Psychology Minor
The School of Psychological Science offers students a variety of educational avenues that provide the necessary tools for competency in, and appreciation for, psychology as a scientific discipline.
Many of our graduates will go straight into the workforce into areas such as human services, human resources, and educational assistants. Many graduates will also continue their education through professional schools such as law, medicine, or optometry. Others will engage in further study in business or in public administration. Some students will continue their study of Psychology at a school with a graduate program in one of the specialty areas of psychology.
In addition to classes whose contents span the many sub disciplines of psychology, the School of Psychological Science at Oregon State values the intellectual contributions of its students and offers a number of opportunities for research experience.
Contemplative Studies Minor
This minor combines courses from several areas to foster a scholarly understanding of contemplative practices and philosophies by studying them in the context of psychology, religion, history, health, and other academic areas. Often, courses feature first-person experience practicing contemplative techniques, adding a transformative complement to theory-based learning. A large research literature points to contemplative practice as having a variety of beneficial effects such as enhanced attentional ability, increased compassion, better physical and mental health, and access to personal insight. Other benefits include stress reduction, resiliency in the face of challenges, and improvements in relationships.
This program of study supports rigorous intellectual formation as well as consideration and development of the whole person: mind, body, heart, and world. Subtler aspects of human experience, such as non-dual, non-conceptual, direct, experiential wisdom, are explored. The minor invites students to inquire into some of life's most profound mysteries and questions: "What is the nature of consciousness? What happens after death? What supports well-being and a happy, meaningful life? What is the relationship between ethics and wisdom? How can contemplative insights be applied to our most pressing social and environmental problems?"
User Experience Research Minor
User experience and research focuses on the psychological aspects of the field of human’s interactions with computer technologies. User experience research is a subarea of Human Computer Interaction, which is “an interdisciplinary program that focuses on the study of the interaction between people and technology and how that technology impacts society, and combines disciplines within the fields of computing and information science (information systems, software engineering, artificial intelligence and design) and the behavior sciences (cognitive science, cognitive psychology, sociology, organizational psychology, and social psychology). Includes instruction in information technology, cognitive and behavioral sciences, and systems design.” [Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System]. Specifically, User Experience (UX) research focuses not on computing and information science, but cognitive science, cognitive psychology, sociology, organizational psychology, and social psychology, and experimental and statistical methods for testing psychological theories and hypotheses related to user experience.