Master of Science in Psychology

Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences

Drexel University’s Master of Science (MS) in Psychology is the ideal foundation for students who wish to pursue advanced education in scientific psychology and research methods. Our research-based program allows students to take their first step into graduate education and begin a steady path toward more advanced educational and career opportunities. Our curriculum introduces students to and immerses them in a range of research experiences in neurocognitive and behavioral sciences. In addition to rigorous coursework, students complete a minimum of eight hours per week of faculty-mentored laboratory research; these activities contribute to the successful completion of the master’s thesis project.

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Program Format

Full-time, two-year, 45 credit program.
Required courses in statistics and research methods.
Many opportunities for electives in psychology and related disciplines.
Focused study in forensic psychology, cognitive neuroscience, behavioral/health or analytic methods possible.
Flexible options for thesis completion.

Application Requirements Program Advisor Plan of Study

Program Overview

Drexel University’s Master of Science (MS) in Psychology is the ideal foundation for students who wish to pursue advanced education in scientific psychology and research methods. Our research-based program allows students to take their first step into graduate education and begin a steady path toward further educational and career opportunities. The master’s curriculum introduces students to a range of immersive research experiences in neurocognitive and behavioral sciences. In addition to rigorous coursework, students complete a minimum of eight hours per week of faculty-mentored laboratory research; these activities contribute to the successful completion of the master’s thesis.

In this full-time, two-year, 45 credit program students receive the same individualized, committed mentorship model as our doctoral-level students. Master’s students are able to take advanced graduate courses and work alongside their mentors and other students in our tight-knit, collaborative research environment. The master’s program curriculum is customized to fit the unique interests of each student and offers opportunities for focused study with coursework in forensic psychology, cognitive neuroscience, behavioral/health and analytic methods.

Career Outcomes

About half of our students enter the workforce with a terminal master’s degree and establish themselves in positions as research coordinators at hospitals, universities and pharmaceutical companies. For our remaining students, the master’s degree serves as a solid foundation in psychology prior to entry into advanced doctoral programs. These scholars typically go on to pursue careers as clinical psychologists and cognitive neuroscientists in clinical practice, academic medical center, university and industry settings.

Our Mentorship Model

Graduate research is integral to building the intellectual life, growth and reach of the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences. An important feature of our master’s program is that students are not assigned faculty mentors — prospective students select mentors best suited to their unique program of study and interview with them as part of the application process. Once admitted, they work with the faculty mentor of their choice.

Students receive dedicated mentorship and critical hands-on training as active, contributing members of faculty research labs. These students often present their research at national and international scientific meetings and serve as co-authors on publications with their faculty mentors in distinguished, peer-reviewed journals.

Research Areas and Labs

The master’s program fits the unique interests of each student with opportunities for focused study in forensic psychology, cognitive neuroscience, behavioral/health and analytic methods. Department faculty include world-class clinical and cognitive scientists who lead exploration across six core areas of research in psychological and brain sciences. Additionally, the department is home to the WELL Center, an interdisciplinary clinical research center dedicated to weight, eating and lifestyle science.

Applied Cognitive and Brain Sciences

Forensic Psychology

Health Psychology

Neuropsychology

Pediatric and Child Psychology

The WELL Center:
Weight, Eating and Lifestyle Science

Labs:
- Butryn Lab
- Forman Lab
- Juarascio Lab
- Manasse Lab
- Srivastava Lab

Faculty Accepting Students: 2022-2023

Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences faculty are dedicated educators as well as leading clinical and cognitive scientists whose diverse body of scholarship advances the frontlines of academics, discovery and practice.

Click on each faculty member’s profile to learn more about their areas of expertise and research interests.

