Psychology Department
M.A. Program
Fall Admission Only. Deadline: February 15.
The Master's Program in Psychology is a research-oriented program designed to prepare students for admission to Ph.D. programs in all areas of psychology. (If your main interest is in counseling, please contact the School of Education to learn more about their M.Ed. in counseling.) Established in 1953, the M.A. program is a selective one, admitting approximately seven applicants per year. The department encourages applications from students who are interested in research careers. The program is not appropriate for students interested solely in full-time clinical practice. The program's small size allows for close interaction among students and faculty and, therefore, superior training for the students in the program. Of the program's graduates who apply for admission to doctoral work, over 80% are accepted.
We consider the time students spend with us to be the beginning of their doctoral training, so there is an immediate and continuing emphasis on research. More than a third of the course credits students take are concerned with research issues. These include two major research projects (a "first-year project" and an M.A. thesis). (top)
Graduate Course Structure
All Master's students take a sequence of six graduate pro-seminars in each of the major sub-disciplines in psychology (Behavioral Neuroscience, Developmental, Cognition, Personality, Psychopathology, and Social). In addition to these pro-seminars, students take a year long sequence in statistics and a year long sequence in "professional development" during their first year. The latter seminar is unique among MA programs, for it is devoted to the explicit training of students in becoming a professional psychologist. In particular, it focuses on developing working knowledge of writing up research for publication, giving oral and poster presentations at conferences, applying for grants, and applying for Ph.D. programs in psychology.Students at all levels are integrally involved in the research done in the Psychology Department. In many cases, faculty members develop and work with research teams comprised of undergraduate, M.A., and Psy.D. students. As a team, the group collaborates to design, conduct, analyze, and publish the work. Students regularly become co-authors of articles reporting the studies in professional journals. (top)
Click here for a more detailed description of this "vertical integration" in our laboratories.
Chair: Constance J. Pilkington, Ph.D.
Number of Faculty: Full-time 21; visiting or part-time, 6
Program Offered: Pre-Doctoral M.A. (established 1953)
Number of M.A. Degree Awarded in 2006: 7
Average Scores/GPAs of Fall 2007 entering MAs:
GRE-Verbal: average = 547
GRE-Quantitative: average = 644
GRE-Subject (Psychology not required)
Overall undergraduate GPA: 3.61
(top)
Application Information: Fall Admission Only. Deadline: February 15. Fee: $45
Click here for online appplication.
GRE Information
William and Mary code: 5115
Psychology Department code: 2016
Applicant Information:
Applications received for Fall 2007 = 93.
Students admitted Fall 2007 = 7.
Total enrolled full-time 2007-2008 = 14.
Estimated openings for Fall 2008 = 7.
Degree Requirements: Master's = 60 semester hours, thesis, research (2 years full time)
Admission Requirements:
Undergraduate Psychology Courses: Experimental/research methods and Psychology statistics required.
Online application preferred.
If paper application is needed, please go to http://www.wm.edu/as/graduate/howtoapply.php.
You can dowload the application and mail it along with a check payable to the College of William and Mary for $45 to: A&S Graduate Office Use this address to send ALL CHECKS |
Whether applying by mail or electronically, send all supporting material (3 letters of reference and all transcripts - GREs are sent direct from ETS) to: Director of Graduate Studies Send only supporting material to this address. |
Other Criteria (importance of criteria rated high, medium or low):
research experience = high
letters of recommendation = high
work experience = medium
extracurricular activity = low
clinically related public service = low
Housing: On-campus housing is available for both married and single students.
Financial Assistance
Teaching assistantships: Amount paid per academic year: $9,000. Average number of hours worked per week: 20. Tuition remission given: Full.
Research assistantships: Amount paid for academic year: $9,000. Average number of hours worked per week: 20. Tuition remission given: Full.
Virtually every student receives an assistantship or research assistantship.
Note that applications for the Clinical Psy.D. or School Psychology/Counseling programs are processed independently of those for the M.A. program .
For information about:
The Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology (Psy. D.) call (757) 368-1820 or go to http://www.vcpcp.odu.edu/vcpcp.
W&M School of Education's School Psychology and Counseling Program call (757) 221-2317 or go to http://www.wm.edu/education/.
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