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Although most of our incoming graduate students' interests fall within the five existing Area
Groups of Psychology in the department (Biological, Clinical, Cognitive and Cognitive Neurosciences,
Developmental, and Social/Personality), some do not. That some students' interests cut across
our departmental Area Groups and/or interface with other departments on campus is to be
expected in a top-notch department because the boundaries of Psychology itself are in flux. The
Individualized Graduate Major is designed for those graduate students who do not find a niche in
our current area group structure and, instead, wish to cross traditional Area Group lines and/or
incorporate substantial training from other departments in their Psychology graduate work. It is
important to emphasize that the Individualized Graduate Major leads to a Psychology Ph.D. and is
not appropriate for students whose graduate study does not emphasize Psychological Science.
Such students are advised to pursue a Ph.D. in another department or a Committee
degree.
Requirements for our standard Psychology graduate major are presented IN CAPS for
comparison, when relevant.
- Mentor, Mentoring Committee, Admission and Homme Area Group
Each student selecting an Individualized Graduate Major will have a 4-person faculty
Mentoring Committee, with at least 3 faculty members from Psychology. The Chair of the
Mentoring Committee, who must be a Psychology faculty member, will serve as the
student's primary mentor/advisor. The Chair of the Mentoring Committee and the student
are responsible for selecting the 3 other members of the committee. The proposed
composition of the Mentoring Committee must be submitted to the Graduate Committee
by November 1 of the student's first year in the program, and any subsequent changes in
the composition of the Mentoring Committee must be approved by the Graduate
Committee. As outlined in this document, the Graduate Committee is the "Higher
Authority" from which the student and 4-Person Mentoring Committee must seek
approval on various issues. The Graduate Committee will closely monitor the progress of
all students pursuing an Individualized Graduate Major.
For students electing the individualized Graduate Major at the outset, the typical sequence
would be that when the student applies for graduate study in Psychology, an individual
Psychology faculty member (or members in the case of joint primary advisorship) would
select the graduate student and be the primary mentor/advisor. The graduate student's
"home" would be in the mentor's area group even though that Area Group's requirements
would not apply to the student. The student would be considered a member of the
mentor's Area Group for the purpose of Fellowship rankings. Provision of a home for the
student in the mentor's Area Group would prevent the student from becoming isolated and
facilitate the student's social connections to other students. The student would be on the
E-Mail student distribution list for this Area Group as well as any other Area Groups
relevant to the student's research interests. The student would be expected to attend
Brown-Bags in this Area Group unless the Mentoring Committee agreed that Brown-Bags
in another Area Group (or Area Groups) would be more appropriate. The student would
be expected to attend at least 1 Psychology Department Brownbag per week and make at
least 1 presentation per year in a Psychology Department Brownbag.
- Curriculum Development and Evolution
The student and the 4-Person Mentoring Committee will formulate an "Ideal" curriculum
for the student that must be approved by the Graduate Committee by the end of the
student's first year. Of course, the student's curriculum can evolve over time. The
Mentoring Committee must approve the curriculum on a semester-by-semester basis, and
the Graduate Committee must approve any significant changes from the proposed
curriculum. To earn the Ph.D., the student must fulfill the Graduate School requirement
of at least 32 graduate level credits (no audits or pass/fails) taken as a graduate student at
UW-Madison. However, it is expected that students will complete significantly more than
32 graduate level credits.
- Departmental Coursework Requirements
The departmental course requirements for the Individualized Graduate Major consist of
three different segments: core courses, methodology courses, and seminars. The purpose
of core courses is to give students a broad base in psychology. The methodology courses
are intended to provide the skills necessary for designing and analyzing research projects.
Finally, the seminars allow for depth in areas of special interest to the
student.
- Core Course Requirement
Average grade of B or better and no grade lower than a BC in 2 (STANDARD = 3) core
courses in psychology representing no fewer than 2 (STANDARD = 3) different area
groups.
By end of Year 1: Complete at least 1 core course in any area
By end of Year 3: Complete core course requirement
- Methodology Requirement
Three methodology courses approved by both the 4-person Mentoring Committee and the
Graduate Committee. Methodology courses may include those from the list approved by
the department and/or other methodology courses not on the list (e.g., computer
modeling, signal processing, etc.) if they are especially relevant to the student's research
interests . The average grade for all 3 courses must be B or better. (STANDARD:
THREE METHODOLOGY COURSES INCLUDING PSYCHOLOGY 615 AND/OR
610, PLUS THE ADDITIONAL METHODOLOGY COURSE(S) FROM A LIST
APPROVED BY THE DEPARTMENT AND BY THE STUDENT'S AREA GROUP
(SEE LIST PAGE 7). GRADE IN 615 OR 610 (WHICHEVER IS SELECTED) MUST
BE B OR BETTER; ALSO, AVERAGE GRADE FOR ALL THREE COURSES MUST
BE B OR BETTER. (NOTE: AREA GROUPS MAY HAVE ADDITIONAL
METHODOLOGY REQUIREMENTS; E.G., REQUIRING PSYCHOLOGY 615 AND
610 PLUS A THIRD METHODOLOGY COURSE. CHECK WITH AREA GROUP.)
By end of Year 1: Complete at least 1 methodology course
By end of Year 3: Complete methodology requirement
- Seminar Requirement
Two graduate level seminar/elective courses taken within the Department of Psychology.
(STANDARD = 4 GRADUATE LEVEL SEMINAR/ELECTIVE COURSES OF
WHICH AT LEAST 2 MUST BE TAKEN WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT OF
PSYCHOLOGY.) (Graduate electives are graduate courses numbered 600 or higher that
are not counted as satisfying the Core or Methodology requirements.) Only courses in
which a grade of B or better or S has been earned can be used to fulfill this requirement.
