Contact Info
| Phone: | 314-935-6520 |
| Website: | https://psych.wustl.edu/graduate-program |
To earn a PhD at Washington University, a student must complete all courses required by their department; maintain satisfactory academic progress; pass certain examinations; complete all requirements for doctoral candidacy; fulfill residence and Mentored Experience Requirements; write, defend, and submit a dissertation; and apply for program completion (graduation) via Workday Student.
For the details of doctoral degree general requirements in Arts & Sciences, including an explanation of Satisfactory Academic Progress, students should review the Doctoral Degree Academic Information page of the Arts & Sciences Bulletin.
In order to advance to PhD candidacy within the Psychological & Brain Sciences PhD program, students must complete two years of the program and meet the following requirements:
- Have two successful end-of-year portfolio reviews (end of the first and second years) and demonstrate evidence of positive evaluations from their mentor (end of first semester, first year, and second year);
- Have successfully completed the master's research project; and
- Have a successful review by the Area faculty following the completion of the master's project.
Once the student has met these criteria, a formal notice of admission to candidacy for the PhD will be entered into their file and sent to the Office of Graduate Studies, and the milestone “Qualifying Exam Passed” will be added to their student record. Students who fail to meet these criteria will be asked to leave the program. It should be noted that, even after being admitted to candidacy for the PhD, the student must still pass their Subject Matter Exam successfully to move on to the dissertation proposal stage.
Program Requirements
- Total Units Required: 36
- Degree Length: 5 years
- The PhD in Psychological & Brain Sciences is a 5 year program. Students in the Clinical Science area will complete an additional year of clinical internship for a total of 6 years to complete the degree.
- Note: Students must be enrolled in 9 graduate credits each semester to retain full-time status. As students complete their coursework, if enrolled in fewer than 9 graduate credits, they must enroll in ASGS 9000 Full-Time Graduate Research/Study, a specific Arts & Sciences graduate course that will show 0 units but does count as full-time status. Students should connect with their department to ensure proper enrollment prior to Add/Drop.
- Grade Requirement: Students must maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher to be in good academic standing
PhD in Psychological & Brain Sciences
The following is a brief listing of the requirements for the PhD in Psychological & Brain Sciences. A more detailed description of these requirements may be found in our Graduate Student Handbook (PDF). Students in the clinical science training program have somewhat different requirements; please refer to the Clinical Program Handbook (PDF) as well.
All students must do the following:
- Complete required graduate-level courses (courses must be completed for a student to be considered "all but dissertation"). A typical semester course load for the first two years is 8 to 11 units. Full-time status is at least 9 units of coursework or 0 to 8 units plus the enrollment in ASGS 9000 Full-Time Graduate Research/Study.
- Meet the Mentored Teaching Experience requirement that all students must meet, the details of which are outlined in our Graduate Student Handbook and under the Mentored Experience Implementation Plan tab of this page.
- Attend a 1-credit (one hour per week) seminar on research ethics. This seminar typically happens during the fall semester of a student's first or second year in the program.
- Attend at least five professional development workshops over the course of the program.
- Complete a qualifying research project during the first two years of graduate study. This project is often referred to as the master's thesis.
- Pass a subject matter examination. This examination must be passed before work on the dissertation can begin.
- Complete a dissertation project and defend it in an oral examination. The research requirements for the PhD are described in more detail in our Graduate Student Handbook.
Required Courses
Students are required to take a minimum of 36 units to earn the degree. Required courses make up 10 units, Distribution Requirements make up 9 units, and the remaining 17 units will consist of units earned by enrolling in the department seminar series (PSYCH 5245) and colloquium series (PSYCH 5999), taking additional distribution courses, or taking other elective courses that support the student's research and career goals. (e.g., PSYCH 5910 Research in Psychology, PSYCH 5920 Research in Psychology). Students must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PSYCH 8066 | Quantitative Methods I | 3 |
| PSYCH 8067 | Quantitative Methods II | 3 |
| PSYCH 8011 | Research Designs and Methods | 3 |
| PSYCH 8405 | Seminar in Research Ethics | 1 |
Distribution Requirements
Students must take one course from three of the following seven distribution areas.
Note to Clinical Science Students: Please consult the Clinical Science Program Handbook for more specific guidelines regarding which courses should be used to fulfill distribution areas for the clinical science program.
