Carnegie Mellon University
Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences  ›  Department of Psychology  ›  Undergraduate Program  ›  Prospective Students  ›  Academics  ›  Concentrations

Concentrations

Understanding humans is at the core of psychological science, which provides skills that can be applied to many fields, including (but not limited to) economics, linguistics, computer science, and medicine.  One of our primary educational principles is to allow students to customize their education to best fit their goals, allowing them to prepare for life after Carnegie Mellon University.  To achieve this end, most of our majors feature Concentrations, which provide students with the flexibility to design a portion of their major to fit their specific goals.

Contact

Lauren McCarthy
Academic Advisor

Psychology Bachelor of Arts & Science

Concentrations for the B.A. and B.S. degrees take the form of a set of suggested course options that tailor the degree to one of the department’s areas of expertise, including learning and developmental psychology, cognitive, social/health, social/personality, cognitive neuroscience, and clinical psychology. 

Note that concentrations are optional, and are not required to complete the degree.

Cognitive Science

In the Cognitive Science major, the concentration is the core of the major.  The concentration is composed of four courses, selected in consultation with your adviser, that explore a related set of issues (such as artificial intelligence or linguistics) that fall within the domain of cognitive science.  These courses need not come from the same department, as long as they are all related to the same central topic.  All students majoring in Cognitive Science are required to complete a concentration.  While concentrations vary widely, you can click here (link to sample concentrations sheets, attached to email) to see an example of some sample concentrations that may help you plan.

Cognitive Science Concentration Declaration Sheet (xlsx)

Neuroscience

To complete the Neuroscience major, all students are required to complete one of three possible concentrations: Neurobiology, Cognitive Neuroscience, or Computational Neuroscience.  Learn more about the degree requirements for the major in neuroscience.