Applied Cognitive Aging
Program Orientation

In preparing students to become Applied Cognitive Aging Psychologists, we emphasize basic knowledge about aging, acquisition of a working knowledge of basic and applied research techniques, and practical experience with older adults. We expect our students to be competitive in obtaining academic positions in psychology and gerontology and to be able to fill a variety of nonclinical applied roles. Whether their goal is an academic or an applied position, students will have a solid background in current knowledge, the skills to advance that knowledge, and an appreciation of the practical opportunities and problems associated with aging.

A goal of our program is to conduct research on adult development that matters. High quality applied research, whether in the laboratory or in the field, must tie into individuals' everyday lives. Such applied research is at its best when it both enriches our understanding of adult development and enlightens practice. Work in the program focuses primarily on aging from a cognitive perspective. We firmly believe that the patterns of stability and change seen in adulthood and later adulthood are rooted in past development as well as in present circumstances. We thus bring a life-span developmental perspective to the study of within-individual change, individual differences, and intervention.

Program Coursework

Much of the first year of graduate study is devoted to core classes in psychology and statistics. Beginning in the second year, students take a relatively small set of key classes in applied cognitive aging. These classes aim to achieve a solid integration of applied research findings and methods, the basic science on which they rest. Courses included are Adulthood and Aging, Industrial/Gerontology, Basic Information Processing in Applied Cognitive Aging, and Applied Cognitive Aging: Higher Processes. In addition, a two-semester research seminar provides students with the opportunity to work closely with a faculty member while obtaining hands-on experience conducting applied research.

Application-oriented classroom courses may be taken from the regularly offered classes in industrial/organizational psychology and counseling psychology as well as from special topic seminars offered occasionally by the program faculty. Most doctoral students fulfill the University foreign language requirement by completing a sequence of statistics classes. Students are encouraged to develop an interdisciplinary perspective by completing the graduate Certificate in Gerontology through the Institute for Life-Span Development and Gerontology. Practica experiences are available through the Department of Psychology and the interdisciplinary Certificate Program. Practica are developed individually to meet the particular needs of each student.