Doctor or Philosophy in General Experimental Psychology (Health/Neuroscience)
About This Program
The Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology requires distinguished accomplishments in both scholarship and original research as well as a deep understanding of the strategic role of thoughtful research in the development of an empirical science. Although the student must meet the minimum requirements of a planned course of study, the ultimate basis for conferring the degree must be the demonstrated ability to do independent and creative work and the exhibition of a profound grasp of the subject matter of the field.
The specialization in Health/Neuroscience Psychology is designed to train researchers in health/neuroscience and behavior, working at the cutting-edge of interdisciplinary, biomedical and bio-behavioral investigation in areas such as pain, addiction, stress, psycho-immunology, memory, cancer and aging. Most research activity is based on the neurophysiological, bio-behavioral, or biopsychosocial model of health and illness.
Competencies
- Ability to Apply Research: graduates will demonstrate their advanced skills in translating psychological theory and research into everyday life applications.
- Critical Thinking Skills: graduates will be proficient in critically evaluating the adequacy of scientific research in psychology.
- Knowledge of Psychology: graduates will demonstrate their knowledge of psychological theory and research.
Admissions Criteria
There are no fixed criteria for admission to the MS or PhD programs in Psychology. Of course, the student is expected to have successfully completed the appropriate work prior to admission. In the case of the MS program, an undergraduate BA or BS degree is required. As calculated by the graduate school, a minimum grade point average of 3.0 in undergraduate work is expected for unconditional admission. For the PhD, a minimum of 30 graduate hours with a GPA of 3.0 or better as calculated by the Graduate School is required. Applicants with fewer than 30 graduate hours should contact the graduate advisor and see the section below entitled Masters in Passing. Beyond these minimal criteria, there is no single criterion that determines whether a positive or negative admission decision is made.
Our admissions focus is on seeking a positive indication of potential success in the program.
These indications include:
- A detailed examination of the student’s transcript. Grade point average per se is not weighed heavily as most candidates for admission have grade point averages greater than 3.0. Accordingly, we examine the course-work on the students’ transcripts as evidence of his/her research interests. Positive indicants of potential success in our program include greater than average coursework in the biological and physical sciences and mathematics. Similarly, evidence of experimental research previously undertaken is viewed as a predictor of future research productivity. For students interested in specialization in Industrial/Organizational (I/O) Psychology at the Master’s level, appropriate coursework in relevant background areas is taken into consideration.
- Letters of reference, in general, have little impact except where they offer evidence of commitment to experimental research (as in letters from an undergraduate research sponsor). Evidence of success in employment relevant to IO psychology will be considered for the Master’s degree in that area.
- The personal statement describing the applicant’s laboratory, field, or applied interests, career plans, and discussion of how the UTA program can serve to further these interests and plans will be examined for evidence of the appropriateness of the candidate to the UTA program.
- Finally, successful completion of a Master’s degree in another department is viewed positively even when the degree was received in an area outside of psychology. In this latter case, some conditions in terms of make-up coursework may be specified.
In summary, the department views its mission in the MS/ PhD program as to train students to be enthusiastic about conducting psychological research. Accordingly, we seek students who show aptitude in as well as motivation for research. Students interested in the terminal MS program in Industrial/Organizational Psychology will have their records examined for indicants of potential to succeed in industrial settings.
Admission steps:
- Submit Application and Pay Application Fee: Apply - Admissions - The University of Texas at Arlington
- Domestic Applicants: Graduate Students - Admissions - The University of Texas at Arlington
- International Applicants: International Graduates - Admissions - The University of Texas at Arlington
- Submit official transcripts from all 4-year institutions attended
- FOR NON-NATIVE ENGLISH SPEAKERS: If applicable, submit official English Language Test scores as determined by Graduate Admissions to demonstrate a sufficient level of skill with the English language to ensure success in your studies. Meeting the minimum admission requirements does not guarantee acceptance and programs may give preference to students with higher scores. Only scores submitted directly by ETS or IELTS to UTA are acceptable. UTA’s ETD Institutional code is 6013. See minimum score requirements for each test at the bottom of this section.
- This requirement will be waived for non-native speakers of English who possess a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited US institution OR for applicants who have graduated from secondary schools or post-secondary schools in the following countries and meet English language proficiency as indicated by the university catalog: Graduate Admissions | University of Texas at Arlington University Catalog. International applicants may still be expected to submit a test score of English language proficiency to be eligible for a graduate teaching assistantship.
