Departmental Honors

 

Students can show distinction in the major in four ways, each of which will be recognized by being…

Celebrated at the annual Psychology Department Reception in May
Featured on the department website and/or social media 

Note: While the first three are meaningful achievements, please note that the department’s recognized “Honors” graduation distinction is #4, the Senior Honors Thesis Program.  

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1. Joining Psi Chi, the International Honor Society in Psychology
Psi Chi is an international honor society whose purpose shall be to encourage, stimulate, and maintain excellence in scholarship of the individual members in all fields, particularly in psychology, and to advance the science of psychology. Psi Chi members receive special cords to wear at graduation in May.
See: https://www.psichi.org/

2. Being nominated and subsequently selected for the Psychology Department Leadership & Service Award
The recipient of this award is a graduating senior who exemplifies most or all of the following qualities:

Has initiated or created a positive change in the LC Psychology department.

Possesses the spirit of determination, care, and intellectual curiosity befitting the discipline of Psychology.

Has been generous in service to the LC Psychology community, e.g., through their participation in programming events that have widespread impact.

Creates a welcoming community for underrepresented students in the major (e.g. students of Color, LGBTQQIA identified students, first-generation students, students of faith, and/or non-traditional students).

Award recipients are presented with a certificate of achievement at the departmental graduation reception in May. Past recipients include: Joel Schooler, Cloe Moreno, Andrea Previsic. 

3. Being nominated and subsequently selected for the Distinguished Psychology Capstone Award. This award recognizes exceptional undergraduate research and scholarship in psychology through outstanding capstone work completed in 400-level courses.

Eligibility: Must be a Psychology major completing a capstone project in a 400-level psychology course

Selection process: Students may be nominated by faculty or self-nominate; submissions are reviewed by departmental committee comprised of 3-4 faculty members and 1 departmental alumnus when possible.

Judging criteria:  Originality and innovation of capstone project; Quality of analysis and/or interpretation; and Scholarly approach and presentation of ideas.

Award recipients are presented with a certificate of achievement at the departmental graduation reception in May.

4. Participating in and successfully completing the Senior Honors Thesis Program.

The Senior Honors Thesis Program in Psychology is an opportunity for students with strong academic records to gain advanced level experience in conducting independent, empirical research under the supervision of two full-time faculty advisors. Honors theses are not required for all psychology majors. Honors recipients are celebrated at the CAS Honors Convocation in May and receive special designation in the commencement program. 

Examples of recent honors theses include:

• The Relationship between Promotive Factors and Multiple Domains of Resilience in Adolescents
• Numerical Estimation Development in Children: In Support of the Logarithmic-to-Linear Shift Hypothesis

For more information, see:
https://college.lclark.edu/departments/psychology/major/honors/