Department of Psychology

Admission Requirements

All application materials must be submitted by January 5 for consideration for admission for the following fall semester. Admission is made only for fall semester.

A minimum of 15 undergraduate semester hours or the equivalent of psychology courses including basic statistics and an upper level laboratory course emphasizing the experimental method, data collection, statistical analysis, and report writing are required. Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores for the verbal, quantitative, and analytical writing sections are required. The Advanced GRE in psychology is recommended for all applicants. It is required for all applicants applying for a teaching assistantship. An admission decision will not be made without these scores. Applicants must complete both Graduate College and departmental application forms, submit three letters of recommendation, and provide transcripts for all undergraduate and any graduate course work they have completed. The Departmental Application Form requires a statement of purpose and an indication of the program and, where appropriate, the area of concentration within the program to which the applicant is applying. In making decisions on admission, the faculty not only consider evidence of academic and professional potential, but also the availability within the department of resources to support the applicant's interests. In some instances interviews with applicants may be required.

General Program Information

PSYC 8000 is required of all graduate students in psychology during their first semester. The remainder of the course work is elective but should be planned in consultation with the student's academic advisors. The UNO Department of Psychology supports emphasis within the MA program in the following areas: quantitiative, comparative/physiological, cognitive, social/personality, developmental, school, and industrial/organizational psychology. Final approval of a student's plan of study resides with the advisors, the department, and the Graduate College. Half of the course work applied to an MA must be in courses which are open only to graduate students (8--0).

Students are strongly encouraged to limit employment to 20 hours per week, including any teaching assistantship. Students must consult with their advisor prior to accepting employment in excess of 20 hours per week.

Comprehensive Examination Requirements for all Master's Degree Programs in Psychology

The comprehensive examination must be completed before a student can enroll for thesis or practicum credit or form a thesis or practicum committee. The comprehensive examination required for the master of arts and master of science degrees is met by fulfilling two criteria listed below. Note: these are minimum requirements and additional requirements may be imposed by faculty in a particular subdiscipline of psychology (e.g., industrial/organizational psychology).

  1. Obtaining a score of at least 600 on the Advanced Psychology Test of the GRE. (NOTE: not required for the School Psychology program ).
  2. Completion of the required four proseminar courses (one from each proseminar course group) with a grade of "B" (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) or higher in each course.

Departmental proseminar requirements for all master's degree students are: one statistics proseminar (from Group 3), and three other proseminars from Groups 1 and 2, with at least one from Group 1 and at least one from Group 2. Specific areas of concentration may have additional proseminar requirements.

Group 1

  • PSYCH 9210 Proseminar: Sensation and Perception
  • PSYCH 9230 Proseminar: Behaviorial Neuroscience
  • PSYCH 9240 Proseminar: Comparative Psychology
  • PSYCH 9040 Proseminar: Learning
  • PSYCH 9070 Proseminar: Cognitive Psychology

Group 2

  • PSYCH 9430 Proseminar: Personality
  • PSYCH 9440 Proseminar: Social Psychology
  • PSYCH 9560 Proseminar: Developmental Psychology

Group 3

  • PSYCH 9010 Proseminar: Statistical Methods I
  • PSYCH 9020 Proseminar: Statistical Methods II

When an applicant for admission has a score of 600 or more on the GRE Advanced Test in Psychology, and has an excellent grade in an undergraduate course similar to one of the proseminars in Group 1 or Group 2, the Graduate Program Committee may approve another graduate course for one proseminar if recommended by the faculty in the student's disciplinary area. Students still must take at least one proseminar from each group. Application for substitution must occur in the student's first semester.

Special Performance Quality Rule

If at any time two grades of "C" (2.0 on a 4.0 scale) in graduate courses become a matter of record, a graduate student in the Department of Psychology will be placed on departmental probation. An unexecused grade of "W" in a proseminar course will be considered equivalent to a grade of "C" for purposes of this policy. An excused "W" must be approved by the chair of the department of psychology. Students placed on this probation will forfeit any departmental graduate assistantship they may have and any approved programs of study will be subject to re-evaluation and change. Before registering for additional courses, a student placed on probation must, with the assistance and approval of his/her advisor, submit a plan for remediation of his/her academic problems, and have that plan approved by the Graduate Program Committee. The Graduate Program Committee will review and, if appropriate, modify the plan. Further, any enrollment in graduate courses must be approved by the Graduate Program Committee. The student will remain on departmental probation until the Graduate Program Committee approves termination of probation status.

Certificate in Human Resources and Training

In conjunction with the the department of Business Administration and the School of Communication, the Department of Psychology is offering a Certificate in Human Resources and Training. For specific requirements, please go to Human Resources & Training Certificate.