To: Charla Miertachin, Dean of the College of Science and Engineering
Cmiertschin@winona.edu
Pasteur 101
507.457.5585
From: Matt Dwyer, Psychology Student
Mdwyer10@winona.edu
651.387.4161
Dear Interim Dean Charla Miertachin,
I am writing to you as a Winona State University student majoring in
psychology who believes that a degree in liberal arts and being placed in the liberal
arts department is not representative to our training and could be potentially
limiting to the students enrolled in it, along with presenting an inadequacy on the
part of the University. Throughout my coursework, we are taught to follow the
scientific method and to think like scientists when conducting research,
experiments, and statistical surveys. We are trained to think like scientists and are
treated as such within out department. As the Interim Dean of the College of Science
and Engineering, It is my belief that this is something you can identify with and
appreciate.
Despite being trained much like a student in biology or chemistry,
psychology is a part of the liberal arts department. While many other schools offer
psychology as a Bachelors of Science degree, such as nearby St. Mary’s university,
schools in the University of MN system, or the University of WI systems, WSU's
psychology program is considered a Bachelors of Arts degree at WSU. I believe that
the psychology program at WSU should be considered a part of the college of science
and engineering and that the degree offered should be a Bachelors of Science.
Being considered a Bachelors of Arts degree can put graduates going into a
research or medical field, such as neuroscience, psychiatry, clinical psychology, and
psychopharmacology, at a disadvantage against those who hold a Bachelors of
Science degree in psychology. This is due to the course work available for students
who are enrolled in a Bachelors of Science program that is not required of those
pursuing a Bachelors of Arts. According to the student resources page on the
University of Arizona’s Psychology Department website, “As you might expect, the
BS requires more intensive science courses. It also has a higher math requirement If
you can do very well in the higher level math and science courses, the BS may make
you a slightly more competitive candidate.” Generally, a Bachelor of Arts degree
focuses on more liberal arts general education courses, while a Bachelor of Science
degree will generally focus on more science and mathematics courses. Students
pursuing a Bachelors of Science in psychology may have the opportunity to take
more lab and statistics general education classes and the subject-matter area of the
degree may also focus more on research methods and applied psychology courses.
These opportunities are in addition to the extra education these students receive in
math and science courses. If a graduate school with a more science emphasized
program were to consider between a Bachelors of Arts and a Bachelors of Science
candidate, they may assume that the student with a Bachelors of Science has more
relevant experience due to the courses required in their program.
In reviewing several undergraduate programs, I believe that WSU’s
psychology program is better suited as a Bachelors of Science degree and should
therefore be included in the college of science and engineering. For example, St.
Mary’s University of Winona offers a Bachelors of Science in psychology, the only
difference in curriculum being different elective courses. The University of Arizona
offers both a Bachelors of Arts and a Bachelors of Science degree in psychology with
each tailored to different types of students. Upon analysis of the courses offered,
many of the science-based courses align with WSU’s Bachelors of Arts program.
Another example is Armstrong Atlantic State University of Georgia, which also offers
both a Bachelors of Arts and a Bachelors of Science. While the Bachelors of Science
degree requires students to take additional math courses and allows for the
opportunity to conduct research with faculty, much like WSU’s psychology program.
But Armstrong’s Bachelors of Arts program does not have these requirements but
does require additional foreign language and accounting courses that WSU’s
Bachelors of Arts does not. While the Bachelors of Arts in psychology degree at WSU
offers many of the same benefits as a comparable Bachelors of Science program,
such as the one at St. Mary’s University, the title of a Bachelors of Arts is both
misleading and inappropriate.
In conclusion, I believe that, due to the type of education and training, the
psychology program is better suited with the other sciences in your college, rather
than in liberal arts with art, theater, dance and music. I hope you take this into
consideration when reviewing and restructuring programs for next fall.
Thank you.
- Matt Dwyer