1. Sophomore & Junior Advising University of Alabama Psychology Department 2017

2. General Studies Requirements see Degreeworks for Core Designated Classes
1. Freshman Composition (3 – 6 hours)
EN 101 and EN 102 (6) or EN 103 or 104 (3)
2. FA, LIT, & HU (12 hours distributed as follows)
Fine Arts (3 hours Required)
Literature (3 hours Required)
Fine Arts or Literature or Humanities (6 hours)
3. HI & SB (social behavioral sciences – 12 hours distributed as follows)
History (3 hours Required)
Social/Behavioral Science (6 hours required)
History or Social/Behavioral Science (3 hours)
4. NS & MATH (11 or 12 hours distributed as follows)
Natural Science (MUST BE BSC, CH, or PH - 8 hours)
Math 110 or Higher (BS degree requires MATH 125)
5. CS or FL (4 – 8 hours)
Foreign Language 101 AND 102 or 103 (4 or 8 hours)
OR Computer Science (CS 102 PLUS two more classes)
6. Writing (6 hours; Satisfied by PY 391, 379, or PY 491 required for major).
A sequence is required in EITHER Literature or History (Satisfied by ANY TWO
Literatures or by Two Western Civilization (HY 101 AND 102) or Two US
Histories (HY 103 AND 104: Formerly 203 AND 204)

3. Major Requirements
At least hours in Psychology, to be composed of: PreReqs
PY 101 Introductory Psychology
PY 211 Elementary Statistics (with at least a C-) PY 101 or 105; Math 100
PY 321 Professional Issues
PY 355 Experimental Psychology PY 211 (C-)
PY 356 Research Lab PY 211 (C-)
PY 370 History and Systems PY 101 or 105
2 PY Writing courses (e.g., 379, 391, 491; at least one is PY 491) PY 355/356
An elective course ( level)
One course from 3 of the 4 areas listed below. At least 1 at the 400 level (400-level courses
require PY 355/356 as prereq):
Developmental Areas - PY 352, 365, or 461
Socio/Cultural Areas - PY 358, 368, or 372
Learning and Cognition - PY 361 or 470
Biological Bases of Behavior - PY 313 or 413
Ancillary Requirements: hours in Bio, Chem, or Physics

4. General Rules of Thumb
The suggested plan is just a recommendation – you do not have to follow it exactly. It is reasonable, for example, to switch the semesters that you complete Natural Science and Language. Or, take the HONORS equivalents of suggested CORE. It is reasonable to take fewer hours in a given semester if you plan to take summer classes or have AP credit for several hours. The goal of the suggested plan is to keep you on sequence to take required classes (e.g., MATH 100 is a pre-requisite for PY 211) and to allow you to plan to graduate in FOUR years. Overall, students can take about 20 – 25 hours that do not satisfy CORE, MAJOR REQUIREMENTS, or MINOR REQUIREMENTS (these are Electives). Note that: Some of these classes are your pre-requisites for CORE such as CS 102, MATH 100. Some MINORS (e.g., Business) have MANY pre-requisites that are treated as electives.

5. Suggested Plan First Year
General Plan for 1st year:
Take MOSTLY core classes.
Take ONE Psychology class (PY 101 or PY 105)
Take one or two electives and find a possible minor (all A&S students need EITHER a minor or second major).
Take at least MATH 100 (to be eligible to take PY 211 in Sophomore year).
Suggested Academic Plan Year 1
Semester 1 Semester 2
EN EN 102
PY Fine Arts (e.g., MUS 121)
BSC, CH or PH (Natural Science I) BSC, CH, or PH (Natural Science II)
MATH 110 or 110 (by Placement) MATH 110 or SB II (e.g. HD 101)
HY 101, 102, 103, or HY for sequence or ELECTIVE

6. Suggested Plan Second Year
General Plan for 2nd year:
Complete most core classes.
Take TWO Psychology classes (PY 211 and PY 300 Level like PY 352 or 358)
Consider PY 355 and PY356
Find a possible minor and take two classes that satisfy the minor.
DECIDE IF YOU ARE ELIGIBLE FOR THE PY DEPARTMENT HONORS PROGRAM AND APPLY IN THE SPRING.
Suggested Academic Plan Year 2
Semester 1 Semester 2
Literature 1 (EN 205 – 210) Literature for Sequence or HU I
PY PY 355
CS 102 OR FL 101 or FL PY 356
Minor CS 202 or 285 OR FL 102
PY 300 level area course HU II or SB3 III (As Needed – Check Core)
PY Minor 2

7. Suggested Plan Third Year
General Plan for 2nd year:
Complete the rest of your core classes.
Make sure to take PY 355 and PY 356 if you haven’t already
Finish 300-level area requirements
Take PY 370
Take a 400 level area requirement (PY 355 & 356 is a pre-req)
Continue to take minor classes.
Suggested Academic Plan Year 3
Semester 1 Semester 2
Finish Gen Ed requirements Finish Gen Ed requirements
PY 300 level or PY 355 & 356 PY 400 level course from an area
PY Minor
Minor Minor
Elective PY 391

8. Using Degreeworks Basic Points
Top panel reports COMPLETED hours and GPA. Check MAJOR, MINOR, and DEGREE information. Change through mybama is incorrect.
Ignore the Degree Progress information that follows and go to the Legend. A green box with a check means you have taken and passed coursework to satisfy the requirement, a blue box with a tilda (~) means you are taking a class that will satisfy the requirement once passed, an empty red box means you need to register for a class that will satisfy the requirement. You take classes to fill the empty red boxes.
ALL UNIVERSITY AND COLLEGE REQUIREMENTS ARE LISTED SEPARATELY. MANY COURSES SATISFY MULTIPLE REQUIREMENTS.
PY 491 satisfies the “W” requirement for core, the Seminar requirement for psychology, 90 hours in A&S coursework for the College, and the Upper Level coursework requirement for the University.
HOWEVER, a single course cannot satisfy both a MAJOR requirement and a MINOR requirement.

9. Using Degreeworks Selecting Courses
Each Block of requirements has a separate listing (for example, General Education – Arts & Sciences)
Status of Completion and the Requirement are on the Left.
Completed courses that partially or fully satisfy the requirement are list middle of the page or the words “Still Needed” appear in red.
If “Still Needed” appears – then courses you can use to satisfy the requirement are printed next (or a link to those courses if the list is too long). You can click on the course to find pre-requisites and a course description. Select a course from the list.
Always check for “Ancillary Requirements” in the major or minor. Cores that satisfy COLLEGE requirements ,may not be sufficient to satisfy MAJOR requirements.
For example, PSYCHOLOGY requires that your sciences be from BSC, CH, or PH and the College does not.

10. Transfer Hours and Course Substitutions
If you have completed statistics in another department (e.g., ST 260, BER 345, CJ 381), you will not be required to take PY 211. HOWEVER: 1. You will need to get a pre-requisite permit to register for PY 355/356 for the semester you intend to register (they are only good for one semester). You can request one through 2. You must substitute another PY course for PY 211 to reach the required hours in the major. We do not allow courses taken in other departments to count in the MAJOR. Transfer Credit is determined by the College – if you have questions you must start with them (200 Clark Hall). They will contact the department if assistance is needed. Courses taken at a two year college MAY NOT transfer as equivalent to a 300 or 400 level course at UA. For example, Abnormal Psychology at a junior college may transfer as PY 197 (elective in Psychology) but NOT as PY 358.

11. Other Requirements to Consider
120 Hours are Required for Graduation
90 Hours of Coursework must be in A&S Disciplines.
36 Hours must be 300/400 level courses – including at least 12 hours in the major and 6 hours in the minor.
NO MORE THAN 4 Activity Credits (Check catalog for listing).
NO MORE THAN 42 Hours in your Major can apply to graduation.
Cumulative GPA, Major GPA, and Minor GPA must ALL be at least 2.0.
All of these requirements can be found on Degreeworks (in the small print).

12. BA vs BS Degree
The BA requires MATH 110 or MATH 112. The BS requires MATH 125 (you will probably need MATH 112 and 113 first). Which do you do? Most PY majors earn a BA. Most graduate programs treat them the same. If you do not like MATH, a BA is fine for most graduate programs. THE EXCEPTION is that if you are interested in NEUROSCIENCE or HEALTH SCIENCE programs, you need to have a lot of SCIENCE and MATH in your background. For these programs think BS with Biology for Majors and Organic Chemistry as important pre-requisites for your graduate application.

13. Honors Program in Psychology
Research Based Honors Program for Select Juniors in Psychology (2 year Program). Task is to complete and Honors Thesis with a Faculty Mentor. Application is made Feb/March for the next year’s entering Junior class. Requirements: 9 hours of coursework in psychology (including PY 101, PY 211, and a 300-level course) to be completed by the end of the semester you apply for admission to the psychology department honors program. Application requires a 3.5 GPA in psychology coursework and a 3.0 GPA overall. Meeting these minimum requirements does not guarantee admission. In fact, the median GPA in the last two years has been about 3.75.

14. Special Concentrations
Pre-Medical Professions – Take BSC I and II for Majors, MATH 112, 113 (or 115), and 125 (and your CHEM Classes) Pre-Physical Therapy - Take BSC I and II for Majors, MATH 112, 113 (and your CHEM Classes) Pre-Occupational Therapy - Take BSC I Majors, BSC 215 & 216, CH 101 or PH 101, MATH 112, 113 ***See Pre-Health Advisors for additional specific requirements. Pre-Law – Suggested courses include PSC 101, PHL 101 and 200, History Classes, EC 110 and 111, COM 123, etc. ***See Pre-Law Advisors for specific requirements.

15. Proof of Completion – Request for Registration Clearance for Fall 2016
Please copy and complete the following: I have reviewed the PY Department advising tutorial and do not require an advising appointment: Name _______________________________ CWID ______ Date ______ Send via to