The College of Arts and Sciences, the University of Hartford’s central and largest college, offers graduate programs leading to the Master of Arts, Master of Science, and Doctor of Psychology degrees. The Master of Arts is offered in communication, and a Master of Science is offered in biology, organizational psychology, and school psychology.
Admission requirements, fees, rules and regulations, and academic programs are presented in official Bulletins of the University. The right, at any time, to make whatever changes may be deemed necessary, is specifically reserved. Applicants for graduate degree programs should contact the Center for Graduate and Adult Academic Services at 860.768.4371 or visit www.hartford.edu/graduate.
Facilities
Abrahms Hall is home to the Cinema department and the Cinema and Media Studies Editing Suite.
Auerbach Hall provides facilities for the departments of English, Rhetoric and Professional Writing, and Philosophy, as well as the Center for Reading and Writing, Learning Plus, the English Language Institute, and the Maurice Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies.
The Biology-Chemistry Building, approximately 40,000 square feet in total size, contains the Chemistry and Biology departments. The building has modern labs and research facilities for undergraduate and graduate students.
The Biology-Chemistry Building and Dana Hall are part of an Integrated Science, Engineering, and Technology complex. The University has grouped the sciences, engineering, and technology into one complex to promote interdisciplinary activities
Charles A. Dana Hall is home to the departments of Mathematics, Computer Science, and Physics. Special features of the building include the Mali I and Mali II lecture halls, which contain 120-seat classrooms; a computer laboratory; and individual research laboratories for students and faculty. Dana Hall also has a rooftop greenhouse, classrooms, faculty offices, a lounge, and seminar rooms.
East Hall houses the Department of Psychology. The building offers classrooms equipped with projection equipment, a computer classroom, research laboratory space, and a drop-in computer lab. Facilities throughout East Hall are shared by faculty, students, and staff from the various programs in the department.
The Harry Jack Gray Center provides space for the School of Communication and the college’s television production and broadcasting facilities. In addition, the Harry Jack Gray Center includes a classroom overlooking the television studio.
Hillyer Hall provides facilities for the departments of Art History, Economics, History, International Studies, Modern Languages and Cultures, Political Economy, Politics and Government, and Sociology and Criminal Justice. This building includes rooms for classes, seminars, and conferences, as well as the Herbert Gilman Family Center for Communication Technology. The Beatrice Fox Auerbach Auditorium, which seats more than 200, is used for lectures, recitals, films, and dramatic performances.
Admission
General Requirements
All applicants for graduate study must file an official University application with the Center for Graduate and Adult Academic Services. Official transcripts of all undergraduate work must be submitted as well as three letters of recommendation.
Special Requirements
Master’s Programs
Biology
The applicant must hold a bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) in biology or a related field from an accredited collegiate institution. The applicant’s undergraduate work should have included genetics, cell biology, general chemistry, biochemistry, calculus, and physics. An average of B or better is required in all undergraduate biology courses.
Communication
The applicant must hold a bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) in communication or a related field from an accredited collegiate institution. If the degree is not in communication or a related field, communication-oriented work experience is required, or the applicant may be required to take undergraduate communication courses (without graduate credit) to acquire sufficient background. Applicants are expected to have at least a B average in the undergraduate major and an overall average of at least a B-. In addition, acceptable scores on the Graduate Record Examination are necessary for admission.
Psychology
Clinical Practices. The applicant must hold a bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) from an accredited collegiate institution and should have achieved a B average in undergraduate courses. An undergraduate concentration in psychology, including courses in introductory psychology, abnormal psychology, statistics, research methods, and history and systems in psychology, is desirable.
Official scores for the General Aptitude (Verbal, Quantitative, Analytical) and the GRE Subject Test in Psychology are required.
Organizational Psychology. The applicant must hold a bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) from an accredited collegiate institution. Admission is based on undergraduate GPA, additional educational and work experience, the form and content of a personal statement, and three letters of recommendation. Applications from individuals with various undergraduate majors are welcome, including, but not limited to, psychology, business, economics, sociology, and communication. No GRE test scores required (see description of progrm for details of admission requirements).