One credit hour "proseminar" courses may not be used to fulfill this
requirement.
By end of Year 2: Complete at least 1 seminar/elective course in Psychology. The
remaining seminar/elective course in Psychology may be taken at any time before
the granting of the Ph.D. degree.
NOTE: Courses taken to fulfill the Graduate School minor requirement may also
be used to fulfill department requirements unless specified otherwise. (source: Graduate
Committee Minutes, 9/27/93)
- Graduate Schol Minor Requirement
Students selecting the Individualized Graduate Major must fulfill the Graduate School
Minor Requirement similarly to students opting for the standard Psychology
Ph.D.
- First Year Research Requirement
- Content and Requirements of the First Year Project (Identical to those
for students selecting the standard Psychology Ph.D.)
(See Section II.A.a-d. of Graduate Guidelines, p. 2-3)
- First Year Project Committee
As early as possible (no later than the second week of the Spring Semester), the
Director of Graduate Studies will approve a 3-person first year project faculty
committee. The committee will consist of three Psychology faculty including the
mentor. At least one of the committee members must be from an area group
different from the student's home area group, and at least one of the committee
members must not be from the 4-person Mentoring Committee. (Note that the
faculty member from an Area Group different from the student's home area group
may be the one not from the 4-person Mentoring Committee.) As with the
standard Psychology Ph.D., no more than one affiliated faculty member may count
as a member of a First Year Project Committee.
The duties of the First Year Project Committee are identical for students selecting
the Individualized Graduate Major and those selecting the standard Psychology
Ph.D. (see Section II.B.a-d of the Guidelines, p. 3).
Evaluation of the First Year Project and the Retention Decision are identical to
that for the standard Psychology Ph.D. (see Sections II.C.1-3., III.a-c of the
Guidelines, p.3-4).
- Certification for the Preliminary Exam
A student who has completed all core courses, 2 seminar/electives in Psychology, and at
least 2 of the 3 methodology courses may apply for certification from the 4-Person
Mentoring Committee. Certification constitutes permission by the 4-Person Mentoring
Committee for the student to take the preliminary exam. The date of the student's prelims
is at the discretion of the 4-Person Mentoring Committee, but cannot be before the
beginning of the third year. When students are approved by their 4-Person Mentoring
Committees, a notice to that effect will be posted outside the Chairperson's office and the
certification will be announced on the call for agenda items for the next faculty meeting. If
any faculty member wishes to discuss the certification decision, he/she may ask for
discussion at the next faculty meeting. If no one requests discussion before that meeting,
the certification will be considered final.
- Preliminary Examinations
By passing the preliminary exam, the student demonstrates his/her competence to begin
dissertation research. Preparation, grading, and administration of the preliminary exams is
the responsibility of the 4-Person Mentoring Committee subject to the same guidelines as
for the standard Psychology Ph.D. (see Section V. of the Guidelines, p.
4).
After being certified and successfully passing the preliminary exam, the student may apply
to the Graduate School for Admission to Candidacy for the Ph.D. by filing the prelim
warrant. Please note that all department and graduate school requirements (i.e.,
outside-the-department minor and residence requirement) except the dissertation must be
complete in order to obtain dissertator status. (See the Graduate School Handbook for
details.) The prelim warrant should be requested from the Psychology Graduate Office approximately two weeks before the student's meeting with the mentoring committee for the evaluation of the preliminary exam.
- Doctoral Dissertation and Oral Examination
Each Doctoral student shall complete a dissertation covering original research. The
student will be examined by a committee of 5 faculty members at the University of
Wisconsin, at least 3 from Psychology and at least 1 from another department. (See the
Graduate School Handbook for other requirements.) No more than 1 affiliated faculty
member may count as a Psychology faculty member on a Dissertation Committee in the
Psychology Department. (The members of the 4-person Mentoring Committee may serve on the Dissertation
Committee provided they meet requirements of the Graduate School.)
- Satisfactory Progress
Department and Graduate School requirements for satisfactory progress are identical for
students selecting the Individualized Graduate Major and those selecting the Traditional
Psychology Ph.D., except that the 4-Person Mentoring Committee, rather than the
student's Area Group, make the judgments about satisfactory progress. (See Section
VII.1-3 of the Guidelines, p. 5-6).
Once Each year by the departmental requisite date, the 4-Person Mentoring Committee will
submit a Satisfactory Progress Report to the Graduate Committee which, after reviewing
and approving the report, will submit it to the Graduate Secretary.
The student and the mentor will meet together with the other members of the Mentoring
Committee at least once a year.
- Exceptions
Students entering the program with a Master's Degree in Psychology from another
department must, nevertheless, comply with the core course requirements, the first year
project requirement, the methodology requirement, and the 2-seminar rule as described
herein. At the discretion of the Graduate Committee (STANDARD = AREA GROUP),
core course credit may be given for 1 course taken elsewhere provided that the grade is
satisfactory and the course is similar to one of our core courses. However, if core credit is
given for an outside course, the distribution requirement must still be respected. Likewise,
at the discretion of the Graduate Committee (STANDARD = AREA GROUP), seminar
credit may be given for 1 seminar or elective course taken elsewhere. Credit for
methodology courses taken elsewhere will be at the discretion of the Graduate
Committee.
Students wishing that other exceptions be made to Department requirements may, with the
approval of their faculty mentor, petition the Graduate Committee.
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