Joint Honors Program

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Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) - Joint Honours Component Psychology(36 Credits)

    Offered by:Psychology
    Degree:Bachelor of Arts

Program Requirement:

Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behavior. The B.A.; Joint Honours Psychology Component (36 credits) provides students with an overview of psychological science, covering the core areas as well as select advanced courses. Students are required to take a 2-term research course and seminar; students also have the option to complete an additional research course (see Program Requirements for details). This program emphasizes practice in the research techniques and statistics used in graduate school and professionally later on. However, the Joint Honours Program is not as comprehensive as the B.A. or B.Sc. Honours Program, and does not give students the space to take the additional courses they may need for certain graduate programs in psychology or to complete the undergraduate credits in psychology as specified by the Ordre des Psychologues du Québec (which are required by some graduate psychology programs). Students must apply to the Joint Honours program; admission is selective.

Program Requirements

Students who wish to study at the Honours level in two Arts disciplines may apply to combine Joint Honours program components from two Arts disciplines. For a list of available Joint Honours programs, see "Overview of Programs Offered" and "Joint Honours Programs".

Joint Honours students should consult an adviser in each department to discuss their course selection.

Admission to the B.A. Joint Honours Component Psychology is highly selective. Typically, students apply to the B.A Joint Honours program at the end of U1; students may apply at the end of U2, although there are often fewer seats for students applying in U2 (also the B.A. Joint Honours program requirements must be completed within the remaining terms). To be eligible to apply to the B.A. Joint Honours in Psychology, students must have completed a minimum of 27 graded credits in the academic year prior to applying (fall and winter terms only). All applicants must have taken PSYC 204, PSYC 211, PSYC 212, PSYC 213, PSYC 215 and PSYC 305. Exceptional performance in these courses is a primary criterion for acceptance into the B.A. Joint Honours program. In addition to performance in these psychology courses, a minimum cumulative grade point average (CGPA) of 3.50 is required to apply. However, since enrolment is limited, the typical CGPA cut-off is ~3.75, although this varies from year to year depending on the applicant pool. Once in the B.A. Joint Honours program, students must obtain a GPA of 3.00 in the U2 year to continue in the B.A. Joint Honours program for U3. Students are also encouraged to continue to complete a minimum of 27 graded credits in their U2 and U3 academic years. This is also the minimum number of credits required to be eligible for fellowships and awards.

The application is available on the Psychology Department website at: https://www.mcgill.ca/psychology/undergraduate/current- students/research-opportunities/research-courses. The deadline is specified on the website. Candidates will be informed of the Department's decision via email before classes begin in September.

Awarding of the B.A. Joint Honours program will depend on both CGPA and a minimum grade of B in PSYC 380D1/PSYC 380D2 and PSYC 306. "First Class Honours" is awarded to students who obtain a minimum CGPA of 3.50 and a minimum grade of A- in PSYC 380D1/PSYC 380D2 and PSYC 306. "Joint Honours" is awarded to students with a minimum CGPA of 3.00 and a minimum grade of B in PSYC 380D1/PSYC 380D2 and PSYC 306.

In addition to the requirements of the B.A. Joint Honours Component Psychology, students must also complete all requirements of their other Joint Honours component.



    Program Prerequisites (0-6 credits)

    Students planning to enter the B.A. Joint Honours Psychology program, should have completed an introductory course in general psychology, biology and statistics at the CEGEP level. Otherwise, they can complete them in their first year of study at McGill University (see below).

    Introduction to Psychology or General Psychology in CEGEP is equivalent to PSYC 100 at McGill. Students who have not completed either of those courses are advised to take PSYC 100 in their first year.

    Students who have completed Human Biology or General 1or 2 in CEGEP would have the recommended biology background.
    Student who have not completed ones of those courses are advised to complete BIOL 115 or BIOL 111 or 112 during their first year.

    McGill Freshman students are recommended to complete the following courses in their U0 year:


    • PSYC 100 Introduction to Psychology 3 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer


    3 credits from:


    • BIOL 111 Principles:Organismal Biology 3 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer

    • BIOL 112 Cell and Molecular Biology 3 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer

    • BIOL 115 Essential Biology 3 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer


    Required Courses (33 credits)

    U1


    • PSYC 204 Intro to Psychological Stats 3 Credits*
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer

    • PSYC 211 Intro Behavioural Neuroscience 3 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer

    • PSYC 212 Perception 3 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer

    • PSYC 213 Cognition 3 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer

    • PSYC 215 Social Psychology 3 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer


    U1 or U2


    • PSYC 305 Statistics for Exper Design 3 Credits**
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer


    U2


    • PSYC 306 Research Methods in Psychology 3 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer

    • PSYC 380D1 Honours Research Project Sem 4.5 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer

    • PSYC 380D2 Honours Research Project Sem 4.5 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer


    U2 or U3


    • PSYC 439 Correlational Techniques 3 Credits
        Offered in the:
      • Fall
      • Winter
      • Summer

    *Advising note for PSYC 204: CEGEP students are exempt from PSYC 204 if they have completed, with a minimum grade of 75%, the following two courses: 1) Quantitative Methods and either 2a) Advanced Quantitative Methods or 2b) Statistics for Social Science. CEGEP students are also exempt from PSYC 204 if they have completed Probability & Statistics or Statistics with a minimum grade of 75%.

    Bachelor of Arts students exempt from PSYC 204 replace this course with 3 credits at the 300 level or above in Psychology (PSYC), Anthropology (ANTH), Linguistics (LING), or Sociology (SOCI).

    **Note: Students who wish to apply to the Joint Honours program in Psychology must complete the required courses above, including PSYC 305 in their U1 year to be eligible for admission. Also, all students must complete a minimum of 27 graded credits in the academic year prior to applying (fall and winter terms only). For additional information about applying to Joint Honours, please refer to the Joint Honours program description.


    Complementary Course (3 credits)

    3 credits in Psychology at the 400 or 500 level.



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