M.A. Program Requirements
32 hours of graduate credit including the following:
General
3 hours of cognitive core: PSYC 701 or equivalent
8 hours of quantitative and research methods: PSYC 611, 612
Human Factors/Applied Cognition Core
6 hours of specialized content: PSYC 530, PSYC 645
6 hours from 685, 734, 737, 766, or 768 (these may be repeated)
Electives
Thesis: 6 hours, with permission of advisor
Practicum: 6 hours, with permission of advisor
Additional hours of 734, 737, 766, 768
Other courses within or outside the department may be taken with advisor's approval 3 hours of core (PSYC 667, 701 or 703)
Additional information can be found in the Human Factors and Applied Cognition Student Handbook.
A typical schedule for a student planning to graduate in two years might look like this:
1st semester (Fall)
530 Cognitive Engineering (3)
611 Advanced Statistics I (4)
Elective – see below (3)
2nd semester (Spring)
645 Research methods in HFAC (3)
612 Advanced Statistics II (4)
Elective – see below (3)
3rd semester (Fall)
Elective 1 – see below (3)
Elective 2 – see below (3)
4th semester
Elective 1 – see below (3)
Elective 2 – see below (3)
The above is only a suggestion, and students may find that a different schedule might be more advantageous. However, since 530, 645, 611, & 612 are prerequisites to many courses, it is highly recommended that these be taken the first year. Note that 530 and 611 are only offered in the Fall and 645 and 612 are only offered in the Spring.
Electives (18 hours)
After the core courses (611, 612, 530 & 645), your remaining coursework will consist of electives (but see below for optional thesis and practica). The electives consist of:
Cognitive Core: 3 hours selected from PSYC 701, 766, or 768
Specialization courses: select 2 (6 hours) from the following:
PSYC 734 – Seminar in Human Factors/Applied Cognition
PSYC 737 – Psychology of Human-Technology interfaces
PSYC 766 – Advanced Topics in Sensation and Perception
PSYC 768 – Advanced Topics in Cognitive Science
Topics change every semester and courses can be repeated for credit with permission from advisor).
Remaining Electives (9):
Students may chose to take up to 6 hours of practica (see below) and/or up to 6 hours of thesis (see below). Alternatively, up to 9 hours of electives from within or outside the department, may be taken with advisor’s approval (The list changes every semester--see your advisor; past examples are listed on page 26 of the student handbook). Students can also take PSYC 890 Professional Issues as an optional elective (1-3 credits).
Optional Thesis
A thesis is not required for the MA degree. For those masters’ students who wish to pursue this option, however, the following policies apply. Up to 6 hours of thesis research (PSYC 798 and PSYC 799 combined) may be used as elective credits. Please see the HFAC student handbook for more information
Optional Practica (Psych 730)
The purpose of the practica (PSYC 730) is to provide learning experiences in the professional application of psychology and in conducting research in work settings (on-site practica) or under direct supervision of a faculty member (in-house practica).
Fulfilling the HFAC Practicum Requirements
Human Factors and Applied Cognition Doctoral students who lack professional work experience in an HFAC area are strongly encouraged to take 3-6 hours of practicum credit. Practicum credits must be completed in an Industrial or Government Laboratory. Although there are no formal course prerequisites for practicum placement, generally HFAC students are required to have been enrolled full time in the program for two semesters (or the equivalent) and to have obtained the permission of their graduate advisor.
See pages 39-41 of the student handbook for complete details about the Practica option.