School Psychology. The applicant must hold a bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) from an accredited collegiate institution and should have achieved at least a B average in undergraduate courses. In addition, he/she must submit scores for the General Aptitude section of the GRE and the GRE Subject Test in Psychology (see description of program for details of admission requirements).
Doctoral Program
Doctor of Psychology
The applicant must hold a bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) from an accredited collegiate institution, including courses in statistics, research methods, developmental/child psychology, and abnormal psychology. The applicant should have achieved at least a B average in undergraduate courses. In addition, he/she must submit scores for the Verbal, Quantitative, Analytic, and Psychology sections of the GRE (see description of program for details of admission requirements).
Financial Assistance
Each graduate department in the College of Arts and Sciences has a limited number of assistantships and/or fellowships available for qualified students. These awards are based on both merit and need and are usually awarded for the academic year only.
Requests for additional information regarding assistantships and/or fellowships should be directed to the chairman of the department in which the student will study.
Theses/Dissertations
Policies and procedures regarding theses are as follows:
All graduate students preparing to write a thesis must file an Approval of Proposed Thesis form with the chair of the Graduate Studies Committee. This form must be submitted prior to the student’s beginning his or her research project, must be signed by all members of the thesis committee, and must be approved in writing by the director of graduate studies for the College of Arts and Sciences.
A master’s thesis committee shall consist of at least three full-time consortium faculty members, one of whom must be from the department involved (see the governing policies regarding committee composition established by the individual department for which the thesis is to be completed).
Changes in membership of the thesis committee must be approved by the department chair and notification sent to the director of graduate studies.
A draft of the thesis to be defended must be deposited in the Office of the Director of Graduate Studies at least 14 days before the scheduled thesis defense.
A thesis defense may not be held in August.
Dissertations
Policies and procedures regarding dissertations are as follows:
All students in the Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology preparing to write a dissertation must file an Approval of Proposed Dissertation form with the chair of the Graduate Studies Committee. This form must be submitted prior to students’ beginning their research projects, must be signed by all members of the dissertation committee, and must be approved in writing by the chair of the Graduate Studies Committee for the College of Arts and Sciences. Additional detailed information about the doctoral dissertation guidelines and process may be found in the Doctoral Dissertation Manual.
A doctoral dissertation committee must consist of at least three members. The chair must be a full-time member of the psychology department. A second member must be a full-time faculty member of a consortium school or approved by the Graduate Studies Committee. A third member may be either a faculty member of a consortium school or a doctoral-level professional in a relevant field who is approved by the chair of the department involved. Three copies of an approved master’s thesis or doctoral dissertation with the appropriate binding fee must be deposited with the Graduate Studies Committee two weeks before the graduation date. The bound original and one copy will be kept on file in the Mortensen Library, and one copy will be kept in the department of the discipline involved.
Comprehensive Examinations
If comprehensive examinations are required, they may not be taken twice in the same semester and normally may not be taken more than twice. Specific guidelines are provided by individual departments.
Thesis Continuance Fee
A student who has completed all requirements for the graduate degree except for the thesis, and who will be pursuing thesis research during the semester, must pay a thesis continuance fee. The students will write the designation ZTC 900 - Thesis Continuance, 0 credit, on a registration form (see Fees ).
Dissertation Continuance Fee
Students who have completed all required course work must pay a dissertation continuance fee until the dissertation has been completed, except for students registered for internship. The student will write in the designation CPS 090 (fall), CPS 091 (spring), and CPS 092 (summer), Dissertation Continuance, 0 credit on a registration form (see Fees ).
Matriculation Maintenance Fee
Matriculated students who have not completed all requirements for the graduate degree, and who will not be enrolled or in attendance during a particular semester, must register for “active status” in the program (see Fees ). Failure to file will require the student to reapply for admission.
Academic Regulations Arts and Sciences
Satisfactory Academic Progress
Master’s degree students are expected to complete all degree requirements within seven years of initial matriculation; doctoral degree students are expected to complete all degree requirements within nine years of initial matriculation. Individual departments may impose shorter time limits.
