Plan your Psychology Degree

Minimum Credits Required: 120

Course Requirements:

• Detailed program and course information can be found in the KPU Calendar.
• Please also refer to the Psychology Future Course Offerings.

Highlights:

• The Bachelor of Arts Major in Psychology (BA Psychology) is a four-year program designed to provide graduates with substantive knowledge in the current core areas of academic psychology and research.
• During the first two years, the program will provide students with a rigorous, broad foundation in the liberal arts tradition, and expose students to the theoretical and methodological bases of psychology.
• The third and fourth years emphasize a more in-depth exploration of the core areas of the discipline:
  • Biological Psychology
  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Social/Personality Psychology
  • Clinical/Health Psychology
• As KPU’s flagship Psychology degree program, the BA is a flexible degree that allows students to explore many different content areas of psychology as well as other areas within the social sciences and humanities.
• Because of the flexibility of the program, BA students have the opportunity to consult with advisors, faculty and peers to determine their own degree specialization.
• The emphasis is on transferrable skills, including critical thinking, writing, group work, and oral presentations.
• Students also have the option of completing a workplace practicum coordinated by KPU and co-supervised by faculty and employers in relevant fields of employment.

Practicum:

• The Psychology Practicum is optional for students completing the BA degree.
• Please see the Psychology Practicum site.

Honours:

• The Psychology Honours Program is offered for all three degrees BA, BAHBAP, BSc.
• Please see the Psychology Honours site.

BA Psychology graduates can be found working in such professions as:

• Behavioural Intervention
• Clinic Manager
• Community Support Worker
• Crisis Services Worker
• Custom Relations Representatives
• Educational Program Coordinator
• Group Home Coordinator
• Human Resource Officer
• Knowledge Translation Facilitator
• Mental Health Support Worker
• Office Managers
• Probation Officers
• Property Management
• Research Analyst
• Residential Counselor, Youth Counselor or School Counselor
• Training Coordinator

Careers as practitioners of Psychology (e.g., Psychologist or Counsellor) require further study at the graduate level and, to this end, the Honours program is available to students interested in pursuing graduate degrees. BA students who have completed the Honours program have gone on to graduate studies in Clinical Psychology, Counselling Psychology, Gerontology, Education, School Psychology, and Experimental Psychology, to name only a few areas.

Minimum Credits Required: 127

Course Requirements:

• Detailed program and course information can be found in the KPU Calendar.
• Please also refer to the Psychology Future Course Offerings.

Highlights:

• The Bachelor of Science in Applied Psychology is the most interdisciplinary program, rich in both psychology and natural sciences.
• The degree is ideal for students interested in pursuing a health sciences career.
• This is also the Psychology degree program most suited for students who have an interest in neuroscience, particularly at the graduate level.
• The BSc is the most interdisciplinary of our psychology degrees, exposing students to biology, chemistry, math, and physics in addition to a broad array of psychology courses.
• This degree is also very “hands-on” with students being exposed to lab and research experiences as well as developing technical writing skills and workplace expertise.
• The degree was developed in close connection with employers in the field and community partners, and has an applied focus that prepares students for employment upon graduation, for research-focused graduate studies, or for entry into professional programs of study.
• Many courses within this program have a lab component. The program takes a systems/ecological approach, recognizing the interrelationships between humans and their environments.
• As part of their upper-level coursework, students will take courses across three main topical areas within Psychology:
  • Statistics and Research Methodologies
  • Biological Psychology and
  • Clinical/Health Psychology

Practicum:

• Practicum is required for completing the BSc in Applied Psychology.
• Please see the Psychology Practicum site.

Honours:

• The Psychology Honours Program is offered for all three degrees BA, BAHBAP, BSc.
• Please see the Psychology Honours site.

BSc Psychology graduates can be found working in such professions as:

• Clinical Trial Coordinator
• Disability Services Advisor
• Gerontology Case Manager
• Laboratory Technician
• Medical Assistant
• Mental Health Services Worker
• Neuropsychological Assessment Technician
• Pharmaceutical Sales Rep
• Program Evaluation Consultation
• Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist

With completion of the Honours program, BSc students would also be well prepared for research focused graduate studies in Neurosciences, Psychology, Public Policy, Kinesiology, Special Education, and post graduate programs in Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy.

Note: the first two years of our BA and our BAHBAP are now identical. So you have the time to decide between the BA and BAHBAP in that time

Minimum Credits Required: 120

Course Requirements:

• Detailed program and course information can be found in the KPU Calendar.
• Please also refer to the Psychology Future Course Offerings.

Highlights

• The Bachelor of Arts in Human Behaviour and Applied Psychology (BAHBAP) is geared towards students who are interested in careers other than careers of care, including careers in design, business, marketing, human resources, program development and organizational development, among other options.
• The BAHBAP emphasizes transferable research skills, preparing students for graduate school and providing pathways to a variety of industries that exploit quantitative and qualitative data.
• The program is more rigorous than the Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, but includes courses hand-picked by faculty and employers to target hard and soft job skills.
• This degree is is ideally suited for students who are interested in using psychological concepts and behavioural research methods in various contemporary community and workplace settings.
• During the first two years, the program shares the foundational curriculum with the BA in Psychology, including a broad sampling of subdisciplines.
• The third and fourth year emphasizes flexible, transferable skills and applications of Psychology to solving problems in modern community and workplace seetings.
• Required courses such as Interpersonal Relations, Culture and Psychology, Tests and Measurements and Human Factors, provide students with general transferable worksplace skills as well as specific knowledge and skills used in a variety of public, private and not-for-profit sector jobs. 
• Electives provide further training in additional areas selected by the student.

Practicum:

• Practicum is required for completing the BAHBAP.
• Please see the Psychology Practicum site.

Honours:

• The Psychology Honours Program is offered for all three degrees BA, BAHBAP, and BSc.
• Please see the Psychology Honours site.

BAHBAP graduates are qualified for positions such as:

• Program Evaluators
• Research Analysts
• Project Consultants
• User Experience Designers
• Human Resources Advisors
• Health Planning Consultants

Graduates of the BAHBAP with Honours have gone on to graduate studies in Clinical Psychology, Counselling Psychology, Gerontology, Education, School Psychology, Experimental Psychology, and Public Policy, to name only a few areas. Students in the program should consult with an Arts Degree Advisor to select courses best suited to their career objectives.