Psychology

Students

The Mission of the Psychology Department

The vision of the Department of Psychology is summed up in one word: “Relevance”. The Department of Psychology, housed in a college serving one of the world’s most diverse urban regions, is committed to excellence in teaching, research, and service to the community. Our program is designed to provide students with a strong academic background in psychology, as well as to help them develop professional competence. Our students are encouraged to develop critical thinking skills, creative abilities, interpersonal skills, ethical values, and integrity in an inclusive community in which teaching and mentoring of students is valued. Our courses encourage scholarship, intellectual inquiry, professional achievement, and service to the community. Our students acquire many skills through fieldwork and service learning as well as involvement in research projects guided by our faculty. We encourage students to gain knowledge and comprehension of the theories, concepts, and empirical approaches used in psychology and their application to the human condition. Our program offers a broad spectrum of theoretical approaches including biological, developmental, individual and social systems as well as learning and cognitive processes.  As part of their academic training, our students gain knowledge and understanding of research methodology and the statistical analysis of empirical data in our core laboratory courses.  Through the Department’s commitment to applied social science research, our students obtain the critical core skills necessary to meet the needs of the region, as well as to be competitive in the multicultural market place as either members of the workforce, or as graduate students.