Program Requirements

CIIS' three-semester Bachelor of Science in Psychology is offered in two formats:

Online with a campus-based, two-day intensive to begin each semester
Online-Hybrid, which meets four weekends each semester with the rest of the work online

The curriculum is composed of 36 units of required core coursework, and further work chosen from approved psychology electives and School of Undergraduate Studies electives, including those that meet general education requirements.

The psychology electives allow you to deepen your particular interest or area of study, such as developmental psychology, trauma and addiction studies, or cultural psychology.

As a student entering the program, you will have an academic plan outlining your transfer units, degree requirements, and your courses for the year, so that you know exactly when you will be graduating.

Students need a minimum of 54 transfer units in order to be admitted to the program, and generally complete the program in three-to-four semesters (depending upon the number of transfer units).

Electives and General Education Courses

Students entering the program with fewer than 80 transfer units and/or with unmet general education requirements will need to take elective and/or general education courses to complete their degree.

Students can opt to take their elective courses either in the School of Undergraduate Studies or in select graduate courses offered to undergraduate students.

Course of Study

Semester 1 | Fall

BSPSY 1110 Theories of Personality (4 units)

BSPSY 1111 Neurobiology (4 units)

BSPSY 1112 Learning and Cognition (4 units)

General Education or Other Elective as Needed

Semester 2 | Spring

BSPSY 1115 Research Methods in Psychology (4 units)

BSPSY 1120 Cross and Multi-Cultural Psychologies (4 units)

BSPSY 1122 Introduction to Neurodiversity Studies (4 units)

General Education or Other Elective as Needed

Semester 3 | Summer

BSPSY 1113 Social Psychology (4 units)

BSPSY 1117 ACE/Adverse Childhood Experiences (4 units)

BSPSY 1119 Senior Project (4 units)

General Education or Other Elective as Needed

Curriculum Highlights

Introduction to Transpersonal Psychology (3 units)

This course introduces you to the field of transpersonal psychology including its scope, origins, and contemporary and future perspectives. You will study and engage with the field as a whole and explore and investigate the unique aspects of transpersonal psychology and its influence on current psychology. You will emerge from this class with a deeper understanding of transpersonal psychology and how it can support your future work.

Psychedelic Experience: Highs, Lows, and Transformations (3 units)

This course examines the altered states of consciousness commonly characterized as psychedelic. Topics to be explored include the history of how such states have been used and understood in indigenous cultures and modern culture; the potentials, hazards, and integration of psychedelic experiences; and the past, present, and future of psychedelic research.

Introduction to Black Psychology (3 units)

Explores the praxis of Black epistemology in the field of Black psychology. Examines the growth and development of Black psychology; its theories, methodologies, and practice are emphasized through an Africentric philosophical model. This course will enhance students’ skills in critical theory, transdisciplinarity, and cross-cultural psychologies.

See a full list of course descriptions in our Academic Catalog

Questions? Contact us.

We are here to help! If you have any questions about applying to a program or registering for an Info Session, please contact the Admissions Office at 415-575-6154 or admissions@ciis.edu.

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Program Requirements