Frequently Asked Questions

The graduate program in Lifespan Developmental Psychology prepares individuals for careers aimed at enhancing our understanding of human development across the lifespan. Consistent with the scientist-practitioner model guiding all graduate programs in the department, Lifespan Developmental students are encouraged to cultivate a broad, basic knowledge of psychology, to obtain a solid background in statistics and research methodology, and to be involved actively in research efforts throughout their course of study.

Students are admitted who are strong academically, show an aptitude for research, and whose interests match well with the interests of a program faculty member. Students who are particularly interesting in working with a specific faculty member are encouraged to contact that faculty member. Students whose interests do not coincide with the foci of the developmental program will generally not be considered for admission.

The flexibility in program design offered by the individual committee system provides a range of opportunities to develop competence in areas such as college/university teaching and research in basic and applied settings.

In selecting students for the graduate program in Lifespan Developmental Psychology, both traditional academic qualifications and relevant research-related experiences are considered, along with the match between the applicant's research interests and those of the faculty.

NC State University no longer accepts paper application packages; all applications are handled through the Graduate School and the on-line application system. If you need to contact the Graduate School for any other reason, you may do so by telephone (919-515-2872) or by writing to: The Graduate School, NC State University (Box 7102), Raleigh, NC 27695-7102.

The deadline for Fall enrollment is Jan 1. (Important Note: Applications and all supporting documents must be received on or before the Graduate School Deadlines or the Program Deadlines, whichever is earlier. In cases where deadlines shown below do not explicitly distinguish international from domestic deadlines, the Graduate School deadline for internationals takes precedence where it is earlier.)

Psychology Graduate School Program Director: Donald H. Mershon, Campus Box: 7650, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, Phone:(919) 515-1724, Fax: (919) 515-1716, Email: psych@ncsu.edu

GRE required, Psychology GRE recommended.

Consult pages 9-16 of the Psychology Graduate Student Handbook for a detailed table of the process.

There are a variety of funding opportunities available to graduate students. The four basic types of assistance are fellowships, teaching/research assistantships, federal work study and loans. Please view information provided by The Graduate School about the types of funding available for graduate education.

NC State provides information on financial aid through the Office of Scholarships & Financial Aid. You can also find fellowship information available to NC State Graduate Students.

Nationally Competitive Graduate Student Fellowships

The FAFSA is available online at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/index.htm.

A full-time course load in fall and spring semesters is 9-15 credit hours (including audits). Students enrolled for summer session are considered full time when taking 3-6 credit hours per session (including audits).

All Lifespan Developmental students must take PSY 584 within their first semester of enrollment. Students are also required to take PSY 785 (offered even-numbered Springs) within the first two years of study. Lifespan Developmental students are also required to take PSY 786 (even-numbered springs), PSY 787 (odd-numbered springs), PSY 788 (even-numbered falls) and PSY 789 (odd-numbered falls) during the first three years of their program. Students should be aware that PSY 584 satisfies one of the Departmental core course requirements. In addition, PSY 785 will fulfill the additional statistics/method course requirement at the doctoral level. Students are also strongly encouraged to take PSY 591 (History & Systems) if they have not had such a course prior to entering the NCSU graduate program.

There are separate plans of study for both the M.S. and Ph.D. which include a minimum of 36 credit hours. Students who have obtained their master's degree from another university must have a minimum of 54 hours in their Doctoral plan of study. Each plan must include at least 24 hours of courses (not directed study, research or teaching).

Students utilize the TRACS Schedule of Courses to determine the courses that are available. Then students utilize the TRACS Link system to register.

Students are expected to attend and participate in the weekly Lifespan Developmental Area Seminar, an informal series (held on Wednesdays from 12:15-1:30 every other week) at which students and faculty meet to discuss ongoing research, development projects, and professional issues. Every member of the Lifespan Developmental program will be responsible for presenting at one session, with sessions assigned according to seniority; faculty first, followed by senior and then junior students. Students will register for 1 credit of PSY 820D during the Spring semester, with an S/U grade being assigned based on attendance and involvement during both semesters.

The Lifespan Developmental Area Seminar is a weekly meeting of all faculty and registered students in the Developmental program. There are several goals for the seminar. Its primary intent is to provide an intellectual community for Developmental scientists at NC State. A secondary goal is to enhance the professional development of students within a collegial group, and a tertiary goal is to allow faculty to provide formative feedback regarding the quality and direction of students' research programs at a time when it is most valuable.