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Faculty Members	Contact	Specialization
	Meghan Butryn, PhD Professor; Associate Department Head Stratton 286 mlb34@drexel.edu	Obesity prevention and treatment; Physical activity promotion; Lifestyle modification; Behavioral therapy; Cancer prevention and survivorship
	Evangelia Chrysikou, PhD Director, Applied Cognitive and Brain Sciences PhD program; Associate Dean for Research; Associate Professor Stratton 324 lilachrysikou@drexel.edu	Cognitive neuroscience; neuropsychology; neural bases of language, memory, and executive functions; neurocognitive processes associated with problem solving and flexible thought; functional neuroimaging and non-invasive brain stimulation in healthy and psychiatric populations (mood and anxiety disorders); translational neuroscience
	Kathryn Devlin, PhD Assistant Research Professor Stratton 123 knd52@drexel.edu	NeuroHIV, Aging and neurodegenerative disease, Diagnosis and prognosis, Cognitive heterogeneity, Structural equation modeling, Functional impairment
	Evan Forman, PhD Professor Stratton 282 evan.forman@drexel.edu	Health behavior change, obesity, weight loss; Technological innovations to promote health behavior change; Innovations in cognitive-behavioral treatments; The development and evaluation of acceptance-based interventions for health behavior change; Neurocognition of eating
	Pamela Geller, PhD Director, Clinical Training; Associate Professor, Ob/Gyn and Public Health Stratton 280 pg27@drexel.edu	Clinical and health psychology; Stressful life events and mental and physical health outcomes particularly in the area of women's reproductive health
	Kirk Heilbrun, PhD Professor Stratton 334 kirk.heilbrun@drexel.edu	Forensic mental health assessment; Violence risk assessment; Risk management; Interventions to reduce risk
	Adrienne Juarascio, PhD Director, Practicum Training; Assistant Professor Stratton 288 asj32@drexel.edu	Treatment development and Evaluation for Eating Disorders, Acceptance-based Behavioral Treatments, Using Technology to Augment Behavioral Treatment Approaches
	John Kounios, PhD Applied Cognitive and Brain Sciences PhD program; Professor Stratton 318 jk342@drexel.edu	Cognitive psychology/cognitive neuroscience, focusing on human memory, problem solving, intelligence, and creativity; Specialization in electrophysiological methods (EEG, ERP), and other behavioral and neuroimaging methods (e.g., fMRI)
	Erica LaFata, PhD Assistant Research Professor es3344@drexel.edu	Clinical utility of food addiction as a unique phenotype of disordered eating, the addictive potentials of ultra-processed foods, overlapping mechanisms implicated in substance-use disorders and eating and weight disorders, assessment of addictive-like eating behaviors, treatment development for eating and weight disorders
	Nancy Raitano Lee, PhD Director of MS and BS/MS Programs; Associate Professor Stratton 290 nancy.raitano.lee@drexel.edu	Neuropsychological and neuroanatomic correlates of intellectual and developmental disabilities; Language, reading, and executive function in Down syndrome and other genetic disorders; Comorbid autism spectrum disorder symptoms in youth with genetic disorders; Neuroanatomic correlates of individual differences in typical and atypical cognition
	Stephanie M. Manasse, PhD Assistant Research Professor Stratton 244 smm522@drexel.edu	Development of novel treatments for adolescents and adults with eating disorders, impulsivity-related maintenance factors and predictors of treatment outcome, affect tolerance and regulation in eating and weight disorders, ecological momentary assessment, development and utilization of behavioral measurement methods.
	John Medaglia, PhD Assistant Professor 322 Stratton Hall John.D.Medaglia@drexel.edu	Applying models and methods developed in neuropsychology, cognitive neuroscience, and graph theory to understand and treat brain dysfunction and enhance healthy functioning.
	Christine Maguth Nezu, PhD, ABPP Professor of Psychology; Professor of Medicine Stratton 278 cn25@drexel.edu	Emotion-centered Problem-Solving Therapy (PST) for mood, personality, stress-related disorders; EC-PST as an evidence-based, trans-diagnostic intervention across many clinical problem areas and populations including Veterans/US Service Members, and their families; cinical case formulation; integrative psychotherapy approaches; emotionally-focused interventions and CBT; Departmental concentration areas of cognitive behavioral and clinical health psychology
	Arthur M. Nezu, PhD, DHL, ABPP Distinguished University Professor of Psychology; Professor of Medicine; Professor of Community Health and Prevention Stratton 268 amn23@drexel.edu	Social problem solving as a moderator/mediator of stress and psychopathology; applications of Emotion-Centered Problem-Solving Therapy; treatment and prevention of depression; treatment and prevention of suicide; behavioral health of U.S. military veterans
	Maria T. Schultheis, PhD Vice Provost of Research; Professor 3180 Chestnut Street, Suite 104 schultheis@drexel.edu	Neurorehabilitation; Application of technology to psychology; Virtual reality technology; Driving capacity after neurological compromise; Rehabilitation of functional, everyday activities
	Paakhi Srivastava, PhD Assistant Research Professor ps887@drexel.edu	Understanding factors (e.g., body image disturbances) that maintain disordered eating behaviors in real-time and real-world. Learning about how evidence-based treatments address maintenance factors to produce improvements in binge eating spectrum disorders. Development of novel treatments/treatment augmentations to better address maintenance factors and improve clinical outcomes for binge eating spectrum disorders.
	Andrea Wieckowski atw64@drexel.edu
	Fengqing Zoe Zhang, PhD Associate Professor Stratton 316 fengqing.zhang@drexel.edu	Multimodal Neuroimaging; Data Mining; Data Integration; Mobile Health; Wearable Computing

