Description
Psychology is a broad discipline that considers properties of the brain and seeks to understand humans as individuals and in groups. The Associate of Arts Oregon Transfer with a focus in psychology includes courses that are commonly required for this major and meets lower-division general education requirements at all Oregon public universities.
Statewide General Education Student Learning Outcomes
Entrance Requirements
While this program has no formal entrance requirements, individual courses may have prerequisites which must be met before enrollment.
Course Requirements
Course List | Course | Title | Credits |
| |
| 1 | 3 |
| |
| 4 |
| |
| |
| 3-4 |
| |
| WR 121 | Academic Composition | 4 |
| WR 122 | Argument, Research, and Multimodal Composition | 4 |
| or WR 227 | Technical Writing |
| |
| |
| |
| 9-12 |
| |
| 12-16 |
| |
| |
| 12-20 |
| 39 |
| Total Credits | 90-106 |
Advising Notes
For specific advice about how coursework and extracurricular activities relate to transfer to four-year colleges and universities, please meet with a psychology advisor who will help navigate schools' frequently changing requirements and expectations. It can often feel complex and confusing, and schools have different specialties. Psychology advisors are here to help. As part of meeting with a psychology advisor, please consult websites and degree requirements for prospective schools.* Here are Oregon schools' psychology pages:
In general, the College does not have a language requirement, but most Oregon public colleges and universities do. Two years of the same world language earned at the high school level or two quarters of the same world language at the undergraduate level is required for admittance.
Bachelor of Science (BS) versus Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Psychology: Students pursuing a BA after transfer should consider completing three terms of a 200-level language course.* The 100-level language courses will count as electives. The 200-level language courses will partially fulfill the arts and letters requirement for the AAOT. Students pursuing a BS after transfer should consider taking more math and science courses. In general, two 100-level or higher math courses beyond the foundational mathematics requirement fulfills the BS. These will also partially fulfill the science/math/computer science discipline studies requirement. Language beyond entrance requirements is often not required for a BS degree.
Psychology is also a gateway to many other fields of study and careers. Meet with an advisor to discuss these connections.
Laboratory science class recommendations: Although students may take whichever science sequence they prefer, it is recommended to take BI 101 General Biology: Cells & Genes, BI 103 General Biology: Ecology
, or BI 231 Human Anatomy and Physiology I through BI 233 Human Anatomy and Physiology III due to these courses relevance to upper-division psychology courses.
PSY 204 Research Methods: Design and Analysis
, PSY 213 Introduction to Physiological Psychology and PSY 227 Animal Behavior fulfill the science lab requirement if a sequence is not essential.
Additional classes and electives: Students are advised to consider the following psychology courses as electives to gain further insight into the field and to help them determine what area of psychology they may be interested in pursuing. In addition to being electives, some courses satisfy specific degree requirements:
Science/math/computer science AAOT lab course requirements: PSY 204 Research Methods: Design and Analysis
, PSY 213 Introduction to Physiological Psychology, and PSY 227 Animal Behavior
Social science AAOT requirements: PSY 210 Introduction to Cognitive Psychology, PSY 215 Developmental Psychology, PSY 216 Social Psychology, PSY 219 Abnormal Psychology, PSY 228 Positive Psychology, PSY 233 Psychology of Violence & Aggression
More electives: PSY 250 Readings in Psychology, PSY 261 Indonesian Field Study I: Preparation to Study Abroad, PSY 262 Indonesian Field Study II: Global Health: Field Training and Research, PSY 263 Indonesian Field Study III: Communicating Indonesian Field Experience
, and any other potential special topics PSY courses that are offered.
Math and statistics: Psychology students will be required to take statistics when they transfer. Although MTH 111 College Algebra is sufficient for the math requirement, advisors recommend MTH 105 Math in Society and then taking one or both of MTH 243 Introduction to Probability and Statistics I and MTH 244 Introduction to Probability and Statistics 2 to finish the science requirement and to allow students to be exposed to statistics beforehand. However, for some colleges and universities, these classes do not fulfill the BS math requirements. Please make sure to reference four-year college and university requirements to see current expectations. PSY 204 Research Methods: Design and Analysis is also a good preparation for upper-division statistics required for a psychology BA or BS.
Clinical or counseling psychology: Students considering clinical or counseling psychology might consider the following electives: EMT 195 Crisis Intervention for the Emergency Medical Provider, ED 265 Children at Risk, HS 161 Ethics for Human Services, HS 162 Effective Helping Skills I, HS 201 Families and Addictions, HS 206 Group Counseling Skills for Human Services, HS 209 Introduction to Psychological Trauma: Theory and Practice, HS 224 Psychopharmacology, HS 260 Counseling Theories, and HS 262 Effective Helping Skills II. HS 224 Psychopharmacology will meet a non-lab science/math/computer science requirement. HS 206 Group Counseling Skills for Human Services and HS 208 Multicultural Issues in Human Services will partially complete the social science requirement.
* Please note that individual institutions may have additional requirements or will change the category that a course satisfies if the AAOT is not completed or is transferred to an out-of-state college or university. For admission into a particular program, courses may be added. Students who plan to transfer should contact the institution they plan to attend to ensure they have fulfilled the specific requirements for their program.
Performance Standards
- Academic Requirements:
- Students must have a 2.0 cumulative GPA to earn a COCC certificate or degree.
- Options for additional standards:
- All courses in the program must be completed with a grade of C or higher.
