Research
At Wheaton, the faculty in the Psychobiology Program believes that students learn best by doing. Asking a question on your own, getting your hands dirty as you wrestle with finding the answer--these are experiences that are not forgotten, and from which much more is learned than a simple list of facts. To that end, we strongly encourage our students pursue independent research. In some cases, that research may be a project designed and developed by a faculty member; in other cases, it may be a project of the student's own design. In either case, students may receive academic credit for their research efforts, and typically present their work at local and/or national conferences.
Psychobiology majors at Wheaton are required to complete a documented capstone experience of no less than 120 hours, generally after their 6th semester. Many of these (although not all) are research experiences, either on or off campus. In all cases, the capstone experience should be one that allows the student to integrate a wide variety of the courses he or she has taken to complete the Psychobiology major, and to see how this material has applications to the world outside Wheaton. For more information about possible research experiences on campus, speak to the faculty member with whom you'd like to work or to one of the Psychobiology major co-coordinators.