All Program Faculty

The Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences is actively engaged in vibrant research initiatives to advance the science and practice of psychology. Faculty publish widely in top-tier, peer-reviewed journals; are featured experts in national and international media; and are the recipients of major research awards from prestigious grantors including the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF).

View All

Faculty Members	Contact	Specialization
	Meghan Butryn, PhD Professor; Associate Department Head Stratton 286 mlb34@drexel.edu	Obesity prevention and treatment; Physical activity promotion; Lifestyle modification; Behavioral therapy; Cancer prevention and survivorship
	Evangelia Chrysikou, PhD Director, Applied Cognitive and Brain Sciences PhD program; Associate Dean for Research; Associate Professor Stratton 324 lilachrysikou@drexel.edu	Cognitive neuroscience; neuropsychology; neural bases of language, memory, and executive functions; neurocognitive processes associated with problem solving and flexible thought; functional neuroimaging and non-invasive brain stimulation in healthy and psychiatric populations (mood and anxiety disorders); translational neuroscience
	Brian P. Daly, PhD Department Head; Associate Professor Stratton 290 brian.daly@drexel.edu	Evidence-based psychosocial interventions for youth; school mental health promotion; prevention and resiliency in urban youth; assessment and treatment of children with chronic illness; and, adolescent risk behaviors.
	David DeMatteo, JD, PhD Director, JD/PhD Program in Law and Psychology; Professor Stratton 338 David.DeMatteo@drexel.edu	Psychopathy, forensic psychology, forensic mental health assessment, testing in forensic assessment contexts, and drug policy research
	Kathryn Devlin, PhD Assistant Research Professor Stratton 123 knd52@drexel.edu	NeuroHIV, Aging and neurodegenerative disease, Diagnosis and prognosis, Cognitive heterogeneity, Structural equation modeling, Functional impairment
	Evan Forman, PhD Professor Stratton 282 evan.forman@drexel.edu	Health behavior change, obesity, weight loss; Technological innovations to promote health behavior change; Innovations in cognitive-behavioral treatments; The development and evaluation of acceptance-based interventions for health behavior change; Neurocognition of eating
	Pamela Geller, PhD Director, Clinical Training; Associate Professor, Ob/Gyn and Public Health Stratton 280 pg27@drexel.edu	Clinical and health psychology; Stressful life events and mental and physical health outcomes particularly in the area of women's reproductive health
	Naomi E. Goldstein, PhD Co-Director of the JD/PhD Program in Law and Psychology; Professor Stratton 328 naomi.goldstein@drexel.edu	Juvenile Justice Research and Reform Lab ; Forensic psychology and juvenile justice; Juvenile justice research and program evaluation; Juvenile justice policy and practice reform; Adolescent development and decision-making capacities; Miranda rights comprehension and juvenile confessions; Juvenile probation system reform; Dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline; Addressing racial and ethnic disparities in the justice system
	Kirk Heilbrun, PhD Professor Stratton 334 kirk.heilbrun@drexel.edu	Forensic mental health assessment; Violence risk assessment; Risk management; Interventions to reduce risk
	Adrienne Juarascio, PhD Director, Practicum Training; Assistant Professor Stratton 288 asj32@drexel.edu	Treatment development and Evaluation for Eating Disorders, Acceptance-based Behavioral Treatments, Using Technology to Augment Behavioral Treatment Approaches
	John Kounios, PhD Applied Cognitive and Brain Sciences PhD program; Professor Stratton 318 jk342@drexel.edu	Cognitive psychology/cognitive neuroscience, focusing on human memory, problem solving, intelligence, and creativity; Specialization in electrophysiological methods (EEG, ERP), and other behavioral and neuroimaging methods (e.g., fMRI)
	Erica LaFata, PhD Assistant Research Professor es3344@drexel.edu	Clinical utility of food addiction as a unique phenotype of disordered eating, the addictive potentials of ultra-processed foods, overlapping mechanisms implicated in substance-use disorders and eating and weight disorders, assessment of addictive-like eating behaviors, treatment development for eating and weight disorders
