In order to graduate with a degree from any of the graduate Psychology programs, students must take and pass the comprehensive examination.  The exam is given once each semester in the fall and the spring on a Saturday.  Students are given three attempts to pass the exam.  Failure to pass on the third try will result in not being able to graduate with the degree at all.  Students will often apply to take the exam a semester or two prior to their anticipated graduation date to allow for the event of failing the exam on the first try. 

In order to apply to take the comprehensive exam, students must have completed a minimum of 18 credits, including the three courses in section one and at least three courses in section two.  Students must also have a GPA of at least 3.0.  The application to take the comprehensive exam is available on the graduate school’s website at http://www.montclair.edu/graduate/current/forms.shtml?index=4 or on the Bb Community: Psychology Graduate Programs.

For up-to-date information regarding this exam, please visit the Blackboard Community: Psychology Graduate Programs.  This community is available only to matriculated students in any Psychology graduate program.  If you cannot access it, please send an email to: ambrosel@mail.montclair.edu.

The comprehensive exam will have two sections.  The first section takes place in the morning from 9:00am to 12:00pm and the second section takes place from 1:00pm to 4:00pm.  Students are given a one-hour break between sections.  Section I contains questions generated from required courses for each degree program and section II contains questions generated specifically from the specialization and elective courses included in a given program/concentration, as listed below:

 SECTION I (Methodology/Core Courses)

 Students in the M.A. General Psychology program (including I/O) must complete one question based on each of the following courses:

            PSYC 510: Research Methods in Psychology

            PSYC 550: Quantitative & Statistical Methods

            PSYC 578: Psychological Tests & Measurements

Students must complete all three questions.  There may sometimes be more than one question to choose from for any given course.

Students in the M.A. Educational Psychology program (including Child/Adol. & Bi-Lingual Clinical) must complete one question based on each of the following courses:

            PSYC 510: Research Methods in Psychology

            PSYC 561: Developmental Psychology

            PSYC 578: Psychological Tests & Measurements

Students must complete all three questions.  There may sometimes be more than one question to choose from for any given course.

 SECTION II (Specialization/Elective Courses)

In Section II of the examination, students will be required to answer three questions generated from the specialization and elective courses listed below for each program/concentration:

 M.A. Psychology—NO CONCENTRATION

            PSYC 552: Social Psychology

            PSYC 561: Developmental Psychology

            PSYC 563: Theories of Learning

            PSYC 565: Child & Adolescent Psychopathology

            PSYC 573: Behavioral Neuroscience

            PSYC 582: Behavior Modification

            PSYC 667: Abnormal Psychology

 M.A. Psychology—I/O CONCENTRATION

            PSYC 554: Psychology of Business & Industry

            PSYC 558: Personnel Psychology

            PSYC 571: Organizational Psychology

            PSYC 658: Seminar in Industrial Organizational Psychology

 M.A. Educational Psychology—NO CONCENTRATION

            PSYC 552: Social Psychology

            PSYC 563: Theories of Learning

            PSYC 565: Child & Adolescent Psychopathology

            PSYC 573: Behavioral Neuroscience

            PSYC 582: Behavior Modification

            PSYC 667: Abnormal Psychology

 M.A. Educational Psychology—CHILD/ADOLESCENT CLINICAL CONCENTRATION

            PSYC 563: Theories of Learning

            PSYC 565: Child & Adolescent Psychopathology

            PSYC 574: Individual Intelligence Testing

            PSYC 575: Projective Techniques I

            PSYC 582: Behavior Modification

            PSYC 593: Clinical Interviewing

            PSYC 670: Introduction to Psychotherapy

In addition to questions based on the content of the above courses, one of the three questions to be answered in this section may be a case study requiring a discussion of theoretical underpinnings, diagnostic criteria, and treatment applications.

 M.A. Educational Psychology—BI-LINGUAL CLINICAL CONCENTRATION

            PSYC 551: Mental Health Issues of Hispanics

            PSYC 574: Individual Intelligence Testing

            PSYC 575: Projective Techniques I

            PSYC 593: Clinical Interviewing

            PSYC 667: Abnormal Psychology

            PSYC 670: Introduction to Psychotherapy

In addition to questions based on the content of the above courses, one of the three questions to be answered in this section may be a case study requiring a discussion of theoretical underpinnings, diagnostic criteria, and treatment applications.