • Involvement in the Psychology Honors program
  • Work with companies providing behavioral therapy services
     

Strongly recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Child Development (PSYC 312)
  • Child Psychopathology (PSYC 328)
  • Psychology Practicum (PSYC 396)

Recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Adolescent Development (PSYC 354)
  • Child Maltreatment (PSYC 369)
  • Family Psychology (PSYC 325)
  • Cognitive Psychology (PSYC 319)
  • Any other diversity course (PSYC 301, 302, 305, 307, 316, 317, 335)
  • Advanced Research Topics/Methods (PSYC 387/388)
    • Any course with a focus on methods used to conduct psychological research with children and advanced topics focused on in-depth analyses of children’s or adolescents’ development (e.g., Social and Moral Development) 

Outside of the department consider taking courses covered under the Child and Youth Studies minor. 


Experiences beyond the classroom for those interested in a PhD or work in school or advocacy settings:

  • Research lab involvement in labs that conduct work with children (at USF or UCSF)
  • Psi Chi involvement
  • Involvement in the Psychology Honors program
  • Service work in school settings and tutoring services for school age students
  • Work with companies providing behavioral therapy services for children
     

Strongly recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Social Psychology (PSYC 310)
  • Cognitive Psychology (PSYC 319)
  • Adulthood and Aging (PSYC 339)
  • Generations to Generations (PSYC 334)

Recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Learning and Memory (PSYC 326)
  • Psychology of Prejudice (PSYC 302)
  • Any other diversity course (PSYC 302, 305, 307, 316, 317, 331, 335)
  • Psychology Practicum (PSYC 396)
  • Health Psychology (PSYC 322)
  • Advanced Research Topics/Methods (PSYC 387/388)
    • Any course with a focus on methods used to conduct psychological research with aging adults and advanced topics focusing on aging populations.

Outside of the department, consider taking courses covered under the Gerontology minor.


Experiences beyond the classroom for those interested in a PhD or working with aging populations:

  • Research lab involvement in labs that conduct research in aging population
  • Psi Chi involvement
  • Involvement in the Psychology Honors program
  • Get involved in the Fromm Institute for Lifelong Learning at USF 
  • Seek service and work within nursing homes and geriatric research at UCSF or Veterans Hospital

Strongly recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Cognitive Psychology (PSYC 319)
  • Learning and Memory (PSYC 326)
  • Additional courses in the Neuroscience minor
  • Intro to Data Science with R (BSDS 100)
  • Advanced Research Topics/Methods (PSYC 387/388)
    • Any course with a focus on cognition and/or neuroscience (e.g., Myths and Mysteries of the Brain, the Creative Brain, How Technology Shapes Thought, Sensation & Perception, Cognitive Neurotherapies, Neuropsychology of Aging, Clinical Neuroscience

Recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Social Psychology (PSYC 310), especially for those interested in social cognitive neuroscience.
  • Human Neuropsychology (PSYC 351)
  • Intro to Lang & Ling Theory (INTD 365)
  • Any PSYC diversity course (PSYC 301, 302, 305, 307, 316, 317, 331, 335). There is growing emphasis on cognition and neuroscience across diverse populations, so taking diversity classes can be a way to set yourself apart, and be on the cutting edge of these fields.

Experiences beyond the classroom for those interested in a Ph.D.:

  • Research lab involvement in labs that conduct neuroscience research (USF or UCSF)
  • For graduate programs in cognitive and neuroscience, the expectation is that you be able to code your own statistical analyses to give greater flexibility in the analyses you do. If you do not have a programming background, a good way to get started is to learn Jamovi, which does not require programming. A free download of Jamovi can be found here. Resources and tutorials on how to use Jamovi are coming soon. Jamovi is built on top of a programming language called R, which is commonly used in cognitive and neuroscience research. If you cannot take Intro to Data Science with R (BSDS 100), you can download R for free, and there are also many free online resources and tutorials (e.g., DataCamp, R for Data Science).
  • Psi Chi involvement
  • Involvement in the Psychology Honors program
     

Strongly recommended beyond the foundational courses:

  • Social Psychology (PSYC 310)
  • Forensic Psychology (PSYC 324)
  • Theories of Personality (PSYC 318)
  • Learning and Memory (PSYC 326)

Recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Cognitive Psychology (PSYC 319)
  • Abnormal Psychology (PSYC 313)
  • Psychology of Prejudice (PSYC 302)
  • Any other diversity course (PSYC 301, 305, 307, 316, 317, 331, 335)
  • Advanced Research Topics/Methods (PSYC 387/388)
    • Any course with a focus on social psychological methods and topics covering social justice, morality, social inequalities (e.g., Social and Moral Development, Politics and Mass Emotions) 

Outside of the department, consider taking courses covered under the Criminal Justice minor or Legal Justice minor.


