Psychology, Ph.D., Cognitive & Affective Neuroscience

• Statement of purpose
• Resume/curriculum vitae
• Three letters of recommendation
• Transcripts (one from each institution attended)
• The GRE is not required and GRE scores will not be reviewed
• Writing sample

The statement of purpose should summarize your skills and experiences that are relevant to your particular area(s) of interest in graduate study in psychology. Discuss how your experiences might have shaped the research questions you are interested in exploring. Address the fit between your objectives and the graduate training offered at GSU (including the fit with the faculty member(s) with whom you would most like to work). We are particularly interested in specific examples that illustrate your quantitative abilities, problem-solving skills, initiative, leadership, perseverance and maturity. We are also interested in how your educational, professional, clinical (if applicable), or personal (e.g., cultural, economic or social) experiences prepare you to contribute to our department's emphasis on diversity and inclusion during your graduate career. It should be approximately 1000-1500 words.

Please submit a writing sample from your past work, preferably on a topic relevant to psychological science. There are no specific parameters or required length for the writing sample. You might submit a class paper, honors thesis, conference submission, journal article for which you are the primary author, or another writing sample that demonstrates your writing, critical thinking, and research skills.

The resume or CV should summarize your academic, research, clinical and other relevant experiences.

Previous research experience and, in the case of the Clinical and Community programs, relevant applied experience are evaluated favorably in the admission process.

Although an undergraduate major in psychology is not required, applicants are expected to have a background in psychology that includes a minimum of two courses that cover psychological statistics and research methods.

* Institutional code 5251 should be used for reporting TOEFL scores.

Please review the following resources before starting your application:

• Welcome from the Directors of Graduate Studies
• FAQs for Graduate Program Applicants
• Faculty Accepting Students

We allow a great deal of flexibility in the individual curriculum once the core courses are completed.

For more details, see the Psychology graduate handbook.

Psychology Ph.D. students are offered a monthly stipend during their first four years of graduate school as long as they remain in good standing with the department by maintaining the required GPA and meeting departmental responsibilities.

The level of support for incoming students is determined when they are accepted. No separate financial application procedure is required. All support includes a tuition waiver. Beginning students may also make application to the University’s Office of Financial Aid (404-413-2400) for non-departmental sources of aid, such as loans and university-provided scholarships.

A Ph.D. in cognitive and affective neuroscience offers training in both the methods of cognitive psychology in experimental design and cognitive constructs, and in human neuroscience methods, typically neuroimaging or other neurophsyiological measurements. The goal is to be able to contribute to the interplay of the two.