Student presentations should focus on their current and planned research, with an emphasis on the generative aspects of the research process. That is, their presentation should focus more on thoughts about specific issues that are relevant to the formulation of their conceptual and empirical framework for future work than on reports of completed research.

The basic form for submitting a Plan of Work (including the identification of one's Graduate Advisory Committee, the topic of the thesis or dissertation, and the courses which need to be taken) is a university document. To submit a POW for approval by the Director of Graduate Programs, students must also provide a properly completed and signed Checklist. These checklists are intended to confirm that both the student and his/her Committee Chair have determined that all departmental requirements have been met. The DGP will assume that the signatures of all Committee members on the POW certifies that any/all program-specific requirements have been met. The Plan of Work document is available on the documents and forms page of the Psychology department website.

First-year students at the Masters or Doctoral level are expected to become involved in research activities upon their enrollment in the program. This requirement can be fulfilled in two ways:

• A student who has either a 9 or 12-month research assistantship associated with a psychologically oriented research program will automatically satisfy this requirement. The assistantship must involve a minimum of 10 hours per week (1/4 time).
• Students who do not have an assistantship may satisfy this requirement by affiliating themselves with the research team of one of the Developmental area faculty and serving a 9-month apprenticeship. Typically, this would involve getting "hands-on" experience in all phases of ongoing research projects. The expected level of involvement is 6 hours during the Fall semester and 10 hours during the Spring semester. In many cases, students can use this apprenticeship in developing ideas for their thesis or dissertation.

The expectation is that this apprenticeship will develop into a continuous involvement in research that forms an integral part of the student's training throughout graduate school.

The following represents a nonexhaustive list of materials or activities that should be included and/or documented in the area exam portfolio.

Goal 1

• Continuous involvement in research activities (e.g., attendance at lab meetings, participation in first-year apprenticeship, conducting independent and/or collaborative research).
• Well-articulated research interests and direction (e.g., statement of research interests, thesis proposal).
• Basic methodological and quantitative skills (e.g., coursework, thesis proposal, research papers, participation in design of studies and analyses of data).
• Mastery of current literature (e.g., coursework, bibliography of independent readings).
• Demonstrated computer literacy (e.g., ability to use statistical program packages or to use a programming language/package to design experiments.

Goal 2

• Written communications (e.g., samples of class papers, all research manuscripts, including conference presentations).
• Oral communications (e.g., thesis proposal/defense, presentation at Developmental Area Seminar, in-class presentations, research presentations at meetings, teaching evaluations).

Goal 3

• Participation in and contribution to the psychological/intellectual community at NCSU (e.g., attendance at colloquia, participation in seminars/classes, service on student or departmental committees).
• Participation in the psychological/intellectual community outside of NCSU (e.g., attendance at Consortium colloquia, association membership, conference attendance, participation in graduate student professional organizations).
• Self-evaluation and vita.

The purpose of the preliminary examination process is to establish a student's readiness to undertake dissertation research. Successful completion of prelims marks the end of formal training in content area, as the dissertation constitutes an independent and original contribution to the discipline's body of knowledge. Hence, students must demonstrate that they are prepared to advance the understanding of developmental psychology and function as professionals within the field. Specifically, performance must provide evidence of the following skills and competencies.

• Content knowledge: Mastery of major work in the area of developmental psychology. Identification and application of current research and familiarity with recent developments (including contemporary debates). Thought is at the cutting edge, at least in the area of broad specialization. Information follows from review of primary sources.
• Application of a conceptual framework: Constructs are clearly and defensibly defined and operationalized. Issues are addressed within an appropriate theoretical context. Developmental issues are given full consideration. Historical and philosophical perspective are provided. Recommendations for practice follow from theoretical and empirical bases.
• Methodological expertise: Critical review of research design and analysis is an integral component of literature review. Potential confounds, measurement issues, potential for generalizability addressed in presentation of research.
• Original thought: Work reflects student's analysis and synthesis of literature. Material from different specialty areas and/or traditions is integrated. Directions for furthering understanding of topic are identified.
• Highly-developed argumentation: Underlying assumptions articulated. Clear conclusions are reached, based on the evidence presented. Conclusions are well-supported. Rationale for further research is provided.

Additional required reading, including book chapters and journal articles for classes are available online through the University's electronic reserve collection. Course e-reserves are available online.

One of the core Lifespan Developmental area faculty must be included as either chair or co-chair of both the Master's and Doctoral committee. In addition, both committees must also include at least two members (including the chair or co-chair) of the core area faculty.