The Psychology Department provides many opportunities for students to get involved through research with faculty, internships, practicums, study abroad, student groups and volunteering. In order to gain employment after graduation or admission to graduate school, it is important that students get involved outside of the typical classroom.
PSY 381 AND PSY 382
(6 - 15 cr. total) This course is designed for the student planning for a career working directly with people in need. It teaches students how to effectively help people in direct-service situations, whether through non-profit organizations (e.g., homeless shelters, domestic abuse programs, refugee services, foster care services) or government jobs (e.g., child protective services, foster care). The class uses lectures, discussions, guest speakers, videos, homework, in-class assignments, and tests to enhance your understanding of the material. Attendance is extremely important and will be strictly enforced. This course is a two-semester commitment (spring/summer) and students must agree to sign up for both semesters in order to be allowed into the course.
Human Service Internship Brochure
Human Service Internship Application
PSY 382 (3 -12 cr.) Whether students intend to start a career after graduation or attend graduate school, it is imperative that the students gain experience to make them more marketable in these arenas. This internship is for students who desire experience in an area related to the field of Psychology. This can be very broad because Psychology touches on many fields, but all areas need department approval to ensure they follow the goals of the program.
Students who have an interest in pursuing an internship (or who have already secured an internship) should self-enroll in the D2L page: PSY 382: Course Information and Planning, utilizing the link below. This D2L page will navigate students through the process of learning about what an internship is, what PSY 382 general internship program encompasses, how to find an internship and ultimately how to get enrolled in PSY 382 for an approved internship experience in order to earn academic credit.
Self Enroll here: https://apps.d2l.msu.edu/selfenroll/course/2207471
*Once enrolled in the D2L page students will be able to navigate through this self-paced course to gain access to the documents required to be completed in order to be approved for enrollment.
SSC 493 (3 - 12 crs.) The College of Social Science offers an internship for credit course. This internship can be done in any semester.
Click here to learn more about this program.
Students are encouraged to become involved in research in the Psychology Department. These experiences give students great opportunities to work with faculty and graduate students in the research environment. There are many opportunities to join labs in each of our six areas of interest as either a volunteer or for credit experience (via PSY 490 or PSY 491).
To learn more information about research opportunities go to our Undergraduate Research page.
PSI CHI is the national honor society for Psychology students. Nominations are automatic, based on spring semester enrollment. Criteria for nomination to the MSU chapter are listed on the MSU PSI CHI website.
Students are nominated for membership in the national organization and the active chapter at M.S.U. In the spring semester, there is an induction ceremony and election of officers. For more information, please contact: secretaryofpsichi@gmail.com.
Website: MSU PSI CHI
The Psychology Club is for anyone with an interest in psychology. There are a broad range of careers influenced by concepts in psychology. As a member of The Psychology Club, students have opportunities to engage and learn about psychology through service, speakers, and fun! Please send an email to psyclub@msu.edu if you have questions about the club.
Check out the PSY Club website for specific dates and topics of their meetings and events!
Website: MSU PSY CLUB
The College of Social Science Semester Study Away Programs are available in Washington DC, Hawaii, Las Vegas, New York, Traverse City, Flint and Detroit. These are great ways to get to know other students and faculty, and also go somewhere in the U.S. Students learn more about themselves and the location they visit.
For more information, e-mail: SSCStudy@msu.edu
Website: http://socialscience.msu.edu/students/experiential-learning/study-away/
Why Should I Study Abroad? Michigan State University is a national leader in Study Abroad. There are a wide variety of study abroad programs that students participate in. Study abroad provides important experiences that can help students develop the personal, academic, and professional skills they will need to succeed. A study abroad experience can improve academic and professional career prospects, as well as be the entry into a field's international community.
What Types of Programs are Available to Me? MSU currently offers over 275 Study Abroad programs. Psychology majors can study abroad in a variety of settings while completing course work in their major and/or earning general education and elective credits. Programs are available throughout the year, ranging in length from two weeks to a full academic year. While some require a foreign language, most have no such requirement and courses are taught in English. Many programs are accompanied by an MSU faculty member, while others allow direct enrollment in a foreign university. In all cases, MSU's Office of Study Abroad works with representatives on site to ensure students receive the support they need.
Psychology Students can attend Psychology programs or they can attend any MSU Study Abroad program. The Psychology Department's programs are the University of Kent (United Kingdom), The Child Psychology program in Dublin (Ireland), and University of Bristol STEM Research (United Kingdom).