- English Proficiency for Graduate Teaching Assistants: Before being appointed to an assistantship at UT Arlington, a student whose native language is not English must demonstrate acceptable skill with spoken English by providing a minimum score of 23 (OR 4.5 on the 6-point scale) on the Speaking portion of the TOEFL iBT exam OR a minimum score of 7 on the Speaking portion of the IELTS exam OR take and pass the UTA Developmental English course to meet this requirement. Only official scores provided directly to UT Arlington by ETS or IELTS are acceptable. The English proficiency requirement will be waived for non-native speakers of English who possess a bachelor's degree from an accredited U.S. institution.
- Submit an academic resume (CV) via SLATE.
- Submit a minimum of 3 recommendation letters via SLATE preferably from professors or employers.
- Submit your statement of purpose via SLATE. On average, most personal statements are 2-3 pages long, however, there is no page limit.
- This statement should cover laboratory field or applied interests, career plans, research experience, and how our graduate psychology program at UT Arlington can serve to further your interests and plans. PHD applicants will need to include information about their intended research specialization (a singular/specific focus) and one preferred faculty member. PhD applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the specific faculty member of interest prior to or during the application process. Please note that MS applicants are not required to list or include any reference to preferred faculty mentors.
- Please include a cover page with your personal statement that includes your name, UTA ID number, Program of Interest, and preferred faculty mentor except for MS programs. Your last name and page numbers should be on the header.
- Check your application status via SLATE. You may also email psychologydepartment@uta.edu if you have any questions OR issues submitting any departmental materials via SLATE.
English Language Test Score Minimums
TOEFL IBT (INTERNET-BASED)1
4 on 6-point scale or 79 on 120-point scale (6-point sectional scores of: 4.5 Writing, 4 Speaking, 4 Reading, 3.5 Listening or 120-point sectional scores of: 22 Writing, 21 Speaking, 20 Reading, 16 Listening)
TOEFL (COMPUTER-BASED)
213
TOEFL (PAPER-BASED)
550
IELTS
6.5 (Sectional score of: 7 Speaking)
DUOLINGO
100
1For the TOEFL score scale update:
https://www.ets.org/toefl/institutions/ibt/score-scale-update.html
Admission Status
As noted in the Graduate Catalog, there are several categories of admission in addition to unconditional admission to the Graduate Program in Psychology.
Unconditional Admission
An applicant who meets all requirements is normally considered for unconditional admission.
Probationary Admission
If an applicant does not evidence a majority of the positive indicators for the unconditional admission described above, they may, after careful examination of their application materials be given probationary admission. Probationary admission requires that the new student receive a 3.0 (B average) GPA or better in the first 9-12 hours of graduate course work at UT Arlington.
Deferred Admission
A deferred decision may be granted when a file is incomplete or when denial of admission is not currently appropriate.
Provisional Admission
An applicant unable to supply all documentation (including certified transcripts, GRE scores, letters of reference, and personal statement) prior to the admission deadline, but otherwise appears to meet admission requirements, may be granted provisional admission.
Denial of Admission
Applicants whose records in the aggregate do not show sufficient positive indications of potential success will be denied admission. Please note that not all "qualified" applicants are admitted. Successful admission depends upon the competitiveness of the applicant pool, the number of positions available, and the applicant's fit with the current research interests of the faculty.
Eligibility for Assistantships/Fellowships
Ph.D. students who wish to be considered for an assistantship should have their application and Department forms sent in by December 1 for the Fall Semester. Students unconditionally admitted to the program are eligible for scholarship and fellowship support. We currently have no funding available for the master's programs.
The criteria applied will be the same as those applied to admission decisions. To be eligible, candidates typically must: (1) be a new student; (2) have a GPA of 3.0 or higher in their last 60 undergraduate credit hours, plus any graduate credit hours as calculated by the Office of Graduate Studies; and (3) be enrolled in a minimum of 9 hours of course work in both long semesters (6 hours in the Summer) to retain their fellowships. Assistantship assignments are made by the Department Chairperson in consultation with the Associate Chair and the Graduate Advisors. Students may be eligible for other forms of support. Please refer to the Office of Graduate Studies for further information under Financial Aid Resources.
UT Arlington Graduates
Facilitated Admission of Outstanding UT Arlington Undergraduates
Students with extraordinarily strong undergraduate records at UT Arlington may receive advanced admission to the PhD program without having to pass through the normal application process. The following conditions must be met in order to qualify for advanced admission of outstanding undergraduates:
UT Arlington Bachelor's Degree
The student must have graduated from a commensurate bachelor's degree program at UT Arlington no more than one academic year prior to the semester for which admission to a graduate program is sought. A commensurate bachelor's degree program is one that is a normal feeder program for the master's degree or doctoral degree-bound program to which the student seeks admission. Undergraduate students in their final year of study are also eligible; in such cases, facilitated admission is a conditional upon a successful completion of the bachelor's degree.
