Undergraduate Honors Program

The Psychology Honors Program is an excellent way for undergraduate psychology majors to take a more active role in the completion of their own research thesis project. In collaboration with Dr. Vail, Honors Program students gain hands-on experience: A) developing creative research questions, learning theory, and testing ideas; B) developing research designs and doing data analysis; and C) learning how to write academic research reports that contribute to the scientific literature. The Honors Program is also an excellent way to build the advanced skills and experience that make for more competitive graduate school applications.

The Honors Program is centered around a research thesis, which is developed and completed in a three-semester sequence.

• First semester: Once you’re accepted into the Psychology Honors Program, you’ll enroll in PSY495H (Honors Seminar) for the spring semester of your junior year. This is a classroom course in which you’ll collaborate with Dr. Vail to identify a research question and develop a proposal for research that you will then complete over the course of the following academic year.

• Second semester: You’ll enroll in PSY497H (Honors Project) for the fall of your senior year. This a lab practicum (not a classroom course), where you’ll gain hands-on procedural experience in SPEAR Lab learning how to work with lab mates and fellow researchers, recruit participants and conduct research sessions, and manage data collection.

• Third semester: You’ll enroll in PSY498H (Honors Project & Thesis Defense) for the spring semester of your senior year. This is another lab practicum, where you’ll work with Dr. Vail to analyze the data, interpret the results, and prepare the final “defense” draft of your thesis—a professional academic research report suitable for the scientific literature.

Applications are due in fall semester, with entry in the following spring semester.

Applications require:

1. Instructor permission.

2. Application form.

The Honors Program prefers prior completion of PSY312 (Research Methods) or equivalent, and PSY311/PSY317 (Statistics) or equivalent.

Dr. Vail is always willing to collaborate with Psychology Honors Program students and welcomes inquiries from eligible and interested students.