Psychology
B.S. Department of Cognitive Sciences · UC Irvine · 2026-2027 Catalog
The B.S. in Psychology emphasizes the study of the mind and brain grounded in knowledge of physical and biological sciences. Students in the major are able to choose courses from areas including: (a) Cognitive Psychology – Perception, Memory, Decision Making, Learning, and Consciousness, (b) Language and Developmental Psychology, (c) Clinical Psychology, and (d) Cognitive Neuroscience.
Students interested in other areas of psychology are advised to consult the course listings in the School of Social Ecology and the School of Biological Sciences sections.
NOTE: Students may complete either the B.S. in Psychology or the B.S. in Cognitive Sciences. You may not double major within the majors offered by the department. For students who double major in the B.S. in Psychology and the B.S. in Biological Sciences, no more than three courses may overlap.
Requirements
All students must meet the University Requirements. All students must meet the School Requirements.
Departmental Requirements for the Major
| Course | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| A. Required Major Courses | ||
| Complete: | ||
| COGS 9A & COGS 9B | Psychology Fundamentalsand Psychology Fundamentals | |
| COGS 10A & COGS 10B & COGS 10C | Exploratory Data Analysisand Probability and Inferenceand Statistical Models | |
| COGS 14P | Scientific Python for Research | |
| B. Psychology Core | ||
| Select four from the following: | ||
| COGS 120A | Abnormal Psychology | |
| COGS 120D | Developmental Psychology | |
| COGS 120H | History of Psychology | |
| COGS 120P | Personality Theories | |
| COGS 130A | Perception and Sensory Processes | |
| COGS 130N | Neuroscience of Perception | |
| COGS 140J | Judgment and Decision Making | |
| COGS 140L | Learning and Decision Making | |
| COGS 140M | Human Memory | |
| COGS 150 | Psychology of Language | |
| COGS 160A | Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience | |
| COGS 160D | Brain Disorders and Behavior | |
| C. Research Methods | ||
| Select two from the following: | ||
| COGS 112A & COGS 112LA | Experimental Psychologyand Experimental Psychology Laboratory | |
| COGS 112BW & COGS 112LB | Advanced Experimental Psychologyand Advanced Experimental Psychology Laboratory | |
| COGS 112C & COGS 112LC | Research in Experimental Psychologyand Research in Experimental Psychology | |
| COGS 112D | Research Design | |
| COGS 112E & COGS 112LE | Learning and Memoryand Learning and Memory Lab | |
| COGS 112M & COGS 112LM | Research Methods in Psychologyand Research Methods in Psychology Laboratory | |
| COGS 112N & COGS 112LN | Introduction to fMRI Researchand fMRI Research Laboratory | |
| COGS 112O | Computational Modeling of Behavior | |
| COGS 112P & COGS 112LP | Research in Perception and Psychophysicsand Research in Perception and Psychophysics Laboratory | |
| COGS 112R & COGS 112LR | Cognitive Roboticsand Cognitive Robotics Laboratory | |
| D. Background in Science | ||
| Select six courses from the following list. Selected courses must be taken from, at minimum, three different disciplines: | ||
| BIO SCI 35 | The Brain and Behavior | |
| BIO SCI 36 | Drugs and the Brain | |
| BIO SCI 37 | Brain Dysfunction and Repair | |
| BIO SCI 38 | Mind and Memory | |
| BIO SCI 41 | Mood Disorders | |
| BIO SCI 75 | Human Development | |
| BIO SCI 93 | From DNA to Organisms | |
| BIO SCI 94 | From Organisms to Ecosystems | |
| CHEM 1A | General Chemistry | |
| CHEM 1B | General Chemistry | |
| CHEM 1C & CHEM 1LC | General Chemistry and General Chemistry Laboratory | |
| CHEM 51A | Organic Chemistry | |
| CHEM 51B & CHEM 51LB | Organic Chemistryand Organic Chemistry Laboratory | |
| CHEM 51C & CHEM 51LC | Organic Chemistryand Organic Chemistry Laboratory | |
| COGS 14M | MATLAB Programming | |
| COGS 60N | Neurobiology of Cognition | |
| COGS 89 | Special Topics in Lower-Division Cognitive Sciences | |
| COGS 108 | Neural Analytics | |
| LPS 30 | Introduction to Symbolic Logic | |
| LPS 31 | Introduction to Inductive Logic | |
| LPS 40 | The Nature of Scientific Inquiry | |
| LPS 60 | The Making of Modern Science | |
| MATH 2A | Single-Variable Calculus I | |
| MATH 2B | Single-Variable Calculus II | |
