SAMPLE PRE-CLINICAL PATHS IN PSYCHOLOGY

The psychology concentration is an ideal one if you are planning a career in clinical psychology. The concentration has two main types of pre-clinical paths, General (regular and thesis option) and Life Sciences (regular and thesis option) . Both are designed for students who are pursuing admission to highly competitive clinical psychology graduate programs. The thesis honors path is not necessary for admission to a clinical graduate program, but it does strengthen an application. A thesis in psychopathology is also an advantage, but not necessary; it is very difficult for an undergraduate to gain access to patient popluations, and a thesis in a related area of psychology can be just as impressive. For example, you could do a psychopharmacological study with rats that has implications for treatment. If you plan to attend medical school, you may also be interested in the pre-medical paths, which can also prepare you for some clinical careers. And some general clinical careers may not require so detailed a preparation as outlined below. The strongest course preparation for a strong clinical psychology graduate program is a combination of basic psychology and pre-medical courses. This combination is better than a large set of only psychology courses. Pre-medical courses keep your career options open, allowing you to pursue a career in psychiatry or clinical neuropsychology. Psychology courses should include introductory, basic methods, abnormal psychology, and several distribution courses. Pre-medical courses should include mathematics, biology, physics, and inorganic chemistry; organic chemistry is not essential -- unless you apply to medical school -- but it is impressive.

There are a number of acceptable variations to the following paths. Because alternatives may involve pre-medical courses and because the order in which these courses should be taken is important, you should consult a pre-medical adviser as you develop variations on the sample paths below. These alternatives may involve a different selection of elective (E) and lab (L) courses. These categories are given in parentheses below, and other courses that will fulfill these requirements are listed at the end of this section. These lists vary from year to year; each year some courses are bracketed, and some require the instructor's permission to enroll.

YEAR	GENERAL PRE-CLINICAL PATH twelve half-courses (6 electives)	THESIS OPTION GENERAL PRE-CLINICAL PATH fourteen half-courses (5 electives)	THESIS OPTION LIFE SCIENCES PRE-CLINICAL PATH fourteen half-courses (2 electives)
First-year	Psy 1, Introduction to Psychology Psy 18, Abnormal Psychology (Tier 2)	Psy 1, Introduction to Psychology Psy 18, Abnormal Psychology (Tier 2)	Psy 1, Introduction to Psychology *Life Sciences 1a, An Integrated Intro to the Life Sciences:  Chemistry, Molecular Biology, and Cell Biology (LS) or LPS A, Life and Physical Sciences A. Foundational Chemistry and Biology *Life Sciences 1b, An Integrated Introduction to the Life Sciences: Genetics, Genomics, and Evolution (LS)
Sophomore	Psy 971, Sophomore Tutorial Psy 1900, Intro to Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences (M)  MCB 80, Behavioral Neuroscience (E) Psy 2461r, Lab in Clinical and Developmental Research (E)	Psy 971, Sophomore Tutorial Psy 1900, Intro to Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences (M)  MCB 80, Behavioral Neuroscience (E) **Psy 1652r, Laboratory in Early Cognitive Development (L) Psy 1861, Developmental Psychopathology, (E)	Psy 975, Sophomore Tutorial Psy 1900, Intro to Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences (M)  MCB 80, Behavioral Neuroscience (Tier 2) **Psy 2461r, Laboratory for Clinical and Developmental Research (L) Psy 18 Abnormal Psychology (Tier 2)
Junior	Psy 1901, Methods of Behavioral Research (M) Psy 13, Cognitive Psychology (Tier 2) Psy 1851, Introduction to Clinical Science (E) Psy 1853, Self-Destructive Behaviors (E)	Psy 1901, Methods of Behavioral Research (M) Psy 15 Social Psychology (Tier 2) Psy 985 Pre-thesis Tutorial (E) Psy 1851, Introduction to Clinical Science (E)	Psy 1901, Methods of Behavioral Research (M) Psy 1851, Introduction to Clinical Science (E) Math 19a Modeling and Differential Equations (LS)
Senior	Psy 15 Social Psychology (E) Psy 1808 Neurobiological Aspects of Psychopathology (E)	Psy 990, Senior Tutorial: Honors Thesis, full course Psy 1808 Neurobiological Aspects of Psychopathology (E)	Psy 993, Senior Tutorial: Honors Thesis, full course Psy 1808 Neurobiological Aspects of Psychopathology (E)
Key	Bold = Intro, Tutorials, Methods M = Methods E = Elective LS = Life Sciences Tracks	** Thesis candidates must take a lab course from the approved list	* The Life Sciences Tracks require 3 LS courses, includes LS 1a and/or 1b ** Thesis candidates must take a lab course from the approved list
Pre-clinical courses to be taken outside concentration	additional biology: 1 semester (optional)      (for some medical schools) calculus: 1 semester inorganic chemistry: 1 or 2 semesters organic chemistry: 2 semesters, (optional)      (for some medical schools) physics: 2 semesters	additional biology: 1 semester (optional)         (for some medical schools)) calculus: 1 semester inorganic chemistry: 1 or 2 semesters organic chemistry: 2 semesters, (optional)        (for some medical schools) physics: 2 semesters	additional biology: 1 semester (optional)         (for some medical schools)) calculus: 1 semester inorganic chemistry: 1or 2 semesters organic chemistry: 2 semesters, (optional)        (for some medical schools) physics: 2 semesters

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Last updated 26 September, 2008