Social and Personality Psychology
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PSYCH 5030 | Seminar: Experimental Social Psychology | 3 |
| PSYCH 5227 | The Science of Close Relationships | 3 |
| PSYCH 5322 | Purpose And Identity Development Across The Lifespan | 3 |
| PSYCH 5427 | Social Gerontology | 3 |
| PSYCH 5921 | Seminar: Theories of Social Psychology | 3 |
| PSYCH 5991 | Social Cognition | 3 |
| PSYCH 8352 | Theories of Personality Psychology | 3 |
Abnormal Psychology and Affective Neuroscience
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PSYCH 5454 | Introduction to Affective Science | 3 |
| PSYCH 5765 | Inside the Disordered Brain: Neural Systems of Behavior and Psychopathology | 3 |
| PSYCH 5958 | Emotion Regulation | 3 |
| PSYCH 8370 | Advanced Psychopathology | 3 |
Biological-Neurological Bases of Behavior
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| BBS 5651 | Neural Systems | 6 |
| PSYCH 5765 | Inside the Disordered Brain: Neural Systems of Behavior and Psychopathology | 3 |
| PSYCH 5831 | Biological Foundations of Behavior | 3 |
Cognitive, Learning, and Perception
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PSYCH 5085 | Human Memory | 3 |
| PSYCH 5089 | Cognitive Neuroscience of Memory | 3 |
| PSYCH 5183 | Perception, Thought, and Action | 3 |
| PSYCH 5631 | Introduction to Computational Cognitive Science | 3 |
| PSYCH 5665 | The Science of Behavior | 3 |
| PSYCH 8087 | Advanced Cognitive Psychology | 3 |
Aging and Development
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PSYCH 5321 | Advanced Developmental Psychology | 3 |
| PSYCH 5322 | Purpose And Identity Development Across The Lifespan | 3 |
| PSYCH 5427 | Social Gerontology | 3 |
| PSYCH 5591 | The Development of Social Cognition | 3 |
| PSYCH 5883 | Psychology of Aging | 3 |
History of Psychology
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PSYCH 5651 | History and Modern Systems of Psychology | 3 |
Quantitative Knowledge
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PSYCH 5631 | Introduction to Computational Cognitive Science | 3 |
| PSYCH 8012 | Selected Topics in Design and Statistics | 3 |
| PSYCH 8068 | Hierarchical Linear Models | 3 |
| PSYCH 8160 | Applied Multivariate Analysis | 3 |
| PSYCH 8165 | Applied Longitudinal Data Analysis | 3 |
| PSYCH 8167 | Applied Bayesian Statistics for Psychologists | 3 |
Qualifying Examinations
Progress toward the PhD is contingent upon the student passing examinations that are variously called preliminary, qualifying, general, comprehensive, or major field exams. The qualifying process varies according to the program. In some programs, it consists of a series of incremental, sequential, and cumulative exams over a considerable time. In others, the exams are held during a relatively short period of time. Exams may be replaced by one or more papers. The program, which determines the structure and schedule of the required examinations, is responsible for notifying the Office of Graduate Studies, Arts & Sciences, of the student’s outcome, whether successful or unsuccessful.
Doctoral Candidacy
Candidacy marks the transition from coursework and initial study to independent research and dissertation writing. At this stage, the student is considered prepared to contribute to their field through independent scholarship.
The status of candidacy for WashU Arts & Sciences doctoral students indicates a student has, at minimum, completed and passed their qualifying exam/paper and pre-candidacy requirements. Pre-candidacy requirements are determined by each PhD program. Those requirements may include, for example, completion of required coursework; completion of required foreign language exams; completion of the Mentored Experience Requirement; successful submission of the Title, Scope and Procedure form; and completion of the oral presentation to propose the dissertation to their Research Advisory Committee.
