Degree

A catalog is the set of requirements that a student needs to follow in order to earn their degree. These requirements may include:

• Core Curriculum
• What General Education courses may need to be completed
  • Language arts, Behavioral and Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, General Culture, and Writing courses
• What courses a student needs to complete for their Major requirements
• Minors & Certificates
  • Some minors and certificates are limited to what catalog you belong to

New Catalogs are developed and released every two years, starting in August. Old Catalogs expire eight years after they launch, ending after the summer. With each Catalog, courses may be added, removed, or remain the same depending on the direction that a department or college is taking their learning goals.
Changing your catalog may result in courses not counting in the spaces you originally intended them to. Students are not automatically swapped into the newest catalog, and should continue to run degree audits referring to the degree audit profile. However, if you are returning to UT after a break of eight academic years or more, you may be moved forward into the most recent catalog you are eligible for. Please see your advisor for details.

On the technical side, a catalog is determined by the first time a student takes a college course at a Texas public institution of higher education after graduating high school. In common terms, a student can review their degree audit profile to determine what "catalog" they belong to. Your catalog will stay the same (unless told otherwise) and does not automatically change to the current catalog.

If you are unsure of your catalog, please review your degree audit.

A catalog is the set of requirements that a student needs to follow in order to earn their degree. These requirements may include:

• Core Curriculum
• What General Education courses may need to be completed
  • Language arts, Behavioral and Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, General Culture, and Writing courses
• What courses a student needs to complete for their Major requirements
• Minors & Certificates
  • Some minors and certificates are limited to what catalog you belong to

Foreign Language requirements for the Bachelor of Arts are different from the Bachelor of Science Psychology. However, starting in the 2026-2028 catalog, both programs will require the same level of foreign language proficiency. Please see the table below for information and links.

Psychology Bachelor of Science students are required to complete 25 hours of prescribed natural science and math courses taken at the natural science majors level, including calculus. PSY BS specific science requirements will fulfill all Core and Liberal Arts science and math requirements.

1. M 408K or M 408C
2. PSY 317L
3. Completion of two out of the three natural science sequences below (16-18 hours):
   • Sequence 1: Biology
     • BIO 311C Introductory Biology I
     • BIO 311D Introductory Biology II
     • BIO 325 Genetics
   • Sequence 2: Chemistry
     • CH 301 Principles of Chemistry I
     • CH 104M Introduction to Chemical Practice I
     • CH 302 Principles of Chemistry II
     • CH 104N Introduction to Chemical Practice II
   • Sequence 3: Physics
     • PHY 317K, PHY 105M, and PHY 105N
     • or PHY 301, PHY 101L, PHY 316, and PHY 116L
     • or PHY 303K, PHY 105M, PHY 303L, and PHY 105N
     • or PHY 302K, PHY 105M, PHY 302L, PHY 105N
4. Three hours of additional Math or Science from the lists above not previously used, or higher level course in BIO, CH, or PHY
   • M 301, 302, 303D, 303F, 316K, and 316L may not be counted
   • see advisor for details

There is little difference in the major courses for a BS in Psychology and a BA in Psychology.
The BS requires:
PSY 301
PSY 420M
6 hours Clinical/Social/Developmental/Evolutionary Psychology
6 hours Cognition/Language/Neuroscience/Perception Psychology
9 hours any additional Psychology (at least 6 hours upper-division)
The BS in Psychology was developed for students planning on going to medical school or into other professional health fields (physical therapy, occupational therapy, physician’s assistant, dentistry or optometry). The BS requires 25 hours of prescribed natural science and math courses taken at the natural science majors level, including calculus. The BS requires fewer hours in the foreign language area. The BS in Psychology is ONLY recommended for students planning on going to medical school or into other professional health fields. Students majoring in the Psychology BS must have a strong background in math and enjoy science.
The foreign language requirement also differs from the BA track. The BS requires only 2 courses in foreign language or culture, or a combination of both. The options to complete this requirement can be found here.

Major Requirements for Bachelor’s of Arts

The BA requires:
PSY 301
PSY 420M
21 hours from any Psychology courses, including at least 18 upper-division courses
The BA in Psychology is best for students planning on going into the work force after the BA, law school, MBA program, or graduate school in psychology or other fields (social work, educational psychology, public affairs, information technology). The BA requires intermediate proficiency in one foreign language (check here for more information). The BA also allows for more elective courses, which could be used to develop the skills necessary to be useful for career goals or post-graduate study. Examples of this would be business, education, additional foreign language, rhetoric and writing or communications courses. If a student plans to be a psychologist, this would be the better degree option.
Additional Requirements:
At least 18 hours of Psychology coursework must be taken in-residence at UT (including PSY 420M, which must be taken in-residence).