The program accepts applicants for PhD only. There is no terminal Master of Arts Program although on route a Master of Arts degree is obtained for the doctorate.
Our Department is part of the School of Mind, Brain, and Behavior (MBB), and is housed within the College of Science, in keeping with its strong research-oriented approach and scientifically-derived knowledge base. Psychology is by its very nature interdisciplinary, and its faculty and students interact and collaborate naturally with other MBB programs and departments—Neuroscience, Cognitive Science, and Speech, Language and Hearing Science—as well as with other academic units across campus. The Psychology Department offers an exciting array of courses and research experiences and also provides many opportunities for students to serve in the broader University and Tucson community.
Our graduate Ph.D. program provides concentrations of study in three distinct (although interacting) program areas: Clinical Psychology; Cognition and Neural Systems (CNS); and Social Psychology. These graduate programs vary in specific contents and research methods, but all share basic goals that are compatible with our philosophy of training and the mission of our University as a Research I institution.
The department offers programs designed for students seeking completion of the Doctor of Philosophy degree with a major in psychology. Concentrations are available in Clinical Psychology (clinical neuropsychology, psychopathology and affective disorders, family and health psychology); Cognition and Neural Systems (neurobiology of learning, memory and aging, cognitive and computational neuroscience, neurophysiology, cognitive psychology, including emphases in perception, memory, psycholinguistics, decision making, problem solving and cognitive development, cognitive neuropsychology, consciousness studies, environmental cognition, and knowledge representation) and Social Psychology (the self, motivation, culture, personality, social cognition, prejudice and stereotyping, racial, ethnic, and gender identity, attitudes and persuasion, health and coping).
Our faculty members are engaged in leading edge research in a large number of areas, as indicated by the volume and impact of their publications and their prominence in other ways. Our research activities are fully integrated with our instructional activities. Only a small number of Ph.D. students are admitted each year, enabling students to work closely with faculty members.