The general functionality of our department
First-year psychology students are assigned to a college of liberal arts academic advisor. Then, from their second year on, they are assigned to a psychology-specific academic advisor. This helps advisors keep their advice major-specific.
Psychological Sciences class structure is built like a pyramid. The general/introduction courses (PSY 201 & 202) are designed to be brief introductions to the wide range of topics in psychology and are utilized as basic skill-building courses. From there, 300-level courses are designed for more in-depth coverage of the different fields in psychology; these are the classes where you will start to learn more about the type of psychology you might be interested in. 400-level courses are usually more specialized courses, often taught by professors who have received their doctorate in that field of study and have considerable experience and knowledge on that topic. Our department also has a Careers in Psychology (PSY 199) course that gives students the opportunity to interact with careers in psychology and takes a more in-depth look at what functioning in that career may look like.
I love psychology, but I don’t know what I want to do with it
That’s okay!! We totally understand, and you are not expected to have everything figured out right away! Psychological Sciences class structure is designed as a choose-your-own-journey where you can cultivate your own path based on your personal interests. We have a careers class you can take to experience more of the paths psychology has to offer. We also encourage you to ask questions and look into getting involved with psychology-based things. Exposure is one of the best ways to gain a deeper understanding of all of the possibilities in psychology.
How to engage with psychology-based things
There are many different ways to engage with psychology through clubs, research, internships, and attending office hours. There are two psychology clubs on the Corvallis campus, Psyched Out & Psi Chi. Psyched Out is open to all interested in psychology and participants. The club hosts a wide variety of events, such as movie nights, psychology trivia nights, research lab nights, CV training, grad school prep trainings, and many other activities for connecting with fellow psychology students. If you are interested in research, check out our psychology department lab page.