Capstone Undergraduate Research (PSYC 492 or BCOG 492) is a two semester program that has been created to facilitate the preparation of a Bachelor’s Thesis for senior Psychology and Brain and Cognitive Science majors that are not in the Honors program. Students take the course in the fall and spring of their senior year. This is an opportunity to enhance your research skills but not a graduation requirement.
This course helps students gain an in-depth, background knowledge of their research, and teaches students to make effective oral and written presentations of their findings.
The fall semester emphasizes a review of the literature, and the spring semester concentrates 
on the presentation of the results both orally and in the Bachelor’s Thesis. Eligibility for the program includes:
- Students must have a major in Psychology or Brain and Cognitive Science
- Students must have a faculty research supervisor who is member of the Psychology Department faculty, a 0%-time affiliate in Psychology, or a Research Instructor in Psychology.
- Students must have at least a 3.0 GPA (both in their major and overall) at the time of graduation, and have their Bachelor’s Thesis approved by the Undergraduate Studies committee, to be awarded Distinction in Psychology at graduation.
Students must have completed at least one semester of PSYC 290 (or equivalent research experience credit) and the research project should be underway by the start of the fall semester to enroll for PSYC 492 or BCOG 492 and PSYC 494.
The application form for the year-long experience is available between March 1 and August 1. Applications will be evaluated on a rolling basis until the program has reached its capacity (typically 16 students). Therefore, interested students should apply as early as possible.
Click here for the Capstone application form
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Apply for the Advanced Research Opportunity Honors Scholarship
One student will be selected for the Advanced Research Opportunity Honors Scholarship, which is intended to enable research opportunities for students who face financial and time constraints that otherwise might prevent them from participating in the in-depth research process associated with completing a Bachelor’s thesis. This scholarship provides financial support over three semesters of undergraduate research conducted towards the completion of Bachelor’s thesis in psychology.