Mentored Experience Requirement
Doctoral students, MFA in Writing students, and MFA in Dance students at Washington University must complete a department-defined Mentored Experience Requirement. The Mentored Experience Requirement is a degree requirement that is notated on the student's transcript when complete. Each department has an established Mentored Experience Implementation Plan in which the number of units that a student must earn through Mentored Teaching Experience(s) and/or Mentored Professional Experience(s) is defined. Each Mentored Experience Implementation Plan outlines how doctoral students within the discipline will be mentored to achieve competencies in teaching at basic and advanced levels. Some departments may elect to include Mentored Professional Experiences as an avenue for completing some units of the Mentored Experience Requirement. Doctoral students will enroll in ASGS 8005 MTE - Assistant in Instruction Experience, ASGS 8010 MTE - Assistant in Instruction Experience, or ASGS 8015 MTE - Assistant in Instruction Experience; ASGS 8020 MTE - Mentored Independent Teaching Experience; or ASGS 8120 MTE - Mentored Professional Experience to signify their progression toward completing the overall Mentored Experience Requirement for the degree.
The Doctoral Dissertation
A Research Advisory Committee (RAC) must be created no later than the end of the student's second year; departments may set shorter timelines (e.g., by the end of the student's third semester) for this requirement. As evidence of the mastery of a specific field of knowledge and of the capacity for original scholarly work, each candidate must complete a dissertation that is approved by their RAC.
A Title, Scope, and Procedure form for the dissertation must be signed by the committee members and by the program chair. It must be submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies, Arts & Sciences, at least one year before the degree is expected to be conferred or before beginning the eighth semester of full-time enrollment, whichever is earlier.
A Doctoral Dissertation Guide and a Dissertation Template that give instructions regarding the format of the dissertation are available on the website of the Office of Graduate Studies, Arts & Sciences. Both should be read carefully at every stage of dissertation preparation.
The Office of Graduate Studies, Arts & Sciences, requires each student to make the full text of the dissertation available to the committee members for their review at least one week before the defense. Most degree programs require two or more weeks for the review period; students should check with their faculty.
The Dissertation Defense
Approval of the written dissertation by the Research Advisory Committee (RAC) is strongly recommended before the student can orally defend the dissertation. The Doctoral Dissertation Committee that examines the student during the defense consists of at least five members. Normally, the members of the RAC also serve on the Doctoral Dissertation Committee. The dissertation committee is then additionally augmented to ensure that the following criteria are met:
- Three of the five members (or a similar proportion of a larger committee) must be full-time Washington University in St. Louis faculty members or, for programs involving Washington University in St. Louis-affiliated partners, full-time members of a Washington University in St. Louis-affiliated partner institution. All members must be authorized to supervise PhD students and have appropriate expertise in the proposed field of study. One of these three members must be the PhD student's primary thesis advisor, and one may be a member of the emeritus faculty.
- All other committee members must be active in research/scholarship and have appropriate expertise in the proposed field of study whether at Washington University in St. Louis, at another university, in government, or in industry.
- At least one of the five members must bring expertise outside of the student's field of study to the committee, as judged by the relevant department/program and approved by the Office of Graduate Studies, Arts & Sciences.
The approval processes outlined in the RAC section of the Doctoral Council bylaws also apply to the Doctoral Dissertation Committee, including approval of each dissertation committee by the Office of Graduate Studies, Arts & Sciences.
The student is responsible for making the full text of the dissertation accessible to their committee members for their review in advance of the defense according to program rules. Washington University in St. Louis community members and guests of the student who are interested in the subject of the dissertation are normally welcome to attend all or part of the defense but may ask questions only at the discretion of the committee chair. Although there is some variation among degree programs, the defense ordinarily focuses on the dissertation itself and its relation to the student's field of expertise.
Attendance by a minimum of four members of the Doctoral Dissertation Committee, including the committee chair and an outside member, is required for the defense to take place. This provision is designed to permit the student's defense to proceed in case of a situation that unexpectedly prevents one of the five members from attending. Students should not plan in advance to only have four members in attendance. If four members cannot attend, the defense must be rescheduled. The absence of all outside members or of the committee chair also requires rescheduling the defense.
Students, with the support of their Doctoral Dissertation Committee chair, may opt to hold their dissertation defense in person or by utilizing a virtual or hybrid format.
Submission of the Dissertation
After the defense, the student must submit an electronic copy of the dissertation online to the Office of Graduate Studies, Arts & Sciences, by the established deadline for their graduation term. Dissertations must be submitted no later than three months after the oral defense of the dissertation. Petitions for an extension to the three-month limit may be submitted to the director of graduate studies for consideration and approval.
