Master of Science in psychology

Arizona State University’s Master of Science in psychology prepares you for careers and doctoral work in the field of psychological research.

In this program, you will gain firsthand exposure in designing and conducting research, analyzing data, and developing presentations and manuscripts. You are also encouraged to present research reports at professional meetings and conferences and to publish as co-authors in faculty-guided research.

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Preparing your application

The ASU graduate admission application requires personal information, academic history, residency information and degree selection. After you select your degree, you will be prompted for the following supplemental materials. 

For further assistance filling out any part of the application please visit us online.

Completed applications must be electronically submitted to ASU and include the following:

Letters of recommendation help support your graduate school application by providing a third-party view of your ability to perform well in graduate school. It is preferred that the letters of recommendation are from faculty members who know the applicant's work well; if these are not available, then recommendations should be from individuals in supervisory or professional roles. Two letters of recommendation are required. However, three letters of recommendation are strongly recommended.

This is your opportunity to introduce yourself, share your goals and explain why you decided to pursue this particular program. Please provide a statement no longer than three pages double-spaced describing your research experience and interest overlap with the identified ASU program faculty.

A unique feature of our program is our research clusters. In order for us to make the most informed admission decision, we need to understand where your interests will best match within our program. Thus, when applying to our program, please take the time to consider which research cluster best fits your research interests. You will be asked to list 3 potential faculty advisors and explain in your statement of purpose which research cluster you are most interested in and why you are interested in the three faculty you chose.

  Cognition, Behavior and Information (CBI)

  Psychology and Law

  Resilience in Social Environments (RISE)

Explore our three research clusters, the associated faculty and their research interests.

This program strongly suggests the submission of your professional résumé or curriculum vitae as part of your application materials.

Applicants must provide evidence of successful completion of an undergraduate, or graduate, social science statistics and research methods course. Typically, these prerequisite courses should be in a social science field; however, applicants may apply with courses outside of a social science field.

A minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 on 4.0 scale in the last 60 semester hours or 90 quarter hours of undergraduate coursework

Applicants who do not meet these criteria are welcome to contact us to discuss alternative options for joining the program.

If you are recommended for admission by the academic unit, you will be required to provide an official transcript (sent to us by mail directly from the institution). Your offer of admission and ability to register for classes will be contingent upon the receipt and verification of these official documents (which must show the award of degrees where appropriate).

The unofficial transcript that is uploaded must match the official transcript we receive. Do not upload spreadsheet documents as these are not acceptable for review. Instead, you can use a screen-capture or a picture of the official transcript and copy and paste the image onto a Word document. You are also allowed to scan and upload a copy of your official transcripts (this is preferred). Please include the transcript key or legend (often on the back of the official transcript) in your upload.

Arizona State University reserves the right to require official transcripts any time prior to admission review and revoke any admission decisions if the unofficial transcript(s) do not match the official transcripts.

Please make sure your unofficial transcript document includes your required bachelor's degree transcript. If you have transcripts from more than one university or have multiple degrees from the same university, please upload all transcripts in one file.

If unofficial transcripts are not uploaded at time of application, official transcripts will be required to be submitted before your application will move forward for review for admission.

If you are an international student, visit our resources page for more information about how to apply for grad school at ASU's New College.

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