Dr. Kathleen Casto - Hormone, brain, behavior mechanisms underlying social competition and motivation with implications for mental health conditions associated with hormonal transitions (e.g., premenstrual dysphoria).

Dr. Doug Delahanty - Psychophysiological predictors and correlates of post-traumatic stress: secondary pharmacological interventions for trauma victims

Much of the research in behavioral neuroscience at Kent State is conducted in the modern and extensive Kent Hall Animal Research Facility.  The animal facility has consistently received full accreditation from the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Lab Animal Care (AAALAC). Extensive experimental equipment and surgical/histological facilities are available there. Psychobiological research with human subjects is carried out in appropriate rooms in Kent Hall and other facilities on the university campus as well as regional hospitals.

Research participation is a major focus of the behavioral neuroscience program. Students are expected to be involved in scientific investigations throughout their graduate study; typically, the initial participation involves collaboration in a faculty research project. By the end of the first year students are expected to begin an M.A. thesis based on common interests with a faculty member/adviser. Students' developing research experiences, knowledge, and independence culminate in the dissertation, usually completed by the end of the fifth year.

View the M.A. Plan of Study.

Become familiar with everything you will need for our admissions process.

Access STUDENT ADMISSIONS, OUTCOMES AND OTHER DATA on the Clinical Ph.D. students

All graduate students in the clinical program are eligible to receive financial support, usually in the form of a graduate assistantship, which includes a full tuition waiver, a stipend and some health insurance benefits.  Both research and teaching skills are advanced by the graduate assistantships. In later years, students may develop teaching skills through instruction of undergraduate psychology classes.

The Clinical Training Program is designed to expose students to a variety of empirically-supported approaches to assessment, intervention and research. Training in clinical skills begins in the first year, when students participate in clinical practica designed to begin development of basic listening, communication, assessment and conceptualization skills,  It continues during the second year when students receive supervised clinical experience in the Psychological Clinic.

Students have many resources and opportunities for developing research skills that can be applied to important clinical problems. All students are mentored by a specific faculty member, work directly in faculty research labs and can be involved in collaborative research projects with faculty and area agencies (e.g., hospitals, schools). Clinical students are expected to become active in research as soon as they enroll in the graduate program.  Initial research activities involve collaboration with faculty on their ongoing research programs.