BS in Psychology

What is a BS in Psychology?

And what's the difference between a B.A. and a B.S.?

The psychology degree program at Florida Tech offers in-depth preparation for work in behavior analysis, clinical psychology, criminal justice, social work, organizational management, and law. Unique electives allow you to develop career-track concentrations in subfields such as animal learning and behavior, clinical/counseling psychology, industrial/organizational psychology, and sports psychology. The clinical psychology program is fully accredited by the American Psychological Association's Commission on Accreditation.

Diverse Concentrations

Diverse concentrations and the ability to pursue either a B.A. or B.S. degree allow students to tailor their education to their area of interest and future plans. The Bachelor of Science degree is designed for students whose interests are oriented toward the natural sciences and mathematics. Students gain a foundation in the sciences with courses such as human cognition, adult development and aging, scientific and technical communication, and psychology research methods. Students with a Bachelor of Science Psychology degree may be more interested in research, analysis, and the study of psychology topics.

• Animal Behavior:  Courses in both biological sciences and behavior analysis emphasize biological bases of behavior and species-typical learning as well as standard principles of training that cross-species lines. Most animal behavior psychology degree students also add a minor in biology. The culmination of the program is an internship within a facility or institution that emphasizes animal training, husbandry, or public education.
• Clinical Psychology:  The clinical/counseling concentration psychology degree exposes students to courses and field placements that emphasize the assessment and treatment of mental and emotional disorders. Such areas of study include substance abuse, abnormal psychology, clinical psychology, professional ethics, and assessment techniques.
• Industrial/Organizational Psychology:  This degree prepares students to enter business directly after graduation, in industrial/organizational psychology, business law, management, human resource management, organizational behavior, and substance abuse. Students who choose this concentration for their psychology degree are encouraged to add a minor in business administration.
• Neuropsychology:  This field of study focuses on the complex area of brain and behavior interactions – the relationship between the nervous system and cognitive function. Neuropsychologists study healthy humans in a laboratory setting in order to assess, manage and rehabilitate people with neurocognitive problems due to illness or brain injury.
• Psychology & Technology:  The psychology and technology concentration is a multidisciplinary course of study that includes elements of psychology, engineering, computer science, and human factors. Psychology and technology students investigate how technology influences human behavior, and how an understanding of psychology contributes to the creation and design of technologies. Students can individualize their track of study towards computer science, human factors, or engineering. A background in psychology and technology enables students to work at major companies (e.g., Apple, Microsoft, Google) as well as graduate study in Applied Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Applied Cognition, Engineering Psychology, Human Factors, and Human-Centered Design.
• Social/Cultural Psychology:  This psychology degree brings together psychology and social sciences, exploring sociology, anthropology, economics, and political science to provide a complete understanding of the human condition. A psychologist with a postgraduate degree might choose international consulting, academia, government, training, research, or even law school – particularly if a student is interested in law firms concentrating on multinational corporations, government, or international business.

Build Professional Relationships

Beyond the classroom, psychology majors build leadership experience through exciting internships and participation in academic organizations like Psi Chi (psychology honor society), the Undergraduate Psychology Student Association, student government, and over 100 other student organizations.

Earn an Advanced Degree

After receiving their psychology degree, many students go to graduate school at Florida Tech and other prestigious universities, including Boston College and Ohio State.

It All Started With 37 Cents

Florida Tech was founded in 1958 as "Brevard Engineering College." It all started as an idea in the mind of Jerome P. Keuper, a visionary physicist working at Cape Canaveral.

As university lore would have it, Keuper expressed his desire to create a scientific and technological university to a friend over drinks at a local pub. Overhearing the conversation, a fellow patron pushed 37 cents in change across the bar and said, “There’s your first donation, Jerry. Now, go and build that college.”

So, Keuper did. And what started with 37 cents as a night school for the early “missilemen” of the U.S. space program is now a comprehensive national research university recognized worldwide for excellence in preparing students for careers of the future.

Core Values

• Research for the Benefit of All Humankind
• Education for a Lifetime of Success
• Global Citizenship for a Better World

Mission Statement

Florida Institute of Technology’s mission is to provide high-quality education to a culturally diverse student body in order to prepare students for entering the global workforce, seeking higher-education opportunities, and serving within their communities. The university also seeks to expand knowledge through basic and applied research and to serve the diverse economic, cultural, and societal needs of our local, state, national and international constituencies.

In support of this mission, we are committed to:

• Promoting student development by fostering and sustaining a productive institutional culture of assessment that leads to the continuous improvement of academic and administrative programs
• Developing an organizational culture that values and encourages intellectual curiosity, a sense of belonging and shared purpose among faculty, students, and staff, and the pursuit of excellence in all endeavors
• Recruiting and developing excellent faculty to become leaders in their respective fields and internationally recognized scholars
• Achieving recognition as an effective, innovative, technology-focused educational and research institution
• Recruiting and retaining an excellent, highly select, and culturally diverse student body
• Continually improving the quality of campus life for all members of the university community
• Providing personal and career growth opportunities for both traditional and nontraditional students and members of the faculty and staff
• Securing and maintaining professional accreditation for all appropriate programs

We Are Florida Tech

What we are is a private, coeducational, residential, research-intensive, doctoral-granting university located in Melbourne on Florida’s sunny “Space Coast.” But who we are is so much more. We are a community of researchers, scholars, and learners hailing from all around the world. We are engineers, aviators, innovators, leaders, educators, athletes, and astronauts. We have the brains of rocket scientists and the hearts of Panthers. We are Florida Tech.

We Are Relentless

Florida Tech is a university of leaders and learners—a diverse community of students, staff, faculty, and alumni who are united in the relentless pursuit of greatness.

We Are International

Students from more than 90 countries worldwide choose to live and learn at Florida Tech, making us a truly global university. When we say #YouAreWelcomeHere, we mean it.

We Create The Future

One of the primary tenets of Florida Tech’s mission is advancing science and technology for the benefit of Earth and all of its inhabitants. So, that’s what we do.

We Have Panther Pride

You may feel it the first time you visit the campus, the day you graduate, or at some point in between. But when you do, you’ll see that Panther Pride is more than school spirit. It’s a family.

We Make Connections

Florida Tech is proud to be part of the Brevard County community and welcomes its neighbors to explore the many personal, professional, corporate, and cultural opportunities we have to offer.

We Are STEM

There's a reason Florida Tech is known as Florida's STEM University™. To put it simply: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math are in our DNA. This makes STEM a driving force behind who we are, what we do, and why we exist.