The psychological sciences PhD program is an experimental psychology program that prepares students for leadership roles in research and teaching. Students will benefit from the high quality of faculty research, small classes and seminars, extensive professional development, and a rich array of interdisciplinary opportunities within the School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences. Through disciplinary and interdisciplinary research and teaching, we seek to create improved understanding of mechanisms influencing social and cognitive behavior and development.
From the start of their training, students are actively engaged in research laboratories with a faculty mentor. Professional development is facilitated through school colloquia, regular brown bag series, presentations at professional meetings and guidance in the development of teaching skills.
Major research areas and core strengths within the program include:
| Degree Program | Admissions |
| About Our School | Financial Aid |
| Research Areas | FAQ |
Degree Program
Students are expected to complete the program coursework and research requirements in four years. The research requirements include a qualifying thesis research project and a dissertation research project.
Students can major in developmental psychology or cognitive psychology. The University requires a minimum of 90 hours of coursework. The specific program requirements include: six credit hours of a doctoral proseminar, nine hours of core research methods courses, 12 hours of core psychological sciences courses, six hours of advanced electives, and independent study research hours each semester enrolled. View the complete degree plan. To compile all your academic, campus and extracurricular interests into a presentation you can print out, follow the steps to Create Your Own Guide to UT Dallas.
For more information, please see Requirements for Current Students.
About Our School
The psychological sciences program is a part of the UT Dallas School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, which offers exceptional research facilities, including an on-site laboratory preschool, infant research labs, and video observation laboratories. Many of the psychological sciences faculty work collaboratively across our doctoral programs in cognition and neuroscience, communication sciences and disorders, and audiology. The doctoral programs are complemented by four research centers: the Center for BrainHealth, the Callier Center, the Center for Children and Families and the Center for Vital Longevity.
Research Areas
The psychological sciences faculty are interested in the dynamic processes of human development from infancy through adulthood, how these processes influence functioning of the individual, and the individual's relationships with others. Faculty research interests and ongoing research activities are focused in developmental psychology and cognitive psychology.
Developmental Psychology
Developmental research and course opportunities span topics in social-emotional, cognitive, and language development. Faculty research in social-emotional development includes the study of social relations in childhood and adolescence, childhood aggression, emotional regulation, children’s attitudes and behaviors related to food and weight, children’s self-perceptions, parent-child relations and family processes, intimate relationships in adolescence and adulthood, social cognition in autism, and child psychopathology. Research in cognitive development includes infant perception, development of social cognition, cognitive processing during infancy and childhood, and neurocognitive development. Language development research includes the study of language acquisition, language disorders, preverbal communication, and infants’ and children’s speech and auditory processing.
Faculty Specialization Areas In Developmental Psychology
Social-Emotional Development
Robert Ackerman, Cindy de Frias, Shayla Holub, Bert Moore, Jackie Nelson, Margaret Owen, Karen Prager, John Santrock, Marion K. Underwood, Deborah Wiebe
Cognitive Development
Thomas Bower, Cindy de Frias, Susan Jerger, Mandy Maguire, Candice Mills, Noah Sasson, Melanie Spence
Language Development
Thomas Campbell, Christine Dollaghan, Susan Jerger, Mandy Maguire, Pamela Rollins, Melanie Spence, Robert Stillman, Anne Van Kleeck
Cognitive Psychology
Research opportunities and supporting coursework in this area include topics in traditional cognitive psychology as well as cognitive neuroscience. Faculty research includes studies of visual, taste and face perception, memory, music cognition, text comprehension, and speech and discourse. Within the area of cognitive neuroscience, research is ongoing in neurolinguistics, aging, working memory, neurobiology of learning, memory and emotions, computational neural modeling, social attention and perception in autism, and functional brain imaging.
Faculty Specialization Areas in Cognitive Psychology
Cognitive Neuroscience
Hervé Abdi, James Bartlett, Chandramallika Basak, Sandra Chapman, Jay Dowling, Cindy de Frias, Richard Golden, John Hart, Dan Krawczyk, Alice O’Toole, Denise Park, Bart Rypma
Memory, Perception & Attention
Hervé Abdi, James Bartlett, Chandramallika Basak, Jay Dowling, Alice O’Toole, Noah Sasson
Speech, Language & Text Processing
Peter Assmann, Richard Golden, William Katz, Hanna Ulatowska
Admissions
The admissions committee evaluates applications according to a variety of criteria, including prior GPA, letters of recommendation, quantitative and verbal scores for the Graduate Record Exam (GRE), prior research and professional experiences, commitment to scholarship, and fit between the research interests of the applicant and faculty.
Within our research-focused PhD program, students work closely with a faculty member in research activities. Therefore, admission is contingent on a match between student research interests and faculty research activities. Please review the faculty interests to determine if there is an appropriate faculty match for your research interests.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to contact individual faculty members about current opportunities for research and admission. Some faculty may not be accepting new students during specific time periods.
Requirements for PhD Program Application
- Minimum undergraduate cumulative GPA of 3.0.
- GRE: quantitative and verbal test scores.
- Completion of undergraduate degree in psychology or related major is advisable. Completion of a master’s degree is not required. Applicants without a prior degree in psychology should contact the program head for prerequisite coursework.
- Three letters of reference.
- A statement of purpose: Address how your research interests match those of a specific faculty member in the program for which you are applying. It is advisable to contact individual faculty members with whom you would like to work to determine if they are currently accepting students.
To submit an application:
- Check the application deadlines.
- Complete the UT Dallas Graduate Application for Admission online.
- Submit official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended and GRE scores to the UT Dallas Office of Enrollment Services.
- Submit three letters of reference and a statement of purpose directly to the PhD in psychological sciences program.
The UT Dallas graduate admissions page will help guide you through the process. You can check your status using the University’s Orion program. If you’ve been accepted into the program, please read the University’s steps after admission page.
Psychological Sciences Doctoral Program
ATTN Mary Felipe
School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences
The University of Texas at Dallas
800 W. Campbell Rd, GR41
Richardson, TX 75080
Phone: 972-883-2358
Financial Aid
Financial support of doctoral students is awarded through teaching or research assistant stipends and tuition scholarships. For more information about graduate financial support opportunities, visit the University’s graduate financial aid page and BBS’ financial aid and support page for PhD students.
FAQ
Does UT Dallas have a clinical psychology or counseling program?
No, we do not offer a clinical or counseling master’s or PhD degree. Our degree in experimental psychology will not prepare you for licensure as a clinical or counseling psychologist.
For what careers will this PhD prepare me?
The psychological sciences PhD program is an experimental psychology program and provides training for a career in teaching and research. Former graduates have successfully acquired university faculty positions, as well as research positions in hospitals, school systems and research institutes.
Is there a master’s degree on the way to the PhD?
No, students are admitted directly into the PhD program, and no master’s degree is granted. A separate master’s degree is offered in psychological sciences that provides general psychology training. This program differs from the PhD program in that the doctoral program provides extensive training in research design and methodology. The master’s degree is appropriate for students interested in broad psychology training beyond the undergraduate level or additional training to prepare them for applying to doctoral clinical psychology programs. People interested in the master’s program rather than the PhD program should apply to the MS program.
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