Psychology (BA)

Print Degree Planner (opens a new window) |

Psychology, B.A.

Offered by the Department of Psychology , College of Arts and Sciences .

Admission to the Program

Formal admission to the major requires departmental approval.

University Requirements

120 credit hours with minimum 2.00 cumulative GPA (Undergraduate Academic Regulation 2 )
Completion of all requirements for a major (Undergraduate Academic Regulation 9 )

AU Core Requirements

Completion of AU Core foundation requirements (Undergraduate Academic Regulation 8.2-8.6 )
Completion of AU Core Habits of Mind requirements (Undergraduate Academic Regulation 8.7 )
Completion of AU Core integrative course requirements (Undergraduate Academic Regulation 8.8-8.11 )

For additional information, see AU Core Curriculum .

Major Requirements

41 credit hours with grades of C or better, including at least 18 credit hours at or above 300-level
- No more than a combined total of 6 credit hours of PSYC-390 Independent Reading Course in Psychology (1-6) , PSYC-391 Internship in Psychology (1-6) , and PSYC-490 Independent Study Project in Psychology (1-6) may be applied to the major
- No more than a combined total of 6 credit hours of PSYC-391 Internship in Psychology (1-6) and PSYC-491 Psychological Internship Capstone (3) may be applied to the major

Course Requirements

Required (6 credit hours)

Statistics (4 credit hours)

Complete 4 credit hours from the following:

Research Methods (3 credit hours)

Complete 3 credit hours from the following:

Bio-Psychology (3 credit hours)

Complete 3 credit hours from the following:

Learning and Cognition (3 credit hours)

Complete 3 credit hours from the following:

Society and Psychology (3 credit hours)

Complete 3 credit hours from the following:

Health and Development (3 credit hours)

Complete 3 credit hours from the following:

Capstone (3 credit hours)

Complete 3 credit hours from the following:

Note: No more than a combined total of 6 credit hours of PSYC-390 , PSYC-391 , and PSYC-490 will apply toward fulfilling major requirements. No more than a combined total of 6 credit hours of PSYC-391 and PSYC-491 will apply toward fulfilling major requirements.

Experiential Learning (2 credit hours)

Complete 2 credit hours from the following:

Electives (11 credit hours)

Note: No more than a combined total of 6 credit hours of PSYC-390 , PSYC-491 , and PSYC-490 will apply toward fulfilling major requirements. No more than a combined total of 6 credit hours of PSYC-391 and PSYC-491 will apply toward fulfilling major requirements.

11 credit hours from PSYC coursework

Combined Psychology (BA) and Psychology (MA)

American University offers students the opportunity to earn both undergraduate and graduate degrees through its combined bachelor’s/master’s programs. See Admission to a Combined Bachelor’s / Master’s Program and Combined Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees for more information.

In addition to meeting the minimum university requirements for combined bachelor’s/master’s programs:

Students must have a minimum 3.00 grade point average in psychology and statistics courses and must have completed at least half of the credit hours required for the Psychology (BA), including STAT-202 Basic Statistics (4) , before applying to the program. Students must submit a completed graduate application form, Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores for the General examination (Verbal, Quantitative, and Analytic), two letters of recommendation, and copies of all college transcripts. Undergraduate students may apply up to 9 credit hours of approved graduate-level coursework to satisfy the requirements for both degrees
A minimum of 18 credit hours completed in residence in graduate status after the undergraduate degree has been awarded. Students must finish the master’s degree requirements within three years from the date of first enrollment in the master’s program