The deadline for priority consideration is December 4th (11:59 p.m. EST) each year. However, applications will continue to be accepted until February 15th. Applicants are thus strongly encouraged to submit their applications by December 4th.
Your complete application must be submitted by the deadline. Your application will not be reviewed until it is complete (see Admission Requirements and Admission Timeline). The Psychology Graduate Admissions Committee may vote to not accept your application if your application is missing something at the time of the first review.
We accept students only once a year, starting in the fall. Several courses must be taken in a specific order, which requires starting in the fall.
Our program is an all on-campus program.
Yes, students in all concentrations must complete and defend an empirical thesis. Students are matched with a faculty research mentor with whom they work conducting research during their time in graduate school.
Our program is a full-time program. Graduate students are expected to be working "full time" on their degree, which includes course work, research, clinical training (if required), teaching and research assistantships, etc.
You must be enrolled in a graduate program at UNCW in order to register for courses. In addition, some courses are only open to Psychology graduate students.
Currently we don't have a stand-alone BACB course sequence. That is, you must be enrolled in our Master's program in the ABA concentration to take the courses and obtain the requisite supervised practicum hours that allow you to sit for the certification exam.
Currently we don't have a stand-alone BACB course sequence. That is, you must be enrolled in our Master's program in the ABA concentration to take the courses and obtain the requisite supervised practicum hours that allow you to sit for the certification exam.
It is highly recommended that you live in the general area. Your classes will start at 8 a.m. and go until 8 p.m. on some days. In addition to classes, you are expected to be available in the lab and/or for your assistantship duties on campus. Thus, it would be difficult to add in a 1-2 hr. commute each way each day.
We have three concentrations within our Master's program: Psychological Science (PSYS), Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and Neuroscience and Behavior (N&B). The PSYS and N&B concentrations are designed to prepare students for doctoral programs and research careers. The ABA concentration is designed to prepare students to work in the field as ABA practitioners.
More information about our PSYS, ABA, and N&B concentrations can be found on our informational page.
You can apply to only one concentration. The Psychology Graduate-Admissions Committee might recommend a switch to a different concentration. Students sometimes decide to switch at interview weekend.
The ABA concentration (MA and PhD) involves coursework and training in a specialized field, so you must be interested in that specialized area. If you want to obtain a master’s degree or a PhD to become only a general licensed psychological associate or licensed psychologist, the ABA concentration is not appropriate. The General Clinical PhD only concentration prepares students to be general licensed psychologists and researchers.
The Psychological Science (PSYS) concentration (MA and PhD) is appropriate for strong preparation in research and related methods in psychology. If you are interested in the field of neuroscience, the Neuroscience and Behavior (N&B) MA only concentration offers relevant coursework and research experiences in that area. The PSYS and N&B MA are excellent preparation for a range of doctoral programs. as you will have more time to pursue research experience.
Visit this page for a list of jobs or post-M.A. education for our Alumni.
The requirements for application to the UNCW Graduate School can be found on our page for grad students. You should have a major in psychology with at least a 3.0 psychology GPA. And all applicants must have completed a course in statistics and a course in research methods. A psychology course in statistics is preferred, but a course from a Math/Statistics department is accepted. The research methods course must be in Psychology.
Yes. You should have the equivalent of two courses (3-4 hr. each).
We understand that at some schools these courses are combined and might be called "Research methods and statistics" or "Psychological research." What is important is that you have had a semester's worth of statistics and a semester's worth of research methods, but those can be combined, taken in the same semester, etc.
Make sure to include the course names as they appear on your transcript in your uploaded vita/resume. See question "What additional materials does the psychology department require?" for more information.
Yes. If your major wasn't in psychology, then you need to have completed 21 hr of any psychology coursework with at least a B average including a research methods course in psychology and a statistics course.
The UNCW Graduate School requires an overall GPA of at least 3.0 (B). Applicants with an overall GPA below 3.0 may be accepted provisionally if other aspects of their application warrant acceptance. Our department requires at least a 3.0 (B) GPA in your psychology courses and at least a B in both a statistics course and a research-methods course.
No, the GRE is not being considered at this time.
You need to submit 3 letters from people that can evaluate your potential for graduate school in psychology. At least 1 of those letters must be from a university professor/lecturer.
It's highly recommended that 2 of your letters come from university professors/lecturers. One, if not both, should be from faculty in psychology as they can tell us the most about your potential in a psychology program.
You also could ask someone who has supervised work related to psychology. For example, someone who has supervised you in a clinical setting or working with students. Your letters should not be from family members, friends, or friends of your family.