Experiences beyond the classroom for those interested in a PhD:

  • Research lab involvement in labs that conduct relevant research 
  • Psi Chi involvement
  • Involvement in the Psychology Honors program
  • Engage in service with law enforcement agencies or legal services
     

Strongly recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Social Psychology (PSYC 310)
  • Theories of Personality (PSYC 318)
  • Organization and Group Processes (PSYC 327)
  • Cross-Cultural Psychology (PSYC 307) or
  • Multicultural Psychology (PSYC 305)

Recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Cognitive Psychology (PSYC 319)
  • Careers in Psychology (PSYC 309)
  • Learning and Memory (PSYC 326)
  • Psychology of Prejudice (PSYC 302)
  • Psychology of Ethnic Groups (PSYC 305)
  • Adulthood and Aging (PSYC 339)
  • Psychology Practicum (PSYC 396)
    • Advanced Research Methods/Topics (PSYC388/387): Any course with a focus on social psychological methods and topics covering diversity, learning, and motivation (e.g., How Technology Shapes Thought, Measuring Creativity) 

Outside of the department consider adding a Humanistic Management minor. Additional relevant courses to consider:

  • Management and Organizational Dynamics (BUS304)
  • Systems in Organizations (BUS 308)
  • Human Resource Management (BUS 342)
  • Emotional and Cultural Intelligence (BUS 448)
  • Professional Power and Influence (BUS 344)
  • Global Virtual Project Teams (BUS 345)
  • Negotiation and Critical Convers (BUS347)
  • Managerial Decision Making (BUS 348)
  • Advanced Team Dynamics (BUS 445)
  • People Analytics (BUS 446)

Experiences beyond the classroom for those interested in a PhD:

  • Research lab involvement in labs that conduct relevant research 
  • Psi Chi involvement
  • Involvement in the Psychology Honors program
  • Seek internship within human resources departments
     

Strongly recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Social Psychology (PSYC 310) 
  • Cognitive Psychology (PSYC 319)
  • Learning and Memory (PSYC 326)
  • UX Design for Non-Majors (CS 283) 
  • Computing, Mobile Apps, and Web (CS 107)

Recommended courses beyond the foundational courses:

  • Theories of Personality (PSYC 318)
  • Additional diversity courses beyond the one required for the major (PSYC 301, 302, 305, 307, 316, 317, 331, 335)
  • Courses in the Organizational Dynamics and Human Resources Pathway
  • Advanced Research Topics/Methods (PSYC 387/388)
    • Any course focusing on advanced statistical skill development and analyzing big data, but also those covering social or cognitive psychology issues (e.g., Social Influence, Sensation and Perception, How Technology Shapes Thought, Measuring Creativity) 

Also consider taking courses covered under the Data Science major. Some relevant courses include: 

  • Introduction to Data Science with R (BSDS 100)
  • Elementary Linear Algebra (MATH 230)
  • Probability with Applications (MATH 370)
  • Statistics with Applications (MATH 371)
  • Introduction to Programming I (CS 110)


Experiences beyond the classroom for those interested in working in UX/UI: For those interested in careers in this field, a Master’s degree or Ph.D. in fields including Social Psychology, Cognitive Science/Neuroscience, or Computer Science with emphasis on UX/UI, human factors, and/or data science is important. You do not necessarily need a graduate degree to get started work in these areas, and some work experience in the field may make you a more attractive candidate for graduate programs. Here are some ways to prepare yourself for work in the field and/or graduate programs: 

  • Research experience in labs that use advanced statistics/data science/analytics with large data sets (“big data”), conduct qualitative research on user interface/user experience, and/or conduct consumer behavior research
  • Consider a UX/UI bootcamp (these are typically 24 weeks at e.g., UC Berkeley extension)
  • Participate in hackathons/design challenges to gain experience working with interdisciplinary design teams (e.g., USF Sustainability Design Challenge)
  • Psi Chi involvement
  • Involvement in the Psychology Honors program
     

Careers that cross multiple disciplines are also an option. Feel free to create your own psychology pathway by merging across several majors and minors.

Set up a meeting with your faculty advisor to talk through what you are thinking!