Psychology

Entry Requirements

• Brown first-year students will have completed 12 years of primary and secondary schooling.
• Students who have completed 13 years of schooling and who have completed their external national examinations for college-level work with exceptional results may be eligle for some advanced standing or transfer credit at Brown once they become sophomores. International certifications most commonly earned by our students are the International Baccalaureate diploma or A-levels; other national "13th-year" certification programs, however, may be considered on a case-by-case basis. It should be noted that neither course credit nor enrollment credit is granted for AS or O-level exams.
• English language proficiency must be achieved before you are admitted. Brown does not offer courses in English as a Second Language for its undergraduates and does not accept on a provisional basis students who are deficient in English. We highly recommend that international applicants or students whose first language is not English should take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and arrange for Brown to receive the official results. A TOEFL score of 600 or above on the written exam or 100 or above on the internet-based exam is expected in most cases. If your score on the SAT Critical Reading test is 650 or above, it is not necessary to take the TOEFL

Curriculum

Introductory Psychology: Planning a concentration and choosing elective courses requires general knowledge about the topics psychologists study. Introductory Psychology (CLPS0010) is required for the concentration. Students may satisfy the Introductory Psychology requirement by submitting AP (score of 4 or 5) or IB (score of 5 or above) test credit or by transferring Introductory Psychology course credits from other 4-year institutions.

Quantitative: Because careers in Psychology and related fields require familiarity with statistics. Therefore, the Psychology concentration requires Quantitative Methods in Psychology (CLPS0900). CLPS0900 is a prerequisite for most of the laboratory courses, so concentrators should plan to take this course by their fourth semester. The department does not grant concentration credit for AP Statistics, regardless of score. Students who feel that CLPS0900 is too elementary can complete APMA 1650 for concentration credit.

Course Distribution: Concentrators must take at least one laboratory course, which provides students with hands-on experience with research methods in a substantive area of psychology. Because the laboratory serves as the basis for independent research and is a prerequisite for the Honors program, concentrators should plan to take their lab before their senior year. This course must be taken in CLPS. Independent study or laboratory courses in other departments will not fulfill this requirement.