Master of Arts in Psychology

Program Description

The M.A. degree in Psychology is a rigorous program designed to develop research and conceptual skills for students whose primary interest is in continuing education in a doctoral program. A key feature of the program is a close mentoring relationship with a faculty member who oversees the student's progress toward his or her individual research goals.

The program offers two options:

General Psychology
Forensic Psychology

General Program Requirements For The Master of Arts In Psychology

At least 50% of the required 31-32 units must be 5000-level. A minimum of 9 units must come from courses other than PSY 5950, PSY 5970, PSY 5980, and PSY 5990

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS

In addition to submitting a University Admissions Application through Cal State Apply, applicants must also complete quadrant 4 in Cal State Apply to submit department-specific application requirements, as described below:

The minimum requirements for admission to the graduate program in psychology are:

Completion of an undergraduate major in psychology with a grade point average of 3.0 or higher in the last 60 semester units of work at an accredited institution OR completion of an undergraduate major in psychology with a cumulative grade point average of 3.0. Students whose bachelor’s degree is not in psychology, completion of the non-major conditional program of 23 units (described below) with a GPA of 3.0 or higher.
3 Letters of Recommendation from those who are familiar with your academic capabilities, at least 2 of which must be from academic sources.
A Statement of Purpose of 400 to 500 words indicating your reasons for wishing to pursue a research degree, your particular areas of interest, and any experience relevant to your goals and interests. If you have identified a particular faculty member as a possible mentor, indicate this in your letter. (Note that this does not guarantee working with this faculty member.)
Applicant interview, applicant CV, and/or applicant writing sample may be requested.
Applicants may also submit GRE scores (general and/or subject tests) to support their application, although the GRE is not required for admission to any of our programs

I. Special Action Admission

Applicants who do not meet the minimum GPA requirements must petition directly to the department for admission by special action. All petitions must be accompanied by evidence that the applicant is qualified for graduate work. This evidence could include (but is not limited to) relevant experience or high GRE scores. Students whose petitions are approved must complete a 9 unit (minimum) conditional program of upper division course work in psychology with a minimum GPA of 3.0.

Students are cautioned that no credit toward a graduate degree can be earned before completion of the conditional program.

II. Non-major conditional program for students whose baccalaureate is not in Psychology

The following 8 units of prerequisites (or their equivalents) must be completed before beginning the Master’s program.

Group A (8 units): PSY 3020, PSY 3040

Requirement for the Degree (31-32 units)

Core Requirements (16-17 units)

Students must complete the following with a grade of B or higher.

PSY 4910 - Multivariate Statistics [4]

PSY 5020 - Introduction to Graduate Study in Psychology [3]

PSY 5040 - Advanced Experimental Methods [3]

PSY 5970 - Graduate Research [1-4] (complete 1 unit)

PSY 5980 - Graduate Directed Study [1-3] (complete 2 units)

And select one of the following quantitative courses:

PSY 5150 - Advanced Statistical Methods [3]

PSY 5910 - Advanced Multivariate Statistics [4]

Option Requirements (12 units)

General Psychology Option (12 units)

Select 12 units of electives coursework to complete the 31-32 units required for the degree. 4000-level courses cannot comprise more than 50% of the elective units (6 units).

Forensic Psychology Option (12 units)

Complete 3 courses.

1. Select one course:

PSY 4640 - Psychology and the Law [3]

PSY 4900 - Eyewitness Memory [3]

2. Select one course:

PSY 5100 - Seminar: Abnormal Psychology [3]

PSY 5280 - Seminar in Applied Behavior Analysis [3]

3. Complete 6 units:

PSY 5950 - Field Experience in Psychology [1-6] (complete 6 units)

Thesis (3 units)

PSY 5990 - Thesis [1-6] (complete 3 units)

APPLICATION INFORMATION

Application Term and Deadline

Note that we only admit in the Fall. The deadline to apply is FEBRUARY 15, 2027 for both the MA and Forensic programs.

The following should be completed before February 15, 2027:
- Go to the Cal State Apply application website: https://www2.calstate.edu/apply
- Submit your application by uploading the following documents using the ‘Documents’ tab:
  - Statement of purpose – 400 to 500 words (maximum of two pages, double-spaced) indicating your reasons for wishing to pursue a research-oriented program, your particular areas of interest, and any experience relevant to your goals and interests. Indicate which faculty members you would like to serve as your mentor and explain your interest in working with them (note that this does not guarantee working with this faculty member). See the list at the bottom of this page for faculty accepting students in Fall 2027.
  - Unofficial transcripts – Unofficial transcripts from all colleges/universities attended.
- List your references using the ‘Recommendations’ tab:
List the names of three (3) people who have agreed to write letters of recommendation for you. At least two of these letters must come from academic sources (faculty members or others) who are familiar with your academic capabilities. Your application will not be reviewed until all three letters are received, we encourage that you request your recommendation letters are submitted before the application deadline.
After submitting this application, you will be required to submit the following:
- Official transcripts – Submit official academic records/transcripts and other requested information to the Admissions Office. For information on submitting documents, please click here.
- International applicants – Submit official TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE test scores, if you do not possess a Bachelor’s (or advanced) degree from a postsecondary college/university where English is the only language of instruction.

Please note:

Applicant interview and/or applicant writing sample may be requested.
**DEPARTMENT AI PREFERENCE** - We understand artificial Intelligence (AI) is a tool that can be helpful for brainstorming, organizing ideas and revising your work. However, our department STRONGLY discourages the use of generative AI in the writing of personal statements (i.e., asking ChatGPT or others to customize or draft parts of your statement, then copy/pasting this exactly into your statement OR drafting a statement then feeding the entire document into ChatGPT or Grammarly to formalize the writing).

IDENTIFICATION OF A RESEARCH MENTOR

As part of your application to the program, you will be asked to rank order the top three Cal State LA Psychology faculty members with whom you would like to do research. You can look up our Faculty Research Labs and Areas of Interest for more detailed information about each faculty member's area of specialization.

Faculty Member	Accepting Students	Additional Information
Dr. Corinne Bower	Yes
Dr. Mitchel Eisen
Dr. Joel Ellwanger
Dr. Gaithri Fernando
Dr. Steven Frenda	Yes
Dr. Matthew Jackson
Dr. Robert Kennison	No
Dr. Alma Olaguez	Yes
Dr. Pamela Regan	No
Dr. Dana Saifan	Yes	https://www.calstatela.edu/research/freedomlab
Dr. Crystal Slanzi	Yes
Dr. Ji Son
Dr. Douglas Stenstrom	No
Dr. Yvette Szabo	Yes	See faculty webpage for applicant FAQ
Dr. Karen Wu	Yes