Satisfactory GPA
The student's GPA must equal or exceed 3.5 in each of the following calculations:
- The grade-point average in the last 60 hours of study as calculated in the Office of Graduate Studies for admission purposes.
- All work completed at UTA to date.
The student's record will be assessed for strengths relevant to success in the program. All prospective facilitated admission applicants must also submit a personal statement and two (2) reference letters with the understanding that submitting the facilitated admission form does not guarantee admission into the program; all facilitated admission applicant's will be reviewed by committee the same as applicants applying via regular application.
Students who are accepted via facilitated admission will be admitted directly to graduate school without completing the application for admission or incurring an application evaluation charge. Students who believe they qualify for this program should contact the appropriate Graduate Advisor in the Department of Psychology.
Current Master of Industrial/Organizational Psychology Students
Students currently enrolled in the Master of I/O Psychology program who wish to be considered for admission into a PhD program must submit the Change of Program form for either Psychological Sciences or Health/Neuroscience and must follow the formal admission procedures as stated previously. Students must meet the criteria for admission to the PhD program which will be determined, in part, by the scholarly achievements accomplished as well as the fit between the student and faculty mentor.
Master's in Passing
Students who are applying to the PhD program without having earned a master's degree can apply as a degree-bound student and earn a master's in passing as a required milestone while working toward their PhD This will include foundational and core courses from our degree plan as well as 6 hours of thesis and 3 hours of research to earn the master's.
Curriculum Requirements
| Foundations | ||
| Complete the following with the first 24 hours of study. | ||
| PSYC 5110 | PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT | 1 |
| PSYC 5405 | ADVANCED STATISTICS I | 4 |
| PSYC 5407 | MULTIVARIATE DATA ANALYSIS | 4 |
| PSYC 5307 | RESEARCH METHODS | 3 |
| or PSYC 5324 | APPLIED RESEARCH DESIGN | |
| Select three from the following: | 9 | |
| COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY | ||
| BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE | ||
or PSYC 5334 | HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY | |
| SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY | ||
| LEADERSHIP IN ORGANIZATIONS | ||
| PSYC 5391 | RESEARCH IN PSYCHOLOGY (*Or a combination of 5191/5291 or 5600) | 3 |
| PSYC 6101 | GRADUATE STUDENT SEMINAR (Take until ABD) | 1 |
| Electives | ||
| Select two from the following: | 6 | |
| SEMINAR IN PSYCHOLOGY | ||
| HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY | ||
| BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE | ||
| PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY | ||
| HUMAN LEARNING AND MEMORY | ||
| NEUROPHARMACOLOGY | ||
| GROUP PROCESSES | ||
| SOCIAL AND PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT | ||
| HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY | ||
Any course approved by the Graduate Advisor (e.g., a graduate course in statistics, genetics, immunology, endocrinology, or other specialized biomedical topic available at UT Southwestern or another UT Arlington department). | ||
| In consultation with advisor, select additional hours sufficient to bring total to 75. | 29 | |
| Research Component | ||
| Select one of the following: | 6 | |
| THESIS (Students seeking the MS in passing should select this option.) | ||
| ADVANCED RESEARCH (take 2 sections if thesis milestone is waived) | ||
| Complete 9 disseration hours. | ||
| PSYC 6999 | DISSERTATION | 9 |
| or PSYC 6399 | DISSERTATION | |
| or PSYC 6699 | DISSERTATION | |
| or PSYC 7399 | DOCTORAL DEGREE COMPLETION | |
| Total Hours | 75 | |
Students with prior graduate work may waive hours from any of the above requirements (except dissertation hours) by a written request to the Graduate Studies Committee. The request should include a syllabus or other documentation showing that a prior course and one of our required courses are equivalent. Students should discuss course equivalency with the professor(s) who teaches the course(s) in question before submitting the request.
Students are expected to maintain a GPA at or above 3.0 to ensure the successful completion of the program. A grade of D is not considered to be acceptable at the doctoral level and if earned, the student risks being dropped from the program. Grades of C have been found to slow down adequate academic progress and should not be taken lightly. All students are expected to consult their faculty mentors if such grades are earned to see how the GPA can be improved.
