Cheng, Clara

Bernstein, Joshua

Education PhD, School Psychology, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pa.Certification in Primary and Secondary School Counseling, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pa.MA, Counseling Psychology, Antioch University Seattle, Seattle, Wash.BA, Psychology, The Evergreen State College, … Continued

Learn how children grow and evolve

You will develop a scientific approach to the study of human behavior and experience in Carlow University’s Bachelor of Arts in Psychology program. As a Child Development Psychology major, you will investigate the biological, behavioral, emotional, cognitive and social factors that shape how humans grow and change. This concentration is helpful if you wish to pursue employment or graduate training in developmental psychology, counseling and fields in which additional knowledge of children’s growth and development is helpful.

By the end of the program, you will be ready to enter training in social service and mental health programs in areas such as therapeutic activities, rehabilitation, casework, child care work and service coordination.

The program provides a foundation for graduate study in psychology and counseling but can be a path to other careers. You can go on to law school or graduate school or work in business, education or other fields.

BA Psychology curriculum

In the Child Development Psychology major you must satisfy the regular requirements for the major and complete at least 9 credits in human development. You can complete an internship at a local facility or conduct field research. 

Quick facts

• Dig deeper in the study of children’s growth
• Collaborate with faculty on research
• Gain real-world career experience with an internship

Alternate degree completion options

3-Year Degree

Finish your bachelor’s degree in three years by following a 3-year academic plan. Courses are taken across fall, spring and summer terms with summer courses completely online. When applying, indicate your interest in the 3-Year Degree option.

Accelerated

Fast track your way to a master’s by taking graduate courses as an undergraduate student. Course credits count toward both degrees. Apply for the accelerated option after your sophomore year.

Admission requirements and application process

A well-rounded college experience

Psychology major Morgan Mattie ’21 liked the amount of care and respect shown by Carlow advisors. “I never felt like just another student to them, they always had my best interest in mind and knew me well enough to help me make the best decisions for me. The psychology program is so well-rounded and really helps you understand not only psychology as a whole, but also your specific track.”

Psychology faculty

Clara Cheng, PhD Chair, Professor, Psychology

Patricia Jameson, PhD, NBCCH Associate Professor, Psychology

Jennifer Roth, PhD Professor, Psychology

Transform lives, transform your career.

The mission of the Master of Social Work (MSW) Program at Carlow University is to educate and prepare ethical, compassionate professionals committed to a more just and merciful world. The MSW program promotes a trauma and research informed approach to professional social work practice to promote human and societal well-being and human rights. The program is committed to preparing exemplary leaders to critically engage in service to and advocacy for diverse populations and complex systems using a cultural humility lens to promote racial, social, economic, and environmental justice.

Master of Social Work Program Specializations

Direct Practice

Macro Practice

Macro Practice specialization is designed to develop strengths-based and trauma-informed ethical leaders and managers of human services organizations and social change leaders who advance human well-being. Students are taught best practices for working with larger systems, including communities, organizations, and societies. 

The macro curriculum is grounded in a commitment to human rights and social, economic, and environmental justice. It is designed for students seeking a future in:

• human services leadership and management
• policy analysis and advocacy
• social change leadership at the local, state, and national levels

School Social Work

School Social Work specialization builds on key components of the MSW program’s direct practice track, teaching best practices for various assessment and intervention methods in working with individuals, families, and groups in schools and school-based settings.  

The school social work curriculum is grounded in the person-in-the-environment framework, trauma-informed approaches, human rights, and social and economic justice.

This specialization provides students with the knowledge and skills required for ethical leadership within:

• schools
• across larger educational programs and systems
• for policy practice related to public and private preschool, elementary, and secondary schools

Who can apply?

You do not need a BSW to enter the MSW Program.  People with a wide variety of undergraduate degrees can enter the MSW program to become a social worker.  Traditional MSW students can earn their MSW at Carlow by taking a minimum of 60 credits.

Advanced Standing track

If you already have a BSW from an CSWE-accredited program, you will qualify for application for advanced standing. This track allows you to complete this degree at Carlow in as few as 18 months (39 credits).

Students who have earned an undergraduate social work degree from a Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) accredited program within the past 7 years qualify for advanced standing status.  Advanced standing students are able to earn their MSW at Carlow by taking a minimum of 39- credits (an undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or above is required for advanced standing status).

