The Psychological Sciences Department offers a Master of Science in Psychology. Our Master's degree students are interested in research careers, and the program is designed to prepare students for admission to Ph.D. programs in all research areas of psychology.
This is a two-year, full-time, research oriented, residential program. We admit about 8-9 applicants per year – a small size that allows close interaction among students and faculty and superior student training. More than 80 percent of our graduates who subsequently apply for admission to doctoral-level programs are accepted.
Master's students are integrally involved in research conducted in the Psychology Department. In many cases, faculty members develop and work with research teams comprised of undergraduate and M.S. students. As a team, the group collaborates to design, conduct, analyze, and publish the work. Students regularly become coauthors of articles in professional journals.
Faculty support student interests in a wide range of research areas, including behavioral neuroscience, social, cognitive, clinical, and developmental psychology. Laboratory facilities include observation and research rooms, an animal colony, laboratories for studies in human and animal physiology, perception and cognition, and social psychology. There are also developmental psychology laboratories devoted to infant, child, and adolescent research.
We encourage applications from students who are interested in research careers. The program is not appropriate for students interested solely in clinical practice. If your main interest is in counseling, please contact W&M School of Education's School Psychology and Counseling Program or New Horizons Family Counseling.
Advice and Considerations
Students applying to the Psychological Sciences M.S. program must have undergraduate psychology courses in experimental/research methods and psychology statistics.
Applicants are evaluated based on undergraduate GPA, verbal and quantitative GRE scores (see averages below; note that the GRE subject test in Psychology is not required for admission); and other criteria such as research experience, work experience, and letters of recommendation (see weighting below).
Scores/GPA of Fall 2016 Entering M.S. Students:
GRE-Verbal: average = 160
GRE-Quantitative: average = 155
GRE-Analytical average: 4.5
Overall undergraduate GPA: 3.63
Other Admission Criteria:
Research experience: High
Letters of recommendation: High
Work experience: Medium
Extracurricular activity: Low
Clinically related public service: Low
TOEFL/IELTS: If English is not your first language, your TOEFL or IELTS scores are required and must be sent directly to William & Mary by the Educational Testing Service or the International English Language Testing System.