Yes they do. You must arrange to have a transcript sent from every post-secondary institution that you attended, even if for just one course or on study abroad or during high school. Please make sure to request that all of your transcripts are sent well before the priority deadline of December 4th.
The departmental forms can be found on the Admissions page here. You need to submit your vita/resume with the required information, the research-area interest form, and the essay that answers the questions listed. Your career center on campus can help you construct a vita if you haven't already done so.
It is strongly recommended that you have a faculty member and/or graduate student read over your essay. It is not a personal essay, but rather a statement of your academic/career history, interests and goals.
It is not required, but highly recommended. Most applicants have worked with a faculty member on research for at least a semester. Conducting research helps you determine what areas in which you are interested and also gives you skills for which our faculty members are looking. You also can get a better letter of recommendation from someone with whom you have worked.
If you haven't participated in research, you should check out your department for opportunities, talk to faculty members, talk to Psi Chi members, etc.
It is not required, but highly recommended for applicants to the ABA concentration. Most applications to those concentrations have worked in the field either in a class, on an internship, or in a job. These experiences can help you determine with which population you would like to work and gives you skills that faculty members look for.
Clinical experience can also be obtained in some labs; that is, some faculty conduct clinical research, where you would obtain a lot of clinical skills.
It takes a couple of weeks for the Graduate School to process all of the applications after the December 4th priority deadline. Once they have finished, the department Graduate-Admissions Committee composed of faculty members reviews all applications and meets to determine whom to invite for an interview. Once we receive all the applications from the Graduate School, you will receive an email with a specific timeline for that year.
The first interview invitations usually get sent via email mid February. Invitations continue to be sent as others decline.
Interviews take place on campus at UNCW, starting on a Friday afternoon through Saturday. Interview weekend is usually held mid-March.
Yes, we conduct phone interviews for those applicants who can't make it. But, you are strongly encouraged to attend the interview weekend.
Faculty review the applications and request interviews of certain applicants. You also will be asked with whom you want to interview. After the interviews are completed, each faculty member rank-orders students with whom they would like to match as their research mentor. The Graduate Coordinator and Chair determine the matches.
Offers start to be extended the week following the interview weekend. The offer will include your faculty research-mentor match and financial aid (assistantship, remission) if given.
You will have until April 15 to make a decision, but of course, we would like to hear from you as soon as you have made your decision. Waiting to say "yes" doesn't change how much assistantship you will be offered.
You can apply for a deferral for 1 year, but your request will have to be approved by your faculty match (i.e., they would have to be willing to hold a spot for you), the department's Graduate-Steering Committee, and the Graduate School. Deferring your acceptance does not defer any assistantship or tuition remission that was offered. You would be reconsidered for financial aid the following year with the incoming group of students.
Acceptance rates for the PhD concentration is typically abut 15%. The acceptance rate for the MA concentrations is about 33%. Please see specific concentration pages for current rates and statistics as they may have changed from those posted here.
The Department will continue to expand its scope of academic partnerships across campus. This includes academic units, student organizations and centers focused on addressing social and environmental justice issues. The Department will continue to expand its scope of academic partnerships across campus, including academic units, student organizations and centers focused on addressing social and environmental justice issues.
Please see the admission data for the Applied Behavior Analysis concentration and Psychological Science concentration.
Acceptance rates for the PhD concentration is typically abut 15%. The acceptance rate for the MA concentrations is about 33%. Please see specific concentration pages for current rates and statistics as they may have changed from those posted here.
Students in the PSYS concentration take 7-8 hours in their first year, so their tuition is at a lower rate than the ABA students who take 11-14 hours.
There are competitive out-of-state remissions for students who are classified by the Graduate School as nonresidents. Most nonresidents receive a remission that pays for all of their out-of-state tuition. They are still responsible for the in-state portion and fees. There also are some competitive tuition scholarships.
Assistantships can be for 5-20 hr/week. Students can be a graduate teaching assistant (GTA) and help a faculty member in a class or have a role in the department. All students who are made an offer are considered for a GTA, but the GTAs are competitive.
If your faculty research mentor, with whom you have been matched, has a grant, you could be paid as a research assistants (RA) and help conduct the research on the grant.
Assistantships are offered based on the applicant's academic qualifications, which include GPA and GRE scores.
An initial TA offer will be for 2 years. The number of hours can increase depending on the availability of funds and the department's needs in a given semester. The number of hours can decrease if you aren't making sufficient progress.
Yes, you can work in different departments/offices. But the maximum you should work is 20 hr/week. For example, you could have a 10 hr/week TA in Psychology and a 10 hr/week GA in another office on campus.
There are a limited number of TAs within the department to assist with summer classes. Some GAs and RAs pay over the summer as well.
Please contact the Department of Psychology for more information.