Be supported at Carlow

What stood out for MSW graduate Brandy Patterson ’20 was how supportive Carlow’s faculty and staff were, especially in the Social Work Program. “I always felt like I was able to reach out to whomever I needed at the time to get the help that I needed. If I were to give a yelp review for the Masters of Social Work program I would say it is very supportive and flexible which is great for adult students. You will never feel alone or lost in this program.”

Admission requirements and application process

You can apply for free online, and must submit the following materials:

*Summer start is possible for advanced standing only

MSW faculty

Learn from world-class faculty devoted to your future success who are actively practicing and publishing in the discipline. Our six full-time faculty have a combined total of 100+ years of experience in the practice of teaching or in the field of social work 

Clara Cheng, PhD Chair, Professor, Psychology

Patricia Jameson, PhD, NBCCH Associate Professor, Psychology

Jennifer Roth, PhD Professor, Psychology

Minor in Crisis & Trauma

Study the various forms of crisis and trauma situations and how to support those in distress through this interdisciplinary minor with Psychology and Social Work. With a minor in Crisis and Trauma, you will focus on crisis situations that may be personal, such as death or assault or community-wide events such as natural disasters or threats to public health.

You will learn about the types of trauma, including acute, chronic and complex trauma as well as vicious or secondary trauma. You will gain an understanding of the physical, psychological and emotional symptoms of traumatic experiences to become better informed and ultimately a more competent professional in your career field of choice.

Crisis & trauma curriculum

The minor in Crisis and Trauma is offered to students who are not majoring in Psychology or Social Work. The coursework introduces students to the field of psychological trauma, different forms of abuse and violence, trauma responses and symptoms, and available treatment options and resources.

Elective courses include Psychology courses focused on children and on women, family counseling, substance abuse counseling, parenting, and death and dying.

This minor requires 18 credits.

Minor in Neuroscience

You can expand your physical science major with a minor in neuroscience. You will study how the functions and mechanisms of the nervous system affect behavior in animals and humans in conjunction with your major studies in biology, chemistry or psychology.

Behavioral Neuroscience Minor Curriculum

This minor is designed for students not majoring in Behavioral Neuroscience and is open to any major. A minimum of 21 credits is required;10 must be taken at Carlow University.

Learn to understand the relationship between brain and behavior

Earn a Behavioral Neuroscience degree in the neuropsychology track

The neuropsychology program will give you new insights into how the brain thinks, reasons, formulates and processes. 

You will be prepared to work in neuropsychology and clinical psychology, where neuropsychological assessments are an important part of clinical work. With the behavioral neuroscience degree, you will gain knowledge of the biological and physiological mechanisms that drive the nervous system and better understand the relationship between the brain and behavior. 

The Behavioral Neuroscience major is an interdisciplinary program that builds on the strengths of Carlow University’s biology, psychology and chemistry programs.  

Neuroscience degree curriculum

Carlow’s neuroscience program allows undergraduates to take courses in neuropsychology as well as to learn under scholar-practitioners. The curriculum includes a genetics course in which students investigate the maintenance, inheritance, transfer and expression of genetic information at the molecular, cellular, organismal and population levels. The cognitive psychology course explores its basic concepts and contemporary topics, such as will perception, attention, pattern recognition, consciousness, memory, the representation of knowledge, language, cognitive development, thinking and artificial intelligence.

Quick facts

• Gain hands-on learning experiences

• Leverage Carlow’s relationships with nearby research centers 

• Be prepared for graduate work in psychology and neuropsychology

• Start taking Master’s courses as an undergraduate and earn a graduate degree faster for less money

Alternate degree completion option

3-Year Degree

Finish your bachelor’s degree in three years by following a 3-year academic plan. Courses are taken across fall, spring and summer terms with summer courses completely online. When applying, indicate your interest in the 3-Year Degree option.

Accelerated

Fast track your way to a master’s by taking graduate courses as an undergraduate student. Course credits count toward both degrees. Apply for the accelerated option after your sophomore year.

Admission requirements and application process

Behavioral Neuroscience faculty

Clara Cheng, PhD Chair, Professor, Psychology

Patricia Jameson, PhD, NBCCH Associate Professor, Psychology

Jennifer Roth, PhD Professor, Psychology

Find your psychology and counseling degree at Carlow

Carlow University’s counseling and psychology-related programs will equip you with the tools and principles of communication needed to understand and predict the human experience. You’ll learn about the cognitive, biological and developmental aspects of psychology in coursework that include crisis and trauma, development, abnormal psychology and forensic psychology. Internship and research experiences in the Pittsburgh region add to the depth and breadth of the program. 

