Honors


The Departmental Honors program is intended for the serious psychology student who seeks challenging course work and research training, along with the opportunity for individual mentoring by a faculty member. For more information about the program, please check out these Thesis Guidelines, or these Poster Guidelines if you are presenting your research at a conference or workshop. If you have additional questions, please look through these FAQs before meeting with one of the advisors listed below. Learn about our Departmental Honors Alumni.

Departmental Honors Faculty Advisors

  • Dr. Erik Cheries, Tobin 538, please see advising page, email 
  • Dr. Mariana Pereira, Tobin 535, office hours Wednesday 10:00-11:00, email
  • Dr. Joonkoo Park, Tobin 414, office hours Monday 9:00-10:00, email
  • Dr. Rebecca Spencer, Tobin 419, office hours Monday 1:00-2:00, email
  • Dr. Jeff Starns, Tobin 434, office hours Wednesday 9:30-10:30, email
  • Dr. Lori Astheimer, Tobin 539, hours please see advising page, email

Admission requirements:

  • To participate in Departmental Honors, students must apply to Commonwealth Honors College specifically for Psychology Departmental Honors.
  • Students will be informed about Departmental Honors admissions decisions directly from Commonwealth Honors College.

Course requirements:

Whether completing Commonwealth Honors College’s scholar requirements or not, receiving Psychology Departmental Honors requires:

  • 1 PSYCH honors course 300-level or higher with a minimum grade of B  
  • 1 PSYCH honors course 300-level or higher with a minimum grade of B+
  • PSYCH 499Y “Honors Research” with a grade of B or better (research supervisor must be a PBS faculty member)
  • PSYCH 499T “Honors Thesis” with a grade of B or better (chair of committee must be a PBS faculty member)

NOTE: PBS does not allow Independent Study Honors registrations and you cannot take an Honors Independent Study credit to add onto a regular 300-level psychology course and have it count as a Psychology Honors Course. Please see the FAQ page linked above if you are having trouble completing the psych honors course requirement.