Course Catalogs

Cognitive Psychology, PhD

Contact

David Kellen, Ph.D.
507 Huntington Hall
dkellen@syr.edu
(315)443-2354

Faculty

Daniel Corral, Ph.D., Catherine A. Cornwell, Ph.D., Amy H. Criss, Ph.D., Michael L. Kalish, Ph.D., David Kellen, Ph.D., Lynn J. Lohnas, Ph.D., Lael J. Schooler, Ph.D., Bradley A. Seymour, Ph.D., Jeffrey Zemla, Ph.D.

Program Description

Research and training in the program is centered on using computational methods and theory to understand fundamental mechanisms underlying cognitive and neural processing. Cognitive and perceptual processes under study include visual perception, memory, learning, attention, knowledge development, concepts and categories, problem solving, reasoning, and decision making. Research in this area contributes to the understanding of human behavior in individual and social environments and provides the structure on which to build applications to improve health and behavior.

Students receive research training at the forefront of cognitive psychology. Students are assigned a core faculty member as primary advisor upon entry to the program and are required to actively participate in research through the duration of their program of study. Participation is designed to facilitate the development of research and professional skills necessary for a career in psychological science. 

Admissions

The program is strongly committed to the recruitment of individuals from diverse backgrounds.  Applications are considered for the fall term only, and the deadline for receipt of the completed application is December 1. Only full-time students are considered for admission.

The admissions committee considers a candidate’s complete application and whether the research interests of this student matches with a member of the faculty.  Research interests, skills, and experience are preferred.

Financial Support

The department makes a determined effort to offer each student who is in good standing financial support in the form of a stipend and tuition remission. Stipends may stem from several sources including, teaching assistantships, research assistantships, and fellowships. Outstanding students are placed into competition for university-wide fellowships. In addition, students are encouraged to apply for available external funding.

Satisfactory Progress

Students’ progress is reviewed by the program faculty each year. The requirements for satisfactory progress are as follows:

  1. Academic or course-related requirements. Students should make progress toward completing their coursework.  A cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better, exclusive of independent study courses, is required to maintain good standing with regard to GPA. In addition, students are required to earn a grade of B or better in all required courses.
  2. Research
    Students are expected to actively participate in a research group, demonstrate the ability to function independently in all phases of the research process, and make timely progress toward completion of research requirements.

    Deadlines for Research milestones are:
    1. The first-year project is due by May 15th of the first year.
    2. Students propose their Master’s thesis by September 30th of their second year and complete the Master’s thesis by May 15th of their second year - or - students complete their pre-doctoral research project by May 15th of their second year.
    3. Students must pass the Ph.D. qualifying exam by Feb 1st of their third year.
    4. The Ph.D. dissertation proposal must be completed by September 30th of the 4th year with a dissertation advisor who is a core faculty member of the program. Students are expected to defend the dissertation by the end of their fifth year.
  3. Professional Development
    Students are expected to develop professional skills and materials in preparation for a scientific career, broadly speaking. 

    In addition, all students who receive department funding as a Teaching Assistant will be evaluated each semester by the faculty member assigned to the course. Each student’s overall performance will be assessed (e.g., teaching effort and performance, attendance, meeting deadlines, following course guidelines and policies, professionalism, etc.). In addition, if the TA assignment includes teaching, the faculty member may conduct an in-class observation to evaluate each student’s teaching skills and individualized feedback will be provided. It is expected that a student’s overall performance each semester, as assessed by the faculty member assigned to the course, will meet or exceed expectations in order for a student to remain in good standing in the program.