Understand human behavior and create real change: Psychology major 

Are you curious about why people behave the way they do? Do you want to learn about factors that lead to racism? Are you interested in understanding mental health challenges how to treat them? As a Psychology major at Carlow, you will gain broad-based knowledge in human behavior and experience from a scientific perspective by exploring research methodology and critical analysis in various fields of psychology, such as counseling, developmental, cognitive, social and biological psychology. In addition, the Psychology program at Carlow offers optional concentrations in counseling, crisis and trauma, and child development for those interested in a deeper dive into those areas of interest. 

By the time you graduate from Carlow’s Psychology degree program, you will be ready to enter training in social service and mental health programs in areas such as therapeutic activities, rehabilitation, casework, child care work and service coordination. In addition, the Psychology degree program provides a solid foundation for graduate study in psychology and counseling, and can serve as a path to other careers, such as law, business, education or other fields. 

Bachelor’s in Psychology curriculum

The bachelor’s in Psychology program requires 34 credits in psychology plus 9 credits in supplemental coursework in English and Communication. Psychology coursework includes Introduction to Psychology, Lifespan Development, and upper-level courses in Social Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Personality Theory, and Biological Bases of Behavior. In addition, you are trained in statistics and research methods via a three-course sequence. A series of “Designing Your Life” courses help you prepare for careers in psychology and beyond, culminating in a senior capstone course that integrates different knowledge you have gained in psychology. A variety of elective courses allow you to explore your own areas of interest, such as Forensic Psychology, Psychology of Women, Abnormal Psychology, and more. You may also opt for an internship experience in a local facility or conduct faculty-led research. In addition, you may choose one or more concentrations in, counseling, crisis and trauma, and child development.

Concentrations

Counseling 

This track will acquaint you with pre-professional-level counselor training and professional knowledge and skills needed ot help people in a variety of social service and mental health settings. You will satisfy the regular requirements for the psychology major plus complete at least 12 credits in counseling, such as. Introduction to Counseling, Family Counseling, Substance Abuse Counseling, and more. This concentration cannot currently be completed online. 

Child Development 

In the Child Development concentration, you will investigate the biological, behavioral, emotional, cognitive and social factors that shape how humans grow and change. This concentration is helpful if you wish to pursue employment or graduate training in developmental psychology, counseling and fields in which additional knowledge of children’s growth and development is helpful. You will satisfy the regular requirements for the psychology major plus complete at least 9 credits in human development, such as Child Psychology, Adolescent Psychology, Children’s Play, Parenting, and more. This concentration can be completed online asynchronously. 

Crisis and Trauma 

The Crisis and Trauma track will acquaint you with pre-professional-level trauma and crisis counselor training and provide a solid foundation in theory and research pertaining to crisis, abuse and trauma. You’ll focus on crisis assessment, intervention and management and study specific issues such as child abuse prevention and treatment, partner violence and the impact of trauma on individuals and families as well. You will satisfy the regular requirements for the psychology major plus complete at least 12 credits in crisis and trauma, such as Impact of Trauma, Crisis Intervention, Grief and Loss Across the Lifespan, and more. This concentration can be completed online; some classes are offered in an online synchronous format. 

Quick facts

• Collaborate with faculty on research 
• Complete an internship at a local facility
• Start taking Master’s courses as an undergraduate and earn a graduate degree faster for less money

Alternate degree completion options

Online Degree

Gain the knowledge you need at your convenience with our online degree option. When applying, indicate your interest in the online option.

3-Year Degree

Finish your bachelor’s degree in three years by following a 3-year academic plan. Courses are taken across fall, spring and summer terms with summer courses completely online. When applying, indicate your interest in the 3-Year Degree option.

Accelerated

Fast track your way to a master’s by taking graduate courses as an undergraduate student. Course credits count toward both degrees. Apply for the accelerated option after your sophomore year.

Admission requirements and application process 

Psychology faculty

Clara Cheng, PhD Chair, Professor, Psychology

Patricia Jameson, PhD, NBCCH Associate Professor, Psychology

Jennifer Roth, PhD Professor, Psychology