Curriculum and Degree Information
In this intellectual and practical context, we have crafted our training model for a rigorous and exciting five-year Ph.D. program. Student support includes a combination of teaching fellowships and research assistantships. Twenty-two credits are taken during the first year, including required courses with a focus on Developmental Psychology Theory and Developmental Psychology Research Methods, culminating in a first doctoral exam at the end of the year. Foundational courses continue into the second year, when students also begin to take electives across areas for variety of careers as Developmental Psychologists. By the end of the 2nd year, successful students will have prepared and presented an original research project and completed coursework. The third year in the program typically involves taking a second doctoral exam, and proposing a dissertation research project, to be carried out during the fourth year, written and defended during the fifth year. From the first year, courses and individual advisement involve students in funding, organization, conference, and publication venues.
The following are the formal requirements of The Graduate Center, CUNY and the Developmental Psychology training area for the Ph.D. in Psychology, which must be completed within eight years of matriculation:
60 credits (including all required courses) with an overall average GPA of B or better. At least 30 of these credits must be taken at CUNY.
Courses [Current students and faculty can access examples of syllabi here: DP Course Syllabi]
| Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| PSYC 72010: Proseminar in Developmental Psychology I (Fall semesters of the first 2 years) | 1 + 1 |
| PSYC 72000: Developmental Psychology I | 3 |
| PSYC 79200: Research Methods & Ethics in Psychology, or equivalent Ethics in Psychology course | 3 |
| EPSY 705: Statistics I | 3 |
| PSYC 72020: Proseminar in Developmental Psychology II (Spring semesters of the first 2 years) | 1 + 1 |
| PSYC 72100: Developmental Psychology II | 3 |
| PSYC 80103: Childhood and Youth Studies: Approaches and Methods | 3 |
| EPSY 706: Statistics II | 3 |
| PSYC 80260: Second Year Research Seminar I | 3 |
| PSYC 80270: Second Year Research Seminar II | 3 |
| 2 Methods Courses (e.g. Linear Regression Model, Structural Equation Modeling, Narrative Analysis) | 3 + 3 |
| Developmental Psychology Electives (e.g. The Politics & Psychology of belonging in the US, Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Children’s Rights, Infancy, Adolescent Development) | 12 |
| Other Electives or *Transfer Credits | 14 |
| Psych 90000: Doctoral Dissertation Supervision | 0 |
| Total | 60 |
Milestones [Current students can access examples of presentation and paper milestones here: Milestones]
- First Doctoral Examination: Second Year Research Project Presentation (and written report)
- Second Doctoral Examination: Critical Literature Review Paper
- Dissertation Proposal: Presentation and Paper including the Introduction, Literature Review, Research Questions and Hypotheses, Methods, and References.
- Dissertation Defense: Final draft of the student’s doctoral dissertation including the Introduction, Literature Review, Research Questions and Hypothesis, Methods, Results, Discussion, Appendix, and References.
For detailed information regarding the requirements please consult the GC and DP Student Handbooks.
