uc berkeley psychology phd program

Psychology PhD

Psychology as a scientific discipline aims to describe, understand, and predict the behavior of living organisms. In doing so, psychology embraces the many factors that influence behavior-from sensory experience to complex cognition, from the role of genetics to that of social and cultural environments, from the processes that explain behavior in early childhood to those that operate in older ages, and from typical development to pathological conditions. The Department of Psychology at Berkeley reflects the diversity of our discipline's mission covering six key areas of research: Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience; Clinical Science; Cognition; Cognitive Neuroscience; Developmental, and Social-Personality Psychology. Our program learning goals focus on honing methodological, statistical and critical thinking skills relevant to all areas of Psychology research, enabling students with sufficient breadth to retain perspective in the field of psychology and sufficient depth to permit successful independent and significant research.

• The major academic objectives of the PhD program are for students to:
• Develop an understanding of the different theoretical and empirical frameworks that have defined and shaped the field
• Develop an understanding of the central questions and issues in contemporary psychology
• Develop expertise in one or more relevant research methodologies
• Build expertise in formulating testable hypotheses and designing appropriate studies
• Hone ability to critically evaluate scientific research
• Develop expertise in statistics and advanced data analytic approaches
• Develop an awareness of the importance of science to humanity while recognizing its limits (i.e., some scientific knowledge is culture-specific and may not be applicable to the human condition universally)
• Develop competence as a teacher of undergraduates and mentor to graduate students

Students select one of the following concentrations:

Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience: The Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience area encompasses faculty and students united by a common interest in the neurobiological/physiological bases of behavior, including but not limited to circadian and seasonal rhythms, decision-making, sex differentiation and behavior, energy balance, birdsong and animal communication, animal spatial orientation and navigation, gene-environment interactions, selective attention and visual perception, social behavior, attachment, developmental processes, physiological substrates of emotion and stress, and motivation. The methodologies currently employed by faculty and students cover the entire spectrum from the behavioral study of animals and humans to computational, cellular, molecular and neuroimaging analyses.

Clinical Science: Graduate students in Clinical Science combine rigorous research with hands-on clinical experience. In addition, students take courses that cover general areas of psychological science as well as more specialized areas based on a students interests. Most students will spend four to six years in residence at Berkeley plus one year at a Clinical Internship site, at or near the completion of the dissertation. Degrees are awarded after completion of the internship, even if the dissertation is completed earlier. The faculty advisor/mentor plays an important role in a students training. At the beginning of Year 1, each student is matched with a faculty advisor, usually one of the core Clinical Science Program Faculty, who supervises the student's research. In subsequent years, the student is free to continue working with that person or to seek a new research advisor. In addition to research supervision, the advisor works with the student in planning a program that fits that student's interests, while at the same time meeting program requirements. If a student is conducting research under the supervision of someone other than a core Clinical Science Program Faculty member (e.g., a faculty member in another area of the Psychology Department), then a core Clinical Science Program Faculty member is assigned to advise that student in matters related program requirements.

Cognition: The Cognition Program brings together faculty and students engaged in behavioral and computational investigations of fundamental cognitive processes, including learning, memory, categorization, reasoning, language, and perception. Our interdisciplinary approach borrows methods and insights from the cognitive sciences and other areas within the department.

Cognitive Neuroscience: Programs in Cognitive Neuroscience focus on neuroimaging and neuropsychological approaches to human behavior. Functional neuroimaging techniques, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), electroencephalography (EEG), and intracranial EEG (iEEG) are used to study the neural bases of human behavior. Neuropsychological methods assess varieties of psychological dysfunction associated with brain damage or disease. Areas of specialty within this track include Sensory and Perceptual Processes, Attention and Working Memory, Learning and Memory, Emotion, and Motor Control.