For serious reasons, these time limits may be extended upon written request from the student. The request must be approved, in writing, by the chair or graduate director of the student’s department and by the Arts and Sciences Graduate Studies Committee.
Scholarship Requirements
Graduation requirements in any program include completion of the indicated total number of credit hours in that program with a grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher. All courses applied toward the graduate degree must be taken on a letter-grade basis unless specifically exempted by the department chair.
For students who do not complete their thesis requirements within a given semester, a grade of NG will be issued by the instructor at the time grades are due. Upon completion of the thesis, the letter grade will be reported to the registrar on a Change of Grade form.
Leave of Absence
A leave of absence may be granted to degree candidates involved in approved off-campus study programs for up to two semesters. Requests for leaves of absence for other personal reasons will be considered.
Students applying for a leave of absence must secure permission from the department involved, register for “active status,” and pay a fee (see Fees ). Failure to conform to this procedure would necessitate reapplication for matriculated status upon return to the University.
Requirements for Degree
General
Degree application must be accompanied by graduation fee (see Fees ). The application must be filed in accordance with the deadline date published in the Academic Calendar . The following requirements must be met
- At least two weeks prior to Commencement, the results of language examinations, comprehensives, and oral defenses must be submitted to the director of graduate studies; and to the Office of the Dean at least one week prior to Commencement.
- Satisfactory completion of one of the prescribed curricula
- Payment of all outstanding fees
- Vote of faculty, trustees, and regents
Transfer Credits
A maximum of 9 credits for master’s programs may be transferred from accredited institutions outside the Greater Hartford Consortium for Higher Education. A minimum grade of B at the graduate level is required for transfer credit. These credits will be accepted upon written approval of the department chair or graduate program director concerned and the Graduate Studies Committee of the College of Arts and Sciences. Approval must be obtained at the time of matriculation or prior to registration for any off-campus course. Such prior notification is the responsibility of the student.
It should be noted that there are some courses that may not be waived unless taken at the doctoral level and other courses (e.g., Psychological Assessment III, Practicum, Professional Practice Seminar, and clinical electives) that may not be waived under any circumstances.
Doctoral Program (Psy.D.) in Clinical Psychology
Ninety-six credits are required for the Psy.D.
The following is information on the Graduate Institute of Professional Psychology’s (GIPP) policy on transfer of credit and waiver of required courses for applicants with a master’s degree or higher:
Doctoral: For students coming from an American Psychological Association (APA)-accredited doctoral program in clinical, counseling, or school psychology, a maximum of 32 transfer credits and waiver of similar courses may be granted, as long as the student has received a grade of A- or higher.
Master’s: For students with the M.A. degree in clinical practices from the University of Hartford, a maximum of 32 credits and waiver of similar courses may be granted, as long as the student has received a grade of A- or higher.
For students with a non-University of Hartford master’s degree, credits may not be transferred. A waiver may be given only if the instructor of the equivalent course at GIPP deems the other course to be doctoral-level equivalent and the student has received a grade of A- or higher.
Other elective courses must be taken in lieu of waived courses.
In addition, in all of the above circumstances, students must still have at least two years in residence at the Graduate Institute of Professional Psychology. All waivers must be signed by the GIPP’s associate director. All students must take 9 clinical elective credits (three 3-credit elective seminars) in the doctoral program and may not use previously taken courses as substitutes for these clinical electives.
The following courses may be waived only if taken at the doctoral level:
Advanced Psychopathology
Dissertation Seminar
Professional Seminar: Diversity
Professional Seminar: Ethics
Individual Psychotherapy
Advanced Research Design in Clinical Psychology
Nonwaivable/nontransferable courses (even if taken at the doctoral level):
Case Conference Seminar I and II
Practicum I, II, III, and IV
Professional Practice Seminar I and II
Psychological Assessment III (even if taken in the University of Hartford’s master’s program)
Three elective clinical courses*
*All students must also take a minimum of three elective clinical courses while in residence.
Cooperative Education Program
Special Courses