Psychology recommends the following plan of study:
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| First Semester | Hours | Second Semester | Hours |
| Advanced Statistics I | 4 | Multivariate Data Analysis | 4 |
| Required Core Course | 3 | Required Core Course | 3 |
| Professional Development | 1 | Readings and Research/Graduate Student Seminar | 2 |
| Research and Reading | 1 | ||
| 9 | 9 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| First Semester | Hours | Second Semester | Hours |
| Required Core Course | 3 | Thesis OR Advanced Research | 6 |
| Adavnced Research OR Research and Readings/Graduate Student Seminar/Elective | 6 | Research Methods | 3 |
| 9 | 9 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| First Semester | Hours | Second Semester | Hours |
| Research and Readings/Graduate Student Seminar | 6 | Research and Readings/Graduate Student Seminar | 6 |
| Elective | 3 | Elective | 3 |
| 9 | 9 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| First Semester | Hours | Second Semester | Hours |
| Advanced Research | 6 | Dissertation | 6 |
| Research and Readings/Graduate Student Seminar | 3 | Research and Readings/Graduate Student Seminar | 3 |
| 9 | 9 | ||
| Fifth Year | |||
| First Semester | Hours | ||
| Dissertation | 3 | ||
| 3 | |||
| Total Hours: 75 | |||
Note: This is based on a 5-year (9 semester) program of study. Students may adjust the speed at which milestones are achieved in consultation with their mentor and pending the approval of course waiver petitions as voted by our GSC faculty and the final approval of the Associate Dean of Graduate Studies.
A doctoral student must pay non-resident tuition beginning the first long semester (Fall or Spring) in which a) the student has been enrolled previously as a graduate student for 14 or more long semesters, AND b) the student has accumulated more than 99 semester credit hours of graduate study at any Texas state university. Students exceeding both limits will not be eligible for assistantships supported by state funds.
Program Completion
Research Requirements
Research requirements include general expectations of student involvement in research throughout their graduate career as well as specific milestones that must be accomplished in order, including:
Holistic Diagnostic Exam (Qualifying Examination)
A holistic diagnostic exam will occur at the end of the student’s first year in the doctoral program with a public Research Progress Symposium (RPS) presentation. Following their RPS presentation, students will submit to their advisory committee a First Year Portfolio demonstrating their performance in five core doctoral student performance areas. The advisory committee will evaluate this portfolio and bring a recommendation to the graduate faculty for final discussion and evaluation. Students must be scored as “meets expectations” or “exceeds expectations” in all performance areas to pass the Holistic Diagnostic Exam.
Master's Thesis or Equivalency Paper
Progress toward the PhD degree requires the completion of a master's degree in a specialization in psychology or a "master’s equivalency paper".
Dissertation Proposal (Comprehensive Exam)
Students who pass their diagnostic examinations may continue in the PhD program after having a dissertation proposal approved by their dissertation supervising committee. The committee is formed by the student in consultation with his or her major advisor and the Graduate Advisor, and consists of at least five members, at least three of whom are from the psychology graduate faculty (additional members are optional). The oral presentation of the dissertation proposal satisfies the University requirement that a graduate student must take and pass a "comprehensive examination". This is the final step for the student to be admitted to candidacy for the PhD degree. The dissertation project is then carried out as approved, or as modified with prior approval of the committee members, and the dissertation is written. When a student has completed a draft of the dissertation that the primary mentor deems appropriate for his or her committee, a date for the oral defense is scheduled, and written drafts must be provided to committee members at least two weeks before this date.
Dissertation Defense
The PhD final oral examination (i.e., the Dissertation Defense) is conducted by the dissertation committee in a meeting that is open to any member of the University community and to guests. The first part of the examination is an oral presentation of the research and its findings. The second part is a closed examination and consists of specific detailed questions about the dissertation. Both the oral defense and the written dissertation must be passed.
For more details about the program's research requirements and student milestones, you are encouraged to refer to the psychology department's current Graduate Student Handbook.
Advising Resources
Prospective applicants for the Master of Science in Industrial/Organizational Psychology are welcome to reach out to the faculty MSIO program advisor for information regarding our graduate program. Current master students should reach out to have their intended courses approved for the upcoming semester.
Prospective applicants for the PHD in Experimental Psychology (psychological sciences) are welcome to reach out to the faculty program advisor for Experimental Psychology for information regarding our graduate program.
Prospective applicants for the PHD in Experimental Psychology (Health/Neuroscience concentration) are welcome to reach out to the faculty program advisor for Health/Neuroscience for information regarding our graduate program.
Location:
Industrial/Organizational Psychology
SWSH 405A
Psychological Sciences
SWSH 404Y
Health/Neuroscience
LS 503
Email:
psychologydepartment@uta.edu
Phone:
Industrial/Organizational Psychology
817-272-8881
Psychological Sciences
817-272-0746
Health/Neuroscience
817-272-5222