Developmental: Our research goal is to understand how the organism and its capabilities develop throughout the lifespan. Our interdisciplinary approach is multi-species, multi-system, and multidisciplinary in nature. We study change over time in cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional, and neural processes. Our explanations include both neural accounts of the plasticity that is observed in the developing brain and other systems, and computational and psychological accounts of development. The bi-directionality of these processes is emphasized, with the organism's genetically program development being influenced by its physical and social environments and in turn influencing those environments. Thus, our research is situated at the interface between the fields of developmental psychology, computational modeling, psycholinguistics, cognitive psychology, developmental cognitive neuroscience, social psychology, cultural psychology, and clinical psychology. Our research examines numerous areas of development, plasticity, and change including sensory processes, cognitive capacities, language, reasoning, everyday knowledge of the world, emotions, and social relationships. We examine both typical and atypical development, each providing rich insights for better understanding the other and suggesting new approaches for effective treatments and preventive interventions.

Social-Personality Psychology: The social-personality program is devoted to training graduate students for careers in research and teaching. The program faculty and several affiliates conduct research and provide intensive training in six core areas of the field: (1) Self and identity; (2) Social cognition; (3) Emotion, emotion regulation, and affective neuroscience; (4) Personality processes and adult development; (5) Interpersonal, intergroup, and intercultural processes; and (6) Power, hierarchy, and social class. In addition to training in these core areas, the program encourages graduate students to develop their own research interests and build an independent research program. The program is characterized by considerable breadth and diversity. It provides students with special research opportunities, such as access to unique longitudinal databases, multi-method approaches (self-report, observational, archival, life-data, physiological), and biological perspectives on social behavior (e.g., evolutionary, neuroimaging).

Contact Info

[email protected]

2121 Berkeley Way 3rd Floor

Berkeley, CA 94720-1650

At a Glance

Department(s)

Admit Term(s)

Application Deadline

November 15, 2024

Degree Type(s)

Doctoral / PhD

Degree Awarded

GRE Requirements

• Application Instructions

The following instructions will clarify the application process for admissions to our Ph.D. program. A link to additional information for Clinical Science applicants can be found here .

Questions should be sent to [email protected] . Please do not phone.

We do not have a terminal Master’s degree program. Our application is for Ph.D. candidates only. The School Psychology program is offered through the Graduate School of Education. Visiting and exchange students, for more information regarding your study abroad experience, please navigate to this webpage: Study Abroad .

Application Deadline & Admissions Timeline Our application opens on September 12 on the UC Berkeley Graduate Division website and the application will close on November 15, 2024, at 8:59 PM PST 

Application Requirements and Guidelines It will be useful to review our Graduate Admissions website before beginning your application for  Graduate Admissions .

Select Fall as your admit term. We do not accept applications for any Spring or Summer term.

Select Psychology PhD.

Graduate Admissions requires the applicant to upload unofficial transcripts or academic records for the initial review of their application.  Unofficial transcripts must include: name of institution, applicant name, courses, grades & degree conferral (if applicable).

Do not send official transcripts to Graduate Division Admissions or the Department of Psychology. For the first round of application review, upload onto the application scanned copies of unofficial transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate institutions you have attended. Official hard copy transcripts are only required from applicants who are offered admission and enroll in the program.

For undergraduate programs using a 4-point grading scale, calculate and report:

• Cumulative GPA as shown on the transcript granted by the most recently attended undergraduate institution.
• Advanced GPA (include all courses completed after the second year).
• GPA for courses in your major field of study (major courses are any course taken to satisfy a degree requirement after being admitted into your major; exclude pre-requisites)
• If your intended field of study at Berkeley was not your undergraduate major, calculate the GPA for all courses listed on your transcripts that relate to the field of study for which you are applying.
• Cumulative graduate GPA, if applicable.

If your grades are not based on a 4-point scale, as is the case for most international students, report your cumulative undergraduate GPA as determined by your institution in the Other Scale GPA box. Applicants with degrees from non-US institutions do not need  to calculate cumulative and major GPAs.

A GPA calculation worksheet is not required.

Three letters of recommendation are required. Enter all requested information for each recommender. Be sure you have entered valid email addresses. Indicate whether you do or do not waive your right to read each letter. Click Send to Recommender for each recommender. They will receive an email with instructions for submitting their letter. Recommenders may upload their letters onto the application themselves or via a letter service. Letters can arrive after the application deadline but if they arrive after our application reviews have begun within 1-2 days of the application deadline, they may not be considered. 

At least two of your recommenders should preferably be psychology faculty members or advanced psychology graduate students, but letters from recommenders in other disciplines are acceptable. Each recommender should be familiar with your academic talent and abilities.

