Requirements for a Master of Arts Degree in Psychology

Students must complete 10 three-credit courses as specified below, for a total of 30 credits, with a minimum GPA of 3.0 (See the Psychology Department policy on academic standing).

All students complete a capstone project as part of the program. The capstone project can take the form of analyzing and writing about an original or existing dataset, completing and writing a community-engaged project involving data collection, or writing an extensive systematic and conceptual review paper integrating literature. With the endorsement of a three member faculty committee, some students may elect to complete the capstone as a formal thesis project. At the end of the program all students present their projects as a poster presentation or talk.

Download the MA in Psychology Program Worksheet (PDF).

Courses

Two research and statistics courses are required of all students:

• Research Methods
• Statistics and Research Design

In addition, all students must complete two Psychology Core classes listed on the course descriptions page.

All students also must enroll in the courses Capstone I (Spring of their first year) and Capstone II (Fall of their second year). These courses help students prepare for and complete their Capstone projects. Consistent with their individual interests, students also select six additional courses from among the graduate courses offered by the Psychology Department.  With approval obtained in advance of enrollment, students may also take psychology-related graduate classes in other Graduate School departments at Rutgers–Camden, and use credits earned as electives to meet graduation requirements for the Psychology M.A. degree.

In rare instances, graduate students may enroll in psychology-related undergraduate classes at the 300 or 400 level, and count credits earned to meet graduation requirements for the Psychology M.A. degree.  This would require doing additional work above and beyond what is required for the undergraduate class, by arrangement with the instructor. To do this, students would also need to fill out a G Prefix Form.

In cases where there is an exceptionally compelling educational reason, students in the program may enroll in psychology-related graduate classes offered by another division of Rutgers or another university, and count credits earned to meet graduation requirements for our Psychology M.A. degree.  Approval to take such courses must be obtained from the Graduate Director and the Associate Dean of the Graduate School in advance of enrollment.

Students in the graduate program are expected to receive A or B grades in all coursework; two or more lower grades may result in dismissal from the program.  Good academic standing also requires evidence of progress toward completion of the capstone project 

Additional details about the graduate program and resources available to students can be found in the Psychology Graduate Student Handbook, which is available on the Psychology Graduate Program site on Canvas.

Visit the Graduate Program’s page about graduating, including the deadlines and forms that must be filled out.