To learn more about Study Abroad, visit the Office of Study Abroad in International Center Room 109, talk with a study abroad peer advisor in International Center Room 108, and do a program search on MSU's Office of Study Abroad Website.
https://educationabroad.isp.msu.edu/news_article/20030
https://educationabroad.isp.msu.edu/news_article/22100
To Learn more about the MSU Psychology Study Abroad Program at Kent University in the UK, check out the MSU Study Abroad website for the Kent program as well as all study abroad programs: https://osa.isp.msu.edu/Programs/program/index/106552.
This program will be a direct-enrollment program at the University of Kent in Canterbury (UKC) targeted primarily at MSU psychology majors, but other majors are welcome.
The Department of Psychology at UKC is a strong one, with particular strengths in the fields of social, cognitive, and developmental psychology. The Department’s excellent faculty is also an international one, with many getting their primary training outside of the UK.
The program seeks to expose students to knowledge, concepts, and/or experiences that reflect a different cultural frame of reference, and stimulate students’ interest in cross-cultural, international, and comparative learning, to accelerate students’ personal growth, especially by expanding their ability to interact in unfamiliar situations, to develop students’ skills for relating to culturally different others, and to provide opportunities to compare and contrast host country customs, values, and traditions with their own.
UKC has a number of characteristics that make it particularly well suited to meet such objectives. UKC has a vibrant and extensive set of study abroad programs, with over 100 European partner institutions and with 16 American universities (including 3 Big Ten universities; viz. Indiana University; Purdue University; Penn State University). As a consequence, ~20% of UKC’s students are non-British. Hence, MSU students studying at UKC will have frequent and varied contact not only with local (i.e., British) students, but with students from a wide variety of cultures and nationalities (over 130 nations).
MSU students who have successfully completed the first half of their Sophomore year requirements with a GPA of 2.75 or higher may be eligible to participate in the program.
Students must also have demonstrated a proficiency in spoken and written English. For students whose first language is not English applying to do international study at UKC, this is demonstrable with an average of 6.5 on IELTS (with 6.0 in Reading and 6.0 in Writing), or TOEFL scores of 580 (paper-based), 237 (computer based), or 85 (internet-based).
Handbooks for Participants
It is likely that the bulk of these students’ coursework will be drawn from Stage 2 (intermediate undergraduate level, survey coursework) or Stage 3 (advanced undergraduate level, topical coursework) in UKC’s Department of Psychology. The former, Stage 2 courses are roughly equivalent to 200-level survey courses offered at MSU (e.g., PSY 200, Cognitive Psychology: PSY 236, Personality Psychology). The latter, Stage 3 courses are more equivalent to 300- and 400-level MSU courses (e.g., PSY 424, Child and Family Psychopathology; PSY 441, Interpersonal Behavior and Groups). Those students who need or want to fulfill an ISS requirement will also be able to do so by taking SP636, the UKC equivalent of MSU’s ISS 305 when it is offered.
A complete list of available UKC Psychology courses (Level 2 and 3, offered during the Spring Term) and their MSU PSY and ISS equivalencies may be found here. A description of all UKC Psychology undergraduate courses (modules) may be found here. You can determine what the course objectives are, how grades will be determined, and whether the instuctor routinely offers the option to complete your course work without returning to take an exam during the Summer Term (you may also contact the instructor directly to inquire about this). MSU Psychology majors should consult with the Undergraudate Advisors of the MSU Department of Psychology to make sure that your preferred courses at UKC will fit well with your general study plan at MSU.
In addition to these psychology courses, there are many other undergraduate courses (called modules at UKC) which a Psychology major might want to consider as elective subjects. A full description of all undergraduate modules at UKC available for short-term study may be accessed here. Please note that some of these non-psychology modules could require you to take a final exam during UKC’s 4-week Summer Term (see Program Length description for more details), although one can, through suitable preparation, choose modules that can be completed during the 12-week Spring Term (see Course Selection for more information).
Although this program has been tailored to the needs of MSU Psychology majors, students with other majors may also participate. There are over 400 undergraduate courses which an MSU non-Psychology major might want to consider taking. A full description of all undergraduate modules at UKC may be accessed here. You can determine what the course objectives are, how grades will be determined, and whether the instuctor routinely offers the option to complete your course work without returning to take an exam during the Summer Term (you may also contact the instructor directly to inquire about this).
Again, please note that some of these non-psychology modules could require you to take a final exam during UKC’s 4-week Summer Term.
Studying at a British University
“British classes are not as structured as American classes. This is probably the hardest thing to get used to; this is where you can waste a lot of time, or have a very productive year. At IU there is usually little question of what to do with your time; certain doom looms if you do not do certain things by certain times. That kind of pressure is totally absent here. On the other hand, this lack of structure allows you to probe more deeply into a subject, to branch off in directions that interest you, to determine your own pace and direction. But it is a freedom that can be hard to adjust to; at times you probably will miss the simplicity of having to do specific things.”