Official scores must be sent directly to the Graduate Division by Educational Testing Service (ETS). UC Berkeley's institution code is 4833 . A department/major code is not necessary. Scores can arrive after the application deadline but, if they arrive after our application reviews begin, they may not be considered.

Graduate Record Examination

The GRE is not required for the Fall 2025 or Fall 2026 admissions cycle. Not submitting GRE scores will not be counted against an applicant. Please disregard any information that states the GRE is required for Psychology graduate admission.

English Language Proficiency

Applicants who completed their undergraduate degree in a non-English speaking country must provide proof of English language proficiency.

Applicants from countries or regions in which the official language is not English are required to submit official evidence of English language proficiency. This requirement also applies to applicants from Bangladesh, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Latin America, the Middle East, Israel, the People’s Republic of China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, most European countries, Quebec, and non-English-speaking countries in Africa.

Three ways to prove language proficiency:

• Complete the TOEFL exam with a minimum score of 90.
• Complete the IELTS exam with a minimum score of 7.
• Provide a transcript that shows at least one year of full-time academic course work with grades of B or better in residence at a U.S. college or university. Transcripts should be uploaded in the Academic History section.

*Poof of English language proficiency requirement is determined by the Graduate Admissions Division. For further inquiries, please navigate to this webpage or contact [email protected] .  

Statement of Purpose (required) The Statement of Purpose is usually about 1.5 to 2 pages in length, single-spaced, typed, and an important part of your application.

Please describe the following:

• Your area of interest in psychology; specifically your past research and future research interests. You may include relevant coursework or reading that helped to generate your interests. 
• Applied work experience; volunteer or paid work experience in a mental health or human services agency. This is a requirement for Required for Clinical Science applicants. 
• Reasons for applying to UC Berkeley, including faculty member(s) with whom you wish to work.
• Plans for your future profession.

Graduate Division guidelines: Writing the Statement of Purpose .

Personal History Statement (required) The Personal History Statement is usually about 1.5 to 2 pages in length, single-spaced, typed, and an important part of your application. It should stand alone and not repeat your Statement of Purpose. In your Personal History Statement, describe how your personal background informs your decision to pursue a graduate degree. Describe any experiences that show your promise, initiative, and ability to persevere despite obstacles. Display your communication skills and discuss your ability to maximize effective collaboration with a diverse cross-section of the academic community.

Consider including information about:

• How you have overcome barriers to access in higher education.
• Evidence of how you have come to understand the barriers faced by others.
• Evidence of your academic service to advance equitable access to higher education for women, racial minorities, and individuals from other groups that have been historically underrepresented in higher education.
• Evidence of your research focusing on underserved populations or related issues of inequality.
• Evidence of your leadership among underserved populations.

Graduate Division guidelines: Writing the Personal Statement .

Study Emphasis/Research Concentration Select the Study Emphasis/Research Concentration to which you are applying. You may apply to one or two Research Interest/Study Emphasis. The six training areas in the department are:

• Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience
• Clinical Science
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Developmental
• Social-Personality

Faculty Adviser A list of faculty accepting students in the current cycle can be found on our General Admission webpage.   Please review the research interests of the faculty in the area of emphasis to which you are applying. List at least two (and at most three) Psychology faculty members whose research is of particular interest to you. List the faculty members in order of preference. For each faculty member you list, please provide a short explanation about why you selected that faculty member. This is an important part of the application.

A resume or CV is required. DO NOT include a picture of yourself.

Other supporting materials are optional.

Submit your application and pay the fee by the deadline. Late applications will not be accepted.

Application Fee Waiver

The fee waiver program is administered by Graduate Division Admissions: Requesting an Application Fee Waiver . All fee waiver questions should be sent to [email protected] . 

The Psychology department does not offer a fee waiver for applicants to our program. 

Prior to contacting our office, please read through our Admissions webpages. Still have a question? Please contact us at [email protected] .  

• About the Program
• General Admission
• Funding & Residency
• Career & Licensure Opportunities
• Graduate Program
• Current Graduate Students
• Graduate Student Instructor (GSI)
• Psychology Dept. Ph.D. Graduates