The submission website requires students to choose among publishing and copyrighting services offered by ProQuest's ETD Administrator. Students are asked to submit the Survey of Earned Doctorates separately. The degree program is responsible for delivering the final approval form, signed by the committee members at the defense and then by the program chair or director, to the Office of Graduate Studies, Arts & Sciences. Students who defend their dissertations successfully have not yet completed their PhD requirements; they finish earning their degree only when their dissertation submission has been accepted by the Office of Graduate Studies, Arts & Sciences.
Master's Degree Along the Way/
In Lieu of a PhD
From the beginning of the graduate program in Psychological & Brain Sciences at Washington University students participate in research reflecting their area of specialization. That education will be guided by their research mentor and will take place within one or more of the research laboratories in the department or university. In the early stages of their study, students will work on a qualifying research project (master's thesis). Once the qualifying research project is completed (by the end of your second year) and the student has completed at least 36 units, including the required coursework (e.g., Statistics, Research Methods, Research Ethics, and the distribution classes), the student can receive a master's degree along the way to the PhD.
As part of their degree requirements, PhD students must complete a program-defined Mentored Experience Requirement (MER) as per these guidelines. The Mentored Experience Implementation Plan (MEIP) is the written articulation of a program-defined degree requirement for PhD students to engage in mentored teaching activities and/or mentored professional activities, collectively referred to as the MER.
Mentored Experience Requirement (MER)
Philosophy of Teaching
Teaching and teaching preparation play a very important role in our discipline. Most individuals who obtain academic positions in Psychological and Brain Sciences are expected to be at least minimally effective teachers and to teach at least one — and typically more than one — undergraduate class. In addition, many individuals in Psychological & Brain Sciences will obtain positions in institutions with graduate programs and will thus be expected to participate effectively in mentoring and teaching graduate students. Further, being able to communicate effectively to audiences with either similar knowledge or less knowledge than one has about one’s field is essential to being a successful scientist in Psychological & Brain Sciences. As such, core preparation in pedagogical skills combined with some practical experience in this arena are considered critical elements of graduate education.
Preparatory Engagement
Preparatory Engagement activities are those that represent an introduction to the foundational skills associated with teaching or communication. Pedagogical preparation engagement activities are normally completed before students are permitted to engage in assisting or teaching in a classroom.
Two Preparatory Engagements are required:
- Center for Teaching and Learning Orientation in August prior to the first semester in which a student completes a Mentored Teaching Engagement (MTE) as an Assistant in Instruction (AI).
- Completion of a pedagogical teaching workshop entitled Teaching of Psychology Workshop as a practical learning activity prior to 1st semester in which a student completes an MTE as an AI. This workshop covers a wide range of topics relevant for being an effective teacher and includes the requirement to prepare, present, and receive detailed feedback on two lectures from the course instructor as well as to prepare a teaching philosophy statement.
Mentored Teaching Experiences (MTEs)
Assistant in Instruction (AI)
An Assistant in Instruction (AI) is a PhD student who is directly engaged in the organization, instruction, and/or support of a semester-long course primarily taught by a faculty member. An AI receives mentorship from a faculty member related to best practices in classroom engagement, instruction in the field, interpersonal engagement, and other relevant skills. Students and mentors complete a mentorship plan prior to the start of each AI experience. To complete each AI assignment and to ensure that it applies toward their degree requirements, students must register for the appropriate course number for each semester of engagement. Refer to the "Required Pathways for Completion" section below for course numbers and details.
All students are required to complete 40 MER units as an AI with no more than 10 MER units per semester. This corresponds to four courses total at an average of 10 hours/per week per course. Psychological and Brain Sciences will consider students’ preferences regarding which semesters they would like to be an AI and for which courses they would like to be an AI; however, in some cases departmental instructional needs may result in students being an AI during a non-preferred semester or in a non-preferred course.
Required Pathways for Completion
Students work with their faculty mentor and their Director of Graduate Studies to plan how and when they will complete their MER. Students register during the normal registration period for courses in accordance with one of these approved pathways.
Students who have yet to complete any MTEs as of Fall 2026 are required to complete 40 MTE units as an AI with no more than 10 MTE units per semester. This corresponds to four courses total at an average of 10 hours/per week of assistance per course. Typically, students will complete these MTE units during their 2nd and 3rd years in the program.
| ASGS 8010 | Take four times |