School Description:

Welcome to the Department of Psychology!

How do people adapt to their environment? How do we deal with anxiety and stress? What are the differences between happy and unhappy people? What makes a person commit a crime? How can we reduce shyness and bullying? How are language and math skills acquired?

Carleton has offered undergraduate degrees in Psychology since 1953 and graduate degrees in Psychology since 1961

Understanding the mechanisms that underlie the thoughts, feelings, and behaviours of people is the basic goal of psychology. The discipline of psychology offers a wide variety of explanations to account for behaviour. Such an understanding not only has theoretical value, but also the potential for practical, real-world applications.

The Department of Psychology currently offers undergraduate programs in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences.Graduate programs in Psychology are offered at both the master’s and doctoral levels. Psychology is a part of the University’s program in Criminology and Criminal Justice as well as the Child Studies program offered by the Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies.

We offer opportunities to explore all of psychology’s major areas including Social and Personality, Health, Forensic, Applied, Cognitive and Developmental. Visit our Research page to learn more about these specific areas.

The Department of Psychology is committed to excellence in teaching both inside and outside the classroom, which is provided within the context of an active and diverse research environment.

Capital Advantage
Ottawa, the nation’s capital, is home to first-class medical facilities such as the Ottawa Hospital, the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario and the Royal Ottawa Hospital, which provides specialized mental health assessment and treatment for adults, adolescents and children with a mental illness.

Undergraduate Program Description

Welcome to Undergraduate Studies in Psychology!

Carleton University’s undergraduate programs in psychology are designed to provide you with a better understanding of the world, a deeper appreciation of the complexity and diversity of human behaviour, and knowledge of the principles of systematic and empirical investigation. The insights you will gain from studying psychology will serve you throughout your life, in virtually any career.

Graduate Program Description

Welcome to Graduate Studies in Psychology!

Carleton’s graduate programs in psychology train students to use the scientific method to study mind and behaviour. Both of our graduate programs are distinctive because of their focus on research skills. Our students become experts in finding, reviewing and synthesizing information, in building experiments, in advanced data analysis and in presenting the results of their research to lay people and specialists.