	Nancy Raitano Lee, PhD Director of MS and BS/MS Programs; Associate Professor Stratton 290 nancy.raitano.lee@drexel.edu	Neuropsychological and neuroanatomic correlates of intellectual and developmental disabilities; Language, reading, and executive function in Down syndrome and other genetic disorders; Comorbid autism spectrum disorder symptoms in youth with genetic disorders; Neuroanatomic correlates of individual differences in typical and atypical cognition
	Michael Lowe, PhD Professor Stratton 284 ml42@drexel.edu	Psychobiology of eating and weight regulation (dieting, treatment and prevention of eating disorders and obesity); Social cognition (empirical study of conscious and unconscious cognitive processing)
	Stephanie M. Manasse, PhD Assistant Research Professor Stratton 244 smm522@drexel.edu	Development of novel treatments for adolescents and adults with eating disorders, impulsivity-related maintenance factors and predictors of treatment outcome, affect tolerance and regulation in eating and weight disorders, ecological momentary assessment, development and utilization of behavioral measurement methods.
	John Medaglia, PhD Assistant Professor 322 Stratton Hall John.D.Medaglia@drexel.edu	Applying models and methods developed in neuropsychology, cognitive neuroscience, and graph theory to understand and treat brain dysfunction and enhance healthy functioning.
	Christine Maguth Nezu, PhD, ABPP Professor of Psychology; Professor of Medicine Stratton 278 cn25@drexel.edu	Emotion-centered Problem-Solving Therapy (PST) for mood, personality, stress-related disorders; EC-PST as an evidence-based, trans-diagnostic intervention across many clinical problem areas and populations including Veterans/US Service Members, and their families; cinical case formulation; integrative psychotherapy approaches; emotionally-focused interventions and CBT; Departmental concentration areas of cognitive behavioral and clinical health psychology
	Arthur M. Nezu, PhD, DHL, ABPP Distinguished University Professor of Psychology; Professor of Medicine; Professor of Community Health and Prevention Stratton 268 amn23@drexel.edu	Social problem solving as a moderator/mediator of stress and psychopathology; applications of Emotion-Centered Problem-Solving Therapy; treatment and prevention of depression; treatment and prevention of suicide; behavioral health of U.S. military veterans
	Maria T. Schultheis, PhD Vice Provost of Research; Professor 3180 Chestnut Street, Suite 104 schultheis@drexel.edu	Neurorehabilitation; Application of technology to psychology; Virtual reality technology; Driving capacity after neurological compromise; Rehabilitation of functional, everyday activities
	Paakhi Srivastava, PhD Assistant Research Professor ps887@drexel.edu	Understanding factors (e.g., body image disturbances) that maintain disordered eating behaviors in real-time and real-world. Learning about how evidence-based treatments address maintenance factors to produce improvements in binge eating spectrum disorders. Development of novel treatments/treatment augmentations to better address maintenance factors and improve clinical outcomes for binge eating spectrum disorders.
	Andrea Wieckowski atw64@drexel.edu
	Fengqing Zoe Zhang, PhD Associate Professor Stratton 316 fengqing.zhang@drexel.edu	Multimodal Neuroimaging; Data Mining; Data Integration; Mobile Health; Wearable Computing

The Master’s in Psychology Thesis

Students in the master’s in psychology degree program begin working on the thesis during their first year, developing ideas and examining the existing research literature. Each student’s mentor works with them to offer guidance in all areas of thesis development: formulating a question, collecting and analyzing data, and writing the final thesis document. Students take two courses in research methods and three courses in data analysis to gain the tools and skills they will need to competently conduct their master’s thesis. More details regarding the thesis submission and binding process can be found on the Drexel Library website.

Drexel Library: Theses, Dissertations and Projects

Recent Theses

Students in our program complete theses on a wide range of topics. We proudly invite prospective students to review recent theses authored by our Master of Science in Psychology degree recipients.