If you’d like to apply, the first application is to the MSU Office of Study Abroad (OSA). You can apply on-line here. The application deadline for the spring semester is October 15, but applying early is recommended.
There is also financial assistance (e.g., scholarships) available for MSU study abroad programs. You can find general information and an application form here. You are advised to “submit your scholarship application before the deadline corresponding to your program”. [That deadline is October 15, for participating in the Spring program.]
If you are accepted for the program, you will next need to meet with the OSA’s coordinator for the program. The coordinator is Max Chappuis (chappui1@isp.msu.edu, 517-353-8920) and his office is in Room 105 of the International Center. Max will have information about just what you’ll need to do to complete the application process.
You should also meet with your academic advisor to plan the courses you’ll take at the University of Kent and how they’ll fit into your whole study plan and major/minor requirements. You should also discuss possible choices of elective courses. You will need to have a list of the UKC courses you would like to take to fill in your Provisional Module Registration Form (see here for a copy); this will be part of the materials you will send to UKC to complete your application.
The next important step is sending application materials to the University of Kent. You will find a description of what you need to send here. Basically, you need to send the following:
[If you want to participate in the Spring program, the deadline for getting all these to Hazel Lander (h.lander@kent.ac.uk) at the University of Kent is October 30, but to have preference on housing, this process should take place in early fall.]
Housing Options at UKC On campus accommodation is offered to all short-term students at UKC, although off-campus apartments are also an option. On-campus accommodation is either a room in one of the colleges, or in self-catering flats or houses with several bedrooms in each. You can see descriptions of all these options here. Nearly one third of the accommodations are en suite. The deadline for housing applications for the Spring Term is November 30 of the prior year.
Housing Costs
In partnership with campus and the community, the Center for Community Engaged Learning at Michigan State University prepares students for lifelong civic and social responsibility in an increasingly diverse and complex global society.
Through this program, students have the opportunity to engage with community agencies through service and to learn more about themselves; and if they desire, more about their chosen career path.
There are hundreds of opportunities for students to get involved!
Practicums provide another opportunity to gain valuable experience. They require a consecutive, two-semester commitment. To receive credit, both semesters must be completed satisfactorily. Practicum openings fill quickly, so contact the instructor early for details on the screening procedure. Practicums are popular choices, but they require substantial commitment. It is important that students understand the demands of the project before they begin. An absolute minimum number of hours toward the project will be expected.
Available Practicums:
Psychology majors who are juniors and seniors with at least a 3.6 cumulative GPA have the opportunity to be a teaching assistant for a course in which they received a 4.0. Undergraduate assistants (UAs) work closely with the course instructor and may be asked to do some or all of the following:
Expectations for UA assignments and responsibilities will be provided by the course instructor prior to the start of the semester. It should be noted that UAs are NOT allowed to conduct lectures or seminars, perform subjective evaluations of student performance, determine course context or assign grades. These are faculty responsibilities.
Participation as a UA requires that you sign up for 3 credits of PSY 491 (independent study-a pass/fail grading system). Undergraduate assistantships are NOT paid positions. The grade is based on an evaluation by the instructor to whom you have been assigned.
Students who have already served as an Undergraduate Assistant in Psychology have the potential to sign up for a second semester as a UA. You will sign up for Psychology 490 (independent study) that is a graded course. We do not allow someone to be a UA for more than two semesters.
UA Handbook: UA Handbook
How to get involved
This opportunity is by invitation only. If you meet the criteria listed above, you will receive an email inviting you to be a UA. Invitations are emailed every semester and contain a link to a survey for students to fill out. Students select courses they would like to assist with and in which they received a 4.0. Note that if you did not take PSY 101 at MSU because you placed out of it, you can still be a UA for PSY 101. Also, if you have taken PSY 244 you can UA for PSY 238 (and vice versa). UAs must be available to attend class at the scheduled class time.
Oftentimes there are more students who want to be a UA than there are available positions. Students receiving priority are those who had applied before but not been offered an assistantship and seniors. Students may not get their first choice of assignment but may be offered their second or third choice in order to acquire a position.
Once the student has been assigned a course, they will be given instructions on how to register for Psychology 490 or 491. At the start of the semester, new UAs will attend a training session to go over some of the expectations of the position, the University policies that are relevant, and to answer any questions that you may have.
If you have further questions about the undergraduate teaching assistantship, please contact Dr. Ravizza – ravizzas@msu.edu.
Study Abroad- Study while traveling internationally
Study Away- Study on shorter trips within the U.S.
Service Learning- Learn from experiences serving the community
Internships- Independent internships for career development
Learn more about Experiential Learning Opportunities here: https://socialscience.msu.edu/undergraduate/experiential-learning/index.html
* NOTE College Restrictions on Experiential Learning: