Psychology links

Psychology Major at NIU

Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Science
Declaring Psychology as Your Major
Psychology Major Handbook

Undergraduate Psychology Degree Choices. If you are pursuing an undergraduate degree in Psychology at NIU, you must choose to get a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree or a Bachelor of Sciences (B.S.) degree. Course requirements within the Department of Psychology are the same for the B.A. and B.S. degrees, but there are substantial differences between the degrees with respect to required course work outside of the department. The specific requirements for each degree are highlighted below. Anyone considering a major in Psychology at NIU should download and read the complete Psychology Major Handbook.

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)

Be sure to check University and College of Liberal Arts and Sciences requirements for a B.A. degree. For example, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences requires two years of college-level foreign language credits (or four years of high school foreign language) for a B.A.

Department of Psychology requirements for the B.A.:

Download and print a B.A. worksheet

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Bachelor of Sciences (B.S.)

Be sure to check University and College of Liberal Arts and Sciences requirements for a B.S. degree.

Department of Psychology requirements for the B.S.:

  1. Students must choose between 3 groups of classes:
    • Group 1: Math 210, Math 211, Stat 301, and a CSCI course OR
    • Group 2: Math 229, Math 230, Stat 350, and a CSCI course OR
    • Group 3: Math 211, Stat 301, and a 7-9 hour lab sequence in Biological Sciences, Chemistry, or Physics
  2. Psyc 102 and Psyc 305 (must get a C or better in Stat 301 or Stat 350 as a prerequisite)
  3. Any 2 Psychology Lab courses
  4. 21 Psychology elective hours
    • 15 must be in 300-400 level courses
    • no more than 6 of the 21 hours may be in 100-200 level courses
    • 3 hours of Psych 485 (Independent Study) may be included as electives
    • credit for Psych 219 may not be applied toward a major in Psychology

Download and print a B.S. Worsheet

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Declaring Psychology as Your Major

In order to declare psychology as a major, you should make an academic advising appointment in the Psychology Department by calling 753-0372 or stopping by the Main Office in Room 400 of the Psychology Building. If after discussing it with your advisor you want to declare your major, you would complete a "Major Request" form. This form is turned in to the Psychology Department office. See Academic Advising for more information.

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Psychology Major Handbook

The Psychology Undergraduate Major Handbook contains a wealth of information for Psychology majors at NIU including detailed requirements and worksheets to document your courses taken and to plan for courses you would like to take. Please download and print that document here or pick up a copy from the Psychology Main Office.