Academic Catalog

Psychology, AA-T

Program Description

The Associate in Arts in Psychology for Transfer degree is designed to prepare students for transfer to local California State Universities (CSUs). Students who complete the Associate in Arts in Psychology for Transfer degree will be ensured preferential transfer status to local CSUs as Psychology majors and majors in related disciplines. The Associate in Arts in Psychology for Transfer degree requirements will fulfill the lower division major requirements at many local CSUs. Students are advised, however, to meet with a counselor to assess the course requirements for specific local CSUs and to validate which CSUs are considered local. The Associate in Arts in Psychology for Transfer degree will enable students to develop a strong foundation in research methods, statistics, and biological aspects of behavior, and will also offer a wide variety of elective courses in psychology and other related fields for students to develop a broad knowledge base of human behavior. In addition, students will develop strong critical thinking, communication, and problem-solving skills that will prepare them for the requirements of upper division course work.

Learn more about the program on the Psychology website.

Program Learning Outcomes

  • Students will be able to recognize the diversity of behavior of various populations and be able to explain, interpret, apply, and evaluate a broad base of concepts in the various fields of psychology.
  • Students will be able to apply critical thinking skills and psychological theories to real-world situations, and to be able to apply research methodology and data analysis in the process of answering questions about human behavior.

Career Opportunities

An Associate in Arts in Psychology for Transfer degree also allows students to pursue careers with a psychological focus, and instills lifelong learning skills from their knowledge and understanding of the applicability of psychological principles in every day life. This program emphasizes the importance of global citizenship by teaching multicultural and biopsychosocial perspectives in our courses.

Units Required

  • Major: 28-30

Associate Degree Requirements

Associate in Arts in Psychology for Transfer requires completion of a minimum of 90 units to include:

  • CSU General Education Breadth Requirements or the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC)1 (49-58 units) (full certification is required)
  • Core and support courses (28-30 units, of which 24-30 units may satisfy the GE requirement)
  • Transferable electives necessary to meet the 90-unit minimum requirement
1

Important Note: Although it is possible to fulfill the requirements for the Associate Degree for Transfer by completing the IGETC for UC pattern, admission to CSU requires completion of an Oral Communication course (IGETC Area 1C; CSU GE Area A-1); therefore, students who plan to transfer to CSU should complete this course as part of their GE or elective units.

Note: All courses pertaining to the major must be completed with a grade of "C" (or "P") or better. In addition, the student must obtain a minimum GPA of 2.0.

Core and Support Courses 

Core Courses
PSYC 1GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY5
or PSYC 1H HONORS GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY
PSYC 7STATISTICS FOR THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES5
or SOC 7 STATISTICS FOR THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES
or MATH 10 ELEMENTARY STATISTICS
or MATH 17 INTEGRATED STATISTICS II
PSYC 10RESEARCH METHODS & DESIGNS5
And one of the following:5
GENERAL BIOLOGY: BASIC PRINCIPLES
HUMAN BIOLOGY
INTRODUCTION TO BIOPSYCHOLOGY
Support Courses
Select one course each from List A and List B; any course that was not selected from List A may be used to satisfy List B:8-10
List A
COMPOSITION, CRITICAL READING & THINKING THROUGH LITERATURE
HONORS COMPOSITION, CRITICAL READING & THINKING THROUGH LITERATURE
CALCULUS
HONORS CALCULUS I
CHILD & ADOLESCENT DEVELOPMENT
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
HONORS INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
List B
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
HONORS CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
CULTURAL PSYCHOLOGY
POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
PSYCHOLOGY OF WOMEN: SEX & GENDER DIFFERENCES
PSYCHOLOGY OF WOMEN: SEX & GENDER DIFFERENCES
PSYCHOLOGY OF PREJUDICE & DISCRIMINATION
INTRODUCTION TO ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY
INTRODUCTION TO PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY
PSYCHOLOGY OF SPORTS
HUMAN SEXUALITY
Total Units28-30