The Department of Psychology and Neuroscience聽consists of over 50 faculty members, more than 90 graduate students,聽2,500-plus undergraduate Psychology majors, and more than 450 Neuroscience majors. Graduate students work closely with their faculty mentors and interact extensively with each other. Interdisciplinary study is encouraged and facilitated by several interdepartmental institutes. The University of Colorado is an affirmative action, equal opportunity institution. The department encourages applications from minority students and has special programs for their support.
Setting
The , located in at the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains, 25 miles northwest of , has an enrollment of more than 30,000 students. Boulder and the University lie at the center of a vibrant community of nearly 100,000 population. It is a short drive to the 14,000 foot peaks of the Continental Divide; the Boulder campus is within walking distance of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. The city is protected by the mountains so that its weather in the winter is relatively mild and in the summer sunny and dry. The entrance to , downtown Denver, and access to summer and winter recreation areas are all less than one hour away. There are many world-renowned ski areas within a few hours drive. Boulder has become a scientific center for the Rocky Mountain area. Close cooperation exists between the University and the聽 of the (NOAA), the (NIST), the 聽(NCAR), and the (NTIA). In addition, a number of major companies have located scientific laboratories in the area.
History
Psychology has been a part of CU鈥檚 curriculum since the University鈥檚 inception in 1876. During the early years, instruction in psychology was linked to the College of Education. The Department of Psychology was established in 1910 but remained connected to Education until 1922 when Lawrence W. Cole began to expand and develop the curriculum into experimental psychology, physiological psychology, and other areas. We can also thank Professor Cole for adding statistics to the major for the first time!
Karl F. Muenzinger, for whom our building is named, joined the faculty in 1923. He helped construct the framework of our highly rated graduate program, promoted empirical research and during his tenure as Chair (1947鈥�1953) he encouraged growth and pioneering in all areas. In 1948, Victor Raimy joined the Department and established a PhD program in clinical psychology in only one year. He chaired the conference held in Boulder in the summer of 1949, where the 鈥淏oulder Model鈥� was established. This model, now used by most clinical graduate departments around the country, stresses training clinical psychologists as 鈥渟cientists-practitioners.鈥� Since the 1950s, the department has grown and flourished, performing at the leading edge in the areas of Clinical Psychology, Behavioral Genetics, Behavioral Neuroscience, Social Psychology and Cognitive Psychology, among others.聽
In 2008 the department faculty embraced the growing contribution of neuroscience to our understanding how the brain supports behavior and mental activity by changing its name to the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience. Subsequently, in the fall of 2013, the Board of Regents approved a BA degree in neuroscience, which was developed under the leadership of department faculty. Thus, the faculty in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience are now responsible for providing undergraduates with degrees in both psychology and neuroscience.