Department of Psychology at Illinois State University
Out-of-Class Experiences with Faculty
Out-of-Class
Experiences Forms
In contrast to many colleges and universities, faculty at Illinois State maintain a strong commitment to undergraduate instruction and mentoring. Every semester approximately 100 undergraduate students in the Major work with faculty in the classroom or in research labs. Opportunities are also available for more advanced students to complete an internship in an applied setting. Students report that these out-of-class experiences are among the most valuable aspects of their educational experience. The information in this Web site describes these out-of-class experiences and how to register for them.
To obtain a research experience, students can enroll in PSY 290 Special Projects: Research Apprenticeship (formerly PSY 290.01). This course gives students credit for working in faculty members' research labs. Students learn valuable skills such as working as a team, collecting and managing data, and interacting with research participants. PSY 290 can be repeated for up to 9 hours, so students can participate in several different research projects or work more in depth in one faculty member's research laboratory.
Another opportunity for psychology majors to participate in research is through PSY 390 Advanced Research Apprenticeship. PSY 390 builds upon what students learn in PSY 290. In PSY 390, students typically have more responsibility for specific aspects of the faculty member's research project. PSY 390 requires a final work product from the student (e.g., presentation of the research at the Undergraduate Research Symposium or at a conference, a research paper, etc.). PSY 390 is only available to students with senior standing. Completing both PSY 290 (for 3 hours) and PSY 390 with the same faculty member can fulfill the capstone requirement for the Major in Psychology.
Students need to contact individual faculty members to find out if they are accepting students for research opportunities and if the faculty member has any requirements for new students. Most Psychology faculty have developed individual Web sites that describe opportunities for students to participate in research projects
After the student and faculty member have worked out a research plan, students must complete either the PSY 290 Research Apprenticeship Contract or the PSY 390 Advanced Research Apprenticeship Contract. After the contract has been reviewed by the faculty member and is signed by the student and the faculty member, the contract will go through the department's approval process. When the contract is approved, the department will also approve an override so the student can register for PSY 290 or PSY 390. It could take one to three weeks before the student can register. When registering for PSY 290 or 390, students must register for the number of credit hours identified in the contract. Otherwise, the registration will not be complete. If the contract is submitted for approval after the first week of a semester, students must register for the course in Moulton 107.
PSY 287 Independent Study is an opportunity for students to study an area of interest in depth, under the supervision of a faculty member. This type of research experience is generally appropriate for advanced undergraduate students. Students will usually produce a substantive work product from the independent study—generally a paper, although the nature of the work product is variable. The difference between PSY 287 and PSY 290 is that in the latter the student is assisting a faculty member with the faculty member's research project. Under PSY 287, students have primary responsibility for completion of the independent study work.
The research topic and required work are arranged through meetings with the faculty member. The student will prepare a PSY 287 Independent Study Contract which will be reviewed by the faculty member, and signed by the student and the faculty member. The contract will go through the department's approval process. When the contract is approved, the department will also approve an override for the student to register for PSY 287. It could take one to three weeks before the student can register. When registering for the course, students must register for the number of credit hours identified in the contract. Otherwise, the registration will not be complete. If the contract is submitted for approval after the first week of a semester, students must register for the course in Moulton 107.
Students who work with faculty as undergraduate teaching assistants often assist faculty with grading, record keeping, reading papers, holding office hours, and tutoring students in the class. To participate in teaching experiences, students can enroll in PSY 291 (formerly PSY 290.02) Special Projects: Undergraduate Teaching and PSY 391 Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Apprenticeship, which is a more advanced experience than PSY 291.
The UTA Program provides opportunities for students to acquire a variety of skills that meet the department's Description of Objectives and Courses. Specifically, the faculty have agreed that, through the UTA Program, students will acquire the following:
Learning objectives for a student enrolled in PSY 291 will vary, depending upon the faculty member and the course. Based on the student's responsibilities as a teaching assistant, students can expect to develop the following:
Students can also fulfill the Major in Psychology capstone requirement by completing PSY 291 (for 3 hours) and PSY 391 with the same faculty member.
Students are often approached by faculty to ascertain their interest in participating as a teaching assistant. However, students can also ask faculty if they have undergraduate teaching opportunities. After the student and the faculty member have worked out a plan, the student will complete the PSY 291 Undergraduate Teaching Contract or PSY 391 Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Apprenticeship Contract. After the contract has been reviewed by the faculty member and is signed by the student and the faculty member, the contract will go through the department's approval process. When the contract is approved, the department will also approve an override for the student to register for PSY 291. It could take one to three weeks before the student can register. When registering for PSY 291, students must register for the number of credit hours identified in the contract. Otherwise, the registration will not be complete. If the contract is submitted for approval after the first week of a semester, students must register for the course in Moulton 107.
PSY 398 Professional Practice: Psychology provides students with an opportunity to earn academic credit for work experience related to psychology. Internships allow students to apply what they have learned from their psychology courses to direct experience in a work environment which may enhance their academic and career goals. Therefore, professional practice placements, commonly referred to as internships, enable students to integrate classroom study with training in a psychology-related work setting. Interns are supervised by professionals in the workplace. Internships are usually unpaid positions, although there are occasional exceptions.
In order to be eligible to register for PSY 398, students must have completed at least 15 hours of psychology coursework relevant to the internship, have junior or senior standing as a psychology major, and have a grade point average (GPA) of 2.2 or higher for all psychology-related coursework. Students must meet with the coordinator of psychology internships, Dr. Karen Mark (DEG 423, 438-8130 or by e-mail) to plan their internships. During this meeting, students' eligibility for PSY 398 will be verified, their goals for the internship will be reviewed, and appropriate placements will be discussed. If students are deemed eligible for internships, Dr. Mark will provide an internship contract for the students.
Once a particular internship has been decided upon, students contact the agency or business to schedule a meeting with the potential supervisor to discuss requirements and other details about the internship. After a student is accepted for an internship, the supervisor completes the internship contract, which is signed by the supervisor and the student. The contract verifies the student's placement and supervision, as well as provides specific information about the internship.
The completed and signed contract should be returned to Dr. Mark. It is only after the contract is received that students will be given overrides for PSY 398 in order to register for course credit. The internship may not begin until registration is completed and the semester has begun.
PSY 398 can be used to fulfill the Major capstone requirement if taken with PSY 395 Professional Practice: Seminar in the same semester. See PSY 398 Professional Practice for more information about internship experiences.
Students can also work on a research project through the Honors Program. For honors credit, honors students can enroll in PSY 299, Independent Honor Study, IDS 285 Honors Undergraduate Research, or IDS 286 Honors Undergraduate Research II to complete the Honors equivalent of PSY 287 and PSY 290. The Honors Program has contracts for these courses which must be completed by the student, reviewed by the faculty member, signed by the student, and submitted to the department and/or the Honors Program for approval before the student can register for this course. Check with the department's Honors Coordinator, Dr. Jeffrey Wagman by e-mail for more information about out-of-class honors experiences. PSY 299 is not the same as IDS 395.03 Honors Thesis: Psychology. See Honors in Psychology for more information about honors courses.
Note: PSY majors may not register for more than 15 hours of any combination of the following courses: PSY 287, 290, 290.01, 290.02, 291, 299, 390, 391, 398, and IDS 395.03.
