Majors Guidebook

Two undergraduate degree programs are available in the Department of Psychological Sciences:

Bachelor of Arts, Psychology – The undergraduate psychology curriculum is designed to provide a core of knowledge of the subject matter in experimental, theoretical, and applied psychology. Sufficient curricular flexibility is provided to permit students to emphasize the acquisition of useful vocational and personal skills for later life and to prepare students for a graduate degree program in psychology, related fields, or both.

Bachelor of Science, Psychological Sciences – The bachelor of science degree in psychological science is designed to prepare students for graduate study in experimental, theoretical, or applied psychology. The bachelor of science degree therefore offers less flexibility than the bachelor of arts, instead emphasizing a heavy concentration in psychological science. Because this degree is intended to prepare students for graduate study, participation in undergraduate research via PSY 4000 is strongly encouraged.

Selecting your degree program as soon as possible will help you plan ahead and complete your degree on time. If you aren't sure which degree program you want to pursue, consult with an advisor.

General Degree Information

All degree requirements can be found in the University Catalog, an official publication of Texas Tech University. Students are encouraged to use their personalized DegreeWorks audit to view a comprehensive list of degree requirements and track their progress towards degree completion.

A few things to remember:

• All Psychology majors must select a minor by the time they reach 45 earned hours. Minors require a minimum of 18 hours. Courses applied to the minor are permitted to overlap with other degree requirements.
• Students must meet the Writing Intensive (WI) or Communication Literacy (CL) requirement as listed for the major in the student's assigned catalog year.
• Try to begin taking your foreign language classes during your sophomore year. There is some flexibility but, in general, foreign language should be started no later than your junior year.
• Transfer students majoring in the Department of Psychological Sciences must complete at least 15 credit hours in the major through Texas Tech.

Graduation Requirements

• All courses applied to major, minor, concentration, and adjunct requirements must have a grade of C or better.
• Only free electives that do not fulfill other degree requirements may be taken Pass/Fail.
• A minimum of 120 hours overall, 40 hours upper-level (3000 or 4000 level), and a TTU GPA of 2.0 are required to graduate with any degree.
• A minimum of 25% of applied hours must be from Texas Tech.
• A student's last 30 hours must be completed at Texas Tech University. Any exceptions to this policy must have prior written approval of the Academic Dean.
• Students must be registered for at least 1 hour at Texas Tech University during their semester of graduation.
• A student cannot graduate if they have a grade of I, X, or PR on their TTU transcript.
• If the student's catalog has expired, or will expire prior to their expected graduation, a new degree plan under the current catalog must be filed. A catalog is active for 7 calendar years.

Research and Service

Participation in undergraduate research and/or service is strongly recommended, particularly for students planning to attend graduate school. Interested students should contact an advisor or any of the faculty for more information.

Research activities may contribute to the completion of major and/or minor requirements through enrollment in PSY 4000.

• Up to six hours of PSY 4000 may be applied to the major in Psychology (B.A.); up to nine hours of PSY 4000 may be applied to the major in Psychological Sciences (B.S.).
• For students majoring in other departments, up to 3 hours of PSY 4000 may be applied to a Psychology minor. a total of 12 hours may be counted toward the degree.
• Internship experiences can be approved for course credit in PSY 4302, which may also apply to major and/or minor requirements.

Research and internship experiences are typically completed during a student's junior and senior years. PSY 1300 and instructor consent are required prior to taking PSY 4000, and PSY 2400 and 3401 are recommended.

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