Coursework

Your coursework in PSI will constitute a series of required courses and elective courses that you get to choose in line with your training in theory and methodology. Below is a detailed description of the sequence of required courses and electives and a breakdown of the number of credits required to graduate. A table summarizing this information follows.

You will need a total of 51-66* credits in order to graduate and you are not allowed to exceed 51-66* credits (The exact number of credits that you a student takes, will depend on whether they have an MA degree).  If you are short of credits for full-time status as a student, you can use the equivalency form to maintain your status as a full-time student, see additional details below under “Notes”. Please use the course completion worksheet to document and plan out your course schedule in consultation with your primary mentor. Please also see the standard rotation of PSI required and core electives to help in you planning process. 

View a summary table of the information presented below. 

Foundations (3 courses; 9 credits)

A series of three courses that cover the principles of understanding human development and social change, psychological and social intervention strategies and tactics, and the understanding and measurement of social contexts, each core to the Psychology and Social Intervention Program.

• APSY-GE 3009 Theories of Change in Applied Psychology

• APSY-GE 2094 Development and Prevention Science

• APSY-GE 2825 Understanding and Measuring Social Contexts of Development

Methodology Requirement (3-6 courses; 9-18 credits)

A required sequence of at least three courses worth 9-18 credits that provides comprehensive training in quantitative and qualitative methods required to conduct high-quality research in psychology and social intervention. All Students must complete:

• Research Design and Methodology in the Behavioral Sciences I (APSY-GE.2073) -Students should enroll in this course in their first year in the program.   

Students select an additional 6-15 credits in consultation with their faculty advisor. See full list of methods classes PSI students have taken here. Possible courses include: 

Quantitative Methods: 

• APSTA-GE 2003 Intermediate Quantitative Methods: The General Linear Model

• APSTA-GE 2004 Advanced Quantitative Methods: Survey of Multivariate Analysis

• APSTA-GE 2012 Causal Inference

• APSTA-GE 2013 Missing Data

• APSTA-GE 2040 Multilevel Modeling: Growth Curves

• APSTA-GE 2042 Advanced Topics in Quantitative Methods: Multi-Level Modeling – Nested Data 

• APSTA-GE 2356 Practicum in Applied Statistics: Multi-Level Models

• APSY-GE 2524 Psychological Measurement

• PSYCH-GA 2228 Intermediate Statistics Methods 

• PSYCH-GA 2229 Regression

• PSYCH-GA 2239 ANOVA

• PSYCH-GA 2247 Advanced Seminar: Structural Equations

• PSYCH-GA 2248 Advanced Seminar: Analysis of Change

Qualitative and Mixed Methods: 

• APSY-GE 2835 Research Using Mixed Methods

• INTE-GE 2007 Qualitative Methods in International Education

• RESCH-GE 2140 Approaches/Qualitative Inquiry

• RESCH-GE 2142 Interview & Observation

• RESCH-GE 2143 Participatory Action Research

• PHD-GP 5905 Qualitative Research Methods 

PSI Core electives (2 courses; 6 credits)

We require that students enroll in 2 additional courses worth six credits that are of interest and relevance to their training goals. Some possibilities are presented below. Only courses taught in the Department of Applied Psychology (preferably by full-time or affiliated PSI faculty members) will count towards the completion of this requirement. All courses must be approved by the student’s academic advisor. See full list of elective classes PSI students have taken here. Possible courses include:

• Child Development and Social Policy in a Global Society 

• Development of Immigrant Origin Youth 

• Intervention and Social Change 

• Survey of Developmental Psychology: Advanced

• Risk and Resilience 

• Culture, Context, and Psychology 

• Conflict Analysis and Resolution

• The Development of African American Children

Specialty Area (3 courses; 9 credits)

Students will declare a substantive area of specialization during their course of study (e.g., feminist studies, school-based/educational issues, women’s health, and criminal justice). The area is based on student interest, is flexible, but the course must create a coherent area of specialization and must be approved by the advisor. Students must complete three doctoral-level courses worth nine credits total that enhance their expertise in their chosen area of specialization. These courses may be taken in any program/school at NYU or via the Inter-University Doctoral Consortium.

Practica (2 course sequence; 6 credits)

Practicum in Intervention or Policy Research I & II (APSY-GE.2827 & APSY-GE.2828). Students enroll for six credits in a year-long sequence during their third or fourth year and gain experience with action-oriented approaches to research

Research Seminar (2 courses; 6 credits)

Second Year Project Research Seminar (APSY-GE.2839). Students should enroll in this course for zero credits in the fall semester and  three credits in the spring semester or each of their first and second years, in preparation for their 2nd-year paper.

PSI Program Seminar (1-4 courses; 3-12 credits)

Advanced Seminar in Psychology and Social Intervention (APSY-GE.2830) – Students should enroll in this seminar for three credits in the fall and zero credits in the spring in each of the first four years. In the 5th year, students should enroll in this seminar for zero credits. Regardless of whether they are enrolled for credit, all students are required to attend the advanced seminar and present their own work annually.

Notes

Students entering the program with prior graduate education, or other relevant experience, may appeal to the faculty to opt out of selected courses or requirements if they have previously had the equivalent experience. The appeal needs to be in writing and should include a rationale, evidence of comparability to current program requirements (e.g., a course syllabus; a workshop curriculum), and confirmation of support from the students’ advisor. Faculty make these decisions on a case-by-case basis in conjunction with the student's academic advisor, appropriate NYU course instructor(s) and the psychology and social intervention program faculty. Students with a Masters degree judged by the PSI Faculty to be equivalent to our own can be considered on a case-by-case basis to successfully complete as few as 51 credits to meet the requirements for the PhD.

Research Experience

Students are required to participate on the research team of a PSI faculty member (or another Applied Psychology faculty, by program approval), beginning the first semester of their first year. Students are expected to allocate at least half of their time (20 hours per week) to this activity. By year 3, in line with our training expectations to be exposed to more than one project, students should spend a minimum of 5 hours (of the 20 hours per week) working with another research mentor (within or outside of the program by approval of primary research mentor). Students are free to transition onto new research teams throughout their doctoral training.