Department Co-Chair: Michelle Naffziger-Hirsch, 847.376.7269, mnaffzig@oakton.edu
Department Co-Chair: Katherine Schuster, 847.376.7118, schuster@oakton.edu

The following pre-major is recommended for students who are considering completing a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology after transferring to a four-year institution. It will help students to deepen their knowledge of Psychology as well as their overall understanding of individuals, societies and cultures, while completing the general education requirements for Associate degree.

It is designed for students who have not decided upon a specific four-year college or university. Once a transfer school is selected, students are strongly encouraged to consult the Office of Advising, Transitions, and Student Success and the transfer institution’s catalog to select courses that will meet both Oakton and transfer institution requirements.

For more information on course selection or program-specific advising, contact the department chairperson. Part time students should also consult the Office of Advising, Transitions, and Student Success for part-time pre-major recommendations. General Education courses should be selected from the list of IAI General Education Courses.

Plan of Study Grid
First Year
Semester OneHours
PSY 101 Introduction to Psychology 3
EGL 101 Composition I 3
MAT 125
General Education Mathematics
or Elementary Statistics
4
Select one of the following: 3-4
Contemporary Culture and the Arts
Introduction to Philosophy
Introduction to Women's and Gender Studies 1
Women and Creativity 1
Logic
Ethics
Modern Language Course (2022 or higher) 3
Select one of the following: 3
Art History: Renaissance to Modern
Art History: Modern Art (Twentieth Century)
Art History: Art of the Non-Western World 2
Music Literature and History
or other Fine Arts course
 Hours16-17
Semester Two
EGL 102 Composition II 3
SPE 103 Effective Speech 3
PSY 120
Human Development
or Child Psychology
3
Select one Science course with lab: 4
One science course must be from the Life Sciences (LS) and one science course must be from the Physical Sciences (PS)
Introduction to Life Science (LS)
Introduction to Environmental Science (LS) 2
General College Biology I (LS)
Introduction to Earth Science (PS)
Physical Geology (PS)
Historical Geology (PS)
Select one of the following: 3
United States History from 1877
American Government
Introduction to Sociology 1
The Individual in Modern Society
 Hours16
Second Year
Semester One
PSY 202
Social Psychology 1
or Adult Psychology
3
Select one Science course without lab: 3
One science course must be from the Life Sciences (LS) and one science course must be from the Physical Sciences (PS)
Human Genetics (LS)
Plants and Society (LS) 2
Introduction to Weather and Climate (PS)
Environmental Geology (PS)
Select one of the following: 3
Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology 2
World Religions 2
International Relations 2
Introduction to Global Studies 2
Select one of the following: 3
Introduction to Physical Anthropology
Social Problems 4
Sociology of Race and Ethnicity 1
Introduction to Ethnic Studies 1
Select one of the following: 3
Multicultural Literature in the U.S.
Introduction to Fiction
Introduction to Literature
Multicultural Literature in the U.S. 1
LGBTQ+ Literature 1
Women and Literature 1
Introduction to African-American Literature 1
American Literature II (from The Civil War To The Present) 1
 Hours15
Semester Two
Now that you have completed your required general education courses as well as the psychology courses to prepare you for a future major in Psychology, you can choose to take electives to fulfill your last 13 to 15 credit hours. We recommend you choose one to three courses from Social and Behavioral Sciences and/or one to three Humanities/Fine Arts courses from those listed in the previous semesters that you have not yet taken or from other IAI General Education Courses. 13-15
 Hours13-15
 Total Hours60-63
1

Course fulfills the U.S. Diversity Studies requirement. At least one U.S. Diversity Studies course is required for degree completion.

2

Course fulfills the Global Studies requirement. At least one Global Studies course is required for degree completion.

3

Transfer institutions may have a language requirement. Any Modern Language Intermediate II course can meet the Humanities and Global Studies requirements.

4

Course fulfills both the Global Studies and U.S. Diversity Studies requirements.

Note: Pre-major is a recommended sequence and selection of courses. See Associate in Arts (A.A.) page for degree requirements.