Student Research and Other Opportunities

Senior Research Project

All psychology majors complete a senior research project in which they design their own psychological experiment, test participants, analyze the data, prepare a scientific paper, and make an oral presentation of the results. Many of our majors present their research at professional conferences or publish it in psychology journals. For example, each year we take a group of students to the Southeastern Psychological Association conference where they present posters--and often win awards--in the undergraduate research forum.

Research Participation

Throughout your time in the psychology major, you will participate in various psychological research projects conducted by senior project students and faculty research labs. This is an excellent opportunity to learn about the research process, to get ideas for your own research projects, and to help senior project students collect data. The department uses an online research participation system called SONA. You can create an account, sign up for studies, participate in online studies, and manage your credits. Some classes require participation and others use it for extra credit opportunities. The participant manual contains all of the information you need to know about creating an account and signing up for studies. Feel free to email the SONA administrator with any questions.

SURE Grants

Students also have the opportunity to apply for a Stetson Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) grant. The SURE grant provides funding for equipment, room and board, travel and other expenses for students to work with a faculty mentor on a summer research project proposed by the student. Jozefina Logu, Jennifer Mondelli, Steven Pilato, and Matthew Vanaman are 2016 SURE grant recipients from the Psychology Department. More recent recipients are Mackenzie Nalven, 2018 and Lauren Radesi, 2022. Read more about Mackenzie's project here.

Internships

Stetson students are encouraged to explore a variety of volunteer service opportunities through the Office of Career and Professional Development. Advanced psychology majors have the opportunity to include a supervised internship as one of their courses. The internship experience can provide a significant step forward toward graduate work or direct entry into the job market.

Our students have interned with Stewart-Marchman-Act Behavioral Healthcare, the Central Florida Zoo, the DeLand Police Department, the Florida Autism Center, and many other facilities. Please contact Chris Ferguson, PhD, for more information.

Teaching and Research Apprenticeships

Teaching apprentices assist in an undergraduate course under the supervision of a faculty member. They may tutor students, lead discussion groups, hold review sessions for exams, and present short lessons in class. Research apprentices become part of a professor's lab and may be involved in all aspects of research from reviewing the literature to writing up the results for publication. Both teaching and research apprenticeship programs offer course credit.

The Psych Advantage Program

The Psych Advantage program is designed to help our majors who plan to go directly into the job market after graduation. Psych Advantage events are held every semester. Recordings of recent events are provided below.

The Psychology Alumni Mentors Program

The Psychology Alumni Mentors Program matches upper-level psychology majors with Stetson alumni who have graduated from the department are now established professionals in their field, and who are able and willing to provide our students with career guidance, advice and encouragement as they navigate the academic program and contemplate their professional futures. For more information, please contact Sarah Garcia, PhD.