Arts Academic Plans

Honours Psychology provides opportunities for in-depth study of psychological theory and research. Students obtain a broad background in the diverse sub-areas of psychology, namely behavioural neuroscience, clinical, cognitive, developmental, and social, as well as a variety of specialized fields. Third and fourth year students have opportunities to study in small groups, to obtain hands-on laboratory training in specific content areas within psychology, to enrol in courses where they work one-on-one with faculty members, and to enrol in apprenticeship courses that provide practical field experience in applied settings.

Please refer to the Applying for a Psychology Major section.

Continuation in this academic plan requires a cumulative overall average of 60% and a cumulative Psychology average of 75%. Conditional standing may be granted for one academic term to students whose averages fall below these criteria.

Eligibility for graduation in the Honours Psychology (BA) academic plan includes successful fulfilment of the following requirements:

1. Appropriate Program-level requirements. See "Bachelor of Arts."
2. Psychology Plan-level requirements:
   • at least nine academic course units (18 courses) in Psychology with a minimum cumulative Psychology average of 75%, including:
     • PSYCH 101
     • Methodology Core – All of PSYCH 291, 292, 391
       (Note: PSYCH 291 and 292 must be completed in Year Two, and PSYCH 391 in Year Three.)
     • Discipline Core – All of PSYCH 207, 211, 253, 257, 261
       (Note: At least four of the five courses must be completed by the end of Year Two.)
     • two Third- or Fourth-Year Research Methods Courses including:
       1. one Natural Science Research Methods Course from PSYCH 392, 394, 396, 398, 483
       2. one Social Science Research Methods Course from PSYCH 393, 395, 397, 399, 484
       Notes:
       i) Normally, both of these courses will be completed in year three and students will take no more than one per term. Typically only one Research Methods Course is offered in the Spring term (e.g., PSYCH 394 or PSYCH 398).
       ii) Students who are not doing the Honours Thesis (PSYCH 499A/B/C) may substitute PSYCH 465 (Applied Apprenticeship) or PSYCH 467 (Human Resources Apprenticeship) for one of these two required courses.
     • one Honours Psychology Seminar in third or fourth year from PSYCH 453, 454, 455, 457, 458, 461, 462, 463, 485
     • two PSYCH courses from the following: PSYCH 304 through 380 (excluding PSYCH 323R), 438, 439, 481, 482 
     • four additional PSYCH courses to be taken at the 300- and/or 400-level (excluding PSYCH 323R)
       Note: For those who choose to do an Honours Thesis (optional), PSYCH 499A/B/C (worth 1.5 units) will count for three of these four PSYCH courses (see Notes below for further details regarding PSYCH 499)

See the respective sections for information regarding Honours Psychology Co-op as well as the Human Resources Management Specialization for Honours Psychology Majors.

Notes:

1. Please refer to the Psychology Undergraduate website (http://www.psychology.uwaterloo.ca/ugradprog/current/index.html) for course sequence information and class enrolment instructions.
2. Students who have not successfully completed an OAC Math course, 4U Math, Grade 12 Math in a province other than Ontario, or an approved equivalent will be required to take MATH 103 as a corequisite to PSYCH 291. Those required to take MATH 103 will take one (i.e., 0.5 academic course unit) fewer unspecified electives.
3. Regarding the "Social Science" courses for the Faculty of Arts Breadth requirements, Psychology Majors only require 1.0 academic course unit from this area in a discipline(s) other than Psychology.
4. Honours Thesis (PSYCH 499A/B/C):
   The Honours Thesis is recommended for Honours Psychology Majors who are a) considering graduate or professional programs that may require a completed honours thesis for admission, or b) who have a strong interest in, and commitment to, conducting original research. Please consult the Honours Thesis Handbook for further details regarding PSYCH 499 (www.psychology.uwaterloo.ca/ugradprog/current/course_info/
   PSYCH_499_Honours_Thesis_Handbook.html).
   Students who are doing the Honours Thesis may not substitute PSYCH 465 (Applied Apprenticeship) or PSYCH 467 (Human Resources Apprenticeship) for one of the Third-Year Research Methods requirements.
5. Residency Requirements:
   Students enrolled in academic plans in Psychology must successfully complete at least half of the total number of academic course units required in Psychology for their academic plan from UW with numerical grades. Please refer to the Admission section for the Faculty of Arts as well as the Psychology Undergraduate Student Handbook (www.psychology.uwaterloo.ca/ugradprog/UG_Handbook.html#residencyrequirements) for further details regarding the residency requirements.
6. Double Counting Rules: No more than three of the PSYCH courses for the Psychology Major can be used to satisfy course requirements in another individual academic plan (i.e., Major, Minor, or Option). Under no circumstances can an individual PSYCH course satisfy course requirements in more than two academic plans.