At the end of the year, the student is required to write a paper based on the first-year research activities, and to be examined on it orally by a committee consisting of the advisor and at least two other faculty members. (The additional faculty members for the committee are chosen by the Graduate Group Chair, also referred to as the Director of Graduate Studies. Suggestions about appropriate members for the committee are submitted by the advisor, after consultation with the student.) Although the student writes the paper, the advisor should offer at least general recommendations regarding its form and content. At the oral, the student should be prepared to discuss the relevance of the chosen problem to the general area of research, and the reasons for attacking the problem in this particular manner.
The form of the paper is largely up to the advisor, but traditionally the ideal is a journal article that could be published without revision. Thus, an extensive, historical introduction is not necessary, although the student must show awareness of relevant past work both in the paper and the oral exam.
The student must submit one copy of the 699 paper to each committee member and an additional copy for the Department's files. The student may photocopy the paper free on the Department's machines. The Graduate Group Chair will establish the deadline for submission at the beginning of the Fall semester. At the end of the examination, the committee members should make every effort to reach agreement on a grade, but an average grade may be reported if necessary. Grades should be based primarily on the written paper and secondarily on the oral examination.
For each Proseminar, there will be some sort of evaluation, culminating in a grade. This evaluation can take the form of an open or closed book examination, an oral examination, papers, or combination of these. The evaluation must be completed by the end of the semester. A student who wishes to be reexamined must submit a written request to the Director of Graduate Studies within one week of the distribution of grades for the Proseminar.
First-year students must take a total of 3 c.u.'s of Proseminars. Two exceptions to this rule are allowed: First, a student may replace one proseminar with a 500- or 600-level course in any Department. In this case, the student must take another c.u of proseminar in year two or three, to make up a total of five by the middle of year three. Second, a student may substitute an external course for a proseminar, as described in Chapter 3. By the middle of year three, students must take, one Proseminar in each of the following broad areas: The Mind, the Brain, the Individual and the Group. Which proseminars will be offered in each division will vary from year to year, but Animal Learning, Information Processing, Perception, Judgments and Decisions are examples of Proseminars in the Mind sector. Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuro-endocrinology are examples of Proseminars in the Brain sector, and Social, Clinical, and Cultural are examples of Proseminars in the Individual and Group sector.
Students who have completed the equivalent of Psychology 611 prior to matriculating, may opt to replace it with some other demanding course.
May, 2005