| MATH 3A | Introduction to Linear Algebra | |
| MATH 3D | Elementary Differential Equations | |
| MATH 5A | Calculus for Life Sciences I | |
| MATH 5B | Calculus for Life Sciences II | |
| PHYSICS 3A | Basic Physics I | |
| PHYSICS 3B & PHYSICS 3LB | Basic Physics IIand Basic Physics Laboratory | |
| PHYSICS 3C & PHYSICS 3LC | Basic Physics IIIand Basic Physics Laboratory | |
| PHYSICS 7C & PHYSICS 7LC | Classical Physicsand Classical Physics Laboratory | |
| PHYSICS 7D & PHYSICS 7LD | Classical Physicsand Classical Physics Laboratory | |
| PHYSICS 7E | Classical Physics | |
| PHYSICS 15 | Physics of Music | |
| STATS 110 | Statistical Methods for Data Analysis I | |
| STATS 111 | Statistical Methods for Data Analysis II | |
| STATS 112 | Statistical Methods for Data Analysis III | |
| E. Upper-Division Electives | ||
| Select seven additional four-unit COGS lecture courses numbered 100-199 and note the folllowing: | ||
| 1. One may be lower-division. COGS 7A may not be used to fulfill this requirement. | ||
| 2. No more than one of the courses may be numbered 190-199. | ||
| 3. If accepted into the Honors Program, COGS H101A-COGS H101B-COGS H101C can be used for three of the seven elective courses needed to fulfill this requirement. | ||
Sample Program
Sample Program - General
Freshman
| Fall | Winter | Spring |
|---|---|---|
| COGS 9A | COGS 9B | Science |
| COGS 10A | COGS 10B | COGS 10C |
| General Education | Science | Science |
| General Education | General Education |
Sophomore
| Fall | Winter | Spring |
|---|---|---|
| UD Core | UD Core | UD Core |
| COGS 14P | Elective | Elective |
| Science | Science | Science |
| General Education | General Education | General Education |
Junior
| Fall | Winter | Spring |
|---|---|---|
| Research Methods | Research Methods | UD Core |
| Research Methods Lab | Research Methods Lab | Upper-Division Writing |
| UD Elective | UD Elective | UD Elective |
| Elective | Elective | Elective |
Senior
| Fall | Winter | Spring |
|---|---|---|
| UD Elective | UD Elective | UD Elective |
| UD Elective | Elective | Elective |
| Elective | Elective | Elective |
| Elective | Elective | Elective |
Sample Program - Transfer
Junior
| Fall | Winter | Spring |
|---|---|---|
| COGS 9B | UD Core | COGS 14P |
| COGS 10A | COGS 10B | COGS 10C |
| Upper-Division Writing | UD Core | UD Core |
| Science | Science | Science |
Senior
| Fall | Winter | Spring |
|---|---|---|
| Research Methods | UD Elective | Research Methods |
| Research Methods Lab | UD Elective | Research Methods Lab |
| UD Elective | UD Elective | UD Elective |
| UD Core | UD Elective | UD Elective |
Honors Program
Honors Program in Cognitive Sciences and Psychology
The Honors Program in Cognitive Sciences and Psychology is an advanced educational and research program for outstanding undergraduate students in these majors.
The program emphasizes advanced competence in scientific research and allows participants the opportunity to pursue advanced work in independent research, in addition to earning honors upon graduation. The program is designed for students who are interested in pursuing graduate study or seeking challenging research experiences as a capstone to their undergraduate experience. All Cognitive Sciences and Psychology majors who meet the minimum eligibility requirements are welcome to apply.
To be eligible, students must meet the following criteria: 1) be a cognitive sciences or psychology major, 2) have completed the psych fundamental series, 3) be in junior standing (at minimum), and 4) have a 3.2 minimum GPA within the major.
The application consists of the following: 1) completed application form, 2) an analytical writing sample, 3) a one-page research plan, and 4) a letter of recommendation from a faculty member who has agreed to oversee the proposed research project. The call for applications is sent out in spring quarter for admittance in the subsequent fall quarter.
Students who participate in the program are expected to enroll in the Honor Seminar series (COGS H101A-COGS H101B-COGS H101C) in fall, winter, and spring quarters, respectively. Honors students must successfully complete a senior honors thesis and present their research at the department's honors poster symposium held in spring as part of the coursework in COGS H101C.